Comments on: Shiny Happy Environmental Fascism

By: Discount High

Discount High — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 07:07:17 +0000

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By: shubho

shubho — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 07:25:47 +0000

I think Neal should open his mind a bit. i intend to blast this little exchange all over the blogosphere.

By: angelina jolie

angelina jolie — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:21:51 +0000

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By: sandrar

sandrar — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:50:25 +0000

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By: Chris

Chris — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 20:55:29 +0000

I know this is an old post, but:

“There is NOTHING wrong with America”

^ is absolutely ridiculous. The number areas and traits where America needs anywhere between ‘a little improvement’ and a MASSIVE OVERHAUL are overwhelming.

There is TONS wrong with America, and I am glad to see that Americans are slowly waking up to that fact.

By: julian_w

julian_w — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 10:45:55 +0000

Wow,
this is fascinating.

The only think I can add is to point out the irony.

It’s ironic that the last post on this blog is by someone who writes for what is apparently an online marketing exercise on promoting consumerism for ‘big chocolate’ companies like Lindt who refuse to state categorically whether or not they use cacoa grown using slave labour.

In two years of this Dom Ramsey’s chocolate review blog, there seem to be no reviews of fair trade chocolate, certified or not.

Certified fair trade chocolate is the only chocolate that you can be sure was truly free of being produced using slave labour.

So, it’s interesting to see comments about international awareness and consumerism here. …

…Good on you, Dom!

By: claude

claude — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 19:03:57 +0000

My son made me discover your show and I absolutely love it. I learned a lot of things from you guys… And it is my hope that this recent exchange with Dom will also teach a few things to Neal… Instead of being confrontational from the start, you should have tried to understand what Dom was trying to tell you. And maybe there were, and still are, ways for you to improve your approach to the trip, taking some of those issues into consideration… Let’s hope that we all grow from this little jabbing exercise… claude

By: Dom

Dom — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 19:05:30 +0000

I’m not entirely sure how seriously I can take someone who quotes “Friends” to make a point, but I’ll give it a go.

Firstly, if you think the Brits are insular compared to the US, try watching BBC World News America for a taste of our news media and compare it to your own. News media is fairly good indicator of how outward looking a country is. I think (hope) you’ll be surprised.

As for your point about Neal – it’s about transparency. Neal or Cali may have mentioned financing in passing, but it’s not displayed clearly on the web site. There’s a “status indicator”, but nowhere does it actually say what the target is.

If I’m paying individuals for a commercial venture, I *really* want to know where the money’s going.

They’ve already said that this is their “trip of a lifetime”, and at the end of it they’ll have a $200,000 luxury RV for their personal use. Who owns that RV? A holding company? Neal personally? If I donate, will I own a share? And is “donating” even a valid concept for a commercial venture?

I don’t expect you to answer those questions, but they’re the kind of things that go through my mind when I’m reading about this project.

By: Sean Cavendish

Sean Cavendish — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:33:50 +0000

Dave, well said. Blessed are the peacemakers.

One factor in this entire argument that has eluded me is why Dom and others get the impression that Neal and Cali are somehow begging/guilting fans into supporting the podcast or the trip. Or when they’ve claimed to be impoverished and in need of anyone’s help. They’ve had commercial sponsors ever since I can remember (shortly before they left the day job and began doing the Brief full-time). Also, as Neal noted, the PaidByPixels site is a commercial venture — not a plea for charity. I don’t see the problem, but I’ll keep reading and see whether I can make more sense of it.

-Sean Cavendish

P.S. I’m a bit amused at the thought of a Brit labeling the Yanks as insular. In the words of Phoebe Buffay-Hannigan, “Hello, pot? This is the kettle. You’re black!”

By: Dave Peterson

Dave Peterson — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 05:00:03 +0000

Sorry, I just can’t read and leave without saying a couple of things. It wouldn’t feel right. First, Neal is not a superiority complex kind of guy. Acceptance of others and a strong distaste for judgementalism is absolutely core to who he is. However, he doesn’t back down from debate, and he argues his beliefs passionately. As does Dom. That speaks well for both of you. I think the vigor of Neal’s reactions in this exchange is rooted at least partially in the suggestion that the realization of this long-standing dream he and Luria have held is to some degree morally wrong. Maybe that suggestion was never intended, but I think that’s what he heard. And Dom, I think I can understand the shock of having your donations returned. Here’s my guess at why they chose to do that. You said that you felt your donations were being used to fund a pleasure trip, that you really don’t support. You said it felt like a slap in the face. I think Neal and Luria were trying to remove that feeling. If they had kept the money, you probably would have always wondered if it had gone toward buying a camera for their show, or fuel for their RV. One you’d support, one you wouldn’t. They didn’t want you to feel misused and didn’t want to worry about conditions under which which they could spend your donation. Finally, Dom, you ask that they at least consider the issues that raised your concern. But the thing is, they already have, and long before this debate began. They just came to a different conclusion on the question than you have.
Full disclosure time: Neal and Luria are friends of mine. They are people I feel privileged to know, and therefore I’m hardly an unbiased spectator in all this. But like I said, I wouldn’t have felt right keeping silent, so I’m sharing a little of what I know about them. Thanks for your time.