Tom Friedman Gets Pied at Brown

April 28th, 2008 For Immediate Release: Contact: Colonel Custard (aka the corporate criminal creamer) Greenwash Guerillas: contact@GreenwashGuerrillas.org Footage available: www.GreenwashGuerrillas.org

Greenwash Guerrillas Pie Thomas Friedman at Brown University YouTube Censors Video; Pie Thrower Faces University Disciplinary Procedures

Providence, RI - New York Times columnist and author Thomas Friedman was pied by the Greenwash Guerillas while giving an Earth Day Lecture at Brown University. The Greenwash Guerillas targeted Thomas Friedman because of his support for U.S. military intervention in the Middle East, neo-liberal economic policies that harm the world’s poor, and especially for promoting bogus solutions to the global climate crisis.

"We sought to expose the hypocrisy of allowing Friedman, who is known for his influential support of U.S. wars for oil in the Middle East, to call himself an environmentalist,” explained Greenwash Guerrilla Margaree Little. "He has blood on his hands that no amount of 'green' can wash away."

Little, a Brown University student identified as one of the pie throwers, faces University disciplinary hearings, potentially including expulsion. Colonel Custard, the second pie thrower, remains at large.

Little and Custard jumped on stage as Friedman began his talk, entitled “Green is the new Red, White & Blue.” The talk focused on how green technology and corporate environmentalism can restore the United States to its "natural place in the global order."

They tossed two green-colored cream pies at Friedman and dashed off as leaflets denouncing Friedman were thrown to the crowd. According to the pamphlets, “On behalf of the earth and all true environmentalists – we, the Greenwash Guerillas, declare Thomas Friedman’s ‘Green’ as fake . . . as the cool-whip covering his face.”

The Greenwash Guerillas object to Friedman’s support for nuclear power, coal power, industrial biofuels, and carbon trading markets. "These false solutions are smokescreens, intended to generate massive corporate profits while creating global humanitarian and environmental disasters,” said Colonel Custard.

Video of the pie throwing incident was posted on YouTube, and received close to 70,000 views in 36 hours, making it one of the most popular videos on the site. Without notice, YouTube abruptly censored the video, removing it from the website. Hundreds of news outlets, blogs, and websites had linked to the video. The Greenwash Guerillas have reposted the clip at: www.GreenwashGuerrillas.org

"Given the many other pieings on YouTube(1), the removal of the video can only be understood as an act of political censorship," said Little. "It's a sad commentary on how free we are to speak when confronting power."

“The Greenwash Guerillas chose the harmless and humorous tactic of pie-throwing because our goal was to take this perpetual charlatan off his new green pedestal,” said Colonel Custard. “Friedman’s support for coal and nuclear power is as misguided as his counsel on Iraq.”

This is the second time Friedman has been hit by a pie. In October 2002, he received a banana pie to his face while promoting his writings on free-market globalization in Boston.

Footnote:

(1) e.g., http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/webscout/2008/04/thomas-friedman.html

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Colonel Custard of RI 8:59PM April 29, 2008

haHa- 2 Dimensional Economist feels gooey slime of KARMA!!

The world is flat for only those who can pay for it to be bulldozed.

Kevin Rorque of KS 11:43AM April 27, 2008

Google this on YouTube and understand why the arrogance was due for a correction. My apologies for any spelling errors in the previous post.

Cyrus of CA 8:10PM April 26, 2008

I am sick and tired of the phrase "liberals deny conservatives free speech". Fox, the Three Stooge Network, CNN have been denying ANY speech that doesn't toe the Bush line for the last eight years! Have YOU fatheads been railing about that? Not that I can measure.

These conservatives DOMINATE our information to the extent that nothing else gets HEARD, SEEN OR DISCUSSED and you jerks know it. Want proof?

Phil Donohue was out-polling liberal-basher & Democratic Eyepoker supreme Chris Matthews' HARDBALLS in the short period he was allowed to braodcast. But guess what HE presented BOTH sides-even if it was at a cost of a 3 to 1 conservative to liberal ratio to do it! He once said there is NO way I could have Noam Chomsky on my show because the network would require a roomful of conservatives to have a balance! This has been proven OVER & OVER & OVER again. Conservatives can't win in a fair fight so they have to FIX the odds by parading CENTRIST-CONSERVATIVE-PRO-BUSH Demlicans to masquerade as liberals, progressives, anti-Bush Democrats. Oh...by the way, Donohue was CANCELED. Why? The leaked network memo said "he was seen as delighting in presenting anti-Bush guests" Sure if you don't prop up, cover up, dress up, lap up, pony up for Bush you don't make it on the tube. Keith is a rare exception--because he has the RATINGS you saps.

So put that whining "liberals don't let conservatives talk" BS back in the bottle and drown it like your wonderful consevatives did with the Fairness Doctrine.

Remember a Golden Eagle needs TWO wings to fly.

Get ready to eat it for a while, we have had a belllyful of yours.

David T. Gray of NH 3:08AM April 26, 2008