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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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Coen Brothers' Ad Knocks 'Clean Coal'

Filmmaking duo mock coal industry in ad for Al Gore green group

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(Newser) – The Coen brothers chuck the notion of "clean coal" into the woodchipper in a new ad commissioned by Al Gore’s Reality Coalition, the Guardian reports. The ad, which the filmmaking duo directed for the anti-coal environmental group, features a salesman spraying black smog from a can marked "Clean Coal" around a spotless home.

"Is regular clean enough for your family?" the salesman asks as the family gasps for air behind him. "Clean coal is supported by the coal industry—the most trusted name in coal," he added. The ad wraps up with the line: "In reality, there's no such thing as clean coal." It’s the second anti-coal ad in the coalition’s campaign. The Coen brothers will produce another ad for the group later this year.

Filmmakers Ethan and Joel Coen pose for a portrait while promoting their film 'No Country For Old Men' at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles in 2007.
Filmmakers Ethan and Joel Coen pose for a portrait while promoting their film 'No Country For Old Men' at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles in 2007.   (AP Photo/Stefano Paltera)
A still from the Reality Coalition's anti-coal ad, directed by famous filmmaking brothers Joel and Ethan Coen.
A still from the Reality Coalition's anti-coal ad, directed by famous filmmaking brothers Joel and Ethan Coen.   (Reality Coalition)
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The Coen brothers' ad.   (ThorntonGazerro)

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9 comments
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riffran
Feb 27, 09 4:27 AM CST
Im all for leaving that stuff in the ground, that includes oil,........so what are they replacing it with??????*silence*.......until then we have no choice.....but hopefully one day the "other" techs will be able to supplant big oil/coal Reply
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IN RESPONSE:
Doctor_Zaius
Feb 27, 09 6:22 AM CST
The coal industry is using the myth of clean coal to push alternatives to the back burner.
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Robert_Dada
Feb 27, 09 6:40 AM CST
I agree riffran. There is no known substitute that can replace the scale of the coal and oil industries and the infrastructural requirements to achieve that scale is years and years away. Just got to suck it up folks. Reply
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IN RESPONSE:
tmoore
Feb 27, 09 10:24 AM CST
But that argument is precisely why it's STILL years and years away... you're arguing like a luddite! When do we "suck it up" and start doing what's best instead of what's easiest?
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Robert_Dada
Feb 27, 09 6:42 AM CST
And another point. This is only attacking the symptom, not the underlying root cause which simply stated is: There are too damn many people on this planet. Until we get population under control, we will forever have resource depletion and environmental decay. Reply
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