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Date: Wed, 24 Nov 2004 09:54:16 -0800
To: <improvetheworld &AElig umich.edu>
From: "ckwicklow" <ckwicklow &AElig sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: AAA vs Better World 
Status: O

See below.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Daniel Reeves" <dreeves &AElig umich.edu>
To: "ckwicklow" <ckwicklow &AElig sbcglobal.net>
Cc: <improvetheworld &AElig umich.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, November 23, 2004 2:29 PM
Subject: Re: AAA vs Better World


>  For those hesitant to believe that AAA is so bad, I recommend reading
> this article -- http://www.nrdc.org/amicus/01win/aaa/aaa.asp -- which you
> can tell is biased, but worth considering their arguments.  Here's another
> article by Ralph Nader:  http://www.nader.org/interest/070302.html
>  Better World has been endorsed by the Car Talk guys and the Sierra Club:
> http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/articles/travelclubs.asp
>  Here is an article from Harper's magazine:
> http://www.betterworldclub.com/newsroom/articles/Harpers_May2002.htm
>  And finally, I've included below the text of 2 short articles, one about
> Better World from Fortune magazine and the other from USA Today about a
> dubious AAA environmental study concluding that we should back off on
> emissions standards for cars.
>
>  If you can find AAA's side of these stories, please let us know!
>

I only chimed in because of the passive way that I found this information. 
I must refuse to be relied on as an emergency brake for movements that may 
take a wrong turn, as the last thing I want to promote is future reckless 
driving.

I'm convinced that the truth is somewhere in the middle.  Saying AAA is 
anti-environment is like saying Better World is anti-drivers and that their 
eventual goal is to leave the evil polluters stranded.   I'm also now 
convinced that I want to choose my auto club by service and rates, saving 
the charitable donations or political contributions for Mel & I to decide.

Along these lines, I'd much rather discuss the issues themselves than a 
company as defined by its many opinions on a multitude of issues.  In the 
latter case, the truth can really get distorted and no one will ever find 
common ground.

These articles and web sites were very carefully written to suggest a few 
extreme things they didn't actually say (likely because the implications 
aren't true, or they would have said them outright or used words less open 
to interpretation).  The USA today article does not seem biased, but shows 
several complete misunderstandings of the issues.  Communication without a 
good understanding of or a balanced approach to the issues is a waste of 
everyone's time and will, at a minimum, lead to most people not listening 
any more.  More serious impacts include the apparently growing deep societal 
divisions.

My goal here is to urge everyone to create a better world by trying to 
understand each other.  In this case, it means researching the other side to 
the same extent we research our own vs. blindly pushing for the extreme 
right or left, while in reality hoping to end up with a slightly different 
definition of the middle.

