16 June 2006

Don't Look Back In Anger

Just to revisit the first CEI ads.

I decided to have a quick look on the internet to see what sort of stir they had made on other websites and blogs, and came up with a few interesting ones:

http://www.factcheck.org/article395.html (from a professor whose facts they 'misinterpreted')

http://www.pastpeak.com/archives/2006/05/carbon_dioxidew.htm

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/05/co2_we_call_it.php (meant to be the biggest green lifestyle blog on the net ???)
http://pacinst.org/topics/integrity_of_science/blog/?p=60

At least I wasn't the only outraged. It seems the ads have been designed to target 'middle America'. Which I have to concede is a pretty damn good target, who else do you want to convince the keep buying SUV's, switching on the air-con when it gets above 23° C (73.4° F), and be generally inconsiderate about the damage they do to the environment. Collectively they wield huge economic clout, and as long as they can be convinced to live life without thinking about the future, the more money CEI's sponsors can make.

I'm not saying that Americans are stupid, but, as with in western Europe, people get selfish, and tend not to think about long term consequences. But still, is it a surprise that such ads have originated in America?

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