Stansted protest by Plane Stupid- Plain Stupid?

Below link to; BBC news on Stansted Protest by Plane Stupid.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/essex/7770513.stm

 

Is the protest at Stansted ill conceived? One protester claimed they had prevented over 4 tons of CO2 being emitted by the protest yet this action has possibly helped alienate several hundred if not thousands of people to the climate change cause.

Whilst the media cannot be relied upon to get a balanced perspective on the reactions of passengers whose flights were disrupted, one has to wonder if anyone, even sympathisers, would have not have felt a bit pissed off.

Ryanair was the most effected airline and possibly a prime target of Plane Stupid being a low cost airline. However one has to consider the claims of some airlines as to the increased fuel economy and reduced emissions of newer aircraft. (Comments from Ryanair in BBC article) Let’s be realistic, air travel is not going to go away any more than nuclear weapons were negated due to the “Ban the Bomb” protests of years gone by.

 

Protesting about the lack of action to curb climate change is great but in this media driven age of instant communication, instant gratification, fast living and perceived instant results, protests need to be managed and choreographed to have maximum impact on the desired target with minimum collateral on the swaying vote.

 

Maybe a protest at the terminal entrance or at the check-in area would have been less damaging to the cause with equal impact and publicity. The fact of the matter is that most passengers who were disrupted will have got back in their cars, driven back home only to re-book and travel again at a later date, thus increasing their own collective footprint by a ton or two. If one is being pernickety, there is now the extra carbon footprint, which is not inconsiderable, generated by the process of prosecution of the arrested protesters and the forest of trees cut down to supply the mountains of paperwork which is endemic in the legal process.

 

Plane Stupid may have created some worldwide publicity but at what cost? Unfortunately the vast majority of the public still have their heads firmly implanted in their backsides, denying the crisis we are facing with the climate and until they are personally affected and confronted with irrefutable proof that the global warming is the direct cause of their misfortune, they will continue to clasp at the straw of denial.

 

Is it ME?

Brian

Climate isn't just a Jumbo issue