The new gang of green

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Jean-Marc Léger and
Philippe Leger

Monday, 10 July, 2017 05:00

UPDATE
Monday, 10 July, 2017 05:00

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Here is the fourth chronicle written with four hands, in the form of a discussion between a baby boomer (the pollster Jean-Marc Léger, 56 years old) and his son, a millénial (the journalism student Philip Slight, 22-year-old).

A Quebec way, this is the one that consumes 400 litres of water per day, a canadian record. It is the one that generates 700 kg of residual waste per year, another sad record in canada. It is also the one who buys at Wal-Mart or Costco of foreign goods from the end of the world, having traveled by boat, by plane and by truck, and that chiale that our governments do not care enough for the environment.

A Quebecer through text with her mobile phone Samsung of South Korea, plays with his PlayStation japanese, use the Google search engine, buys foreign products on Amazon, watch american movies on Netflix, streame of american music on Spotify and opens his computer to Lenovo of China for criticizing its government, which does nothing to promote the local economy.

A Quebecer means driving a large sport utility vehicle (SUV) and filled with oil from saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Algeria or Venezuela. He buys a hundred products, cosmetics and beauty, electronics and appliances, clothing and accessories derived from petroleum, while blaming the exploitation of oil in Alberta.

JML : Quebecers are big speakers and small makers on environmental issues. They are more demanding towards their governments, their businesses, or even their neighbors than to themselves. I hope that the milléniaux will do better than us.

PL : there is a fundamental difference between our two generations : the environment is a priority among others, while the environment and health are our real priorities. Simply because we have no choice. There is an urgency because it has reached the point of no return, which was not the case in your time.

JML : The baby boomers are moving rapidly from denial, denying the problem, in spite, saying that it was too late. Indeed, even today, one-quarter of milléniaux think that their efforts have no real impact. We shovel the problem on to the next generation in thinking that she will not do better. The true baby-boomer at its best !

PL : And you have also done a lot of damage. Hyperconsumption, waste of resources, deregulation, climate, greenhouse gas emissions, water pollution, degradation of the air, and you’re even in the process of polluting the space. It is the” ego-system “, as if your ” ego “was more important than your” eco “.

JML : We have not done that mischief. It has developed hydro-electricity, clean water, promoted wind energy, created the carbon market and required environmental controls tight on all development projects.

PL : Collectively, you are strong, but individually, you are disappointing.

JML : It is easy to make the moral to others. But when you take a shower too long, you are using products that are not biodegradable, you wasting food, you’re going too fast on the road, you pollues also the environment. After an outdoor show, takes a look at the waste that you leave behind you.

PL : It’s not perfect, but we recycle more, compost more, we use reusable bags and we buy more local products, organic and ecological. Carpooling or public transportation are also a part of our lifestyle.

JML : The battle green is not a battle between generations. It is a battle for the next generation. Ban Ki-Moon, former secretary-general of the united nations, has summarized the whole debate in one sentence : there is no planet B.

PL : So true. Also, I am proud to see that 70 % of milléniaux put the environment before economics. Our priorities are different than yours.

JML : And you should also be proud to know that it is none other than your grand-father, Marcel Léger, who created the ministry of the Environment of Quebec and launched an environmental movement. He said that” it was not necessary to oppose blindly to progress, but that it was necessary to oppose the progress blind.”

PL : I have unfortunately not known, but thou hast often told of the happiness that he had to enter politics to change things.

JML : it is The policy made sense at that time.

The sound of age

The priorities of the milléniaux