Yes We Can Change! I Hope!

We are now well aware that "going green" is not portrayed in the media as a salvation of our planet, but as a means to be hip and acquire more stuff. Politics dictate trends--consumer, fashion, disposal of past trends--so that while grassroots organizations have existed since the beat generation to protect our vulnerable earth, Al Gore gets rich by showing us, with large charts and an automatic ladder lift, what we've chosen to ignore and have found inconvenient for years.

With a new administration come new trends. President (i was getting sick of that required "elect" distinction) Obama's focus on service and civic engagement, while no less legit than environmentalism, is becoming yet another American trend. Starbucks has announced their new inspired ad campaign-slash-initiative to comply with Obama's urge for community service. By pledging 5 hours of (national) community service, a customer is rewarded with a large (venti??) coffee that we can only hope is fair trade. [Please note that no where does Starbucks encourage bringing a reuseable mug on your way to clean up a park or read to a child.] Starbucks makes sure the customer realizes that 5 hours isn't really that much time; it won't interfere too much with his busy, self-serving Americn life. Much like "going green"catered to the stubbornness of citizens by pushing hybrid Lexus SUVs, name brand peace signs, and energy efficient dish washers, Starbucks assures that the customer doesn't have to go too much out of her way to feel like a good American again.
This, once again, brings up the question of motives. Did that yuppie suburban woman start bringing a canvass bag to Trader Joe's because she can't bear to imagine where her plastic bags end up or because Oprah said so? Did the busy businessman start using earth-friendly cleaning products because he doesn't want chemicals ending up in his water or because of his brand loyalty to Clorox? Are we supposed to help better our community because we're passionate about changing things on a domestic level or because Obama and our Favorite Coffee Shop (TM) told us to?
And does it matter? If 100 million caffeiene addicts actually accomplish 500 million hours of community service for the wrong reason, is there such thing as a wrong reason? Or should they get praise for being dutiful capitalist citizens? The coffee is free after all.