A Tale of Two Houses...Guess the Owners

blackjack · Post by **blackjack** » April 20, 2008 4:34 pm

A Tale of Two Houses.
Very interesting tidbit.
The end may surprise you!

House #1
A 20 room mansion ( not including 8 bathrooms ) heated by natural gas. Add on a pool ( and a pool house) and a separate guest house, all heated by gas. In one month this residence consumes more energy than the average American household does in a year. The average bill for electricity and natural gas runs over $2400. per month. In natural gas alone, this property consumes more than 20 times the national average for an American home. This house is not situated in a Northern or Midwestern "snow belt" area. It's in the South.
==================================================

House #2
Designed by an architecture professor at a leading national university. This house incorporates every "green" feature current home construction can provide. The house is 4,000 square feet ( 4 bedrooms ) and is nestled on a high prairie in the American southwest. A central closet in the house holds geothermal heat-pumps drawing ground water through pipes sunk 300 feet into the ground.
The water (usually 67 degrees F.) heats the house in the winter and cools it in the summer. The system uses no fossil fuels such as oil or natural gas and it consumes one-quarter electricity required for a conventional heating/cooling system. Rainwater from the roof is collected and funneled into a 25,000 gallon underground cistern. Wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets goes into underground purifying tanks and then into the cistern. The collected water then irrigates the land surrounding the house. Surrounding flowers and shrubs native to the area enable the property to blend into the surrounding rural landscape.
~~~~~

HOUSE #1 is outside of Nashville, Tennessee; it is the abode of the "environmentalist " Al Gore.

HOUSE #2 is on a ranch near Crawford, Texas; it is the residence the of the President of the United States, George W. Bush.

An "inconvenient truth."
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This has been confirmed on www.snopes.com

http://www.snopes.com/politics/bush/house.asp

ragtopW · Post by **ragtopW** » April 20, 2008 6:17 pm

tikitatas · Post by **tikitatas** » April 20, 2008 7:42 pm

GO, George.

Skibo · Post by **Skibo** » April 20, 2008 7:55 pm

But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.

blackjack · Post by **blackjack** » April 20, 2008 8:24 pm

Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.

Practice what you preach and what you win Academy Awards for...or don't preach to me.

Post by **SMLCHNG** » April 20, 2008 8:29 pm

Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.

<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass

) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??

blackjack · Post by **blackjack** » April 20, 2008 8:33 pm

SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??

You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

ragtopW · Post by **ragtopW** » April 20, 2008 8:58 pm

blackjack wrote:
SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??
You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

a long forgotten Bible verse comes to mind..

...I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

I don't know why this just popped into my mind..
but it seems to apply..

ragtopW · Post by **ragtopW** » April 20, 2008 8:59 pm

ragtopW wrote:
blackjack wrote:
SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??
You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

a long forgotten Bible verse comes to mind..

...I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

I don't know why this just popped into my mind..
but it seems to apply..

Brad will be proud..

ph4ever · Post by **ph4ever** » April 20, 2008 9:06 pm

ragtopW wrote:
ragtopW wrote:
blackjack wrote:
SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??
You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

a long forgotten Bible verse comes to mind..

...I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

I don't know why this just popped into my mind..
but it seems to apply..

Brad will ber proud..

shocked too

(((((Wayne))))))

carolinagirl · Post by **carolinagirl** » April 20, 2008 9:08 pm

Awesome! Thanks for posting this, Wayne!

IrishPirate · Post by **IrishPirate** » April 20, 2008 9:15 pm

" Do as I say, not as I do".

flyboy55 · Post by **flyboy55** » April 20, 2008 9:40 pm

A carbon offset is a financial instrument representing a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Although there are six primary categories of greenhouse gases,[1] carbon offsets are measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e). One carbon offset represents the reduction of one metric ton of carbon dioxide, or its equivalent in other greenhouse gases.

There are two primary markets for carbon offsets. In the larger compliance market, companies, governments or other entities buy carbon offsets in order to comply with caps on the total amount of carbon dioxide they are allowed to emit. In 2006, about $5.5 billion of carbon offsets were purchased in the compliance market, representing about 1.6 billion metric tons of CO2e reductions.[2]

In the much smaller voluntary market, individuals, companies, or governments purchase carbon offsets to mitigate their own greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, electricity use, and other sources. For example, an individual might purchase carbon offsets to compensate for the greenhouse gas emissions caused by personal air travel. In 2006, about $91 million of carbon offsets were purchased in the voluntary market, representing about 24 million metric tons of CO2e reductions.[3]

