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Did Walt Disney Cause Global Warming?
"The planet has a fever," the politician began, "If your baby has a fever, you go to the doctor. If the doctor says you need to intervene here, you don't say, 'Well, I read a science fiction novel that told me it's not a problem.' If the crib's on fire, you don't speculate that the baby is flame retardant. You take action."
Al Gore was trying to make a point about the seriousness of GW and our illogical response (in his mind) to the situation. His words carried a deeper meaning for many, however, as some seem to think the planet is a real, live sentient being. There's a line between using a metaphor constructively and thinking in overly simplistic terms. Gore didn't mean to cross it, but without meaning to, old Al crossed into the world of self-righteous fantasy that Walt Disney helped create.
Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse, which starred in the first sound and animated feature in 1928.
Disney went on to receive over 950 honors, including 48 Academy Awards and 7 Emmys
There's no doubt that Disney had a great impact on all of humanity. The California Museum quotes another artist that Disney was "the most significant figure in graphic arts since Leonardo". It's hard to overestimate the impact Disney had on the world, although today we probably don't think much of it. Moving images with sound was nothing short of a miracle when they first appeared.
Walt was smart enough to use animals as his characters, as did many other animators that followed. Small and baby animals are almost universally considered to be cute, and animals don't have to "be" like anything else. They can walk, talk, fly, or whatever else Disney wanted them to do. It was all just good-natured, family-oriented fun. After all, nobody in the 1930s really thought that Bambi was anything but a fun conceit, a moving symbol of cuteness not grounded in reality at all.
Funny how things change, though, isn't it? I have a seven-year-old daughter, whom I love dearly. To her, all creatures are just little people. Bugs, cats, horses, lions -- they're all little people that deserve the same amount of attention and care. To her, they are just as much people as real people are. Obviously, this makes things such as spraying for pests, stepping on bugs, and seeing road kill on family trips very difficult for all of us. Several times I have tried to have some sort of rational conversation with her -- obviously we can't give a cockroach the same respect as a baby -- but to little avail. It makes her feel good looking out after these creatures, and no amount of logic is going to change her mind. She is irrational. (but happy!)
Bambi was a cute talking fawn
Hunters use the phrase "hunting Bambis" to indicate hunting for deer
It is also a comment on the absurdity of equating animals with people
But animals don't talk. They don't think, at least in the same way we do. They seem incapable of industry, written language, or philosophy. That doesn't make them bad or worthless, but it does mean that they are something fundamentally different than we are. When we grow up (if we do), we realize that these differences mean something. Some religions view all of nature as something for mankind to husband. I like this idea, because it doesn't mean that we are all the same or that we are all different. It simply means we should respect the symbiosis of all life that is around us.
But this is a balancing act. On one extreme, some people would rather not consider the world around them and want to do whatever we want to with the planet and the life on it. I do not have a moral problem with that, but I do have ascetic reservations about living on a planet full of smokestacks and Wal-Mart parking lots. On the other hand, some people feel everything is the same as a human -- including non-living things such as "Gaia" (the earth) To them, all life is sacred to the point that we end up worshipping nature and the planet while ignoring our responsibilities to improving the lives of our fellow man. I DO have a moral problem with this, as this line of thinking decreases the value of human life, all in the name of one person's view of spirituality. We have to grow up and take control, guys. Our choices are never going to colored in terms of black and white, right or wrong.
Some folks never grow up, however. "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy" Ingrid Newkirk said a few years back. Newkirk was the president for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Peter Singer, who won the World Technology Award for Ethics in 2003, has similar opinions.
Singer once wrote, "Because people are human does not mean that their lives are more valuable than animals." He not only advocates abortion but also killing disabled babies up to 28 days after they are born. In his book Practical Ethics, he wrote, "When the death of a disabled infant will lead to the birth of another infant with better prospects of a happy life, the total amount of happiness will be greater if the disabled infant is killed ... . Killing a disabled infant is not morally equivalent to killing a person. Often, it is not wrong at all."
If we don't deserve more political consideration than animals, folks, we got big problems.
When we think about environmentalism a lot, we realize (I hope) that the world is basically like a giant park. A long time ago we reached the point where we can make this park any way we want it. So today, it's a political discussion about how warm we want it, how many species we would like, and how much we are willing to hurt our fellow man to make it that way. A world full of Wal-marts and smokestacks may suck, but it may also be a happy life for ten or twenty billion people. People would live that would otherwise never be alive, and these people who can use language, culture, philosophy, invention, and industry to continue evolving our species and the species of our planet. Whatever we do, we cannot worship stasis. Life teaches us that everything must continue evolving. We much embrace our responsibility to change our environment, not just stand around in jaw-dropping awe of how beautiful it all is.
