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Posted on 10.31.09 by Danny Glover @ 10:07 am
I may have to rethink the renewal of our Costco membership after seeing this mug on the cover of the warehouse retailer’s “lifestyle magazine for Costco members”:
It’s a good thing Costco offers budget-friendly prices on everything from bulk food to electronics because associating itself with Al Gore, an environmental alarmist who preaches the false doctrine of man-made “global warming pollution” that has created a “climate crisis” is a public relations mistake. Gore’s article pushes the fear-mongering theories that global warming is a threat to national security and to a sound economy. “We’re borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet,” he wrote. “Every bit of that has got to change.” As Gore jets around the world on private jets to deliver “his message of the need for clean energy” (that quote is from a Costco photo blurb), he is telling everyone else they need to transform every aspect of their lives, from the cars they drive to the foods they eat, in order to save the planet. And he says it all with a straight face as the planet continues it’s cooling trend. How can Costco endorse the hysteria of a man who was just in the news for this claim?
Gore’s enviromania, which ultimately is designed to line his pockets with money from his investments in “green” companies, doesn’t deserve to see the light of day in “The Costco Connection” or any other publication. He needs to be marginalized. Filed under: Business and Government and Media and News & Politics and People Comments:
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I’m glad I wasn’t the only one to feel this way. I felt strongly enough about it that I wrote the editor (who in the magazine justified the article by Al Gore).
Here is what I wrote to EDITOR David W. Fuller 425-313-8510 dfuller@costco.com
(Editor of Costco Connection)
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Dear Mr. Fuller,
I’m not the best writer in the world, and I rarely take the time or
effort to write editors of any publication. But I felt like it was
important that I write you about some concerns I have.
When I saw the cover of your November 09 issue of the Costco
Connection, I was a bit surprised. I figured that there must be a good
reason that Al Gore was staring up at me from my kitchen table.
Perhaps I’d open the magazine and find that you were heavily promoting
a new book from Gore or something that a company, like Costco, would
do to help drive sales and increase profits. But when I read further,
I found very little promotion of his actual book, but I realized that
the promotion (between his 3 page article and your “from the editor’s
desk”) was not for a book…but rather for a man and his
ideology…for Al Gore.
Even though I don’t agree with Al Gore, I can appreciate capitalism,
and any efforts to sell his book. I personally print t-shirts for a
very progressive radio station…not because I agree with their
philosophy…but because I believe in Capitalism. Printing shirts for
them is not the same as promoting their views or allowing my company
or it’s resources to be used as a vehicle or platform for or their
agenda.
With that being said, I think that your “from the editor’s desk” note
at the beginning of this issue was a pretty weak attempt to explain
away and justify why you decided to give so much attention to someone
who you clearly have favorable leanings for. You claim to be neutral
and just interested in promoting books from either side (right or
left)…but this article seems to go much further than promoting a
book. The promotion of Al Gore’s book is merely an after thought in
the article, and takes a serious back seat to the Open Mic forum
you’ve provided Al Gore with to make pages 24 – 26 very very
political…and very full of opinions (especially in the context of Al
Gore and the myth of Man Made Global Warming).
As my previous statement referred to, you claim that your promotion of
books is not “politics or opinions”, but you should have tried harder
to hide your positive bias towards Al Gore and his mystical mythical
land of carbon pollution. I honestly don’t care if you have a 3 page
article promoting the book and encouraging people to buy it, but a 3
page article that is literally straight from Al Gore’s mouth is a bit
unnecessary and out of character for a magazine about Costco. I’m not
sure how long you’ve been in the business of slipping politics into
this magazine under the guise of book promotion, but you seriously
made me consider moving my business’ membership to Sam’s Club out of
principle.
You comments try to paint you as having no bias, and yet you think
it’s necessary or productive in some way to draw a comparison of value
between Gore and Beck (i.e. Gore got Nobel Peace Prize and had the
title of Vice President). If your goal truly is to increase sales by
emphasizing books that will sell well, then what advantage can be
gained for selling Glenn Beck’s book by trying to diminish him by
making him seem so much less important than Al Gore? Shouldn’t you be
promoting ALL of your products with equal interest?
That was a low blow, and honestly less than professional. If you want
to use this magazine as a vehicle for your own political bias, that’s
one thing…but PLEASE! don’t pretend to be neutral, unbiased, or just
interested in emphasizing “those books that have or are certain to
have the greatest customer demand.”
What is also silly and ridiculous to me is that you somehow try to
achieve the illusion that you’ve given equal coverage to both sides.
So tell me…how does a 1 page full ad (i.e. for Glenn Beck) in ANY
way compare to a 3 page article written “for us” (i.e. The Costco
Connection), penned by Al Gore himself?
Honestly, you are diminishing your own credibility as an editor and as
an objective professional. You’ve slipped up, and you seem to be
trying hard to make excuses to justify what you *must* know was a bad
decision. Just be a man and stand up boldly and admit that you’re
shamelessly supporting Al Gore and providing a political platform
through which Al Gore can sell his agenda…oh…and his a book too.
Aside from this bad choice you made as the Editor of this periodical,
you must be aware of the science and research that has been done since
Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” came out. If you aren’t, then
perhaps you should take some time to catch up…especially if Costco
is moving towards becoming the new platform for Al Gore and mystical
mythical science fiction.
To be clear, I’m not looking for an equal forum for Glenn Beck, Ron
Paul, or any other person to spew his or her political ideology. I’m
hoping that you’ll go back to selling books…and not politics. There
are other forums and ways to push your political agenda and to promote
Al Gore…but the Costco Connection is NOT that place, and I hope you
realize that.
I would appreciate a reply from you at your earliest convenience…and
not just a canned form letter full of vague and irrelevant
justifications for what you did. I want you to level with me and
answer the concerns that I’ve mentioned in this email. Thank you for
your time. I look forward to your reply.
Ben Jenkins
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Comment by Ben Jenkins — November 3, 2009 @ 5:47 pm