Offsets are typically generated from emissions-reducing projects. The most common project type is renewable energy, such as wind farms, biomass energy, or hydroelectric dams. Other common project types include energy efficiency projects, the destruction of industrial pollutants or agricultural byproducts, destruction of landfill methane, and forestry projects.[4] Purchase and withdrawal of emissions trading credits also occurs, which creates a connection between the voluntary and regulated carbon markets.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_offset

I believe the Gore family participates in Tennessee's Green Power Switch program, whereby subscribers voluntarily pay extra for their electricity each month in order to purchase electricity from renewable sources and help promote the development of green power sources.

They also purchase carbon offsets (see above) to help reduce the carbon footprint of their lifestyle.

Finally, the Gore's have been retrofitting their house to make it 'greener' with the addition of photovoltaics and other enhancements.

All that being said, George Bush does own a house in Crawford which is a model for 'green' living and low energy usage.

That being the case, why has the president not promoted these ideas to the people of this nation? Why has he spent most of his presidency denying the reality of climate change? Why has his administration implemented policies and regulations that are completely at odds with all of the excellent 'green' design considerations implemented in his own house?

I can hazard a guess. Any action on this issue by the government would, in the short term, impact the shareholders of the large energy companies and the energy service companies. The rich and powerful are betting their own children's future (and ours) that their wealth will 'see them through' any future crisis. Their thinking apparently runs something like "better to get fabulously wealthy now, and ride out the storm later with lots of money".

The fact that Bush has a house in Crawford which is nearly self-sufficient in terms of energy usage has little to do with promoting a 'green' ethic and everything to do with looking after himself.

One further point. The original 'two houses' story was created by Jason Drew Johnson, formerly of the American Enterprise Institute, and currently founder of the 'nonpartisan' Tennessee Center for Policy Research. For those who don't know, the American Enterprise Institute has received millions of dollars from the oil industry to promote the idea that global warming/climate change (produced in part from consuming their product) is a hoax. The AEI has been offering a bounty to scientists willing to write articles undermining the latest UN IPCC report.

UAHparrothead · Post by **UAHparrothead** » April 20, 2008 10:31 pm

ragtopW wrote:
ragtopW wrote:
blackjack wrote:
SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??
You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

a long forgotten Bible verse comes to mind..

...I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

I don't know why this just popped into my mind..
but it seems to apply..

Brad will be proud..

He is

Post by **SMLCHNG** » April 20, 2008 10:35 pm

flyboy55 wrote:
A carbon offset is a financial instrument representing a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

I thank you for the information.

It makes my head spin and makes me

All I take from it is that those who are rich can afford to buy their way out of using too much energy (whatever form) and it looks good 'on paper'.

But I'm no expert in the subject....

johnson2113 · Post by **johnson2113** » April 20, 2008 11:21 pm

Snopes > Wikipedia

flyboy55 · Post by **flyboy55** » April 21, 2008 8:24 am

SMLCHNG wrote:
flyboy55 wrote:
A carbon offset is a financial instrument representing a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

I thank you for the information.

It makes my head spin and makes me

All I take from it is that those who are rich can afford to buy their way out of using too much energy (whatever form) and it looks good 'on paper'.

But I'm no expert in the subject....

Airlines are starting to offer carbon offsets when you purchase tickets. You pay extra and the money goes into my back pocket . . . no wait . . . the money goes to finance an economic activity that reduces CO2 emissions, whether it's planting trees or financing wind power farms or . . .

When the 'rich' buy carbon offsets, their money voluntarily goes to finance 'green' activities like sustainable power generation (wind farms or solar).

I don't think Gore is a hypocrite for pursuing this route.

As far as his activities in promoting awareness of the problem, I think it is unavoidable that as an individual, he is going to create more of a carbon footprint. He couldn't very well get his message out if he lived in a secluded commune in upstate New York.

If George Bush is such a 'stand up' guy when it comes to 'green' living, why isn't he promoting these ideas to the nation? Why has he enabled legislation and a regulatory environment that goes in the other direction?

Capt.Flock · Post by **Capt.Flock** » April 21, 2008 8:54 am

UAHparrothead wrote:
ragtopW wrote:
ragtopW wrote:
blackjack wrote:
SMLCHNG wrote:
Skibo wrote:But Algore purchases carbon credits to make up for his excesses.
<------Doesn't get this.. Where are these purchased? WalMart? (yes, being a smart ass ) But doesn't get this concept. What do you buy? And how is it SUPPOSED to help??
You pay someone else to be environmentally conscious for you. What a joke.

a long forgotten Bible verse comes to mind..

...I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

I don't know why this just popped into my mind..
but it seems to apply..

Brad will be proud..
He is

Bravo santa

Capt.Flock · Post by **Capt.Flock** » April 21, 2008 8:55 am

johnson2113 wrote:Snopes > Wikipedia

OystersandBeer · Post by **OystersandBeer** » April 21, 2008 9:00 am

Well, this changes everything. I guess GW isn't the war-mongering scum bag everyone makes him out to be. Let him stay four more years. Four more years. Four more years.