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Atheism

2007-08-16T12:50:03Z

StatusQuote: /* Well Known Atheists */

[[Image:Nogod.jpg|right|175px]]
'''Atheism''', as defined by the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' and the ''Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', is the denial of the existence of any [[God]].<ref>http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism/</ref><ref>http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/1998</ref>
== Biblical Statements Regarding Atheism ==
[[Image:134t.gif|thumb|150px|left|The psalmist [[David]] wrote: "The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God."]]
The writers of the Bible considered the existence of God to be self-evident and [[Moses]] simply wrote: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." ([[Genesis]] 1:1). <ref>http://www.answersingenesis.org/Home/Area/AnswersBook/existence1.asp</ref>

Accordingly, the psalmist [[David]] wrote the following:

"The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." - Psalm 14:1 (KJV)

The psalmist David also stated that "The The heavens declare the glory of God..." - Psalm 19:1

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans that the creation testifies to the existence of God when he wrote the following:

"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse..." - Romans 1:20 (KJV)}}

==Atheism is Illogical==
Proponents of atheism, most notably atheist debaters, have been attempting to dilute the definition of atheism to a mere lack of belief there is a God or gods.<ref>http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm</ref> This definition, however, is not in accordance with how encyclopedias of philosophy define atheism which state that atheism is a denial of the existence of God or gods.<ref>http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism/</ref><ref>http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/1998</ref>
One of the reasons why some proponents of atheism have been attempting to dilute the definition of the term atheism is to shift the burden of proof since atheism is inherently a illogical position.
[[Image:Image-S070812.jpg|thumb|175px|right|[[D. James Kennedy]]]]
Dr. [[D. James Kennedy]] wrote the following regarding the illogicalness of atheism:
{{cquote|Atheism is what is called a "[[universal negative]]." One of the laws of logic is that you can't prove a universal negative....You would have to examine every part of the universe....

By the way, you would have to be very, very fast because, who knows, this God, these angels....may be very, very fast, and just after you get somewhere, they may have left for another part of the universe.

This means that you would have to be [[omnipresent]]. You would also have to know everything about every part of the universe, so you would be [[omniscient]]. Then, just at the point when you proved that there was no God, you would also have proven that you were one.<ref>http://www.kennedycommentary.org/default.asp?pg=topicmessage&id=1419</ref>}}

==Tenuousness of Atheism==
[[Image:Sartre1.gif|thumb|150px|right|[[Jean-Paul Sartre]]]]
Atheism seems to be very tenuous in some of its more notable adherents. For example, [[Jean-Paul Sartre]] was one of the leading atheist of the 20th Century. Yet Jean-Paul Sartre made this candid confession:
{{cquote|As for me, I don’t see myself as so much dust that has appeared in the world but as a being that was expected, prefigured, called forth. In short, as a being that could, it seems, come only from a creator; and this idea of a creating hand that created me refers me back to God. Naturally this is not a clear, exact idea that I set in motion every time I think of myself. It contradicts many of my other ideas; but it is there, floating vaguely. And when I think of myself I often think rather in this way, for wont of being able to think otherwise.<ref>http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/apologetics/AP0702W4.htm</ref>}}
[[Image:darwin.jpg|thumb|150px|left|[[Charles Darwin]]]]
[[Charles Darwin]] wrote in his private notebooks that he was a [[materialism|materialist]] which is a type of atheist.<ref>http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/1877</ref><ref>American Scientist May 1977:323</ref> The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy states the following:
{{cquote|In 1885, the Duke of Argyll recounted a conversation he had had with Charles Darwin the year before Darwin's death:

In the course of that conversation I said to Mr. Darwin, with reference to some of his own remarkable works on the Fertilisation of [[Orchid]]s, and upon The [[Earthworm]]s, and various other observations he made of the wonderful contrivances for certain purposes in nature—I said it was impossible to look at these without seeing that they were the effect and the expression of Mind. I shall never forget Mr. Darwin's answer. He looked at me very hard and said, “Well, that often comes over me with overwhelming force; but at other times,” and he shook his head vaguely, adding, “it seems to go away.”(Argyll 1885, 244] <ref>http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/teleological-arguments/notes.html</ref>}}

