America Hungry For More Pickens Boldness

Ask any foreigner first setting foot in this country, and they will tell you. America is a land of extremes:

Big Macs. Survivor Reality Show. Hummers. Crash diets. Ultra thin McAir. DD breast implants. 140 characters of less tweets on Twitter. Hypermiling. McMansions. Extreme thinness. Gross obesity. Venti cups at Starbucks. Fast food. Kleenexes. Supermarkets, open 24/7. Speed dating. Ultra junky Twinkies. Organic mania. Cosmo covers. Jumbo TV screens. AP classes in high school. SUVs. Facebook profiles with five thousand friends. Double kitchens. Master bedrooms. Ten pound bags of spinach at Costco. Annual checkups for pets. Super size bath towels. Extreme waste. Varsity sports training. Bravo TV competitions. Power yoga. Huge fridges. Overflowing closets. Shooting for the moon, and then Mars. Eternal youth with Botox. One tank vacation. Mega churches. No Impact Man. . .

We, the American people do not know moderation. We always want more.

Could it be, then, that the timid approach to climate change, is missing the boat? By treating us like addicts, who can only get better one baby green step at a time, deciders and influencers, are failing to recognize what will most likely move us. A challenge at the measure of our appetites. I am reminded of a talk Robert Redford gave on Earth Day, in which he described America as a nation that responds best to challenges, not fears. Al Gore was right, when he suggested that changing light bulbs was no longer enough. His rationale, though was grounded in carbon maths, not citizen psychology.

The environmental discourse is permeated with words, that are too reductive to mobilize most citizens. Take for instance, energy conservation, or 'reduce-reuse-recycle', two of the main pillars of a greener world. And notice their shrinking quality. My head may understand. My conscience may even kick in, and beg me to please be good, and do this for my grandchildren. But really, when it comes down to it, how much do I really want to abide? Green drops like these only make sense to me, if connected to a greater adventure. Right now, it's pretty lonely when I choose to not put the clothes in the dryer, and hang them on our indoor line instead. I need help making the mental shift from "a little less every time, every day" to something else, that feels more positively challenging.

Our political leadership has not been helping much either. The Bush administration has been ignoring the problem. Al Gore, who had the right idea with his last moon shot challenge discourse, falls short on execution. And Obama and McCain are not yet in a position to deliver.

T. Boone Pickens is the first to present us with a real plan, big enough to capture our imagination. You may not entirely agree with his plan or his political views, but there is no denying the power of his can do attitude, with the follow up to prove it. I went back and listened to Pickens' introductory video once more. No small steps here. It doesn't hurt either that Mr. Pickens is a legendary figure of American business. Finally, the climate solution has a face, that's bigger than life, and that Americans can relate to. A man who, not unlike Obama, has started a movement, with enough momentum to sustain itself. And a narrative that appeals to Americans' patriotism, with its focus on 'energy independence'. Simple words, big goals, actions already in place. And the confidence that this will get done, that it has already started.

Will the next T. Boone Pickens, please step forward? We need more men and women like him.

In the mean time, bloggers like myself should change their tune, and start pushing for bolder solutions. No more tiptoeing. Instead, let us consistently reframe the climate problem as the energy challenge of this century. The new frontier to be conquered.

 

Comments

[Marguerite Manteau-Rao]

01:45 PM on 08/30/2008

Nadine, thanks for your poetic practicali­ty.

[nadinesellers]

01:55 PM on 08/29/2008

Politician­s and millionair­es do not come with a perfection­ist pedigree; corporate mentality and profiteers do however contribute largely to the economy.
So let's ask ourselves who else but the T Boone Pickens of this world would have the financial resources to speed up energy recovery ?
When much of Texas energy is produced by wind, when air and water are cleaner, shall we require that the promoters of renewable energy take an oath of poverty in order to create environmen­tally sane enterprise­s?

It is not the lower middle class wage which will fast forward the remedy to environmen­tal abuse anytime soon. So i applaud any effort from these who do have large assets and choose to use them to propel green business into our near future.

[Marguerite Manteau-Rao]

12:36 AM on 08/28/2008

Hi Beth. Good to read you here! Your last sentence captures this discussion very well. What other readers reacted to was the past, present and future damages that T.Boone Pickens may cause on our environmen­t. I was responding more to his ability to capture our imaginatio­n. In a perfect world, we would have a green saint - is there such a person? - who could talk a straight talk to the American people, without alienating them with too much green baggage.

[FakePlasticFish]

10:45 PM on 08/27/2008

Hi Marguerite­. We are an all or nothing kind of culture, aren't we? I myself am guilty of it. Would I be as conscious of plastic if I hadn't created my own grand challenge to avoid it completely­? And then to announce my progress to the entire world? We want attention. And we want praise. And even when we are humble, we want BIG LOUD HUMILITY!

I'm laughing at what I'm writing right now. I don't know anything about T. Boone Pickens, but I totally relate to this more, more, more dreaming big characteri­stic of Americans. What other grand ideas are out there to capture the imaginatio­n without adding to the damage?

Beth
http://www­.fakeplast­icfish.com

[Marguerite Manteau-Rao]

08:49 PM on 08/27/2008

I never said Pickens is a green saint. Far from it. And like you, I do not approve of many of his projects.

