Wisdumb: Smart and Not-So-Smart

Funny…

I was a fan. I didn’t love all of his material, but I found a lot of it inspired and it was almost always well crafted. I did see him live a few years ago, and it was a good show. I’ll miss him and I hope you listen to his words…

BTW, the image to the left is from Dogma. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it. Anyway, George as a Cardinal isn’t ironic - it’s brilliant. This performance below might help you understand if you do not know why:

According to this article, “Kazakhstan may need to acquire space equipment from Western suppliers in the future.” This statement was made due to the fact that Kazakhstan’s only satellite is out of control due to a computer glitch and is likely to be lost altogether. Since most of the country’s television broadcaster’s use this satellite, TV programming will be severely affected and many of the smaller stations have gone black.

So, even though I know Borat is a fictional character  (who the Kazakhstan people don’t really like) and just because the article says they are looking for a Western supplier doesn’t necessarily mean the USA will get any business because of this, why do I still show a picture of Borat holding an American flag? Good question. I have no answer. I can assure you, though, that it isn’t just an excuse to show a funny Borat video clip.

BTW, this is my 151 post .

Stating that Harvesting embryonic stem cells is “a gravely immoral act”, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops voted 191-1 to adopt the statement, without debate or discussion. Before Catholics use a term such as immoral (especially without debate or discussion), perhaps they should examine their own lovely history.

Planet Green TV - which they bill as first and only 24-hour eco-lifestyle television network - has been on the air for a week now (premiered June 4), and I have seen a handful of shows. Overall, I am happy with and like what I have seen. I believe the channel was previously the Discovery Home Network, but I have to admit that I get my Discovery channels mixed up with the Learning channels and other such cable options. Anyway, some of the shows are new programming and others are shows that already existed. If you have access to it, check it out if you can… I especially liked the show Wa$ted.

I want to see it…

Futerra Sustainability Communications has published “the Greenwash guide” which I heartily recommend. From the Futerra website, the guide:

analyses the current state of greenwash and what’s being done about it. You can also find guidelines for companies and agencies on how to prevent greenwash, and a ‘spotters guide’ for consumers to help avoid it.

Some highlights* from the guide:

• Most greenwash is due to ignorance and/or sloppiness rather than malicious intent, and businesses and advertising agencies can take simple steps to prevent greenwash slipping through.

• According to reports nearly £17 million was spent on advertising containing the words ‘CO2’, ‘carbon’, ‘environmental’, ‘emissions’ or ‘recycle’ from September 2006 to August 2007 alone. A similar search for the same terms in 2003 uncovers only £448k of advertising. [A 3694% increase according to my math]

• During 2008 the USA are reviewing their code and the UK is considering further guidance on theirs. It’s likely that the Australian, French and Norwegian codes will all encourage other countries to consider greenwash rules.

• Greenwash eats away at that market demand by confusing consumers and making them uncertain about buying green products. Eventually they’ll stop buying based on their green preferences altogether. Greenwash destroys the very market it hopes to exploit.

  Surveys in the UK and USA show this undermining of consumer confidence is well underway. In fact some show that 9 out of 10 of us are sceptical about green or climate change information from companies and governments. Half of us in the UK have no idea what to believe and 80% want to see companies back up ethical claims with proof. The same is the case in America. Seven in ten Americans either “strongly” or “somewhat” agree that when companies call a product green it’s usually just a “marketing tactic” and therefore to be mistrusted.

Head-shaking story about a new web service for the post-Rapture. Kudos to Wired.com for printing it.