The "Volunteer" Live Earth Experience

First of all, I must say that was one of the best concerts I've seen in a while. When The Police sang "S.O.S. to the World" and John Mayer and Kanye West came out to back them up, that was something I knew would never be seen again. Equally good was Roger Waters. Half the crowd got stoned when he came out (either first or second-hand) and played three amazing Pink Floyd classics. The music lasted from 2 to 10:30 pm, but my day started way before then.

I got up early to catch the train to Secaucus to make the 8am shuttle bus, but being that this is a liberal event, there was no shuttle until 8:45. Then the bus dropped us off on the other side of the Meadowlands, so the walk was a bit long. Finally we found the volunteer tent and I got to work.

Having credentials duty, I stayed put and helped people get setup to do their jobs. Handing out bracelets, water, meal tickets and I.D. badges doesn't sound so bad. But when you have hundreds of people streaming towards one line for A-M and my line for N-Z last names, it can be kind of hectic. Despite the 500 or so people processed between 9 and noon, it went rather quickly and efficiently.

The best part was meeting each person if even for a moment. People came from Portland, Oregon, Vermont, Massachusetts, Upstate NY, Pennsylvania, Long Island and beyond. There were all sorts of environmental shirts and flair. And on top of it all, the weather wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Before I knew it my shift was over and I wished that it wasn't over yet. But I picked myself up and went to the NJ state fair anyways. The food there was good and the rides looked tempting, but I was sad to see they still had 'freak' shows, isn't this 2007?

Time flew by again and I got a seat on the side of the stage on the 2nd level. The acts were all good save for Kelly Clarkson. From my vantage point I saw the teleprompter scrolling her lyrics as she sang. When she wasn't singing you wished she wasn't talking, she sounded like a complete airhead. Besides her act, I was glad to see everyone else. If I had to give a top three, it would be Dave Matthews, The Police and Roger Waters. With all of the music, drinking and inevitable drugs around the area, the event went smoothly and no one got hurt. It was a great, long day.

But the question is, will it do anything for climate change? In between acts celebrities came out and the loudspeaker told us ways to cut down on our carbon emissions. People pledged to shop at stores that were had more energy-efficient products and politicians like Al Gore and Robert Kennedy Jr. told us how things are going to be different with international treaties mandating reduced emissions from countries around the world.

Will that make a difference? Will nine concerts around the world on one day make people change overnight? Probably not, but it does increase awareness of the problem by taking the issue off of the back burner in people's minds. They key is to keep it front and center.