How interesting...

[Beldaran]

This is true. (http://www.snopes.com/politics/bush/house.asp)

For some reason the page won't let me copy the text. Basically, Al Gore lives in a mansion that uses 12 times more energy than the average American home, while George W. Bush lives in a modest house that uses no fossil fuels whatsoever. It is completely eco-friendly, designed by a professor of architecture at the University of Texas.

Of course, this doesn't excuse the fact that George Bush has no sensible energy policy as president, but it's still pretty hypocritical of Al Gore.

[Daarkseid]

Of course, this doesn't excuse the fact that George Bush has no sensible energy policy as president, but it's still pretty hypocritical of Al Gore.

And another section Urban Legands

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/gorehome.asp

Shows that Gore's home works as both a residence and business, and Gore himself pays a premium on electricity by buying into power from renewable sources.

Also, Bush has the advantage of being able to utilize geothermal power for his residence:

"Geothermal heat pumps located in a central closet circulate water through pipes buried 300 feet deep in the ground where the temperature is a constant 67 degrees; the water heats the house in winter and cools it in the summer. Systems such as the one in this "eco-friendly" dwelling use about 25% of the electricity that traditional heating and cooling systems utilize."

Basically the house is making use of heat generated deep underground, a feature that I imagine is not commonly available to all homes, no matter how rich you are.

Gore's residence is huge, located outside of a major city(Nashville) while Bush's home is located near Waco(specifically outside of Crawford, a suburb of Waco totaling under 800 people). Nashville's total metropolitan population is 1.5 million.

I would imagine one geographic location makes it easier for large homes built exclusively to take advantage of natural and eco-friendly features, the other not so much.

In the end, Bush probably pays a fraction of what it costs to run his compound whereas Gore's utility bill is quite a bit larger when you factor in both the size of his home and the fact he's paying for power that comes from renewable sources. What each person is paying in these cases is still speculation though.

I think these are details to be taken into consideration, before declaring Gore entirely hypocritical.

[AtmaWeapon]

So it's OK to point the finger at someone for being an energy hog when you consume more energy than they do because you pay more to consume that energy and didn't have the foresight to build your building in a location that provides a convenient source of energy?

Just because he pays more money so he could build the H3 of mansions doesn't mean it's any less of an energy hog. I understand that its status as "office" could increase the consumption but consider this.

My apartment has all the conveniences required of a modern office: phone internet-enabled computerIt manages to pack all of this into probably 60% of the square footage of the average 2-bedroom house. Does Al Gore need a 20-room mansion to house all of this? Would he consume multiples above the average household if, say, he only had 5 bedrooms in his mansion? It is admirable that he pays a premium to get some of his energy from green sources, but I believe he could do even more for the environment if he didn't probably have at least 15 unused rooms in his house at any given time.

[Beldaran]

While I didn't declare Al Gore "entirely" hypocritical, I agree with AtmaWeapon. He is somewhat hypocritical. He uses per month what most people use in a year. Ethically, I don't have a problem with this at all. I say if you are paying for energy, use as much as you want; that's how the free market works. However, I do have a problem with Al Gore doing it because he's so emphatic that everyone must sell their car, wear hemp sandals, and stop using refrigerators. (I exaggerate, but you get my drift).

You'd think that if Al Gore was serious about his message, he'd sell his mansion and move into an eco-friendly home.

[Pineconn]

Due to my awesomeness, I was able to copy the text from the site.


LOOK OVER THE DESCRIPTIONS OF THE FOLLOWING TWO HOUSES AND SEE IF YOU CAN TELL WHICH BELONGS TO AN ENVIRONMENTALIST.

HOUSE # 1:

A 20-room mansion (not including 8 bathrooms) heated by natural gas. Add on a pool (and a pool house) and a separate guest house all heated by gas. In ONE MONTH ALONE this mansion consumes more energy than the average American household in an ENTIRE YEAR. The average bill for electricity and
natural gas runs over $2,400.00 per month. In natural gas alone (which last time we checked was a fossil fuel), this property consumes more than 20 times the national average for an American home. This house is not in a northern or Midwestern "snow belt," either. It's in the South.

