PR stunts

CEO Jon S. von Tetzchner of Opera said if downloads of the new iteration hit 1 million in the four days after its release, he'd swim from Norway (where Opera is based) to the USA.
Again, according to Opera, the "communications department could not resist the temptation, and made his statement public."
Viola, the press picked up the statement and word spread.

No one knows how many of those downloads will be used, but passing the magic number meant Mr von Tetzchner had to jump into freezing Norweigian waters for his "swim" to America.
The stunt played out in high dot-com buffoon style, with "updates" that saw Mr von Tetzchner struggling to get into a wetsuit, training in a pool for a day, and then setting off, accompanied only by his PR manager and a little rubber raft.
Well, of course, the raft is the beard, here, and in an update titled "BRAVE CEO SAVES PR MANAGER IN DRAMATIC RESCUE AT SEA," the raft suffered a puncture and Mr von Tetzchner "rescued" his floundering PR manager -- who, it eventuated, could neither swim nor read maps.
The trip gathered so much publicity and so many people surfed over to see how the swim would turn out, Opera's website was largely unavailable today.

The Wonderful World of Hemp

You learn things every day.

Today I learned that if you replaced cotton with hemp.

You would reduce pesticides by 94080 tons
You would reduce household power reduction by 92361 tons
You would save over 2 trillion gallons of fresh water

Kentucky Fried Cruelty

There is a video with an inside look into the treatment of chickens at KFC. The chickens are scalded alive, hung upside down, de-beaked and basically tortured.

www.kentuckyfriedcruelty.com

Pamela Anderson and PETA are pushing for a boycott of KFC until its mistreatment of animals ceases.

The video footage is pretty disturbing, but it makes one reconsider the importance of ethical food production.

Spring Cleaning Tips

GET GREEN THIS SPRING:
1. Use earth-friendly paints for walls, bamboo instead of wood to re-do floors, and environmentally-friendly products to clean your home.
2. Add solar-powered garden lights or panels for household power. Switch to lower-energy compact fluorescent lighting in the home.
3. Consider a hybrid or at least conserve gas to save money and help us decrease our dependence on fossil fuels.
4. Use organic cotton sheets and towels, which are healthier to use and better for the environment.
5. Recycle old clothes. Donate them to charity or swap with friends. Buy fashionable clothing made from recyclable, recycled or reclaimed fabrics. Designers are now using innovative, earth-friendly fabrics like bamboo jersey and Eco-Spun, made from plastic soda bottles.
6. Let your dollars speak for you. Invest in eco-friendly companies. Buy local, buy organic and buy efficiently; you don’t need that two-for- one deal if you’ll throw it away.
7. If you’re sending flowers for Mother’s Day, graduation or another occasion, send organic buds that are better for the environment and your loved ones who won’t have to breathe in pesticides.

What is LOHAS anyway?

Are your customers interested in living healthy, balanced lives? Do they have an active interest in personal development, spirituality, social justice, the food they eat, and the sustainability of the earth? Do you feel these issues are important to yourself? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then you are most likely dealing with a new market of consumer known as the 'Cultural Creative'. Cultural Creatives are interested in the holistic nature of existence by supporting the environment, living a balanced life, and seeking to steadily improve of themselves, their lifestyle and the world around them. This classification of people has grown to encompass the baby boomers of the 60s and 70s and an increasing number of individuals who believe in a lifestyle of health and sustainability, or LOHAS. LOHAS encompasses everything from organic food, ethical business, sustainable energy and alternative medicine, and has grown to become a $270 billion US market. If you are not already familiar with the patterns and beliefs associated with LOHAS consumers, then it is important to recognize these tendencies in a population that is shifting more and more toward 'triple bottom line' product and service choices, and act upon them. Creative Wonders has twelve years of experience dealing with the LOHAS market, and we consider ourselves the specialists in how to communicate with the Cultural Creative. If you are reading this newsletter, then chances are you are already operating a LOHAS business, or are a Cultural Creative yourself, and you will understand the importance of speaking in a language that we can all relate to.

What do you think? Green Party Plans to Tax Junk Food, Cigarettes and Gambling

Blog readers: You are on this blog because you have some interest in lifestyles of health an sustainability. Knowing this, how do you feel about the Green Party of BC's latest platform? Your feedback is appreciated.


Adriane Carr says the Greens want to reduce the provincial debt with new taxes, including increasing gas taxes by five cents per litre, hiking tobacco taxes by 10 per cent, and bringing in a 10 per cent gambling tax. The party would also attack polluters by making them pay more taxes, and put additional taxes on junk food.

The budget outline, she said, provided figures to support the party's "10-point plan for a better B.C." Unlike a detailed budget document released by a government on budget day, the figures dealt only with areas covered by their 10-point plan.
 
The Greens said their first budget would increase spending by $1.967 billion but have a $249 million surplus based on increased revenues of $2.216 billion.
 
The Greens, among other things, would increase spending on children and education by more than $500 million, and they would spend $369 million on increased preventative care by decreasing wait lists and providing more long-term care beds and home support.
 
Another $628 million increase in revenues would come from natural resources. The party would implement a 10 per cent increase on natural gas royalties and require forest companies to pay more in stumpage fees, raising another $400 million.

"This budget rewards a lighter footprint, like energy conservation."

Green promises:
 
1. The Green Party will remove junk food and corporate advertising from public schools.
2. The Green Party would re-establish BC Ferries as a Crown corporation.
3. The Green Party would establish the sale of marijuana to adults through outlets similar to liquor stores.
4. The Green Party would ban the sport and trophy hunting of grizzly bears.
5. The Green Party would change the B.C. Human Rights Code so clean drinking water, clean air and safe food are fundamental, guaranteed rights.
6. The Green Party would repeal the $6 training wage.