==Atheists in America Are Generally Less Charitable==
[[Image:112006top.jpg|thumb|Atheists in America generally give significantly less to charity than [[theism|theist]] Americans.]]
The [[Barna Group]] found the following in regards to atheist population in America and charitable giving:
{{cquote|The typical no-faith American donated just $200 in 2006, which is more than seven times less than the amount contributed by the prototypical active-faith adult ($1500). Even when church-based giving is subtracted from the equation, active-faith adults donated twice as many dollars last year as did atheists and agnostics. In fact, while just 7% of active-faith adults failed to contribute any personal funds in 2006, that compares with 22% among the no-faith adults.<ref>http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdateNarrow&BarnaUpdateID=272</ref>}}

In 2003, Arthur C. Brooks wrote in ''Policy Review'' the following:
{{cquote|The differences in charity between secular and religious people are dramatic. Religious people are 25 percentage points more likely than secularists to donate money (91 percent to 66 percent) and 23 points more likely to volunteer time (67 percent to 44 percent). And, consistent with the findings of other writers, these data show that practicing a religion is more important than the actual religion itself in predicting charitable behavior. For example, among those who attend worship services regularly, 92 percent of Protestants give charitably, compared with 91 percent of Catholics, 91 percent of Jews, and 89 percent from other religions.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3647/is_200310/ai_n9340592/pg_2 Policy Review, Oct-Dec 2003 by Brooks, Arthur C]</ref>}}

ABC News reported the following:
{{cquote|...the single biggest predictor of whether someone will be charitable is their religious participation.

Religious people are more likely to give to charity, and when they give, they give more money: four times as much. And Arthur Brooks told me that giving goes beyond their own religious organization:

"Actually, the truth is that they're giving to more than their churches," he says. "The religious Americans are more likely to give to every kind of cause and charity, including explicitly non-religious charities."<ref>http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Story?id=2682730&page=2</ref>}}

==Atheism and Immoral Views==
The Barna Group found that atheists/agnostics in America were more likely than theist in America to look upon the following behaviors as morally acceptable: illegal drug use; getting drunk; having a sexual relationship with someone of the opposite sex to whom you are not married; having an [[abortion]]; living with someone of the opposite sex without being married; using profanity; gambling; looking at pictures of nudity or explicit sexual behavior; and engaging in [[homosexuality]]/[[bisexuality]].<ref>http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdate&BarnaUpdateID=152</ref>

==Atheism and the Existence of Evil==
Atheists often claim that the existence of evil is a problem for [[theism]] which holds to a good and powerful God.<ref>http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/probe/docs/evil.html</ref> [[Theodicy]] is the branch of study in theology and philosophy that defends the goodness of God despite the existence of evil. <ref>http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_1861719540/theodicy.html</ref> In traditional Christianity and Judaism the book of Job is used to explain the existence of evil. <ref>http://apologetics.com/default.jsp?bodycontent=/articles/doctrinal_apologetics/bowman-job.html</ref> In recent times [[Christian apologetics|Christian apologists]] often cite [[Alvin Plantinga]]'s free will defense in regards to the existence of evil. <ref>http://www.xenos.org/essays/evilpo.htm</ref><ref>http://www3.baylor.edu/~Scott_Moore/handouts/free_will_defense.html</ref> The work of [[St. Augustine]] is also cited in regards to theodicy. <ref>http://www.str.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5124</ref>

==Atheism and Communism ==
[[Karl Marx]] coined the saying "[Religion] is the opium of the people".<ref>http://www3.baylor.edu/~Scott_Moore/texts/Marx_Opium.html</ref> Karl Marx also wrote: "Communism begins from the outset (Owen) with atheism; but atheism is at first far from being communism; indeed, that atheism is still mostly an abstraction."<ref>http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/manuscripts/comm.htm</ref>

[[Vladimir Lenin]] similarly wrote: "A Marxist must be a materialist, i. e., an enemy of religion, but a dialectical materialist, i. e., one who treats the struggle against religion not in an abstract way, not on the basis of remote, purely theoretical, never varying preaching, but in a concrete way, on the basis of the class struggle which is going on in practice and is educating the masses more and better than anything else could."<ref>http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1909/may/13.htm</ref>

