Pushing Buttons

The British video that explodes people (including kids) for not agreeing to reduce their carbon footprint is triggering outrage from all sides of the climate spectrum. (See, for example the threads at WUWT and Climate Progress.) At first blush, I can understand why many are offended by the video. And I can see why climate change advocates like Bill McKibben find it counterproductive. Personally, I don't think the gag works as satire, for the reasons laid out by Steve Mosher here. But it seems to me that the umbrage to the video stems less from the violence than the content it is associated with. After all, entertainment in western culture has been saturated with garish violence for decades. I watched Bugs Bunny as a child (while eating my Lucky Charms). As a teenager, I found Monthy Python hilarious. Kids today are growing up with Phineas and Ferb, which features an ...