ongoing by Tim Bray · Decarbonization

So I don’t exactly make it a secret that I hate the whole shtick about companies foisting off “responsibility” for addressing climate issues onto consumers (fuck your straw ban, basically). But, like… just quietly? In the last year or so I’ve also started making changes to my personal behaviours, like driving less, always making sure to carry reusable grocery bags in my handbag,1 and no longer cooking red meat at home.2

Realistically, I know these efforts won’t achieve much and, like, also? Being an affluent Westerner who is choosing to not having children basically gives me a free pass on environmental issues forever, so there’s that. But it’s surprising how much they’ve just made things… baseline less shitty for me in general. Particularly the car thing; I’m privileged in that I can largely eschew a car, and I also hate driving. But man, once I stopped regularly using it I did not for one single second look back…

  1. Incidentally, it’s actually kind of shocking how often I use these. Like, pretty much daily? Which I would not have guessed prior to starting to carry them. [↩]
  2. Though I will eat it when I’m out. Because, y’know. It’s sooooo goooooooood… [↩]