Don’t let your actions contradict each other

Marshall University's community got it right when they decided Earth Day should be celebrated from dusk till dawn. Activities were scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday. Why should it have been any other way?

If activities weren't scheduled like they were, it would have been far easier for people to do something good for the Earth one moment and then go back to the ways they have been always doing things, which may or may not be so Earth friendly.

When we decide to do something good for the Earth, we should have all our actions reflect that point of view. If not, our actions may conflict and counter each other.

For example, Barack Obama, president of the U.S. obviously cares about the Earth. He has used the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed in February 2009 to invest more than $80 million in clean energy, according to www.whitehouse.gov. The act has given $4.5 million to green federal buildings and $600 million in green job training programs, to name a few initiatives. The Obama administration has increased the fuel economy standards for model year 2011 vehicles to get better mileage and on Earth Day 2009, Obama unveiled projects that would create electricity from wind, wave and ocean currents. 

However, at the same time that Obama has supported furthering green initiatives, his actions don't always follow through on those efforts. On Thursday he took a few trips by plane, six to be exact, to Iowa to give Earth Day speeches. His flights ended up using 9,000 gallons of fuel, according to a post by CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller.

Obama could have easily saved that fuel by making his speeches in Washington D.C. People have TVs, radio and the Internet for a reason. Why travel all the way out to Iowa when those people could have easily listened to or watched the speech from a distance and still get the same information?

Obama's speeches would have come across far more powerful if he had decided to make those speeches in Washington to save fuel. His actions made his words weaker because his personal decisions did not follow the policies he was supporting.

So if we acknowledge that we love the Earth and support its day, we should make sure our actions match our claims. If you didn't get a chance to participate in any Earth Day events, you still have time. We can do good things for the Earth any day. Multiple sites exist on the Internet where you can find easy things to do.