Like I said yesterday, I really love television (which is why the proposed sabbatical is necessary, at least for us). Part of the weekly line-up includes FOX's prevailing hit, "24". Who can resist Jack Bauer? He has become a cultural phenomenon.
If you're not familiar with the unique format, it consists of 24 episodes, each representing one hour in a 24-hour day. Thus, for the last 6 seasons (and up until this seventh season), Jack Bauer is in the middle of his 7th very dramatic, very long and stressful day. (I'm not sure exactly what he does for the rest of the year.) Jack is known for his renegade, no-holds-barred style, combined with his unrelenting pursuit of the bad guys and his willingness to do whatever it takes to accomplish the mission.
As one might imagine, Jack Bauer's willingness to call evil by its name and his loyalty to country and code has endeared him to the conservative base in this country. Which is why the Public Service Announcement by Keifer Sutherland in the middle of last night's double-episode seems a bit out of place. He made a point of explaining to the audience that "24" has become the first-ever carbon neutral television production.
Now, don't get me wrong, as I've outlined in a previous post concerning my own views on environmentalism, we should take seriously our obligation to responsibly steward the resources of our planet. (As Christians, this is especially important--which is why there is an emerging emphasis on going "green", including the new "Green Bible"). There is, however, a marked distinction between responsible environmentalism (e.g. recycling, planting trees, etc.) and radical environmentalism (e.g. burning down a ski resort to protect the habitat of the lynx, etc.). Depending on one's philosophical underpinnings, the line between responsible and radical is subject to impassioned disagreement. But in the midst of all of this, the scientific evidence is used to make the respective cases for/against global warming. And the fact is, there is as much compelling evidence against global warming as there is for it.
Take whatever position you choose on the issue. It just seemed that in the case, of "24", the liberal-leaning emphasis on reducing the carbon footprint on the film set appeared to be somewhat of a disconnect with the typically-conservative audience for the show. I struggle to envision Jack Bauer putting down his gun long enough to encourage me to watch my carbon footprint. But then again, it's easy to forget that Jack Bauer is a figment of some creative writer's imagination, regrettably. And Kiefer Sutherland is no Jack Bauer. 
UPDATE: On a slightly related note, I had to add this humorous comment from the FB wall of one of our faithful TDD readers. "If everyone on '24' followed Jack Bauer's instructions the show would be called '12'." :) If they followed that advice and shortened the show, would I be justified in breaking my self-imposed televsion fast? Just asking...
UPDATE: And we'll have to leave the discussion about the moral relativity inherent in Jack Bauer's decision-making for a future post.
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