Today we saw something we've all been waiting for: the words "A Greener Apple" on the front page of Apple's site, with a message from Steve Jobs saying "Today we're changing our policy."
But while customers in the US will be able to return their Apple products for recycling knowing that their gear won't end up in the e-waste mountains of Asia and India, Apple isn't making that promise to anyone but customers in the USA.
And to all the Apple fans who have contributed their thoughts and blogs and creativity to this campaign, reach over your shoulder and pat yourself on the back. Put a happy tune on your ipod and do a happy dance. You've proven you can make a real difference. You convinced one of the world's most cutting edge companies to cut the toxic ingredients out of the products they sell.
I've taken a number of Material Science classes and i can tell you that (aside from mercury) what Apple is putting in their computers and vowing to rid them of is nothing compared to the damage you cause simply by breathing. CO2 is in fact a "greenhouse gas" and by mearly breathing you're a cause for global warming.
Just thought you'd like to know...
Well lets see.
First off CO2 vs. mercury\lead; I would love to see plants absorb mercury and output oxygen. Secondly that is what plants are for. You know trees? This planet has a surprisingly good ability to take care of itself when all it has to contend with are the basics that humans and animals have thrown at it since that first animal crawled out of the ocean.
We aren't doing this for the planet. We are doing this for us. Mankind could be wiped from the face of the planet tomorrow via nuclear armageddon and the planet would keep on spinning, repair itself in a few hundred thousand years and start over.
No what this is about is keeping this crap out of the dump. Out of the landfill because eventually it will make it back into the environment in some form or another and give little billy in 2078 a nice cancer of some form or another.
I really do love the justifications people use. Well everything is bad for the environment so lets all say screw it and do nothing. That might not have been your intention but that definitely is the vibe that comes off your post.
No, actually, Gore does the smart thing and doesn't directly attribute global warming to humans. The reason for this is because out of all carbon emmissions on our planet, humans are actually one of the smallest pieces of pie. He also knows, as any informed scientist will tell you, that global temperatures experience natural fluctuations. We know for a fact that we are experiencing slightly above-normal temperatures, but it cannot be attributed directly to humans. Sure we don't help matters, but to say it's our fault would not be accurate. Gore knows this and instead he advocates, as I do, doing what we can to reduce the carbon emmissions that ARE our fault. He recommends we do this through personal sacrifices to our daily energy-using habits.
-Clive
Errm, you cannot be serious here? Either you're trolling or have a rather warped view of the world.
This needs deconstructing...
- Apple aren't caving in to anything; they're making a commercial decision based upon 'normal' capitalist behaviour - they've decided they have to follow the general view of the world and be more ecologically responsible.
- Eco-Terrorists - please don't use this term as it's extremely offensive. In this case Greenpeace have simply highlighted the pollution that all electronic goods create and ranked manufacturers according to their ecological footprint.
- If by terrorism you mean thinking different to you, then I'd hate to see your day-to-day life
- With words like assault, it sounds like the words from a NRA member!
If you've bothered to read this thread you'll quite clearly see that Apple are responding to external pressures, in descending order of importance:
- EU and other government directives (even in the US) insist that Apple take a more ecological view of their manufacturing processes
- Public opinion - people may still not give a damn about the environment in hicksville, but around the rest of the planet it's a rather important issue
- Bad publicity - commentary about a corporation's green credentials is bad in the educated world. Bad green publicity isn't good publicity
- And in a very last place, pressure from ecological interest groups such as Greenpeace
Again, Apple aren't doing anything particularly out of the ordinary, just providing leadership that is taking them in a more green direction.
If you want to live in some environmental cesspit, please crap in your own back yard; but don't screw up my planet.
Explain. What exactly has Greenpeace done that has helped here in any way?
Oh really? Since when does Apple encapsulate everything that has to do with computer?
Greenpeace, like Al Gore, has good intentions, but poor methods.
I take the stance that anything whatsoever that raised environmental awareness and forces positive change is a good thing. If Greenpeace can use the Apple halo effect to their advantage then I think that's excellent.
...Greenpeace...have absolutely no interest in the planet...irresponsible communistic loudmouths...these wankers.
That is such a bad post on so many levels. Go take a proper class and I am sure you'll find out why...
Let's start killing each other to lower CO2 levels.
