“My kids tell us to recycle,” a...

“My kids tell us to recycle,” a friend said the other day. “My kids tell us not to buy this and that at the supermarket. And they make sure their mother and I bring a canvas bag to carry home the groceries.”

He shook his head. “They listen politely when I tell them I was a soldier in the environmental cause once, at a place called the University of Wisconsin. For them, it’s a long time ago. They say, ‘That’s nice, daddy. Can we start a compost heap?’

“My God, I have a copy of ‘Silent Spring’ that’s 20 years older than they are.”

A pained look came over his face. “The other day I had to tell the youngest that we used disposable diapers with her,” he said. “You know what she said?”

We waited.

“She said, ‘I’m very disappointed.’ And she walked away and didn’t talk to me or her mother for the rest of the day.”

He continued: “There’s a growing environmental army out there. It’s the kids. They’re getting it from television and school. And each other. And you know something, they’re mad as hell. They think the adults have yucked up the world.”

So his decision to attend the ecological conference at Loyola Marymount University, being held today through Saturday, came pretty easily. The daily sessions will feature environmental experts and scholars from a variety of fields. Admission is free. For topics and information, call (213) 338-2907.

“The kids, naturally, think this is great,” he said. “But they urged us to car-pool.”