the hard work of being "good"

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Greenhouse-gas emissions are clogging up the atmosphere. Children are forced to work in mines using dangerous machinery. Tomatoes are being modified to look more tomatoey. One night you get fed up. You can't just watch everything go down the tubes. It's time to take a stand; every choice you make tomorrow will be environmentally friendly and socially responsible.

But will it make any impact? You're just one person.

That's true, of course, but your decisions can be like a ripple in a pond. If you buy an energy-efficient car, you're not only saving fuel, says John Bennett, the Sierra Club of Canada's senior policy advisor on energy; you're also encouraging manufacturers to make more energy-efficient vehicles, and you're showing friends that a fuel-saving automobile is a viable option. Plus, you're pressuring politicians to put more environmentally friendly regulations in place: Legislators are more likely to take on manufacturers if they feel there's public support.

So individuals can make a difference — every minute of every single day...

quite apropos for Easter, the Toronto Star provides an hour-by-hour guide to being a model citizen... then again, not even Jesus may have had it this difficult...

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