Slacktivism: don't rain on my parade

Those of you who read this blog know that we don't really like to have a go at NGOs and other campaign groups. We feel, rightly or wrongly, that the whole climate change catastrophe is rather more important than some silly in-fighting vanguardism. It's what seperates us from the Revolutionary Communist Party / Living Marxism sect currently masquerading as Modern Movement.

But sometimes I get sent things that really piss me off. This video (and Earth Hour) is one of them. Earth Hour, for those of you who didn't get the memo, is a coming together of lots of people who will all turn their lights off for an hour. And then turn them back on again afterwards. Or something.

Now some of us at the coal face of climate change campaigning might choose to describe such an activity as a collosal waste of time that puts forward false solutions that tell people you can stop climate change while keeping all those existing power structures, lifestyles and consumerist nonsenses going. But while we roll our eyes and try to ignore it, the organisers go and put out videos like the one above, which seem to be saying that taking direct action is less effective than sitting in the dark for an hour.

Of course they don't stop there: how about the idea that you can keep flying everywhere so long as you use a freshly-bought green lightbulb? Popstrel Alanis Morrisette thinks that's the case, and no one at the Earth Hour HQ thought it a bit weird that she's giving her message of inaction from the inside of a plane.

Don't get me wrong: if the organisers of Earth Hour want to pretend we can solve climate change by getting "millions of people" to turn their lights off only to turn them back on again an hour later then fine. Just stop polluting the airwaves with your ill-thought out, partisan bullshit.