Is Paul McCartney a hypocrite?

I don’t know the ins and outs of Mcartney’s lifestyle, or the ins and outs of his charity work. I think the real question being asked here is:

Do his negative actions gain justification through the positive work he does?

If he’s using a private jet because he’s flying his baked potato chef in Liverpool out to a photoshoot in the Bahamas, then the answer is no. If he’s using a private jet to get himself (and the resulting news coverage) to a press conference promoting a new micro-loans initiative that helps victims of domestic abuse in third world countries, then the answer might just be yes.

It sounds like (if the quote is to be believed, in any case) his private plane usage is pretty limited — he describes it as an occasional splurge. For a guy that devotes a ton of time and money to the causes he supports, I’d guess the math (good vs harm done) still works out in his favor.

It does still raise the question of leading by example and really living the principles you espouse, though.

(And of course, in my book, support for PETA counts in the “harm done” category! )

I don’t know that first class would be private enough to avoid being mobbed if you were Paul McCartney.

Considering the amount of plastic bottles people waste just drinking water because they’re too chickenshit to drink from the tap, I’d say a couple private airplane rides are probably not that big a deal in the scheme of things – especially related to the amount of pollution we all generate daily – and the amount of positive change it seems he is making.