Hitting one of the hottest parts of summer 2022, a writer published on CNN told Americans to be more like Europeans and go without air conditioning.
An opinion piece titled “A very European answer to air conditioning” by renewable energy writer Paul Hockenos expressed his disdain for selfish Americans who use air conditioning during the summer months while those abroad don’t.
Britain was hit the hardest, with the heat wave going over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet, only 5% of the population owns an air conditioning unit, compared to 90% in U.S. homes. With the rising temperatures, Hockenos adds that people will be caught in a “vicious circle of air conditioning.”
Those who are worried about climate change see air conditioners as items with a large environmental impact because they are highly energy-intensive.
“Americans could learn a thing or two from the rest of the world when it comes to habits — since the vicious circle is nowhere more damning in those countries with the most units: China, US and Japan,” Hockenos wrote.
The unhealthy habit of using air conditioning while it is hot outside during the summer, in his view, clearly shows how selfish Americans have become. One thing I am sure of is that his article was written in an air-conditioned room.
Hockenos concludes: “It is self-indulgent to insist on chilly temperatures in the middle of summer and rooms at T-shirt warmth in winter. The donning of sweaters indoors when it’s cold outside, not because the AC is cranked up so high, is surely a habit one can adapt to.”
Sitting in your own sweat and refraining from using the AC, all in the name of “saving the environment,” definitely sounds like the better option than being called selfish by CNN for utilizing something that you pay for. Americans need to be more like Europeans and just suck it up — if you don’t, you are a terrible human being for wanting to live at a comfortable temperature in your own home.
Esther Wickham is a summer 2022 Washington Examiner fellow.