==Atheism and Questions of Origins ==
Atheism provides no useful input in regards to origins. [[Creationism|Creationist]] scientists state that the [[First Law of Thermodynamics|first law of thermodynamics]] and the [[Second Law of Thermodynamics|second law of thermodynamics]] argue against an eternal universe or a universe created by natural processes and argue for a universe created by [[God]]. <ref>http://godevidences.net/space/lawsofscience.php</ref> <ref>http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/2329</ref> <ref>http://www.creationscience.com/onlinebook/AstroPhysicalSciences14.html</ref> A majority of the most prominent and vocal defenders of the naturalistic evolutionary position since [[World War II]] have been atheists.<ref>Dr. [[Don Batten]], [http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/737/ A ''Who’s Who'' of evolutionists] ''Creation'' 20(1):32
December 1997.</ref><ref>[[Jonathan Sarfati]], Ph.D.,F.M., [http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/3830 ''Refuting Evolution'', Chapter 1, Facts and Bias]</ref> [[Creationism|Creationist]] scientists also assert the [[theory of evolution]] is an inadequate explanation for the variety of life forms on earth. <ref>http://www.icr.org/home/resources/resources_tracts_scientificcaseagainstevolution/</ref>

Creationists also state that the [[origin of life]] is not possible though natural processes and the origin of life is the result of God. <ref>http://www.christiananswers.net/q-eden/origin-of-life.html</ref> <ref>http://www.trueorigin.org/abio.asp</ref> <ref>http://www.macrodevelopment.org/library/meyer.html</ref>

== Atheist Population as a Percentage of Various Countries Populations==
Specific research on atheists conducted in 2006 [http://www.harrisinteractive.com/news/allnewsbydate.asp?NewsID=1131 suggests] that the true proportion of atheists is 4% in the United States, 17% in Great Britain and 32% in France.

== American Population's View of Atheists ==
Research in the American Sociological Review finds that atheists are the group that Americans least relate to for shared vision or want to have marry into their family.
<ref>Edgell, Gerteis & Hartmann 2006</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! This Group Does Not At All Agree with My Vision of American Society:
! I Would Disapprove if My Child Wanted to Marry a Member of This Group:
|-
| Atheist
| 39.6%
| 47.6%
|-
| Muslim
| 26.3%
| 33.5%
|-
| Homosexual
| 22.6%
| NA
|-
|Conservative Christian
| 13.5%
| 6.9%
|-
| Recent Immigrant
| 12.5%
| Not Asked
|-
| Hispanic
| 7.6%
| 18.5%
|-
| Jew
| 7.4%
| 11.8%
|-
| Asian American
| 7.0%
| 18.5%
|-
|African American
| 4.6%
| 27.2%
|-
| White American
| 2.2%
| 2.3%
|}

== Well Known Atheists ==
Well-known atheists include Kurt Vonnegut, Isaac Asimov, [[Joseph Stalin]], [[Bertrand Russell]], [[Ayn Rand]], [[Richard Dawkins]], [[Douglas Adams]], [[Ernest Hemingway]], and [[David Hume]].

==External Links==
*[http://creationwiki.org/Decline_of_atheism Decline of Atheism -CreationWiki]
*[http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf European Commission report on Social values, Science and Technology, includes info on Religious beliefs]

==References==
<small><references/></small>

[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]

Buddhism

2007-08-16T12:49:10Z

StatusQuote:

'''Buddhism''' is the fifth largest [[list of religions based on followers|religion in the world]].{{fact}} It is a belief system which teaches that desire causes suffering and if desire is eliminated, [[Buddhist enlightenment|enlightenment]] and [[Nirvana]] are attained. Buddhism is a [[Dharmic religion]]. The term buddha means "the enlightened one."

==Founder==

Buddhism's foundations lie with an Indian prince, [[Siddhartha Gautama]], who, after being sheltered until adulthood, finally observed the suffering of his people. After that he worked to discover the reason for suffering and pain. He studied a number of the disciplines of the day, seeking ultimate truth. After finding other approaches to understanding lacking, he went into meditation for 49 days, vowing not to move until he had attained enlightenment. After great personal struggle he achieved enlightenment, and began to teach the principles that are now associated with Buddhism.

The philosophy has its roots in [[Hinduism]] and Vedic religion, to which Gautama belonged until the foundation of Buddhism.

==View of God==

Buddhist scriptures acknowledge that gods exist, but does not consider that knowledge crucial to an individual's practice of Buddhist teachings. The Buddha taught that we should not speculate about what we cannot know, and that speculation about God is pointless. Many modern strains of Buddhism are [[atheist|atheistic]] in nature, thus creating a paradox as to why they are called a religion. Certain denominations, such as the Mahayana tradition, believe in [[Bodhisattvas]], or quasi-divine cosmic beings that seek to benefit others by remaining in a state of [[Samsara]], or eternal rebirth. These are prayed to, for advice and spiritual guidance, and often venerated.

