Updated
Rossignol topsheet depicted slashing
Rossignol, a major manufacturer of skis and related gear, had planned to introduce a new topsheet on its 2004-5 "Scratch BC" skis that depicted a woman having her throat slashed. This is a follow on to the 2003-4 model that depicted a naked woman's profile. |
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Public outcry, at least partially due to a TelemarkTips.com editorial, caused Rossignol to reconsider.
Kudos to Rossignol for doing the right thing, and to TelemarkTips.com and its readers for effective organizing.
Free speech considerations aside, this is just a colossally stupid move on the part of DARPA; the OpenBSD project produces extremely high quality, very secure software. I think it's safe to say that nearly every large computer network is using some piece of OpenBSD software (such as ssh) in some way.
I urge you to contact your senators about this, and also President Bush. I would downplay the free speech aspect and focus instead on the number of people who depend on Theo's software on a daily basis. If you run OpenBSD, OpenSSH or other software that comes out of OpenBSD, be sure to point that out.
Follow-up
Nothing ever happened. My letters to Senator Kennedy and President Bush went unanswered.Updated
Bread & Circus is a subsidiary of Whole Foods Market, Inc. I urge you to get in touch with them and let them know how you feel about this. You way also want to suggest specific action they can take. Personally, I think they should:
- Issue a directive to all store managers that they
must not deliberately target local
food co-ops by means of sales & promotions aimed directly
at them.
- Publically apologize to Harvest.
- Make a $1000 donation to a cause selected by the Harvest
board of directors.
If Whole Foods does this, I think it would actually enhance their image and generate positive publicity out of otherwise negative incident. You may want to point that out in your letter/call/email. Feel free to refer them to this web page.
Note that I am not calling for a boycott of Bread & Circus. I basically think they have their hearts in the right place, and I'm hopeful that they will see the light on this.
Follow-up
Bread & Circus never did anything, not even respond to my letter.Updated
April 24, 2003
long term:
late 2003
As of April 16, 2003, the Forest Service has 4 draft plans and it is soliciting comments on them. The AMC's Conservation Action Network is encouraging people to send comments to the Forest Service. I received this mail from the AMC:
AMC believes that the draft alternatives do not provide strong enough protection for the largest, wildest parts of the White Mountain National Forest - among the most significant wild places in the northeast.**Your voice is important! Please take a moment to read the alternatives and send in your comments directly to the forest service through AMC's Conservation Action Network today at http://ga0.org/campaign/WM_Alternatives.
Or mail in your comments using the points below as guidance.
Whether you write or e-mail your letter, please write your own words and thoughts.
Send your comments by mail before April 24 to:
White Mountain National Forest Plan Revision
719 North Main Street
Laconia, NH 03246
Fax (603) 528-8783
E-mail: rdow@fs.fed.us
If you can, please let us know about the comments you mail to the Forest Service.
You can view the draft alternatives and maps here
Points you can consider making:
- Tell the forest service about the things you value about the forest. If so inclined, focus on the unique opportunity the forest provides to protect large areas in a natural condition for backcountry recreation and biological conservation. This is especially important considering the surrounding landscape - most of the land around the forest is heavily roaded and either developed or used for commercial timber harvesting.
- Express your concern that two of the new alternatives actually increase the amount of land available for timber harvesting and provide little or no additional protection for roadless areas.
- Make it clear to the Forest Service that the White Mountains' wildest places, its roadless areas, are special to you and that you want them to be managed to ensure they remain wild, unroaded, and uncut. They are unique in the Northeast and it is appropriate to protect them as a unique treasure for the public.
- While Alternative 3 goes farthest in protecting roadless areas, it does not adequately address the public's strong demonstrated desire to for a high level of Wilderness and roadless protection for the largest, wildest parts of the White Mountain National Forest. The Wilderness areas proposed by AMC and others, especially in the Wild River Valley and Sandwich Range regions, should be maintained. Elsewhere, identified roadless areas should be closed to timber harvesting and managed as natural areas.
- It is important that strong guidelines be developed to limit the impacts of high levels of recreation use, and to protect quiet and remote backcountry experiences that are so rare and hard to find in this region. This should include maintaining the current policy of prohibiting the use of off-road vehicles (ATVs, dirt bikes, etc.) on the national forest.