[Politics] Giving Up Flying vs "The Plane Is Going Anyway"

[Marty McFly]

If I didn't fly I wouldn't see my family. So, there are definitely plus sides to it.

IN all seriousness, I have reduced my number of flights, and number of car journeys. However, due to where I live it is unlikely in my current circumstances that use of either can be reduced anymore.

 

[studio150]

Considering that flying is already the preserve of people with a couple of pennies to rub together, thats an unnecessary subsidy, and putting that tax on would both raise more income for the treasury and reduce demand

But would it raise more income.

Job losses in the aviation industry
Less tourists visiting the UK
Higher cargo costs
Further job losses in the travel industry

etc

Not to mention that Stag and Hen parties won't be going to Europe on Easy Jet but will be descending on the likes of Brighton causing the usual mayhem

 

[Seagull]

We should definitely end tax subsidies for fossil fuel burning industries that are leading to the destruction of the environment. We also individually all need to demand clean energy. If everyone signs up for a renewable tariff the suppliers will have to deliver. Same with air travel: we need urgent action to reduce the pollution & greenhouse gas emission asap, but I think we need to press governments to legislate on that to make it happen fast enough.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Just make the tickets more expensive (green tax). Just enough to keep the chavs off the flights. Win win.

 

[Dave the OAP]

Anyone who ignores flying as a major contributor to global warming is either a Trump sympathiser or simply doesn't care about the damage flying does.

How am I going to get to the Greek islands next year?,

 

[Dave the OAP]

On a daily basis, the average cruise ship uses around 140-150 tonnes of fuel, or 30 to 50 gallons per mile. Like vehicle travel, hitting higher speeds increases drag which results in more fuel usage. Generally speaking, the majority of cruise ships find that 21-24 knots to be the most efficient speed

 

[beorhthelm]

How am I going to get to the Greek islands next year?,

considered horse? thats sustainable.

 

[Dave the OAP]

considered horse? thats sustainable.

I thought goat!

 

[Thunder Bolt]

How am I going to get to the Greek islands next year?,

Drive through the tunnel, France into Italy, down to Brindisi. ferry to Greece, ferry to whichever island you're going to.
You will need a month instead of a fortnight but see much more.

 

[beorhthelm]

There is no real alternative to flying.

If I want to get somewhere outside of Europe, the only real option is to fly.

Although I am passionate about global warming, I have to concede that flying is here to stay. As individuals we need to focus on all the other little things that make a difference.

or not go outside of Europe. just how passionate about warming thay flying is acceptable? its not upto government to conjure methods for us to make long journeys, its up to us to decide we do or dont need to make them.

 

[oneillco]

Where do the jobs go?

Jobs are a minor issue compared to where do the mass of migrants go when large parts of the world become unihabitable

 

[Dave the OAP]

Drive through the tunnel, France into Italy, down to Brindisi. ferry to Greece, ferry to whichever island you're going to.
You will need a month instead of a fortnight but see much more.

Which of course is a problem when you only get 2 weeks holiday in the summer.

 

[goldstoneseagull]

Whilst it’s morally honourable (taking an individual stand), it has little impact in the grand scheme of things.

It is morally reprehensible to intentionally pollute and everyone can do their bit. But some perspective is required...

Just look at recent reports that have come out demonstrated that the top 20 oil producers contributed to 1/3 of the worlds carbon emissions: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/09/revealed-20-firms-third-carbon-emissions

And Coca Cola being the largest source of plastic pollution on UK beaches: https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp....on-on-uk-beaches-surfers-against-sewage-study

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Which of course is a problem when you only get 2 weeks holiday in the summer.

It was tongue in cheek, but a Greek friend did drive both ways from Athens to the UK & back. It's a 3 day journey.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

You're not going to convince people to stop going on holiday abroad on their time off working. These are amongst the most cherished times in anyones lives to spend with their loved ones and families, or perhaps on their own. You can't expect them to give it up, and they won't... and that's perfectly understandable too.

You MIGHT be able to persuade international businesses to reduce the amount they rely on flying... but in an ever growing world, where face to face interaction is as crucial as ever, I doubt it will make much of an impact, if at all.

The ONLY way to get over the environmental issue of flying is to research & develop an alternative. Governments have to intervene, there is no other way.

Is face to face meeting so vital in these days of video conferencing?

 

[Beach Hut]

Is face to face meeting so vital in these days of video conferencing?

Definitely not required, for the last four years that I worked I only travelled once a week to London and conducted most meetings via Skype, however not all jobs work like that

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

Piers Corbyn thinks it's a load of bollox

 

[beorhthelm]

You're not going to convince people to stop going on holiday abroad on their time off working. These are amongst the most cherished times in anyones lives to spend with their loved ones and families, or perhaps on their own. You can't expect them to give it up, and they won't... and that's perfectly understandable too.

You MIGHT be able to persuade international businesses to reduce the amount they rely on flying... but in an ever growing world, where face to face interaction is as crucial as ever, I doubt it will make much of an impact, if at all.

The ONLY way to get over the environmental issue of flying is to research & develop an alternative. Governments have to intervene, there is no other way.

so you're saying its too difficult to convince people not to want a foreign holiday, its easier to just let them carry on and expect the government to find a solution. if getting them to not holiday is too dificult, imagine how difficult it will be to get them out of cars, forego central heating.

 

[happypig]

Drive through the tunnel, France into Italy, down to Brindisi. ferry to Greece, ferry to whichever island you're going to.
You will need a month instead of a fortnight but see much more.

Train is quicker and much greener than a car.

The fact is that if people from Northern Europe want to holiday in Southern Europe, they need to be encouraged to use the train by making it cheaper.

 

[BN41Albion]

You can also learn to cook from scratch, thereby reducing the need for packaging / ready meals / takeaways etc

Learn to mend, repair and re-use, instead of just buying replacements

Grow your own fruit and veg

etc etc ..
there is a lot that we can do.

Yep.
We live in such a contradictory world at the moment. We're all constantly being told we need to be cutting down on meat, packaging, waste, flying, etc.

Yet at the same time takeaway companies like Just Eat are hugely on the rise. Companies like Amazon and Hello Fresh are also massively on the rise with the shocking amount of packaging they use. Supermarkets etc seem to be doing the sum total of fvck all to reduce packaging bar charge 10p for a bag. We're eating more and more and wasting more and more. Adverts that encourage consumerism have been rising for years - Christmas adverts already and there's still fireworks going off outside. Heathrow and other airports are looking at expanding.

We're completely ****ed, frankly, unless the next generation can invent methods to combat climate change that don't involve us having to bother changing our habits.