An umbrella-wielding queue snaking down a stretch of Tenth Avenue on this cold, rainy, late-winter night played testament to the dedication that New Yorkers hold for a lively debate. Or maybe it was the free Patrón cocktails. Or perhaps the chance to get close to celebs like Kevin Bacon, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Emmy Rossum. Regardless of raison d’être, downtown denizens and car execs alike mixed, mingled, cheered and jeered during the Lexus-hosted launch party for their newest stylish hybrid, the CT 200h, which culminated in an invigorating debate on global warming. Disco lights shaped like leaves and flowers swirled around Skylight Studios in tandem to the sounds of lost 80s classics, spun by Paul Sevigny and The Misshapes. But the music, celebs and cocktails were but precursors to the main event: a no-holds-barred verbal battle on the future of our planet.
In one corner was Amanda Little, author of Power Trip, and staunch proponent of the realness of climate change and the promise of green energy as a necessary means for change as well as job creation. In the other camp: Phelim McAleer, director and producer of Not Evil Just Wrong, a skeptic, critic and overall hater regarding claims made — particularly those made by Al Gore — regarding global warming. In the middle was the lovely leftie Sarah Silverman, who moderated the debate with plenty of sass and a healthy dose of personal politics. “This is probably going to be the best debate you’ve ever seen,” said Silverman. “Rules are, what I say goes and can change on a whim.” And so it went.
Silverman launched the debate by asking Little about her quest to fight Global Warming: “Why do you have a problem with the whole world being like California all the time? It will melt all the guns!” And after a thoughtful answer from the author relating to the proven severity of the problem, McAleer retorted with an attack on liberal media, claiming that while conservatives care about what goes on in the bedroom, liberals are “in our kitchens, in our cars and in our lightbulbs,” which prompted a riled-up audience member to shout the word “PUTZ!” McAleer, an Irishman, said he didn’t know what the word putz meant. Silverman filled him in: “It’s a Jewish word, it means ‘chubby sod.’ It’s said affectionately, really.”
There was no question where the crowd stood on the issues — clapping and cheering for Little and Silverman, booing and hissing at the opposition. Silverman, always playing to the crowd, and always the ultimate rabble-rouser, chided McAleer: “Why do you hate polar bears? Do you have anything against puppies and kitties as well?” Her next question was similarly pointed. “You are clearly not a fan of the Hockey Stick graph. Is this because they don’t have hockey in Ireland or is it because you hate science?”
Not one to take global warming sitting down, Silverman looked for ways she could make a difference in the transition away from fossil fuels: “Should we start harnessing other natural gases? And if so, should I call my dad? Because about 20 minutes after dinner, we’ve got a lot of action there.”
Global warming, though undoubtedly serious, was approached in a lighthearted fashion at the party, which made sense given Lexus’ aim of debunking any remaining preconception that hybrid drivers are joyless, all-too-serious and none-too-stylish. In a reference to a South Park episode, Little applauded Lexus for creating a car that reduces smog and is also “smug-free.” Making hybrids fun and chic is a step in the right direction for the green movement.
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