Posted by
Lady Logician on Thursday, May 22, 2008 11:20:39 PM
So one of the many "mom" things I have been dealing with this week is the Junior Logician's viewing of "An Inconvenient Truth" in his 8th grade Science class. Their science class has been talking about "global warming" for a few weeks now. Today, the Junior Logician brought home two sheets - one a page for the kids to calculate their carbon footprint and the other a sheet entitled "Reflections on 'An Inconvenient Truth' What Am I Willing To Do??" I have to admit that I was curious as to how he was going to answer. While we have never directly talked about the issue, he has heard my radio programs talking about it from time to time. While several of his answers were spot on, there were a couple of things that I do need to work with him on - mostly taking shorter showers....sewer and water charges being what they are and all. The one answer that I did get a chuckle out of was his answer to the suggested action "Eat Less Meat". His simple answer to that was a very emphatic "NO!"
While filling out the carbon footprint calculator, he had to ask about certain energy saving appliances that we have in the house. It was nice because it gave us the opportunity to talk about ALL the reasons for having low-flow toilets and Energy Star appliances (cost savings and energy savings). It also gave us the opportunity to talk about the pros and cons of things like compact fluorescent bulbs and the like.
Yeah, I could have complained about the propaganda as many conservative parents do. However, I prefer to use these moments to teach the Junior Logician how to apply critical thinking to the propaganda. It is a skill that will serve him well over the next few years.