For the longest time, I have been bugged when people "flaunt" their green-ness. I mean, the people who walk around being kind of ostentatious about saving energy or not using resources or stuff like that.
Now, don't get me wrong - I'm all for conservation. There's a lot of stuff I do myself. But I did not buy a canvas sack emblazoned "This Is Not A Plastic Bag" and take it to the grocery and insist that the sacker put all my groceries in there, as I wave it around casually for other people to see.
And it hit me this morning why that behavior bugs me.
It's a parallel, in my mind at least, of this:
"When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
It's also like the comment about "when you fast, don't go around all longfaced about how horrible you feel, that's just showing off" that is made elsewhere in the New Testament.
The people I deal with who are selfconsciously green, though, tend to brag about it, rather than walking around all sad-faced. It's like "Gee, I don't even MISS using hot water!" or stuff like that. And I kind of roll my eyes and go, whatever.
I mean - when I was a kid, my dad was hollering at us (this was during the energy crisis of the 70s) to turn off lights in rooms when we left them, and to turn off the water while we were brushing our teeth, stuff like that - a lot of the little ingrained habits that came out of my dad's frugality are stuff that some people tout as "the new green."
And it does kind of bug me when people play "who drives the fewest miles" poker. It's not useful or helpful and it does kind of create irritation in others.
2 comments:
There was a South Park episode, last year I think, about "smug". This is the alternative to smog that is emitted by people who drive hybrid vehicles. I find that kind of rings true.
You should be doing it because you are doing something worthwhile...that should be enough to make you feel good. You shouldn't need the extra validation from others.
Like your reference, I do get the same vibe from some religious people (NOT ALL!). Most pronouncedly this born-again Christian I work with...she truly basks in her superiority.
I also get that from people who are diet and/or work-out fiends. They are constantly informing you of how far they ran, how little they ate, or how it's been three years since they ate any bread.
Good for you people...you drive a hybrid, you recycle, you read the bible, you eat healthy. These things should be their own reward. I don't think the rest of us need to bow down when you enter the room. I don't think we need to arrange an award ceremony for you.
I remember when groceries used to be brown-bagged; huge crunkly paper caves for the cat to sleep in after we were done. Then everyone was aghast! because paper bags kill! trees! dead! You had to use durable, recyclable plastic bags to be right-thinking.
Turns out that paper is also recyclable, AND biodegradable, AND literally grows on trees. So now what? Uhm.... cavnas bags! To save the earth from all the plastic bags the greenies INSISTED we use from 1983 onward!
I'm just going to take a couple of Advil and then get on with my life - kthxbye.
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