At 8:30 tonight (local time), we are supposed to bow our heads in shame, and turn off the lights, and sit in the dark for an hour, and contemplate the evil our civilization has done, all as part of Earth Hour. Instead, I urge you to join myself and others in Celebrating Human Achievement Hour. Do it any way you want; light some extra lights, enjoy a motor sport, visit a friend using the benefits of science. Here is a bit of an essay by Ross McKitrick of University of Guelph:
Earth Hour: A DissentRead the rest.
In 2009 I was asked by a journalist for my thoughts on the importance of Earth Hour.
Here is my response.
I abhor Earth Hour. Abundant, cheap electricity has been the greatest source of human liberation in the 20th century. Every material social advance in the 20th century depended on the proliferation of inexpensive and reliable electricity.
Giving women the freedom to work outside the home depended on the availability of electrical appliances that free up time from domestic chores. Getting children out of menial labour and into schools depended on the same thing, as well as the ability to provide safe indoor lighting for reading.
Development and provision of modern health care without electricity is absolutely impossible. The expansion of our food supply, and the promotion of hygiene and nutrition, depended on being able to irrigate fields, cook and refrigerate foods, and have a steady indoor supply of hot water.
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