[jtbigwoo]

I heard an interview with Ed Begley, Jr. where they talked for twenty minutes about his eco-friendly lifestyle. His house has super-insulated windows, walls, and doors, recycles rainwater, generates power from solar cells and a wind turbine, and has a stationary bike that generates electricity for the kitchen. His yard is planted with drought-tolerant garden of California-native plants. He rides a hybrid-electric bike whenever he can.

Toward the end of the interview, the interviewer, seeming overwhelmed, asked, "Well that's great for you rich guys, but what about us ordinary folk?" (I'm paraphrasing both sides of the conversation here.) Begley said, "You think we started with solar panels in the 1970's? We didn't have any money. I started with rolls of insulation in my attic. Saved me thousands of dollars. Start with something small and inexpensive."

You don't have to be an activist, but if you don't like the way things are, pick one thing that can help. You're right that picking fights with strangers probably won't help. Maybe you have a friend who's a dick online. You and a couple friends can ask him to tone it down. Maybe decide to only offer helpful criticism to newbies for a week and reserving taunting for friends. Pick something small and make the world a little better.