As IF Times

Earth Hour | Twitter takes Earth Hour viral.

You have to give credit to the clever people who originally orchestrated this “World Event” some years ago.  This is the ultimate expression of that social networking phenomenon called a flash mob.  Flash mobs can be benign and amusing such as when strangers start spontaneously singing at a mall, or when people decide to go out without pants on New York’s subways.  They can have genuine influence such as the credit given to social networking for the uprisings in Egypt and the middle east.   It’s always important to catch the attention of a younger group of people, since only youth will do anything for the sole crazy reason of, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  If you’re going to try to get a mob going, start it among youth, they love the group experience.  Ever notice the green zealots?  They all have that same unkempt hair, bearded chops look.  Anyone who wants to be taken seriously in that movement, has to have the group green look.  We’re not sure why.

At the root of the flash mob phenomenon is the fun, whimsical nature of the happening.  The novelty and symbolism of  the  Earth Day event however has long passed it’s amusement factor and is instead merely kept alive by zealots who still cling to their misguided notions of how things work.  Although the hardcore nuts have managed to cajole some ‘mainstream’ groups to sponsor observance of the day, as if not observing it makes you a social pariah, the declining participation year over year shows that like all things that amuse kids, the novelty has worn off.  Earth Day is the modern Tickle Me Elmo.  The obvious exaggeration and fraud of global warming hasn’t helped the cause either.

Imagine if somebody were able to float the notion that humans were creating too much sewage.  On this version of earth day, everyone would be cajoled into not going to the bathroom for an entire day.  And to really encourage participation, all public washrooms would have locks placed on them.  It could be a finable offense to sell someone a bran muffin.  Something tells  me this day of observance won’t make it to be annual event, at least not by those over 40 years of age.    And therein lies the secret of all crazy movements.  Get the kids involved first.  Most older people know better and have a firmer grip on reality, or should.  It’s no coincidence that the big push for hysterical  issues such as global warming occurs in the schools where impressionable kids have no means of assessing validity.   “Daddy, don’t you want to save the earth?” is the plea from innocent 6 year olds.  So the parents play along the same way they place a plate of cookies and milk in the living room on Christmas eve.

Eventually, the kids grow up and the realization of misguided idealism hits them.  They figure out that walking around in the dark with kerosene lamps, a candle, or just glow bugs in a jar really isn’t practical.  They’ll figure out that the invention of electricity, flush toilets and central heating  are not just capitalist frivolities but real advances in civilization.  They’ll figure out that the charm of bicycling to work in a rainstorm loses its charm in only one session.  Most significantly, they’ll find that as larger chunks of their paycheques are confiscated for ill conceived and quixotic environmental causes, their support for zealous dictates will wane.  Maybe thankfully, they’ll shave off those goofy beards.

link Anti-government protests in Libya – Yahoo! News Photos.

Here’s a brilliant idea for a business and it’s amazing no one has thought of it sooner.  The effigy business.  In particular of political figures.  Naturally, the American figures will be the most popular since it’s pretty much expected that demand for them will be at a constant high level.  We can be sure of both domestic and international demand.  Someone could have a warehouse stocked with effigies of the current President at the ready, for immediate shipment to any hot spot in the world.  Imagine the money that could have been made during George Bush’s term in office.  It’s likely that he had more effigies and images burnt of him than even Ronald Reagan when he occupied the Presidency.   The fact that they are burning Obama effigies is a bit surprising given that his ascent to power was supposed to appease the masses.  But I guess there’s no pleasing some people. 

On the other hand, sensibilities aren’t what they used to be.  A president can be burnt in effigy now at the slightest of provocations.  Because of the volatile temperaments of many in the middle east, the President’s effigy could be burnt only because  he backed the wrong sports team, which by coincidence, he generally does.  The recent round of Obama burning was caused by Qaddafi loyalists unhappy over the U.S.’s recent bombing campaign in Libya.  Well, you just can’t win.  If Obama had bombed the other side, perhaps someone would have torched an entire airplane of people in real life, never mind effigies.

However, these impolite acts of disrespect shouldn’t faze this or any President.  Obviously, you can’t have all the people love you.  There are people who don’t like Ronald McDonald and he represents food and laughter.  What chance does a guy have who drops Prius-sized bombs on people?  They should take the perspective of the Chinese.  In that culture, images of consumer goods are burnt at the sending off of a deceased person so that they may receive them in the afterlife.  Imagine if this were to actually work.  When the Muslim martyrs arrive in heaven to receive their 24 virgins, they’ll also be met by the countless amounts of American Presidents they burnt during their protests.     Allah may be great, but hopefully he also has a sense of humor.