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Play this in background as you read. Going for an ambiance here, so humor me.
I like dark skies. Only at night however. I like sunlight. But I digress.
There is Dark Sky Association. I would have preferred to join the Dark Sky Cult of the Unlighted, but this will do.
The Dark Sky Association.
Here is their mission statement:
We like dark, we want to stay in the dark, we want you to be in the dark. Dark is good. It should be darker.
That’s a lie. Here is their real mission:
- Stop the adverse effects of light pollution on dark skies, including
- Energy waste and the air and water pollution caused by energy waste
- Harm to human health
- Harm to nocturnal wildlife and ecosystems
- Reduced safety and security
- Reduced visibility at night
- Poor nighttime ambiance
- Raise awareness about light pollution, its adverse effects, and its solutions
- Educate everyone, everywhere, about the values of quality outdoor lighting
- Help stop other threats to our view of the universe, such as radio frequency interference (RFI) and space debris
I think most of that, like most mission statements, is pretty goofy. Light pollution is harmful to human health? When I was a kid, we would hold flashlights up to each eye to see what it was like to be blind.
link
Although I did burn my hand on a spotlight one time.
Maybe I need to find out what RFI is, but I know space debris isn’t a problem for me. Stop meteor showers? Sounds really expensive.
But I like dark nights.
I was raised in a town of 400 people and farm animals in Michigan. The nights were really dark. We could see the Northern Lights in the summer – that was the only time the skies weren’t dark at night.
Boy, there sure are a lot of stars.
Like most places, where I live now the big deal is to make everything as bright as possible at night. In addition to huge street lights, everything is reflective. The latest trend is for businesses to add brighter animated signs.
“Dark skies is not.” Yoda would say.
Maybe the concern toward moving green, will help the city fathers and Mother Mayor, realize that it would be a good thing to unlight some areas when renovations are made.
Yeah, like that would ever happen.
I’m going home and put up Christmas lights. Lots of ‘em. Then I shall stand at the crossroads and shake my fist at the unstarry night and curse The Thomas of Edison.
Join the Epoch of Unlight and come to the dark skies.
