Schwarzenegger: “I don’t want to be like the last horse & buggy salesman… I don’t want to be the last investor in Blockbuster as Netflix emerged.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger is a particularly good person for stimulating great climate action. He cares a lot about doing that, but he is a Republican known for his movie star roles (such as his iconic role as the Terminator) and he knows how to couch the action in concepts and targets that any sane, uncorrupted person should heartily get behind. Here’s one choice quote he just threw out there that I love:
“I don’t want to be like the last horse and buggy salesman who was holding out as cars took over the roads. I don’t want to be the last investor in Blockbuster as Netflix emerged. That’s exactly what is going to happen to fossil fuels.”
Indeed. Who wants to be so stupid that they, like losers of the past, are one of the last people to get out of a dying industry.
Okay, the fossil fuel industry may not be dead yet, but I’d say that we can liken it to a plant that has been chopped off from its roots — perhaps a Christmas tree, since ’tis the season. That tree appears to be alive for quite some time after it has been cut. It remains green, smells fresh, etc. But it is no longer taking nutrients from the soil — it has lost its life force. It will eventually show what has happened.
Electricity from solar energy and wind energy is now typically cheaper than electricity from new coal, natural gas, oil, or nuclear power plants. Electric vehicle benefits crush the advantages of gasmobiles. Few barriers to mass adoption remain, and they are quickly being dismantled. The future seems so clear that it’s a wonder anyone is staying in the fossil fuel game. But I guess some people are not that into long-term thinking or action.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is. Here’s more from a post he put on Facebook on Monday:
“There are two doors. Behind Door Number One is a completely sealed room, with a regular, gasoline-fueled car. Behind Door Number Two is an identical, completely sealed room, with an electric car. Both engines are running full blast.
“I want you to pick a door to open, and enter the room and shut the door behind you. You have to stay in the room you choose for one hour. You cannot turn off the engine. You do not get a gas mask.
“I’m guessing you chose the Door Number Two, with the electric car, right? Door number one is a fatal choice – who would ever want to breathe those fumes?”
Indeed. Well, some would still choose door #1, but that “vroom vroom” noise is just too melodic and hypnotizing to pass up. Plus, “rolling coal” is so much fun!
Oh, and the title of Arnold’s Facebook post: “I don’t give a **** if we agree about climate change.”
Well done, Mr. Terminator. Well done.
Will it change minds? Well, that’s a hard question to answer, but I think it’s about as good as it gets if that’s your goal.
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