(Cross posted at BuyBlue)
Viewing Al Gore's new movie titled 'An Inconvenient Truth' is quite possibly the most important thing you can do this year aside from voting. If you haven't heard about this excellent movie I'd highly encourage you to check out the web site and watch the trailer for the movie.
You'll find a great starting point for taking action on their web site on their 'Take Action' page. However, I wanted to focus on some things this 'Action' page doesn't really cover, things that BuyBlue supporters are already very in tune with.
All of you already know about the incredible power that you can wield with your wallet and there are many ways that you can put that power to work in support of this important cause. Here are 5 powerful ways to get started.
- View the movie and take friends. One of the more important things you can do is go see the movie and take as many people as you can with you. Send emails to your network of friends; make a date with your friends to go see it. Perhaps you have a conservative friend or two, drag them out to the theater and offer to pay for their ticket if you have to. You can find a list of theaters screening the movie on their site. Over the month of June this movie will open in most major cities, and I expect that more theaters will screen the film as popularity grows. With only 77 theaters the movie is in the top 10 - most blockbuster flicks are shown on 3,000+ screens.
- Get the movie screened in your city. Consult the list of theaters and ask your local theater if they plan to screen the movie. If not ask them why not and work to bring it to your city.
- Patronize companies taking action to solve the problem. Some companies are actively taking steps to help solve this problem by doing things such as creating energy efficient appliances, working on alternative energy solutions or developing high fuel efficiency cars. Vote with your wallets and show your support for these efforts. Shift money away from companies like Exxon that continue to claim there isn't a problem despite overwhelming scientific evidence. Some consider it 'greenwashing' but every other major oil company has changed their public posture on the issue while Exxon's CEO continues to say things like "We're going to be an active participant in this debate. We're just going to have to disagree."
- Talk to your power company about Green Power. Your electric company may have a program that offers Green Power - use it! The US Department of Energy has a web site where you can look up companies in your state. If your power company doesn't offer Green Power ask them why not, and encourage others in your community to do the same.
- Take on the Media. One of the facts that Gore presents in this movie is the fact that scientists, in fact, do not disagree on the subject of global warming. A survey of scientific publications was conducted and out of something like 938 publications reviewed NONE of them disagreed. However, a survey of the media shows that 53% of articles written state there is disagreement or otherwise cast doubt on the subject. Casting doubt on an issue is a tried and true tactic, heavily used by the Tobacco industry to convince that tobacco really wasn't that bad for you. Make it a habit to check for articles on Global Warming highlighted by Media Matters. Read these articles, and write to the publications responsible for them correcting their facts. You'll want to address letters, faxes and emails to the reporters that covered the story, editors of the publication and the publication's ombudsman if they have one. Most of the time you'll find email addresses within the article or on the main web site of the publication. Write your own letters to editors of your local papers and get your thoughts on the subject published. We must hold the media accountable if they refuse to do it themselves. We are all consumers of media and where choices are available you can vote with your wallet by dropping subscriptions and tuning them out.