Angry boomer thinks he is doing enough to stop climate change. He definitely wants everybody to stop going on about it.
Edward Goodinson (63) was brought up in a traditional family with an alcoholic abusive father, a mother who tried to keep the family fed with whatever money that wasn’t spent on beer and a brother who liked to blow up frogs.
“We was bought up traditional. School taught us everything we needed to know. I don’t need to learn anything new.” He remembers the Keep Britain Clear campaign. “I’m usually pretty good. I’ll only throw paper and cardboard out the car window cos someone told me they’d rot down”. He does admit to throwing cans out of the window as well because there’s no recycling bin in the car, and crisp wrappers because he doesn’t want the car looking untidy.
He is annoyed about all the people banging on about the climate and reducing carbon dioxide and methane pollution. “I recycle my beer cans. What else do you want me to fucking do?”. On being asked if he recycles glass and paper as well, “How’m I gonna do that? Have loads of bins in the house and take them out one-by-one and have jars of vindaloo paste stinking the kitchen out? No thanks. A lot easier if it all goes in the same bin emptied once a day.”
He was not happy about clean air charging zones in cities. “I have to drive my van through Birmingham once a week and I ain’t happy about them charges. It’s like they don’t want people to drive through there. Madness!”. His van is a 20 year old Ford transit that he bought off a friend. “I don’t need a van but I was doing a mate a favour. He was downsizing to something more economical”.
He did have someone trying to interest him in subsidised solar panels for his house several years ago. “I didn’t fancy that. Think they look ugly”.
“Now they want us to buy electric cars now. Can’t see the point in that. They haven’t got the range”. When asked what was the furthest he travelled, it was to Birmingham, about 75 miles. “And there’s the hassle of getting a plug fitted. Can’t be doing with it”.
On switching lights and TVs off, he couldn’t switch lights off because he might go back into the room again. “Do they want me to switch the lights off every time I leave a room and wear out my light switch? No thanks “.
“What these people don’t understand is that hardworking people like me don’t have time to join in their crusade. I like my life as it is and I’m not changing for anyone”.