Specialized Ties Its Company to the So-Called “Global Climate Strike”. I’ve Come Up with a Great Way to Jump on the Bandwagon!

I, being a Super-Specialized Cyclist of note, received this email from Specialized earlier today:

That got me to thinking about what I might do to join Specialized and the young skulls full of mush in their effort to take the planet back to the stone age.

Then it came to me!  I’ll stop purchasing any product Specialized makes with fossil fuels.  I’ll do Specialized one better!  I’ll demand Specialized use “sustainable” practices in their manufacturing techniques.  Zero waste, zero pollution… you know!  What a great idea!  In fact, whilst we’re at it, I’ll go one better.  Check out the “My Bikes” Page…  Check out my “Venge Corner” Page…  Oops, you can’t, because it’s gone.  I like this tidying up!  It’s good for the spirit – err, planet.  Or something!

Perhaps I should consider painting the Venge (’cause I just can’t quit you, Venge) so you can’t tell it from any garden variety knock-off out there.  No more cycling clothes made with cheap Chinese labor and sold for ten times the cost… no more Specialized tires, because they’re obviously made with those aforementioned fossil fuels.  As for your strike, Specialized, perhaps I’ll join you in that and shop at your competitors all weekend long.  In other words, suck the tailpipe, Specialized.

Now, funny story…  It just so happens that a brother-in-law (step, twice removed) works at nuclear plants.  That’s plural on purpose.  He started in the US Military, working on nuclear power plants.  Now, nuclear isn’t “fossil fuels”, technically, but stick with me a minute.  My wife asked that brother-in-law (step, twice removed) what his thoughts were of replacing nuclear with something else.

The company he works for manages more than 20 nuclear power facilities.  So he simply stated, “Let’s say you want to shut down my plant.  Which State do you want to cover with solar panels and wind turbines to make up for it?”  My friends, that’s only nuclear power.  We haven’t even looked at natural gas yet, or God forbid, OIL!  Look at the massive $#!+storm we just witnessed over just a 5% cutback in oil production for a few weeks!  The whole world’s markets collectively clinched their butt cheeks all at the same time!

And that, my friends, is all you need to know.  Now, what I do promote and believe in is doing as much as possible to live as cleanly as is comfortably possible.  I recycle, I clean up after myself and others, I treat the environment with all of the care I would one of my kids…  What I won’t do is sign on to some idiotic pie in the sky notion that we can completely get rid of fossil fuels when it clearly is not even remotely close to the realm of possibility in my lifetime.  That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work toward the day it is possible, but I sure as shit won’t be striking over the reality it can’t happen next week!

Unfortunately, while they’re promoting lunacy, they’re actually creating believers out of the gullible and woefully uninformed (or misinformed, take your pick).  That will never end well and I reject that kind of divisiveness out of hand.  Because it’s bad for the children.

One last thing, Specialized:  No f***in’ politics on bicycle rides.