Razzi Snap: Should Fat-E(s) Be Angry At Wall-E?

5
by Michael dEstries July 11, 2008
Categories: Animals, Eats, Internet, People
Tags: , .

walle fatt

flowerDaniel Engber joins Troy Patterson as the second writer for Slate magazine to baffle me with inane envirnonmental banter. In a recent article, Engber says the satire presented in the Pixar movie Wall-E gets it all wrong with regards to obesity and its impact on the environment. I’ll point you to the full article — but check out this beauty of a quote: “How fat you are has a lot more to do with your genes than with your behavior.” Uh huh. Right. [Read more...]

flowerLeonardo DiCaprio has been criticized for being two-faced on the issue of junk mail. The actor has lent his name and some commentary to a packet being distributed by the Natural Resources Defense Council on the plight of polar bears and climate change. According to his representative Ken Sunshine, who also works for the NRDC, DiCaprio has no regrets about the way he has gone about publicising the plight of the polar bears. [Read more...]

flowerSelena Gomez was recently spotted taking out the family recycling bin. If you think this is lame, just ask the guy that probably waited all week to get those shots while sipping juice boxes and mentally debating the pluses and minuses of trading in his current iPhone for the new iPhone. Maybe he should write for us…[Read more...]

flowerVegetarians probably have better sperm. Now you know. [Read more...]


Categories: Animals, Eats, Internet, People
Tags: , .

About Michael dEstries

Michael has been blogging since 2005 on issues such as sustainability, renewable energy, philanthropy, and healthy living. He regularly contributes to a slew of publications, as well as consulting with companies looking to make an impact using the web and social media. He lives in Ithaca, NY with his family on an apple farm.

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  • AZ_Sun

    In response to the Leonardo DiCaprio item…I received the packet the article is talking about last December, so this is NOT so recent. I have over the years made monetary contributions to the NRDC and other Green NGO’s. If I ever got a whim, I could just make a donation at anytime online. But I will be very, very honest…I NEVER get a whim to make an online donation. I have always needed something to prompt and encourage me into making a donation to a green NGO.

    This packet I received from the NRDC and Leonardo got me to make a donation, so their campaign worked. Now I carry my Save the Polar Bear! shopping bag with me everywhere. I actually get asked questions where I got the bag, and I will happily tell them all about the NRDC. So once again their campaign WORKED!

    http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x99/PropertyPhotos/BiteME_naysayers.jpg

  • http://www.ecorazzi.com michael

    AZ-Sun — Well, it is recent in as the NRDC just sent out another mailing. I too received one back in December and now another one this past week.

    I’m not saying campaigns of this nature do not work, but I question why they decided to send another one so soon after the first.

  • http://www.futurama-madhouse.com.ar/ Leandro

    >“How fat you are has a lot more to do
    >with your genes than with your behavior.”
    >Uh huh. Right.

    I’d like to point out that there is some truth in that quote. I personally am an extremely thin person and only through weight lifting I managed to gain some weight; I can eat all day and never gain fat, apparently due to my hyperhigh metabolism.

    On the other hand, my nephew is now 12 years old and he’s extremely fat, even though his mother’s put him on a very strict diet with no junk food, and he goes to swimming school three times a week.

    While I don’t agree with the criticism of Wall-E based on how it depicts humans (there is some NASA research saying that humans WOULD look like that after 700 yeasr living in zero-G), I also don’t agree with your skeptic point of view to genetic obesity. We aren’t nearly close to understanding the human genetic code; is it so hard to believe there’s a gene that controls metabolic rates?

  • http://www.ecorazzi.com michael

    No, I agree that for some people genetic code is most definitely an overpowering factor when it comes to weight gain.

    But I remain skeptical that it affects a majority of people who are overweight. For most, diet and exercise is the main factor and less genetics.

  • AZ_Sun

    Michael, you and the ShowBiz Spy article are implying that the NRDC is sending Junk Mail, when it is actually sending Direct Mail. There is a HUGE difference between Junk Mail and Direct Mail.

    Direct Mail is always targeted, and will be personally addressed to YOU. Junk Mail is untargeted and addressed to “The Folks At”, or “Our Neighbors”, or “The Current Resident”.

    I guarantee you that I was the ONLY one on my block to receive the NRDC mailing, because of a prior relationship I have had with them. They only started sending me direct mail when I initiated and established a relationship with them first.

    The campaign to Stop Junk Mail which Leo has endorsed on his web site is just like the Do No Call Registry. The Do Not Call Registry was established to stop unsolicited phone calls from companies that are trying to solicit new business. But, companies in which you have already done business with or have had a prior relationship with are still allowed to call you.

    I do agree that Direct Mail has been given a bad reputation because of overuse and unfortunately people perceive all Direct Mail as Junk Mail, and its Internet equivalent as “spam”. But it has always boiled down to the fact that Direct Mail has always been a numbers game. A 1% to 2% response rate has always been considered successful, so frequent mailings are a must in order to receive more donations.

    Direct mail is still the most effective and efficient marketing tool that organizations like NRDC can use to reach current and potential donators which they heavily rely on in order for them to continue to fight for our environmental future.

    I still remember this from my marketing courses in college. The goal of direct mail has 4-parts: Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action – or AIDA. Ever heard of Giuseppi Verdi’s famous opera called “Aida”? Aida is the name of the heroine. She not only gained the ATTENTION of her boyfriend, Radames, but she also stimulated his INTEREST, provoked his DESIRE, and got him to take ACTION.

    Okay, I admit I had way TOO much free time today. lol

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