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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: RMF who wrote (72666)	9/26/2009 10:27:02 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224738

Going Back In Time Posted 06:53 PM ET Environmentalists: What sort of future are green groups pushing us toward? If they get their way, it will be one that won't look much different than the world our great-grandparents were born into. While some want to put an end to soft toilet paper, the Brits are moving toward a regime in which workers who discharge "more than their fair share of carbon emissions" will have their pay docked. Meanwhile, in California, regulators are hoping to ban big-screen TVs. There are no limits to which environmentalists won't go to, to put limits on human freedom and progress. Not even our personal choice of toilet paper is beyond what they believe to be their business. The Washington Post reported Thursday that environmentalists have been campaigning against soft toilet paper because of the timber needed to make it. "We don't need old-growth forests ... to wipe our behinds," said Allen Hershkowitz, senior scientist for the Natural Resources Defense Council who presumes that he speaks for everyone. The thinking in Britain is no clearer than it is here. Last week the London Times reported that a trial program in which employees are fined for exceeding their personal carbon dioxide emissions caps will be extended. "The rationing scheme monitors employees' personal emissions, including home energy bills, petrol purchases and holiday flights," writes Times environmental editor Ben Webster. "Employees are required to submit quarterly reports detailing their consumption. They are also set a target, which reduces each year, for the amount of carbon they can emit." The maximum fine is $164, but it's "likely to rise once staff have grown accustomed to the idea." For two years, WSP, an engineering consulting firm, has conducted the pilot program among 80 of its British employees. The company plans, writes Webster, to expand the program "next year to cover 3,000 employees in offices around the world." As the British wander in the eco-desert, the California Energy Commission is considering a plan that would effectively ban televisions 40 inches wide and larger through strict energy consumption standards. These luxury electronics pose no real threat to the environment. But they are easy targets for egalitarians, who are offended by symbols of wealth and consumption. What's next? What other feature of modern life will the environmentalists attack? Which convenience will they demonize? How much of the last century's advancement do they want to reverse? The public needs to understand the environmentalists' goals before we're driven back to the age of the outhouse.