Disney began moving a process of anthropomorphising nature into the mainstream. This was well-intentioned, no doubt, but because of 80 years of Disney, the political conversation about ecology has become irrational. We stop talking about politics and start talking about God, morality, what's right or wrong, how ashamed we should be of ourselves, and all sorts of other emotional and religious baggage that we're never going to agree on. I know this makes some folks feel like they are on the side of angels and people on the other side (evil corporations, conservatives, selfish louts and such) as being members of the forces of darkness, but it's very counter-productive. Nobody wants dirty water. Nobody wants dirty air. Nobody wants to live in a sterile plastic world. But that was never the case to begin with: people on both sides have valid artistic opinions about how the world should look and feel, and we need to talk about them on an equal moral plane if we want to reach some conclusions.
Al Gore says the planet has a fever, but does it?
Or does it just have a temperature?
Al! I liked you better with the beard
The anthropomorphising and romanticizing of our place in the environment, began with Rousseau and continuing with Muir, reached it's natural conclusion in Disney and his cartoons. The political movement of Global Warming owes a lot to Disney -- both for good and bad.
EDIT: Before you comment, I suggest you read my response to the current comments on this article. "Winnie the Pooh Eats Children"
UPDATE: And if you're interested in Walt Disney, here's a bunch of stuff
hello i do not believe walt disney created globel warming. He was a great man and created the happiest place on earth. He was only looking out for the children. so stop being jelous and starting rumors that are not true :]
thankk youu
hello i do not believe walt disney created globel warming. He was a great man and created the happiest place on earth. He was only looking out for the children. so stop being jelous and starting rumors that are not true :]
thankk youu
You sir are an idiot! Stop posting this crap....
Hello! My name is Gavin and I am an 8th grade student. I am working on a presentation about Walt Disney for my class and I would really like to use your picture of Walt with Mickey in my presentation. I will credit your photo properly and ask that you grant me permission to use it. Your photo will not be used anywhere else, just for one day, in class, during my presentation.
Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible!
Gavin
what the hell is your promble dont bring a dead man into your "global warming"issues!!!
Are you nuts? Do you know who Walt Disney even is? How in the world would have Walt Disney caused global warming? You are just saying this so that you can blame someone. And how did he cause this when he had been dead for over 40 years? Global warming is caused more so by you than Walt Disney. You just don't want to believe it. So shut-up.
hello my name is thorya im saying what you are saying is not true because walt disney did not do anything to do with global warming so stop saying things you dont even know about ok
Walt Disney was a great man and I see no information in this article to back your OPINION up. He DID NOT cause global warming. Daniel- just by you getting in your car and turning it on, you are contributing. Walt Disney has been dead for many years, you however are still alive so why didn't you mention even yourself contriubiting to global warming in the article. Don't blame others, expecially when you do not know the facts. If you look at Walt Disney's extreem interest in nature, you will prove yourself wrong. Research before you write! We all have caused some sort of pollution. We as humans are all responsible. Write about that!
Wow, are these other comments for real?
If so, we're doomed. Seriously.
Daniel - interesting thoughts. I'm not certain I would pin the sociological phenomenon on the Disney empire, however.
I've always thought of it as a natural consequence to the fact that we live our lives relatively detached from labor, hardship, or real threat. (Not that there aren't real threats or hardships, but the average American who is concerned about global warming is not directly confronted with these things on a regular basis.)
Stress and hardship are a natural part of the human condition. In the past, condition been filled by the need put food on the table and a roof over your head, the need to combat real famine, plague, and enemy threat. Can you imagine concerning your intellect with a 1 degree global temperature change if your child was on the brink of starving to death?
We are rapidly becoming a society driven by fear. Those who are not confronted with daily peril instead generate disproportionate amounts of worry about extremely minor or theorietical threats. From 5-point safety harnesses in stroller and high chairs, to fears about global warming.
The luxury of being able to concern ourselves with more and more minutiae sometimes does lead to progress that legitimately improves our safety and quality of life.
However it seems we've reached a point where there is a thin line between progress and hysteria. People can't even keep it straight anymore - which is worse to consume - the pesticide or the pathogen?
Not that I entirely dismiss your thesis that the anthropomorphizing of animals has contributed to people equating animals and nature with human beings, but I think that shift may have started as more and more people moved away from rural settings and into urban settings. When California pased a proposition to make horse meat illegal, it was the urbanites who voted for it. Those who actually lived and worked with horses voted against it - and I don't think it had to do with them watching fewer Mickey Mouse cartoons, but rather having grown up with animals in the right perspective.
Hello, the golbal Warming was caused by people and still human beings, in my opnião people continue eating meat is the major cause of global warming, because approximately 4 million and 700 thousand trees are dropped every day in Amazonia ...
And that?
Well, the most deforested places,
Are for the planting of soybean ...
This will be planted to soybeans for livestock feed in many countries,
Especially Brazil, including the illegal slaughterhouses that torture animals cruelly,
And all this for?
Bright,
For people often think defenders of animals, and still work for the massacre of them, without knowing, are also contributing to the deforestation of the world's largest forest.