This has nothing to do with CO2 (or very little)
But there are few problems here:
a) GP didn't really achieve that much. Apple released a press-release telling what they have done in the past, and what they will do in the future. Well whooppee. Is a press-release a "positive change"?
b) GP is trying to claim that Apple has actually changed their environmental policies (they didn't) by taking some comments from the press-release out of context, and that it's all thanks to GP.
In short: GP is distorting the truth and magnifying their accomplishments.
Apple is clearly responding to GreenPeace, to say otherwise is to be blatently dishonest.
GreenPeace used poor science to achieve the results they desired so they could promote a social/political position. They are unabashed, in your face, activists that will resort to any stunt to get their way.
In short, they are alarmists. They distort facts to support their positions and then engender a crisis around those facts. That is plainly terrorism. They simply terrorize companies and individuals, thus my labeling them "Eco-Terrorists".
I am so sorry for you that you have fallen so far down the slippery Politically Correct slope that you are "extremely offended" by the term "Eco-Terrorist" or "Eco-Terrorism".
And yes, I am a card carrying member of the NRA, so is my wife, my three pre-teen sons and my teen daughter, and we are all proud of it.
Apple's dictionary and Thesaurus said:"Terrorist - a person who uses terrorism in the pursuit of political aims.
ORIGIN late 18th cent.: from French terroriste, from Latin terror (see terror ). The word was originally applied to supporters of the Jacobins in the French Revolution, who advocated repression and violence in pursuit of the principles of democracy and equality."
Greenpeace entry in Wikipedia said:"Greenpeace uses direct action to attract attention to particular environmental problems. For example, activists place themselves between the whaler's harpoon and their prey, or invade nuclear facilities dressed as barrels of radioactive waste."
What is a "big d**k nissan W**K mobile"???? I've only seen 1 model of Full Size pickup from nissan and the gas mileage is better than it's American Counterparts. I'd say you're looking for something along the lines of the Chevy Suburban or a F-350 to better illustrate your point. I have the misfortune of living in Texas so I know what you mean - there are WAY WAY WAY too many SUV's/Trucks out there being used simply for a daily commute...T The sooner we all stopped driving "big d**K nissan W**K mobiles" the better.
I broadly agree with you, nothing in fact changed but as Apple wouldn't previously reveal their plans we could only assume they were not intending to cease the use of certain toxins.
Sorry but you are talking rubbish here.![]()
Yes natural fluctuations occur. What has happened over the past 100 years is no long a natural fluctuation. Levels of C02 are now over 40 times higher than any point since the year 1000. Global temperature has risen more than ever before.
Many people (mainly in North America) cling to outdated "evidence" that temperature are not rising. You need to do an investigation on the re-alignment of temperature data from Weather balloons. The "experts" who claimed global temperatures were not higher were basing their research on daytime weather balloons - which after improvements were no long impacted by direct sun.
Oh - and this is for all the Al Gore lovers out there. Check out President Bush's house in Crawford - it really looks like that "evil, environment hating" president is more environmentally friendly than Mr. Gore...
http://www.snopes.com/politics/bush/house.asp
Exactly. Any "informed" scientist will tell you that natural fluctuations occur over LONGER periods of time, not in a century or less. Humanity's burning of fossil fuels at increasingly alarming rates IS the primary cause of expediting global climate change...
If Gore isn't eco-friendly. Al Gore's use of Electricity (wikipedia)
But you know, I don't really care about Gore. If he causes a large amount of pollution, that's bad. Whether or not he is a hypocrite doesn't matter. Why should it? Just because he's the one out there trying to get people to change to better the environment doesn't mean that if he's a hypocrite his entire message is wrong.
Honestly, if a person said in public "Everyone should always be polite to each other", but was a mean person in real life, does that mean that we should all be mean, just to spite him?
Sorry but you are talking rubbish here.![]()
Yes natural fluctuations occur. What has happened over the past 100 years is no long a natural fluctuation. Levels of C02 are now over 40 times higher than any point since the year 1000. Global temperature has risen more than ever before.
Many people (mainly in North America) cling to outdated "evidence" that temperature are not rising. You need to do an investigation on the re-alignment of temperature data from Weather balloons. The "experts" who claimed global temperatures were not higher were basing their research on daytime weather balloons - which after improvements were no long impacted by direct sun.