Offsetting "teh stoopid"

Human civilization has an impact on the local and global environment. Everytime we cook food or drive to the grocery store, we are creating waste products that are literally dumped into the local ecology to handle.

There are several thingss we can do that lessens or offsets our impact on our environments. The most obvious first step is to do a cost-benefit analysis of our activities and remove those activities which are deemed more wasteful than beneficial, such as showering three times a day or flushing twice after fecal expulsion. The next step is to invest our resources into developing new methods to accomplish the same goals that decrease our impact on the environment, such as researching for alternative fuel sources or cost-efficient, energy-efficient white-light sources.

Obviously there is a need to determine what resources we have for such endeavors. Not everyone has the necessary background to be actively involved in the research. However, we can be passively involved. Such endeavors require money, both for materials and to pay for the labor involved. [1] The best method for the average citizen would be to write your Congressman or Congresswoman and demand more funding for the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, and other government institutions that are the prime source of scientific funding.[2] You could also purchase carbon offsets to account for the necessary activities of your daily life that releases carbon emissions by offsetting such release via supporting energy resources that sequester such carbon instead.

Just like the environment, there are necessary evils involved in entertainment. Some of us are drawn to "teh stoopid" because we get some marginal enjoyment from observing "teh stoopid" in action. Our enjoyment has come to where it has become necessary for us sometimes to econimcally support "teh stoopid" on accident just to get our kicks. This is obviously bad for the total intelligence of human society. We need a way to offset our finacnical support of "teh stoopid".

One route is to write our Congress again. However, sometimes "teh stoopid" infects our politicians. It would be better to invest in lobby groups to simultaneously combat "teh stoopid" in politics and in general.

Thus, if you do an activity that somehow gives money to "teh stoopid", then I recommend offsetting your contribution by donating to an organization that opposes "teh stoopid". For example, if you purchase a book on creationism, purchase a book on evolution. If you purchase a conservative's screed (eg. Anne Coulter) purchase a more balanced analysis of the current event topic. If you bought materials from a company that denies global warming, invest more in lobbying groups that are pushing for anti-global warming legislation through Congress. If you watch YouTube or MySpace and click their ads, then listen to NPR or watch PBS and donate money to your local broadcasting station. [3]

"Teh stoopid", however entertaining it is, must not be allowed to gain an economic advantage from those of us who are purely entertained by its existence. Thus, we must donate and offset our contribution to "teh stoopid".

Do it. Nao! I demand it.



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[1] Graduate students need money to buy ramen, too!).
[2] And if you're rich, please donate to a research institute to create an endowed chair. That simultaneously creates a source of funding for research as well as recruits top-notch researchers to that institution. And, your name will be immortalized; so, that's always cool!
[3] YouTube, however funny internet phenomena is, needs to be offset by the introduction of news and current events. Tron man IS NOT a current event.