Kony 2012
KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.
So this morning I found the KONY2012 video put out by Invisible Children. I was impressed, they definitely know how to draw people to action. Then a friend of mine directed me to a blog, visiblechildren.tumblr.com. Something in this article rubbed me the wrong way and I couldn't tell at first if I was just still worked up from the video or if there were actually problems. So I took a break, went to work and then decided to dust off the old blog.
Here's what I've come up with: The video, does exactly what the organization says it will do. It is making people aware of of these "invisible children" getting people to pay attention to a major human rights problem that in general has been ignored. The problems I have with the blog post's response is they're asking the wrong questions.
Rather than asking "why is this organization so focused on military action" or "why are they backing these awful groups" we should be asking "why are they spending any money whatsoever on these direct actions?" While maybe they stretch the truth to get a reaction, I don't think that is inherently wrong. They get people to pay attention to these kids. There are groups in place to that are much better at the direct course of action and if you want to financially help donate to them.
I think the KONY 2012 campaign is a great idea. While the visible children blog might have convinced me to not financially support TRI or IC I'll still support their campaign.
I believe in the spread of information and that people sometimes need to get a little angry to make positive changes in the world.
The “Stoked” Epidemic
Normally, when a new article idea hits me, I get super stoked about it. I sit down and think up witty things to say and as soon as I post it I go onto Google Talk and *high-five* my friends. We track stats here at Cleverpork Central, and when I see a new search term that we are on the front page fo google for, I get even more stoked. Just a day or so ago, I was stoked out of my mind about a collection of google search terms that put us on the front page.
Turns out, a recent study shows that I'm not alone. While we here at Cleverpork Central don't see this as a problem, instead more as a vital part of "livin' it up," we do see some of the points that the losers opposing getting stoked make. Therefore remember this dear readers, Get stoked responsibly. Even if you think something is "the bomb" not everyone wants to know about it for an extended period of time.
See the panel discussion below.
Cleverpork Central 2009 Holiday Gift Guide
So as you all likely know, Christmas and other holidays-which-are-not-as-important-to-their-religions-as-Christmas-is-to-Christianity-but-are-named-so-we-all-feel-like-we-are-accepting are coming up. You may be confused about what to get that special someone for your holiday of choice, but never fear, Cleverpork Central is HERE for YOU. We've collected the TRUE best gifts of 2009 here in one convenient place to make your holiday shopping a cinch!
Business Energy Tax Credit
Cleverpork Central is often a comedy site, but there are things that we believe strongly about and will bring to the forefront of conversation. Anything filed under "Serious" is not a joke, even if it seems counter to everything else on this site.
Recently, Chris Cunningham had to write a 1000 word essay on the business energy tax credit in Oregon. This essay was designed to be written like a blog post, so he felt it would be a good idea to just post it on his blog. What follows is the essay in it's entirety.
Giving incentives to companies who want to bring green energy solutions to Oregon is a great concept. However, there are quite a few problems with the Business Energy Tax Credit (BETC) that make it very inefficient. If the costs of the BETC are unable to be controlled, then the project should be removed.
The BETC is a tax credit that companies can apply for. There is a maximum of $10 million that can be given, but companies can split up their projects and ask for $10 million for each section. The rules designating what can count for the tax credit are very loose, allowing 98% of requests to be granted so far.
Study Reveals Pittsburgh Unprepared For Full-Scale Zombie Attack
It is Zombie Week here at Cleverpork Central. We let the dead rest for a week after Halloween, but now they're back with a vengeance. Keep your eyes open for more undead content through the week.
In an October study done by the Pittsburgh mayor, and only reported by a single news source, it was determined that the city fo Pittsburgh is not ready to fight the coming waves of the zombie horde. Truth is, all of their preparedness policies were made before current zombie research was made. The article states, "The city's emergency safe houses, established by a city ordinance in the early '70s, lack even the most basic fortifications for zombie invasion." and that is just one example.
Wind Turbines and the End of the World
Wind Turbines are becoming a more popular way to generate power. Their proponents claim that they produce almost zero waste, are completely silent, and allow the surrounding ground to be completely useable. However, there are a lot of things they leave out.