.....will debut this weekend, directed by Lance Acord, the cinematographer on 'Lost in Translation,' 'Being John Malkovich'
and 'Marie Antoinette.' It will feature music by the British composer Paul Leonard-Morgan, who was recently commissioned to write a piece for the U.S. Olympic Committee. And it will have an earnest voice-over by acclaimed indie actor Campbell Scott."For what????
Chevron Corporation.
(The first quote, and those that follow, are from a Washington Post
article.)
Instead of this "try to bolster our image" crap (and waste of money), why not turn oil companies into
energy companies and let
them earn their image by ...........innovation and leadership. Who has the capital to create solutions to global warming and our dependence on foreign sources of energy? Who has the human 'power'?
Note that I don't blame Chevron, BP, Exxon or any of the others. They're doing what businesses do in a capitalistic society - build their brand and make a profit (the bigger the better).
I
do blame our elected representatives for letting it get to this point -- we're facing
huge energy-related problems yet the best thing Chevron believes they can do (based on the market we've created) is spend their resources (
in "the high tens of millions of dollars") on a 2 1/2 minute commercial.
A related excerpt from a
Solve 4 biggies entry earlier this month:
A couple of years ago I heard an Exxon executive interviewed. He was adamant, "We're an oil company, not an energy company." Sure, this was/is smart. They're in business to make money. The oil business is very profitable - they've done well. The energy business is more risky. So let's decide that we want the Exxons of the world to REALLY be energy companies. We have the power - level the playing field between non-renewables and renewables by including the external costs of non-renewables in the prices via tax shift from income featuring a BTU tax. Watch Exxon run.....after the money. .....create a real renewable energy market. Get 'em fired up by changing the rules of the game.
These fossil fuel companies are getting rich BECAUSE no one is paying the external costs of non-renewable energy sources -- and, we have no one but ourselves and our elected representatives to blame. We need to change the rules of the game. Similar to anti-trust and patent laws there will be winners and losers, but overall all will gain.
This Chevron commercial will air tonight on
60 Minutes. You can also view it on
Chevron's website.
Other excerpts from Steven Mufson's Washington Post
article:
"But few have matched the new Chevron campaign for polish or emotion, or for its ambitious bid to recast itself as an environmentally responsible corporate citizen."
"Near the end, .....the narration says 'watch as we tap the greatest source of energy in the world -- ourselves.'"
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I'm going to send this entry electronically to all the big fossil fuel companies I can. They need to stop this blathering, and if they really want to solve these problems by tapping into "ourselves", it's going to take a financial incentive. Every one of us needs to start paying the external costs of non-renewable energy use. The best way to do this is a phased-in, federal tax shift from income to non-renewable energy. The rules will change the same for all that do business in the U.S., so why not guys and gals? Five bucks says you'll sleep better if you get a federal tax shift enacted thereby helping to solve the 4 biggies for your family, your community, your country and your world.
********************
P.S. -
"Shot in 22 locations in 13 countries over three months, the ads include real Chevron workers as well as actors." Chevron, please estimate the greenhouse gases emitted to make this 2 1/2 minute commercial?
P.S.S. - As you watch this commercial, please answer the questions - "What would you rather Chevron be spending close to $100 million dollars on?" AND "What's the best way to create incentives so they actually do these things?"