==In Relation to Christianity==
Buddhists and [[Christians]] have historically not been in conflict. However, under Christian theology, practicing Buddhists will be delivered to [[hell]] after death, since they do not believe that [[Jesus]] is their savior.

==Teachings==

The highest ideal for a Buddhist is the state of Nirvana, or release from eternal rebirth, a state beyond conceptual thought described by the Buddha as follows:
<blockquote>''"There is O monks, an Unborn, Unoriginated, Uncreated, Unformed. Were there not, o monks, this Unborn, Unoriginated, Uncreated, Unformed, there would be no escape from the world of the born, originated, created, formed. ~ Udana, 80-81"''</blockquote>

Buddhism is a very practical philosophy, which teaches us to focus our attention on personal experience, to determine what is the cause of our discontents ([[dukkha]]) and to find a way to liberate ourselves from these, all the while expressing [[metta]], which is universal, unconditional love, and [[karuna]], which roughly translates to 'compassion', towards others. These teachings are encapsulated in the [[Four Noble Truths.]]<ref>http://www.parami.org/buddhistanswers/what_about_god.htm</ref>

Regardless belief in Buddhist teachings does not exclude belief in other religions. For example there are Buddhist [[Christians]] who follow the religious teachings of [[Christ]] and also incorporate the philosophical teachings of Buddhism.

==See Also==
[[Nihilism]]

==References==

<References/>

[[Category:Buddhism]]

Murder

2007-08-16T12:42:33Z

StatusQuote: ASchlafly: I think we need some kind of note about soldiers being "allowed" to kill; otherwise it seems they are violating the sixth commandment.

'''Murder''' is the deliberate, malicious and unlawful killing of one human being by another. Sir Edward Coke defined it as: "''when a man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion, unlawfully killeth within any county of the realm any reasonable creature in rerum natura<ref> In the nature of things; in existence.</ref> under the king's peace, with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or implied by law, so as the party wounded, or hurt, etc. die of the wound or hurt etc. within a year and a day after the same''"<ref>Coke 3 Inst 47</ref>.

*"A man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion" means, in essence, a sane man.

*"reasonable creature ''in rerum natura''" means any human being.

*"malice aforethought" is a legal concept and only requires a momentary intention immediately prior to the act.

*The [[Common law|common law]] rule that in order for an act to constitute murder, the victim must die within a year and a day of the wounding, has now been modified by statute in a number of jurisdictions.

In addition to various earthly prohibitions, the sixth<ref>[[Exodus]] 20:3-17 and [[Deuteronomy]] 5:6-21</ref> of the [[Ten Commandments]] forbids murder. Note that soldiers in war are not generally considered to violate the sixth commandment, since war is lawful (in contradistinction to the definition of "murder", above.)

== Degrees ==

Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with deliberate intent to kill: (1) murder in the first degree is characterized by premeditation; (2) murder in the second degree is characterized by a sudden and instantaneous intent to kill or to cause injury without caring whether the injury kills or not.

==Trivia==
A group of crows is called "a murder of crows".

==References==
<references/>

{{stub}}
[[Category:Crimes]]
[[Category:Crime]]

Murder

2007-08-16T00:47:11Z

StatusQuote:

'''Murder''' is the deliberate, malicious and unlawful killing of one human being by another. Sir Edward Coke defined it as: "''when a man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion, unlawfully killeth within any county of the realm any reasonable creature in rerum natura<ref> In the nature of things; in existence.</ref> under the king's peace, with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or implied by law, so as the party wounded, or hurt, etc. die of the wound or hurt etc. within a year and a day after the same''"<ref>Coke 3 Inst 47</ref>.

*"A man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion" means, in essence, a sane man.

*"reasonable creature ''in rerum natura''" means any human being.

*"malice aforethought" is a legal concept and only requires a momentary intention immediately prior to the act.

*The [[Common law|common law]] rule that in order for an act to constitute murder, the victim must die within a year and a day of the wounding, has now been modified by statute in a number of jurisdictions.

