Plane Stupid: how dumb can this lot be?
Plane Stupid activists have got to take the title of being the dumbest environmental organisation the world as ever seen - only last week the group attempted to occupy the 'London' headquaters of EasyJet, it was organised as a part of their ongoing national campaign against short haul flights.So, true to form, this dumb outfit march off to occupy a building in London. Once there, they draped a massive banner on the roof, and formed a human chain around the entrance of the building. However, what this group failed to recognise was the fact they were not standing outside EasyJet's HQ - that, happens to be in Luton, not London.
As you can plainly see in the photograph above, this is the headquarters of EasyGroup, who are in charge of such things like cinema's, buses, pizza's, music, mobile phones and cruises - not aeroplanes.
I can't believe someone actually even posted photographic evidence of their stupidity on UK Indymedia.
UPDATE: Plane Stupid activists are trying to argue that easyGroup own easyJet, but this is not true.
The truth is;
easyJet is a public company of which the Haji-Ioannou family own around 49% (Stelios Hani-Ioannou does own the easyJet name which he leases back to the airline, but that is something very different). easyGroup is a private holding company which is owned by Stelios Haji-Ioannou. The Haji-Ioannou family interest in easyJet is not legally connected with or managed by easyGroup.
Current easyGroup businesses
easyInternetcafé
easyCar
easyMoney
easyCinema
easyCinema DVD Rental
easyBus
easy4men
easyPizza
easyMusic
easyCruise
easyValue
easy.com
easyJobs
easyHotel
easyWatch
easyTelecom
easyCafe
Labels: Anti-progress, Environmentalism, Plane Stupid
posted by Courtney Hamilton @ 10:53 AM
23 Comments:
Wanted to let you know Ive added you to my blog roll (Across the Pond)
Best!
Sharon Ferguson
Well, it made me smile...
Sharon,
I'm honoured - I shall do like wise asap.
All the best.
Courtney
"I can't believe someone actually even posted photographic evidence of their stupidity on UK Indymedia."
Um, Courtney?
You're not very familiar with IndyMedia's brand of "news", I take it?
'Cuz most of it is so incredibly stupid I'm almost convinced it's an elaborate joke cooked up by rightwingers.
Mark,
I went on the UK Indymedia site, and a supporter of Plane Stupid argued that EasyGroup is the parent company of EasyJet, so therefore it was a legitimate target - even though no decisions about aviation are made at the London building - that is done in Luton.
So it's not just Easyjet they have reservation about, now it's pizza's and cinema's that are apparently the global warming villians.
I suppose when the Berlin Wall came down, most of the lefts raison d’etre went along with it. They still seem to feel the burning need to act, act, act, regardless if it makes them look foolish or not.
Perhaps London was just closer? After all, it's not like they can drive to these places.
The idea of EasyPizza fills me with horror. I'll fly in their planes, but I won't risk their food.
What a good laugh. They made their point, but should have checked their facts first. I did find this amusing.
Matt,
Your right, EasyPizza just hasn't got that appetising ring about - I take your point.
Ellee,
Just between me and you, to tell you the truth, I'd thought I'd be inundated with hate mail and malicious spams or what-nots.
But all I've recieved is pretty sympathetic comments, and links from some heavyweight bloggers like Tim Worstall and Stephen Pollard - I've recieved nearly 1500 hits on my blog in just 2 days. My normal traffic is about 50 hits a day.
My technocrati profile shot up 20,000 places. Maybe I am doing something right.
I agree with you 100%. This appears to be one of the most misguided, ill-judged campaigns ever. They are even targetting the wrong people altogether in closing down Travel Agents! Why alienate working class people and make the rest of us look stupid. The real villains in this are business who use more air miles then anyone, not people booking a cheap flight. What a bunch of idiots these people are
I don't normally take issue with petty errors, but there really is no need to insert apostrophes into plural nouns - especially in a post criticizing stupidity.
Cinemas, not cinema's.
Firstly Easy Jet is a member of the easy group (type Easy group into google and its on the list on their site).
Secondly, financial growth can be bad for the environment and does not necessarily benefit the global population (the money does not necessarily go to those at the bottom of the pile).
Right whatever, but it doesn’t alter the fact that we have to change our behaviour and have some respect for the World we live on. Some things are irrefutably important unlike your trivial comment. At least their trying, bless them.
The thing is Peter, I don't believe we need to change our behavior - you can't expect people to stop flying, or stop driving, or stop turning on the heating during a British summer (let alone the winter).
The changes we really need are technological, not behavioral. The way lawful people behave in a free democratic society should be no ones business except theirs. What we need is planes and cars that use less fuel. What we don't need is anti-flying activists banning flying and worse, not having a viable alternative.
Indeed, what is your alternative to flying? Like Plane Stupid? Non-existent...
I think your point that the activists are targeting the wrong place is completely innaccurate. The reason Plane Stupid exists is to combat climate change. Large companies massively affect climate change. So the EasyGroup company is aiding climate change in other ways than simply the EasyJet branch.
Courtney, you believe that behaviour doesn't need to be changed. You are a prime example of the problem - people with this attitude are the reason why activists are choosing to shut down travel agents. Until the general public believe a change needs to happen, none will. Climate change is already affecting the world. It really is a sad time when not flying to your holiday destination would prevent the premature destruction of natural habitats - but you choose to fly regardless.
