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• Tuesday, July 17, 2007 07:06 PM

  Oh dear.

  Oh dear lord this letter writer is a complete prat.

  Honestly? Get over it, man. You'd be much more convincing if you knew what *you* were talking about. "Carbon-neutral" doesn't refer to elemental carbon in this case, but carbon compounds. Carbon "fixed" by plants doesn't tend to be in the form of carbon dioxide, but as part of glucose, starch, cellulose, etc. The carbon that we pump out of the ground isn't in the form of carbon dioxide either, but instead in long hydrocarbon chains. To examine how carbon dioxide (and methane!) gets into and out of the atmosphere, you need to look at the *entire* process, and all of the carbon compounds involved.

  And on top of that, what does it matter if the term is slightly inaccurate in your mind? There is a need for short and catchy terms to define simple concepts in the public sphere. Marketing is important in this case to get action on this issue, whether we like it or not. And while to assume that it involves "indulgences" and obedience is, unfortunately, a lot closer to reality than people would like to believe, at least the public is motivated in this situation out of some kind of desire to help the environment, as opposed to some misguided quest for revenge.

  Stop being a self-righteous snob, and try to do something worthwhile, 'kay? And Cary? If this is the best you can do, both for a letter and for your advice, you're really scraping the bottom of the barrel.

  —arcite Read arcite's other letters
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