In addition to various earthly prohibitions, the sixth<ref>[[Exodus]] 20:3-17 and [[Deuteronomy]] 5:6-21</ref> of the [[Ten Commandments]] forbids murder.

However, it is generally acceptable for soldiers -- even religious ones -- to murder, in order to defend one's family, faith or country. For instance, see Matthew 10:34: "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." Also see Luke 12:49–53 and 14:25–33. Soldiers who murder need not fear God's wrath.

== Degrees ==

Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with deliberate intent to kill: (1) murder in the first degree is characterized by premeditation; (2) murder in the second degree is characterized by a sudden and instantaneous intent to kill or to cause injury without caring whether the injury kills or not.

==Trivia==
A group of crows is called "a murder of crows".

==References==
<references/>

{{stub}}
[[Category:Crimes]]
[[Category:Crime]]

Murder

2007-08-16T00:24:54Z

StatusQuote: Added important exemption for religious soldiers

'''Murder''' is the deliberate, malicious and unlawful killing of one human being by another. Sir Edward Coke defined it as: "''when a man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion, unlawfully killeth within any county of the realm any reasonable creature in rerum natura<ref> In the nature of things; in existence.</ref> under the king's peace, with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or implied by law, so as the party wounded, or hurt, etc. die of the wound or hurt etc. within a year and a day after the same''"<ref>Coke 3 Inst 47</ref>.

*"A man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion" means, in essence, a sane man.

*"reasonable creature ''in rerum natura''" means any human being.

*"malice aforethought" is a legal concept and only requires a momentary intention immediately prior to the act.

*The [[Common law|common law]] rule that in order for an act to constitute murder, the victim must die within a year and a day of the wounding, has now been modified by statute in a number of jurisdictions.

In addition to various earthly prohibitions, the sixth<ref>[[Exodus]] 20:3-17 and [[Deuteronomy]] 5:6-21</ref> of the [[Ten Commandments]] forbids murder.

However, it is generally acceptable for soldiers -- even religious ones -- to kill, in order to defend one's family, faith or country. For instance, see Matthew 10:34: "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." Also see Luke 12:49–53 and 14:25–33. Soldiers who kill or murder need not fear God's wrath.

== Degrees ==

Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with deliberate intent to kill: (1) murder in the first degree is characterized by premeditation; (2) murder in the second degree is characterized by a sudden and instantaneous intent to kill or to cause injury without caring whether the injury kills or not.

==Trivia==
A group of crows is called "a murder of crows".

==References==
<references/>

{{stub}}
[[Category:Crimes]]
[[Category:Crime]]

Al Gore

2007-08-16T00:10:28Z

StatusQuote: /* Criticism */ For credibility's sake, definitely needs a citation

{{President
|image=Al_Gore_2.jpg
|seq=45
|office=vice
|term_start=January 20, 1993
|term_end=January 20, 2001
|party=Democratic
|pres=Bill Clinton
|previous=Dan Quayle
|next=Dick Cheney
|birth_date=March 31, 1948
|birth_place=Washington, D.C.
|death_date=
|death_place=
|spouse=[[Tipper Gore]]
|spouse2=
|religion=Baptist
}}

'''Albert "Al" A. Gore, Jr.''' was the 45th [[Vice President]] of the [[United States]] (1993-2001) succeeding [[Dan Quayle]] and succeeded by [[Dick Cheney]], following service in the [[House of Representatives]] and the [[Senate]], spanning 1977-85 and 1985-93, respectively.

In his early life, Al Gore attended [[Harvard University]] and (briefly) Vanderbilt University.
He also served in the [[United States Army]], and worked as a war correspondant during the [[Vietnam War]]. <ref>William V. Kennedy, ''The Military and the Media: Why the Press Cannot Be Trusted to Cover a War''. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 1993. [http://com.hilbert.edu/students/papers/carolina-1999/1999vietnam.html]</ref>

He is married to activist [[Tipper Gore]].

In his Senate career, he proposed bills to fund the Internet and chaired panels on environmental issues.

He is an author noted for his books ''Earth in the Balance'' and ''[[Assault on Reason]]''.

He also starred in the 2006 documentary "[[An Inconvenient Truth]]," which won an [[Oscar]].

