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Re: EARTH DAY PROTESTS TO TARGET HUMMERS
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Brian Boerman
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Apr 21, 2004 15:12 PDT
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Interesting that the Hummer H-2 has the drive train from the Chevrolet Suburban. And Chevy/GM makes quite a few models of cars and trucks with the same 6000 Vortec engine, and the even larger 8.1L Vortec engine. And Ford's largest Truck/ SUV is even bigger than Chevy's. For every single-user-gas-hog SUV on the road, I wonder how many single-user-gas-hog-never-carry-a-load pickup trucks (or single-user-gas-hog "performance luxury" cars) are on the road.
How about a "things-ain't-always-what-they-appear" case study?
I own an SUV. My preference is to keep it parked except for towing, carrying freight, needing the AWD, or carrying multiple passengers. I commute in a smaller car, and take my bikes to races in the car, and when I have 3 or fewer passengers I drive the car. I need the SUV only occasionally, and so I drive it only occasionally. So far I'm an environmentally responsible motorist, yes? But it's only economic necessity. I can't afford either the gas price or the vehicle replacement cost of piling the miles on the SUV. The truth is that the air quality would in fact be BETTER if I drove the SUV exclusively -- the car is an older model diesel that pollutes worse, but I can drive it 400,000 miles getting 25 mpg, so for total cost of ownership over vehicle lifetime, it's the cheapest option I have. And I'll bet no one watches me drive my slow-boat 240D down the road and says "Look at that environmental enemy!"
Maybe it's a symptom of a "flame-first-think-never" society that only the SUV's get the "reputation". And only the Hummer gets targeted for "social action."
After all, it's not the reality, it's the appearance... right?
----- Original Message -----
From: Marc Jensen<mailto:marcj-@mac.com>
To: sv-@topica.com<mailto:sv-@topica.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2004 10:11 AM
Subject: [svbc] EARTH DAY PROTESTS TO TARGET HUMMERS
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Medea Benjamin, 415-235-6517
April 21, 2004 Kristi Laughlin, 510-847-2399
EARTH DAY PROTESTS TO TARGET HUMMERS
Environmentalists, peace activists team up for creative actions at more than
a dozen Hummer dealerships---from San Francisco, Columbus (OH), to Miami
In honor of Earth Day, April 22, environmentalists and women peace
activists will hold creative demonstrations ranging from pickets, to
sing-alongs, and bike-ins at Hummer dealerships in more than a dozen cities,
calling on Americans to stop buying the wasteful behemoths, which get
astoundingly low gas mileage.
"We canıt imagine why anyone would buy a car that gets 10 mpg and is so
harmful to the environment. It gets less than half the mileage of the Model
T Ford, which means that Hummer owners are driving in reverse and wreaking
havoc on our planet," said Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder of CODEPINK, a womenıs
peace group that instigated the protests. Adds Daniel Becker of the Sierra
Club, which has also endorsed the protests, "The Hummer's tagline is `Like
Nothing Else.' But it should be `Pollutes Like Nothing Else.ı"
Hummer dealership protests are planned for Burlingame, Los Angeles, San
Fernando Valley, and Thousand Oaks, CA; Columbus, OH; Minneapolis, MN; Miami
and St. Petersburg, FL; Madison and Milwaukee,WI; Burley, ID; Kalamazoo, MI;
Portland, OR; Rochester, NY; and elsewhere. In Sacramento, CA, CODEPINK
activists will request that Governor Arnold Schwarzenneger give up his
estimated seven Hummers to encourage Californians to make responsible
transportation choices.
The protests will not only highlight the environmental damage caused by
Hummers but also will directly challenge the claims of some Hummer owners
that their cars are patriotic. To the contrary, Hummers put soldiersı lives
needlessly at risk by fueling Americaıs dependence on oil, which ends up
pushing the U.S. into conflicts around the world, most recently in Iraq.
"The claim that gas-guzzling Hummers are patriotic is completely ridiculous.
Driving a vehicle that wastes an incredible amount of gas while our troops
die in oil wars is irresponsible and not my idea of patriotism," said Kelly
Dougherty, who recently returned from Iraq where she served under the
National Guard.
Activists will call for the elimination of the tax break that is offered to
business owners who purchase Hummers. President Bushıs Jobs and Growth Act
of 2003 allows small business owners who purchase Hummers to receive a
$100,000 tax break, while those that purchase a Toyota Prius hybrid are only
eligible to receive a $2,000 tax break.
The Earth Day protests are being sponsored by CODEPINK: Women for Peace,
Greenpeace, Pax Christi USA, Raging Grannies, Sierra Club, Veterans for
Peace, Womenıs International League for Peace and Freedom, and others. For
details about protest locations and more information about Hummers, see
http://www.codepinkalert.org/National_Actions_Hummer_Action.shtml<http://www.codepinkalert.org/National_Actions_Hummer_Action.shtml>. ###
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