I recently received a call from
a radio station in Manhattan, wanting me to comment about Mayor Michael
Bloomberg using a chopper for the 12 minute hop to see U2 at The Meadowlands. How un-green of him!? What an assault on the environment!? After thinking about it for a moment, I decided to give a rare “no comment” and avoid piling on the Mayor for this egregious mistake.
After the dust settled, there
were many detractors nd supporters -- and overall, I am in the latter
category. It seems that Mayor Bloomberg, who is pals with U2 front man
Bono, as they have worked together on charitable endeavors, had committed to attending the concert and visiting with Bono in person before the show. As he was busy meeting with the President of the Dominican Republic (maybe about importing some Little League prodigies
to help the Mets?) he didn’t have time to limo the 12 miles to reach The
Meadowlands, in New Jersey. Let’s face it, a 12 mile bridge and tunnel
journey in New York rush hour can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour and
a half. Thus the chopper, a guaranteed 10 minute ride.
The green critics called foul: hey, how dare the Mayor use a helicopter, which admittedly is a smoke-belching, air polluting machine, to attend a concert, not a matter of state or city but a
personal entertainment event? To which I say, on some level, and sorry
about this: all men are not created equal when it comes to personal
transportation. Should President Obama not fly Air Force One since it
emits more carbon on one cross country flight than thousands of automobiles do
over a whole year? Let’s remember that Bloomberg works for no
salary, and has contributed hugely to the green movement by tackling many
environmental issues in New York.
Indeed, here are just a few of
Mayor Bloomberg’s recent green milestones: creating a law mandating a
fully green taxi fleet by 2010 throughout New York; designing a major
water infrastructure plan that will conserve New York’s water usage;
a program to reduce city carbon emissions a full 30 percent by 2030; an
initiative to repopulate the city with fuel efficient, low emissions trash
trucks; and the ill-fated Congestion Tax he proposed, one not unlike London’s,
which would have charged citizens for driving into Manhattan.
Bloomberg is a proven leader in
the green world and his time – let’s bear in mind that he is personally a
billionaire – is very valuable. If I were a Manhattan-based taxpayer, I’d
want him working and not sitting in the back seat of a limo wasting over an
hour of that precious time. A helicopter makes sense for the Bloombergs
of the world, especially for short hops around Manhattan and the immediate
surrounding area. Efficient, fast and relatively safe travel for a
really, really important guy to whom every second counts.
This should not be a political
issue. Perhaps it’s about a Wall Street titan vs. the average man?
Wall Street titans are no longer in vogue. Bloomberg himself quipped,
maybe he should have biked and swum his way over to the Meadowlands?
We can all learn from
this. Whenever going on personal errands, to work, or to entertainment
and recreational activities, we should try to travel as efficiently as
possible. Walk, ride a bike or take public transportation if we
can. And if circumstances make those choices a no-go, maybe we stay home
instead? However, if Bono is waiting, I’d say go ahead and drive, or even
helicopter. The good that Mayor Bloomberg has done for New York and the
long term viability of our planet, and the additional green initiatives that he
will launch, have earned him plenty of chits. I for one say let’s
applaud him for his commitment to stopping climate change and working for free
in a job that is surely exciting but does infringe on one’s privacy.
Your comments, as always, are
encouraged. For as in most of the issues we raise in My Inner Green,
there is no real right or wrong answer…