Excuse Me ... had not even read the article ...
but now I understand what you meant to say ...
people comment animals eg cows, but not a dog .. because the dog is different from cow?
well I do not know if this is what you mean
but put my opnião ..
mainly because I am a vegetarian 2 years.
regards,
Jéssica
Terráqueos (earthlings)
http://www.vista-se.com.br/terraqueos/
cum on this is the stupidest thing i've ever heard of. Walt has been dead for over 40 years. Give the dead man a break.
hey, don't pin this all on Walt Disney. He didn't invent the gas powered car, he didn't invent pesticides, he didn't come up with clear-cutting, he didn't invent chemicals, and he didn't sit on his but all day dissing other famous people!!!!!!!!!!
Why would you think that Disney started global warming?!?! That is probably the dumbest theroy i have ever heard. And why did you cut something out of the picture at the top. I can tell the background has been taken out and was just wondering what had been there and why, if, it has been cut out. Thank you.
Why would you think that Disney started global warming?!?! That is probably the dumbest theroy i have ever heard. And why did you cut something out of the picture at the top. I can tell the background has been taken out and was just wondering what had been there and why, if, it has been cut out. Thank you.
To quote another post, you sir are an idiot. The planet earth IS a living thing. Strap yourself in front of the Discovery Channel and study something called plate tectonics (mind my spelling). There is no cure for stupid is there?
que pena que murio walt disney.
How about blaming science? Henry Ford for inventing the car? Or all inventions at that! It's what makes us human..To move forward. I'm sure no inventor means to just make money but to improve our world... It is us as a whole that has caused this because we want more more more. Moderation slowly dies out as we pump our electronics that serve us convenience. Stop pointing the finger and start thinking maybe I caused all this. Hmmmm, maybe I should take my own advice. Don't write if you intend to plagiarize ideas, especially from those like Al Gore. Politicians only know how to blame and never promise to fix things..Remember who the writer is and try not to let another man's ideas cloud you. By the way, we made the system. We the People. I'm sure you've visited Disney's parks and viewed his movies with enjoyment.
The Walt Disney issue doesn't bother me so much, but the rest of your article sure did.
What is the importance of all of the written language, philosophy, and industry made by man that somehow makes him in a separate category than all other creatures? It amounts to nothing! It means nothing! Your daughter wasn't irrational! She was beginning to understand the equality of all creatures, and respecting and honoring nature like we do man could only benefit and improve human life. This importance you've given to continued evolution and changing our environment seems almost religious to me, very similar to the "moralistic, black and white" way of looking at things that you don't like! As if we are going toward some final product, where we can have a perfect planet. But the balance that's in place is already perfect! It doesn't require further evolution! The moralistic issue is that unneccesary violence and pollution is destroying the Earth's ecosystem, making living difficult for other species. This is what the politicians and left wing people are trying to express, non of which is being heard by the "evil corporations, conservatives, selfish louts and such". Getting rid of what's here to make way for more industry won't benefit man. Refining mans way of working could help man, and there is plenty of room for the nature already in place for that.
Please consider my point of view, Thank You.
How about "we must embrace our responsibility to help or environment" ?
I totally agree with your premise about anthropomorphising. I was raised with this effect, knowing that it had to do with mouses with voices and rabbits who sing, and it was all for entertainment.It also has had an incredible impact on the group think.
I do, however, disagree with your sound bite about the beloved Disney. I thought only Beck and Laushbaugh loved to hate!
Thanks Katy,
The title is linkbait. It overstates the case. It should be "Did Walt Disney help create a culture that misunderstands nature?"
But I wrote this a long time ago, and it's too late to change the title.
I'm glad you (and the others!) dropped by for the read.
WOOW!!
It's very good, i love this site! :)
And Mickey is sooo cute *_*
XXX Emilie
Hi, I'm Maddie. I'm a student from Highland Middle School in 6th grade and you are such a sicko!!! I did a report on walt in 4th grade and he's a nice guy sooooo...
SHUT THE DUCK UP!!!!!!!!!!
are you that immature and dumb think that walt disney caused global warming? seriously think about what you are saying?
I think he means that Walt Disney contributed to some of the hype around Global Warming because his cuddly animals cause people to respect nature, which somehow is a bad thing.
Alrite well I took the time to read both articles and I don't really care about Pooh and Disney, ur right they are becoming too corporation centered for my taste, and Disney probably did do what you mention in this article, nothing against him or anything. But I am going to disagree with you about your view of nature. Animals do talk, while they might not speak human languages, we certainly don't speak deer or wolf or bear. While we might have an intellectual edge, we can't run faster than them, we arent stronger than them, we cant fly. Recent studies show animals are much bigger thinkers than what we give them credit for. While I have more to say, this comment rather long and I think you got the gist of what i'm saying.(If not its this: you are immensly ignorant of what you percieve to be nature.)