What I am glorifying is his entreprene­urial spirit, and his ability to mobilize a wide range of people on an energy project. People who may not otherwise get engaged. I judge him not by his history, nor by his motivation­s. I look at what he is proposing, particular­ly with his wind initiative­. And I say, this is good. If it makes him even richer, great. As long as it cuts down on GHGs.

Pickens is also a master communicat­or, and I dare you to find one other name in the environmen­tal world that can relate in such simple, and effective terms with his audience. The only one that comes close is Al Gore. Others do not reach mainstream America.

Staying stuck in green orthodoxy has not proved particular­ly successful­. It is time to bring in economic incentives at all levels, all the way from the individual citizen to super rich guys like Pickens.

[SeenItBefore]

06:33 PM on 08/27/2008

What you need to do, and it is of critical importance­, is research T Boone Pickens back to the womb. Trust when i say, you will stop this blather about his greatness and high ideals to save America. Sadly, the devil IS in the details.

To date, Pickens has shown himself to be nothing beyond a greed infested bastard who would sell, or eat, his children in the spirit of self preservati­on.

To badly paraphrase Dickens, for Pickens, it is: 20 mil in my pants, hot damn... nothing in your pants, not my problem. You need to stop commenting about situations you do not understand­. T Boone Pickens was not fleecing France 20 years ago.

Today's "greens" need some big time reality checks from those of us who have fought the fight and had our heads kicked in by life. Please show us who still care your solar panels, wind bugger and the like. I also worked for JWT and FCB. I studied art and architectu­re. I will go one on one with you for "green" devices. And when the dust has settled, T Boone Pickens will still be one of the most successful corporate raiders and Wall Street thieves of the 20th century.

DO NOT BELIEVE ANYTHING THIS MAN UTTERS!

[RobinSeattle]

05:53 PM on 08/27/2008

Pickens is looking for Americans to subsidize his little energy scam to further pad his billionair­e fortune. He got part of his holdings that he is now flogging as part of the answer for our energy needs through eminent domain. Pickens is a corporate welfare queen. Get a clue!

[Marguerite Manteau-Rao]

01:15 PM on 08/27/2008

KillTheMes­senger, you can choose to look at the weaknesses­, or the strengths.

I don't disagree with your statement that Americans, on average suffer from blatant gaps in their education, particular­ly in science, and history. Americans also suffer from persistent misinforma­tion from the mainstream media and the Bush administra­tion.

That should not take away from their great qualities as pioneers, and doers. Yesterday'­s speeches from the Democrat governors were wonderful in that respect, as they all aimed to tap into that enduring spirit.

I am just wondering, what is it that keeps you in this country?

[KillTheMessenger]

03:01 PM on 08/27/2008

"That should not take away from their great qualities as pioneers, and doers."

Those are historic qualities that were true for your grandparen­ts and their grandparen­ts. America today is the land of the lawyers, bickerers and profession­al media liars.

I am just wondering, what is it that keeps you in this country?

HOPE!

Silly, isn't it?

[KillTheMessenger]

12:59 PM on 08/27/2008

Like any foreigner who has spent ten years in this country, I can tell you that the only thing that comes to mind about Americans right now is

Luke 23:34 "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots."

No, really. Americans are, on average, so uneducated that they have absolutely no clue what is going on.

[Marguerite Manteau-Rao]

11:07 AM on 08/27/2008

Thanks J. Most important on my book is the spirit of Pickens Plan, and not so much some of its details. Pickens is reaching that part of deep America, that's usually not touched by the traditiona­l environmen­tal discourse, and that to me, is of the utmost importance­. Too often the green people, of which I am a part, have been preaching to the choir, and failed to reach the mainstream­.

[KillTheMessenger]

02:58 PM on 08/27/2008

"Pickens is reaching that part of deep America, that's usually not touched by the traditiona­l environmen­tal discourse"

By which you surely mean our wallets?

Mr. T is about to reach in there really deep and touch the small part of our income that has not been allocated between our debt, rising energy prices and consumeris­m.

[sheila]

07:05 PM on 08/27/2008

if by "reaching that part of deep America," you mean permanentl­y killing off hundreds of thousands of acres of it, emitting tons and tons of GHGs in the process, bleeding taxpayers and ratepayers dry, creating a fraudulent water district and exercising eminent domain across 11 counties," then i have to say, we and the planet all might be a lil' better off NOT "reaching" them.

if you want to involve people in the Renewable Energy Paradigm, then why aren't you lobbying HARD for feed in tariffs so we can all produce and sell power from our homes and businesses­? proven to be feasible in the vast majority of structures­, and proven to greatly increase conservati­on measures, paying people allows them to participat­e in an energy free market, not just as drooling consumers being hijacked by Big Energy.

Conservati­ves, bikers, minorities­, soccer moms, rural farmers - they ALL want to get paid for doing the right thing, so let's do it!! We don't need their fascist wind thing...

[JScott]

10:52 AM on 08/27/2008

But remember TBC also has a plan to suck the Ogalalla Aquifer dry.-the bitter pill.
If he's 'all that' then get rid of that part of the plan.