HOUSE # 2:

Designed by an architecture professor at a leading national university, this house incorporates every "green" feature current home construction can provide. The house contains only 4,000 square feet (4 bedrooms) and is nestled on arid high prairie in the American southwest. A central closet in the house holds geothermal heat pumps drawing ground water through pipes sunk 300 feet into the ground. The water (usually 67 degrees F.) heats the house in winter and cools it in summer. The system uses no fossil fuels such as oil or natural gas, and it consumes 25% of the electricity required for a conventional heating/cooling system. Rainwater from the roof is collected and funneled into a 25,000 gallon underground cistern. Wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets goes into underground purifying tanks and then into the cistern. The collected water then irrigates the land surrounding the house. Flowers and shrubs native to the area blend the property into the surrounding rural landscape.

HOUSE # 1 (20 room energy guzzling mansion) is outside of Nashville, Tennessee. It is the abode of that renowned environmentalist (and filmmaker) Al Gore.

HOUSE # 2 (model eco-friendly house) is on a ranch near Crawford, Texas. Also known as "the Texas White House," it is the private residence of the President of the United States, George W. Bush.

So whose house is gentler on the environment? Yet another story you WON'T hear on CNN, CBS, ABC, NBC, MSNBC or read about in the New York Times or the Washington Post. Indeed, for Mr. Gore, it's truly "an inconvenient truth."

This e-mail comparison between the homes of President George W. Bush and former vice-president Al Gore began circulating on the Internet in March 2007 (shortly after the latter's film on the global warming issue, An Inconvenient Truth, won an Academy Award as Best Documentary). Short and sweet, there's a fair bit of truth to the e-mail: Al Gore's Nashville mansion is something of the energy-gobbler the e-mail depicts, while President Bush's Crawford ranch is more the model of responsible resource use the juxtaposition portrays it to be.

According to the Associated Press, the Gore's 10,000 square foot Belle Meade residence consumes electricity at a rate of about 12 times the average for a typical house in Nashville (191,000 kwh versus 15,600 kwh). While there are mitigating factors (further discussed in our article about the Gore household's energy use), this is still a surprising number, given that the residence is approximately four times the size of the average new American home.

The Prarie Chapel Ranch ranch home owned by George W. Bush in Crawford, Texas, was designed by Austin architect David Heymann, an associate dean for undergraduate programs at the University of Texas School of Architecture. As the Chicago Tribune described the house in a 2001 article:


"The 4,000-square-foot house is a model of environmental rectitude.

Geothermal heat pumps located in a central closet circulate water through pipes buried 300 feet deep in the ground where the temperature is a constant 67 degrees; the water heats the house in the winter and cools it in the summer. Systems such as the one in this "eco-friendly" dwelling use about 25% of the electricity that traditional heating and cooling systems utilize.

A 25,000-gallon underground cistern collects rainwater gathered from roof runs; wastewater from sinks, toilets and showers goes into underground purifying tanks and is also funneled into the cistern. The water from the cistern is used to irrigate the landscaping surrounding the four-bedroom home. Plants and flowers native to the high prairie area blend the structure into the surrounding ecosystem."

Funny article.

[AtmaWeapon]

That rainwater collection and local wildflowers thing is apparently something of a trademark of Austin engineers. I went to the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Preserve and not only is it irrigated by this really complicated rainwater collection system, it is filled with propaganda about how horrible of a person you are if you plant anything that isn't Texas native anywhere on your grounds.

And yeah I'm no hippy if Al Gore pays his electric bill then I don't really care how much he consumes. It's just if he wants to play green warrior then one would think he'd be a little more eco-conscious. He's not wrong for using electricity, he's wrong for accusing others of being wasteful.

[Masamune]

George Bush is a douche bag for trying to mine all of the heat from the earth.