Energy Legislation Setbacks Justify the PlanBike Mission

Tonight, Public Television's NewsHour asked the question "What Killed Obama's Energy Bill Plans?" Setbacks like this, and the one in Copenhagen last year, are more evidence environmental solutions won't start with legislation. Legislation, for better or worse, requires money. That money can come from collective passion for a cause but, as we see here, the level of support and money that comes from industry trumps that from any other source most of the time.

If 10 people start cycling tomorrow, 10 less cars go on the road. That already keeps many thousands of dollars away from oil and car lobbies.

What to do? Take personal action and enable others to do the same: the PlanBike Mission. Personal action scaled massively can provide the dramatic changes required to ensure the planet remains livable. What's more, personal action scaled massively produces the demand for new goods and services that, in turn, generate dollars that will lobby Congress to move in healthier directions.

No personal action is better suited for this purpose than cycling. It's impact, even on a small scale, is dramatic and immediate. If 10 people start cycling tomorrow, 10 less cars go on the road. That already keeps many thousands of dollars away from oil and car lobbies. What's more, this impact scales easily because one can start cycling with very little money, legislation, or even collective cooperation. Finally, cycling scaled massively produces demand and lobby dollars for healthier new goods, services, and infrastructure projects.

Waiting for legislators to effect fundamental change on anything without tangible support (e.g. money) is a lost cause. Legislators don't lead. At best, they just reflect public sentiment. Consequently, it is up to each of us to collectively show them the way. If we did, a lot of this energy legislation might not even be necessary.