# The World Wildlife Fund ain't gonna make many friends in NY **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 3, 2009, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737 "2009-09-03T12:34:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/21 "2009-09-04T12:33:43Z")
> [@Push\_You\_Down](#): > > Using “collapse” when American’s had been hearing nothing but “the collapse of the WTC” and “the WTC collapse” for quite awhile for a phrase that meant nothing\* is what really made the connection with people. > > - “collapse into cool” WHAT DID THAT EVEN MEAN. I don’t want to drink something that a bug has collapsed into. Ewwww. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/22 "2009-09-04T20:14:16Z")
Whenever I hear about ad companies coming up with ‘provocative’ ideas for campains, I think of one thing and one thing only - [Frog Hammer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGj78_eIsLg) from the second season of Slings and Arrows. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/23 "2009-09-04T21:15:43Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > “Because if you don’t, it’ll kill your family.” Not if we kill it first! Who’s with me? ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/24 "2009-09-07T08:46:39Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Yeah, I want to know how we caused the tsunami. I agree that the ad was totally tasteless and should never have happened. But just to fight ignorance on this point above… No, the human race didn’t cause the tsunami, but some of the deaths might have been prevented if people were living more sustainably. The problem as I understand it is that over the decades, people in the affected counties (Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India) have been clearing the forests and mangroves that naturally cover the coastal areas, and have been building settlements there instead. The problem is that the cover was a natural wave break which, had it been left intact, would have reduced the loss of life and livelihoods from the tsumani. It wouldn’t of course have prevented all deaths, but a good number of them. There are quite a few cases like this one where unsustainable practices make people (usually the poor) especially vulnerable to natural disasters. I think that is the point that the WWF was trying to make in that horrible ad. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/25 "2009-09-07T12:03:05Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Yeah, I want to know how we caused the tsunami. We didn’t cause it. We failed to prevent it through reasonable wildlife management programs. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/26 "2009-09-07T12:07:37Z")
> [@Endemic](#): > > I agree that the ad was totally tasteless and should never have happened. > > But just to fight ignorance on this point above… No, the human race didn’t cause the tsunami, but some of the deaths might have been prevented if people were living more sustainably. The problem as I understand it is that over the decades, people in the affected counties (Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India) have been clearing the forests and mangroves that naturally cover the coastal areas, and have been building settlements there instead. The problem is that the cover was a natural wave break which, had it been left intact, would have reduced the loss of life and livelihoods from the tsumani. It wouldn’t of course have prevented all deaths, but a good number of them. > > There are quite a few cases like this one where unsustainable practices make people (usually the poor) especially vulnerable to natural disasters. I think that is the point that the WWF was trying to make in that horrible ad. What that boils down to is saying that if there were fewer people where it hit, fewer people whould have been killed. This was a HUGE force of nature, so large that it changed the speed of the earth’s rotation. More trees along the coast would only mean more debris to be flung around and kill people. In this particular case, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/27 "2009-09-07T12:12:44Z")
Okay, so we wouldn’t have been as badly affected by the tsunami if fewer people have been living on the coast. But that hardy seems like a “protect the planet” message, more like a “protect the people” one. Like telling people not to live in tornado alley. The planet seems to be doing a good job of taking care of itself. ---
**Author:** ![genXmalcontent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8baadc/32.png) [@genXmalcontent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/genXmalcontent)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2009, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/28 "2009-09-09T06:54:51Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Shit, remember when Dunkin’ Donuts got in trouble for making a poster that had a dragonfly approaching two cups of iced coffee that sorta kinda made some jittery people think of September 11, although the reason Dunkin’ Donuts would _want_ people to think of September 11 when they thought about its drinks was never explained? > > Times have changed I guess. At least for this Brazilian agency. Might I suggest waxings for the people who made this? What a crass and exploitative ad. It’s distasteful and the insensitive imagery more than drowns out the message. Dunkin Donuts was forced to pull their Rachel Ray Ads [http://www.marketwatch.com/story/correct-rachael-ray-ad-pulled-by-dunkin-donuts?print=true&dist=printMidSection](http://www.marketwatch.com/story/correct-rachael-ray-ad-pulled-by-dunkin-donuts?print=true&dist=printMidSection) because of people like this idiot, Michelle Malkin [http://michellemalkin.com/2008/05/28/the-keffiyeh-kerfuffle/#comments](http://michellemalkin.com/2008/05/28/the-keffiyeh-kerfuffle/#comments). I’d be curious to see the Starbucks ad since I was unaware they put out something as described here. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/29 "2009-09-10T13:52:35Z")
> [@genXmalcontent](#): > > I’d be curious to see the Starbucks ad since I was unaware they put out something as described here. The Snopes link I posted has a picture of the Starbucks ad. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2009, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/30 "2009-09-23T15:37:00Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > “Because if you don’t, it’ll kill your family.” So it’s WAR the planet wants, wot wot? So be it. Release the hounds! ---
**Author:** ![Orange\_Skinner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3be4f8/32.png) [@Orange\_Skinner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orange_Skinner)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2009, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/31 "2009-09-23T16:16:54Z")
> [@](#): > > “The planet is brutally powerful. Respect it. Conserve it.” …or the tsunamis will have won. ---
**Author:** ![SleepyDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@SleepyDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SleepyDuck)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737/32 "2009-09-24T02:51:26Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > So it’s WAR the planet wants, wot wot? So be it. Release the hounds! It took you **Two Weeks** to come up with that one-liner? 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-wildlife-fund-aint-gonna-make-many-friends-in-ny/508737.md?page=1)