Gore Explains Climate Solutions to Jon Stewart, Who is Afraid of Catching Fire
(image: blogcdn.com)
On Wednesday, former Vice President Al Gore appeared as the guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to discuss his new book, Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis, and field questions from the famously satirical host.
Gore is known for his 2006 documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, an alarming look at the progressions of global warming and how humans are responsible both for the destruction of our atmosphere and for coming up with a solution.
On The Daily Show, Gore told Stewart, “We have all the tools we need to solve this – the only thing missing is political will.”Stewart, who shelved his typically comedic interrogation for smart, pointed questions, asked about the disconnect between the dire nature of the situation and our world’s slow, inefficient response: “Has the urgency of the language taken away from the message of the solutions?”
The urgency, Gore said, is no joke. There are some steps that have been taken, such as the development of a “super grid” that will transport solar energy across the US. But, he said, political cooperation, public participation and support from Big Oil is still missing.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Al Gore | ||||
|
||||
Opinion: Energy Consultants Predict Zero-Carbon Economy by 2050 | HeatingOil.com says: says:
[...] of the future is pretty hard to swallow for Big Oil, who, let’s face it, have a lot of control. As Al Gore recently told Jon Stewart, there just isn’t enough monetary incentive for big oil to make the kind of changes needed for a [...]
Kristy Kershaw says: says:
This is a fantastic clip. As usual, Jon Stewart distills the argument, and asks what we’re all thinking (in my humble opinion). It IS more confusing, and I think he has something of a point in saying that they just need to tell us what to do. Just make it so! And we’ll do it!
The problem, as Gore points out, is one that makes me a little sick. It comes down to the cold truth that big oil and other companies that make their money from dirty forms of energy will not make as much. Period. They would let the whole world crumble so they could keep up their profit margins. Cold, but true. Even when Stewart asks the question I always ask - why can’t they just take the new technology? We’ll give it to them! Here, Exxon! “Have the sun, it’s yours!” - Gore points out that they still wouldn’t make as MUCH money. Clean energy is more democratic, in some ways, and not as profitable. So frustrating!
I also love Stewart pausing, then leaving us with this gem:
“We’re all gonna die, aren’t we?”