==Vice Presidency==
The [[Democratic Party]] selected him for Vice President on the 1992 ticket. The Democrats were victorious and he was sworn in on January 20, 1993.
==Campaign for the Presidency==
As is customary with Vice Presidents, he was nominated to the [[Democratic]] ticket for the 2000 Presidential election. Gore lost to [[George W. Bush]] in the [[Electoral College]] after a close vote, in which Gore received more popular votes than Bush, but fewer electoral votes. Gore contested the results in Florida. On December 13, 2000, after an extensive court battle ([[Bush v. Gore]]), Gore accepted Bush's election to the Presidency.<ref>[http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=2000 2000 Presidential Election Results]</ref>.

[[Image:041109 al gore vsml 6a vsmall.jpg|left|thumb|150 px|Al Gore, 2004]]
In the spring of 2000 Gore told the International Press Institute in Boston,

:"For all of my career, I have believed that America has a responsibility to lead in the world. ...we must also recognize that there is ...a set of threats that affect us all and that transcend political borders....we need a foreign policy that addresses the classic security threats -- and understands the new ones as well....We need to pursue a policy of "forward engagement" -- addressing problems early in their development before they become crises; addressing them as close to the source of the problem as possible" <ref>[http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/itps/0900/ijpe/pj52gore.htm ''A New Security Agenda for the Global Age''], Al Gore, Speech to the International Press Institute, Boston MA, April 30, 2000. Retrieved from U.S. Department of State, International Information Programs.</ref>

Gore contemplates a dark horse bid for the [[2008_Presidential_Election|2008 Democratic Presidential]] nomination, he appears to have been downgraded from an [[Alpha male]] to a [[Beta male]] by ''Newsweek'' magazine. <ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18881794/site/newsweek/page/0/ Betas Rule], By Jennie Yabroff, ''Newsweek'', June 4, 2007.</ref>

==Post politics==
Gore has started an investment firm to invest in environmentally sustainable technology and industries, a cable channel (Current TV), and is an adviser to [[Google]]. Al Gore is also mentioned as a possible 2008 presidential candidate. His famous sentence: "I used to be the next president of United States of America."

== Criticism ==
[[Image:Al Gore October 2006.jpg|thumb|150 px|Al Gore at the XPrize Executive Summit, October 19, 2006]]
Al Gore has recently received criticism for his alleged hypocrisy on environmental issues. When it was discovered that Gore's utility bill is 20 times higher than the average American's<ref>[http://stoptheaclu.com/archives/2007/02/26/al-gore-hypocrite/ Al Gore, Hypocrite]</ref> many of his detractors accused him of not living up to his own standards. Gore's defenders claim that the majority of that power came from 'green', or environmentally friendly, power sources such as solar and wind power. These power sources are much more expensive than traditional power sources such as coal and nuclear power. From The Tennessean:

<blockquote>
"Gore purchased 108 blocks of "green power" for each of the past three months, according to a summary of the bills.

That's a total of $432 a month Gore paid extra for solar or other renewable energy sources.

The green power Gore purchased in those three months is equivalent to recycling 2.48 million aluminum cans or 286,092 pounds of newspaper, according to comparison figures on NES' Web site."<ref>[http://tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070227/NEWS01/702270382]</ref>
</blockquote>

Also, some conservatives have pointed to Gore's use of a private jet while spreading the message about the dangers of [[global warming]].<ref>[http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2332/More_Inconvenient_Truths_About_Al_Gore More Inconvenient Truths About Al Gore]</ref>

Attention has also been called to Gore's profits from mining royalties. Specifically, the mining of zinc adjacent to his property he leased in Tennessee, which has released millions of pounds of potentially toxic substances into the environment.<ref>[http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200770316074 Tennessee Mine Enriched Gore, Scarred Land]</ref> The mine has been closed since 2003. The new owner Strategic Resource Acquisition is planning to re-open the mine. From The Tennessean (3/12/07):

<blockquote>
'Last week, Gore sent a letter asking the company to work with Earthworks, a national [[Environmentalist|environmental group]], to make sure the operation doesn’t damage the environment.

“We would like for you to engage with us in a process to ensure that the mine becomes a global example of environmental best practices,” Gore wrote.'
</blockquote>

However, this was after he had already made $500,000 from the mining operations.{{fact}}

==See Also==
[[Previous Breaking News/Al Gore|Articles about '''Al Gore''' from previous "Breaking News"]]

==References==

<references/>

{{USVicePresidents}}
[[Category:Vice Presidents of the United States|Gore, Al]]
[[category:liberal activists]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gore, Al}}