will be bold and say I do not like Cameron Diaz.
I know this is terribly upsetting, especially when the consensus amongst the 18 to 24-year-old male crowd is that she is a unbelievable dream come true. She’s blonde, bubbly, loves to shake her bottom for no apparent reason, has graced the cover of Maxim, and she is willing to belch on the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” while wearing a low cut top. And after the series premiere of her new show on MTV, “Trippin’,” I am able to remember what it is I do not like about her.
New York Times writer Ned Martel wrote an interesting piece entitled “Eco-Lessons Taught in a Surfer-Girl Patois” about Diaz and her new show.
It made me wonder why this specific brand of “patois” is needed to inform young people that the environment is need of some help.
We are all young, intelligent (well, some of us) people that do not need the toothy grin of Cameron Diaz, or any other celebrity, to inform us on how to conserve energy and make the environment eco-friendly.
We should already know that the United States is the world leader in manmade greenhouse gases, namely carbon dioxide. The rise of sea levels, human health concerns and the rise of global surface temperature are all factors we should be aware of if the current rates of carbon dioxide amounts are omitted, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
An average vehicle with a fuel economy of 27 miles per gallon will omit 54 tons of carbon dioxide in its lifetime. That number is doubled when considering the root of all evil – SUVs.
Diaz admits she is not a politician in the article and it’s obvious she is not a stuffy middle-aged bureaucrat, in the sense that is how most young people view politicians.
But in a way, that statement and her show are very political, and perhaps that is what is so frustrating about “Trippin’,” because it’s a show that is about the environment – a very political subject – yet it has to be disguised with charming (or not) antics of Natalie from “Charlie’s Angels” as the host in order for the audience to care about conservation, recycling and global warming.
It’s important for young people to know that it’s OK to care about the environment. You don’t have to hug a tree or smell like patchouli to be concerned with having clean air, because if we are the future, it would be nice to breathe in that future without an oxygen mask or some other form of assisted respirator.
Contributing to clean air is simple if you educate yourself about climate change. If you have some free time in between classes check out http:// www.cleanair-coolplanet.org.
You can also buy recycled products and recycle products we consume on a daily basis such as paper, beer cans, plastic and glass bottles and pizza boxes. Turning off a light in a room you’re not in is pretty helpful and logical as well. These steps are easy and require very little of your time and energy and will hopefully not result in a “The Day After Tomorrow” scenario.
And if you care that much, volunteer for a local organization that promotes a better environment or start your own organization. Don’t let Cameron Diaz tell you something you should already know, because it’s going to take more than an Angel to help change the world.
Whitney Saffel is a broadcast advertising junior from Louisville.
The opinions expressed in this commentary do not necessarily represent those of the Herald or this University.
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