I love Thom Hartmann but...

[SHRED]

...why does he advertise/advocate (personally) for this product?

I will write him...everyone should.

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Amazon Gold Rush Destroying Peruvian Rain Forest

DELTA 1, Peru -- A gold rush that accelerated with the onset of the 2008 global recession is compounding the woes of the Amazon basin, laying waste to Peruvian rain forest and spilling tons of toxic mercury into the air and water.

With gold's price soaring globally as the metal became a hedge against financial uncertainty, the army of small-scale miners in the state of Madre de Dios has swelled to some 40,000. The result: Diesel exhaust sullies the air, trees are toppled to get at the sandy, gold-flecked earth and the scars inflicted on the land are visible on satellite photos.

The work is dangerous and produces a fifth of Peru's overall annual yield of roughly 175 metric tons of gold that make this country the world's No. 5 producer. The mining also is almost entirely illegal.

"Extracting an ounce of gold costs from $400 to $500 and the profit is $1,000 per ounce," notes Peru's environment minister, Antonio Brack. In just a decade, gold has more than tripled in value.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/12/amazon-gold-rush-peru-rain-forest_n_875482.html

[Poll_Blind]

1. If he's just hawking gold (and not something more specific to the stroy) then...

...I have no problem with that. Right now, gold is a huge value compared to the dollar. I don't own gold because I don't quite believe that enough. But if Thom Hartmann is hawking gold, he's hawking something which has real value. If he was hawking dollars as some safe haven in a turbulent world, I'd be calling bullshit.

The dollar is teetering, bigtime.

Who also hawks gold? Glenn Beck. And he's an asshole of the first water, but that doesn't make gold any more or less valuable as an investment.

PB

[izquierdista]

2. Gold hawkers LOVE political shows

Because any time political instability shows up, some gold coin seller can use it to chide people into buying their product. Right, left, or the extreme center, doesn't matter what political view you have, a "precious metals dealer" can craft a pitch for why you need his coins in your portfolio. That's why Randi Rhodes and Glenn Beck can have the same sponsors. People just need to learn to tune out when they hear "gold!" on the radio.

[evdebbs]

4. Hartmann's Agenda

Thom Hartmann's agenda is Thom Hartmann. Likewise, Rachel Maddow (in fact the entire MSNBC ilk) is 'brought to you by" ExxonMobile and the Koch Bros sand tar land rape in Canada. Talk is cheap. "White man use fork tongue."
I have emailed Ms Maddow about her Koch connection and NO RESPONSE. They belong to the Lanny Davis wing of the Dem Party, 'ya know, headed by Uncle B. BOYCOTT RACHEL MADDOW! ! !

[Bluenorthwest]

3. He altered his pitch a bit, but I do not listen to him anymore

because of not just the gold, but the constant marketing that colors the content of his show each day. It just bores me. I do not tune in to hear pitch upon pitch, nor to hear hyperbole in service of profit. It is just annoying, boring and not what I enjoy. He's free to do it, I am free to listen to something else.

[zalinda]

5. He has no more say on who pays for ads on his show

than the cast of Glee. That's what it comes down to, what companies will pay money for advertising. Unless some main street companies start supporting left wing shows, this is what you get.

zalinda

[SHRED]

6. they force him to read them?

[zalinda]

7. If he wants to stay on the air he does.

And, it may just be written into his contract that he has to read ads, whether he agrees with them or not.

zalinda