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Welcome All! I'm a dreamer, I hope you are too! A Posse ad Esse, or From possibility to reality, is a general state of mind. I hope you'll share your possibilities with me as I will with you. Namaste~

April 21, 2007

Happy Earth Day to you.

Earth Day is a time to celebrate gains we have made and create new visions to accelerate environmental progress. Earth Day is a time to unite around new actions. Earth Day and every day is a time to act to protect our planet. - Quoted from EarthDay.gov

I would also submit that Earth Day and all it's fanfair are about raising awareness to some of the issues that are out there and to focus on options and solutions. On Apr-19-07 I talked about the new reuseable bags that A~ and I had gotten. We went shopping the next day to Wal-Mart and asked them if they provided a discount for users of Reusable bags. I found that a couple of the other stores did provide a .05 cent discount for using a reusable bag. Wal-Mart did not. I actually wasn't surprised, although in their defense, they did say that they would honor that and would indeed give us the discount. That wasn't the reason behind us getting the bags, so no biggie, I can spare the $.05 cents. It did make me curious though, so I went to the web site for Wal-mart and found that they indeed have a Wal-Mart Stores Environment section. I had noticed at the local store, which I might add is only a couple of months old, that every so many minutes the lights go off completely section by section. This doesn't really make a difference in the store lighting because when the store was built they included skylights every thirty feet or so. I though that this was a great idea, the fifteen some odd minutes that the lights are off now and then throughout the day will really add up to a lot storewide. I was surprised to find at their web site a really quite comprehensive plan geared toward saving energy, lowering impact, and increasing sustainability. I think we all know about the amount of power that Wal-Mart weilds in the retail community. I was heartened to see that they are making strides to be leaders in this area.
The next thought to my mind was, "You know? There are a lot of people out there that just hate Wal-Mart for being Wal-Mart. No level of greening will make them seem any better than they do now. But In the sprit of Earth Day, I ask this. Regardless of what level of activity that we see from a company, isn't it a positive thing when we do see companies, that really don't need too, taking a proactive approach to this? Isn't it a mark in the win column when we are able to see that "awareness" has been raised? By the way, A~ and I did fill our reusable bags at the store and came away with a little "green buzz". It's nice to know your leaving a little smaller mark. I encourage you to look at your actions and see where a little change could make a difference, I bet you really wouldn't even notice it. Til next time. Happy Earth Day!

4 comments:

Wendy said...

Bravo on your reusable bags! My local grocery store does give a discount for using cloth 5 cents per bag, but I have to fight with the baggers every time and watch them like a hawk to make sure they don't half fill my cloth bags and then try to give me plastic bags when they "think" my cloth bags are full :). I'll even stand there and help them pack my bags just to be sure I don't get any plastic. They don't like that.

RE: Wal-Mart. I'm one of those who hate Wal-Mart for being Wal-Mart. They've done SO much damage for SO many years that they could color themselves chartreuse, and paint that stupid smiley-icon emerald, but they'd still be Wal-Mart, and I'd still boycott them.

P~ said...

Yes, the poor baggers don't know what to do with the canvas bags. I noticed a sign at the baggers area that said "Strive for five" no more than five items in a bag; so that's how they've been trained.

As for the Wal-Mart issue, My point was primarily that awareness is a good thing regardless of the messenger. I said I know there are a lot of people out there that hate Wal-Mart, not that I was going to try to change any of their minds. I believe fully in the freedoms this country affords us, and one of the main vehicles for that freedom is the ability to vote with our dollars. My primary focus on this blog is to embrace possibilities, and positive ideas where ever possible, hence the title. I hope to hear from you again, and to continue the dialogue. I think that's where the greatest potential for change lies.
Namaste
P~

Jacob said...

I have to agree with Wendy. Wal-Mart would have to do a great deal in order for me to think positively about them again, and any claims they make I tend to be quite skeptical about. How big do you think their P.R. budget is?

But, for me, it's not just environmental. I think that a healthy society needs a balance between corporate power and labor, and Wal-Mart, in my mind, is such a huge symbol of how far we have moved away from compromise and towards simply allowing unquestioned corporate domination.

P~ said...

Jacob, you know we aren't as far off on most things as everyone thinks we are. Beside one can only be dominated if they allow it, don't give up your freedom!
Good to hear from you.
P!