In addition, if anyone reading this post has had (or is planning to have) children, I hope you take into account the fact that your actions are affecting the environment for your children to grow up in.
Funny weather we've been having? It's only going to get worse.
New technological developments to enable us to emit less greenhouse gases will cost a huge amount of carbon intensive projects to get off the ground. It doesn't seem to be hitting home that flying, driving and heating aren't the only factors affecting climate change.
Courtney states "The way lawful people behave in a free democratic society should be no ones business except theirs." This is a really arrogant statement to make. There are people across the world dying as a result of our "civilised society's" right to do as we please. People in the developing world do not have the resources to help themselves, why do we have the right to rob them of their right to life. These delusions of grandeur need to stop - we are just lucky to be a part of this democratic, developed society, we don't have the right to to play God.
Also, there are viable alternatives to flying - have you not heard of a train or a ferry?
I applaud these activist for making their point - regardless of whether it made a difference in the day to day running of EasyJet. The action got people talking, didn't it?
Hello Anonymous eco-worrier,
Many thanks for your civilised comment - but firstly, my post was in fact highly accurate, easyJet's HQ is in Luton, not London.
Secondly, what I object to is people who cannot even be bothered to try and persuade me that their arguments are right - instead, what we appear to be witnessing is a dictatorial campaign to abolish flying without a viable alternative - and I'm sorry, but getting a 'ferry' from London to New York is not what I would call viable.
Indeed, even if I visit my relatives who live in County Clare on the west coast of Ireland, it takes 15 hours to drive and and get the ferry - whereas it only take 50 minutes to fly - like I said before, there is no viable alternative to flying.
I also disagree that lawful behaviour can be characterised as being 'arrogant' - I would have to call such an outlook perverse to say the least. Also, it's not entirely self-evident how a summer trip to Shannon in Ireland can rob people from the developing world of 'their right to life' - please do explain, if possible...
I don't think it's 'luck' that I live in a democratic society - I have to thank the activities of real democratic campaigners who put their lives on the line in the past, so people like me could live in relative peace, and not be slaves to any tyrants, green or otherwise.
They're at it again, I'm afraid. This time, they protested the wrong terminal at an airport!
http://skinflicks.blogspot.com/2007/10/eco-idiots-plane-and-simple.html
How did these "Plane Stupid" anti Heathrow third runway protesters manage to smuggle hand-cuffs (to lock themselves to metalwork on Westminster's roof) and their banner through Westminster's 'airport style' security?
If "Plane Stupid" have been assisted by parties on the inside of Westminster, which appears to be probable, was this a deliberate ploy to distract attention from the 1,000's of the 'I Want a Referendum' campaign mass lobby of Parliament on the same day?
Is it not very bad form that, to gain access to the buildings for a separate cause, these "Plane Stupid" activists used the cover of the 1,000's visiting their MP's to lobby for an EU referendum. And is it not also bad form they did this in order to 'hijack' the press, who were present because of the long planned for 'I Want a Referendum' campaign, to generate publicity for their unrelated "Plane Stupid" cause.
Anonymous,
I agree with many of your sentiments above - indeed, the consequences of Plane Stupid's activities, other than making the Metropolitan police and parliamentary security look like a complete shambles, has been to side-line a far, far more important issue of our right to have our say about EU Referendum.
To be fair to the activists, their protest did coincide with the end of a public consultation period over the third runway at Heathrow - however, as a regular user of the airport I support the development of Heathrow, and Stansted, and any other airport in the UK and Ireland.
bigger picture anyone? just how big do airports have to be? does business have the right to infinite growth?
PLANE STUPID ARE HEROES AND MAKE ME PROUD TO BE HUMAN
Whats ever become of their brains if they ever had any? Perhapes its their strict diets of yuky pukey green nuts that have made them so utterly rediculous and just stupid i mean PLANE STUPID IS STUPID just geta look at these idiots and you,ll know what i mean
I agree that aviation in Europe is out of proportions, speacially done by Ryanair and Easyjet. I think there is no other airline in the world that has more than 6 hubs as these guys do.
These are real problems, but is this the best way to address the problem, in a childish way. I think Plane Stupid has forgotten their goal and have turned into extremists against aviation.
People, aviation will never go away, no matter how hard you try, development will continue, and it will never stop.
So plane stupid, stop the crap, get a job, a hobby, a life, and stop trying to halt development; it will not stop, at least not because of you.
And since when are is aviation harming developing countries, this just prove how unfocused the whole Plane Stupid organization is.
P.S. Ferry traveling sucks and train traveling is very tedious. 3 hours from New York to Boston!, with Jetblue 1hr and great comfort and service.
I agree that aviation in Europe is out of proportions, speacially done by Ryanair and Easyjet. I think there is no other airline in the world that has more than 6 hubs as these guys do.
These are real problems, but is this the best way to address the problem, in a childish way. I think Plane Stupid has forgotten their goal and have turned into extremists against aviation.
People, aviation will never go away, no matter how hard you try, development will continue, and it will never stop.
So plane stupid, stop the crap, get a job, a hobby, a life, and stop trying to halt development; it will not stop, at least not because of you.
And since when are is aviation harming developing countries, this just prove how unfocused the whole Plane Stupid organization is.
P.S. Ferry traveling sucks and train traveling is very tedious. 3 hours from New York to Boston!, with Jetblue 1hr and great comfort and service.
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