The Cardigan Moment

Last week I mentioned the president's newfound and sudden fervor for energy conservation in a post I titled "Look! Flying Pigs!" Imagine my surprise this morning when I learned that the Energy Department has unveiled a new conservation campaign whose mascot is, I kid you not, Energy Hog. In a website with games, tips and lesson plans (pretty basic, but the games are amusing), the Department points out basic energy-saving tips that kids can go guilt their parents into (all good things, of course), and on a separate website (sans hogs, sadly) EnergySavers, offers more adult-oriented hints and tips for conservation.

The Times has a short piece about this new strategy today. I think it's a good idea, and I hope that the Department keeps up the pressure. I don't know just how seriously the Administration is taking all this conservation stuff, since they're so new to the ball game on it, but hey, if they're willing to get serious and make a difference, I'm all for that. Belated recognition of an easy solution is better than never seeing it at all.

Closing our collective refrigerator door a little faster, however, is not enough. We must get truly behind conservation measures that will make a real difference, including making our cars more fuel efficient, providing incentives for hybridization and alternative fuel development, increasing alternative means of electricity production (wind, solar, geothermal etc. where possible), etc. It's easy to throw up an ad campaign, but when it comes to making the tough choices, the proof for this Administration is still very much in the pudding. They've finally started pushing the right buttons though, and for that, they deserve a (tiny) bit of credit.