Yay or nay: Earth Day - something to celebrate?

Today is Earth Day, which in many ways is no different from St Patrick's day: everything goes green but nobody really thinks about why.

References I've spotted so far are Yahoo's masthead which is sporting two lovely animated recycling signs, the Google logo, which looks very rustic, and a number of comic strip artists have chosen to tackle environmental issues today. In the real world, the Earth Day Network claim that almost 1 billion people will mark the event at concerts, rallies and neighborhood cleanups in 174 countries. But from what I can gather, very few of these people are resident in the UK...

I've found precious few Earth Day events taking place today, and only two out of the 15 people in my office were aware it was happening at all. Am I missing any big celebrations?

Personally, I think Earth Day should be every day, and am not surprised that an event started in 1970, when the need for awareness was at a very different stage, should be overlooked by many. Nowadays, having a 'day' for the earth seems entirely counter-productive, and with all the earth day parties and events supposedly going on, I can only assume it will lead to more consumerism and waste, even if some of it is made from biodegradable materials. I feel like a party pooper here but really don't see the need for dedicating one day to a cause that - by its very nature - needs to be in focus all the time.

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