What Are They, Lit?

As Hanukkah comes to a close, I thought I'd mention this crazy story in the Jerusalem Post about a group calling itself Green Hanukkia that tried (I hope unsuccessfully) to get Jews around the world to light at least one less candle this year in support of the environment. According to the group, every candle that burns completely produces 15 grams of carbon dioxide. They estimate that if an estimated one million Israeli households light for eight days, it would do significant damage to the atmosphere. Given that the holiday ends tonight at sundown and there are no more candles left to light, I suppose this is a moot issue. But considering that the point of the holiday — one of them, anyway — is to celebrate eight days and nights of light, how do you really justify not lighting candles one night? Doesn't that contradict the idea of the holiday? It's not the same thing as using fewer lights on a Christmas tree. If he was Jewish, Bill O'Reilly would never stand for this 'Attack on Hanukkah' — especially in light of "the ham incident." So, I found this idea kinda silly and I wanted to share the story with anyone who would be interested in reading about it. (Oh, and if you don't know, Hanukkia is another word for menorah.)