>  As for their support of pro-bike and pro-mass-transit ballot measures in
> San Francisco, granted, but that's San Francisco.  AAA would have to be
> truly evil not to advocate such measures in such a congested area.  In any
> case, my sense from looking at Via vs other AAA magazines is that Via is
> good but it's not representative of AAA at the national level.
>
> Here are a couple reasons to switch to Better World even if you don't have
> time to read all these articles and convince yourself that AAA is bad for
> the environment and cyclists and skaters.
> 1. Better World offers the same services and will match AAA rates.
> 2. They donate 1% of their revenue to environmental clean-up efforts.
> 3. They have roadside assistance for bikes and discounts for renting
>    hybrid cars.
>
> Oh, and from hybridcars.com: "Perhaps most importantly, the folks at the
> Better World Club believe in hybrids. To prove it, they'll extend your
> membership to a thirteenth month for free, just because you're on this
> hybrid cars website. Again, when you go to their sign-up page, use the
> promotional code: HDCR0312."
>
> And I don't know if this is one is true but Better World claims to be the
> only auto club that recognizes domestic partners as part of its family
> coverage.
>
> Thanks for reading everyone,
> Danny
>
> Fortune magazine article:
>
> THE NEXT BIG THING
> Mitch Rofsky and Todd Silberman, Better World Club
> This auto club is almost a carbon copy of the AAA--without all the
> pro-pavement lobbying.
> By Julie Sloane
>
> After the Catholic church, AAA--the official name of the American
> Automobile Association--is the second-largest organization in the U.S.
> With 46 million members, the century-old AAA is a beloved American
> institution. Beloved by everyone, that is, but environmentalists.
>
> Critics claim that AAA's membership dues help pay for lobbyists who
> promote an anti-environmental agenda. "They oppose efforts to improve the
> fuel economy of vehicles, cut down pollution from vehicles, fund public
> transportation, and limit sprawl," says Daniel Becker, director of the
> Sierra Club's Global Warming and Energy program. AAA flatly denies the
> charges, but its record is hard to ignore. In 1990 AAA publicly opposed
> the strengthening of the Clean Air Act.
>
> Last June two Portland, Ore., entrepreneurs, Mitch Rofsky and Todd
> Silberman, created the Better World Club. On the surface it doesn't look
> too different from AAA, offering the same services and using the same tow
> trucks, for pretty much the same price. But instead of using some
> resources for lobbying, it donates them to organizations that remove the
> carbon-dioxide emissions that travel creates.
>
> Rofsky and Silberman met in the Cub Scouts 40 years ago. Rofsky became an
> initial backer and later president of Working Assets, a socially
> responsible mutual fund that created a successful long-distance telephone
> company. Silberman founded Lifeco, a $1.4 billion travel agency he sold to
> American Express in 1990.
>
> It won't be easy for a startup to challenge AAA--Better World Club aims to
> be 1% as big someday. (Rofsky is hoping to drum up investors to fund the
> company's first major marketing push.) And there is a chance, however
> slim, that the Better World Club may be a victim of its own success--some
> observers say that AAA has recently downplayed its lobbying efforts.
> "We're pleased to be here to inspire them to moderate their tone," Rofsky
> says. "But it's not about tone. It's about action."
>
>
> USA Today article:  (note that the study has the gall to say that cars
> account for "less than 24%" of the emissions that lead to ground-level
> ozone problems" in 25 major cities, *excluding New York and LA*!
> --Danny)
>
> AAA: cars not to blame for major U.S. air pollution
> USA Today: September 30, 1999
>
> WASHINGTON - Cars and light trucks are no longer the major source for smog
> and ozone pollution in most major US cities, according to a report
> released by the American Automobile Association (AAA)yesterday.
>
> The study says cars and light trucks, which include sport utility vehicles
> (SUVs) and minivans, account for less than 24 percent of the emissions
> that lead to ground-level ozone problems in 25 major cities, excluding New
> York and Los Angeles.
>
> "This study confirms that smog produced by automobiles continues to
> decline and does not contribute inordinately to ozone problems in our
> cities when compared to the contribution of other sources," said Susan
> Pikrallidas, interim vice president of public and government relations for
> AAA.
>
> New York and Los Angeles were excluded from the study because their AAA
> clubs declined to participate.
>
> Using data submitted to the US Environmental Protection Agency, the study
> reports a reduction in automobile emissions of volatile organic compounds
> (VOC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) which contribute to the depleting
> ozone.
>
> Because of EPA's more stringent emission standards for newer vehicles, AAA
> says there has been an 82 percent reduction in auto VOC since 1970 and a
> 38 percent reduction in auto NOx.
>
> The study blames stationary sources, such as power plants and refineries,
> as the major contributors to air pollution today.
>
> AAA representatives called on local, state and federal governments to stop
> targeting passenger vehicles and start looking at other industries to
> decrease ozone-related emissions.
>
> "Its time to turn the spotlight on other pollution sources if we really
> want to continue to improve air quality," Pikrallidas said. "Targeting
> cars won't get you much more for the money."
>
> Environmental groups dismissed the AAA study.
>
> "It sounds like AAA has been breathing too much smog," said Daniel Becker,
> Sierra Club's director of global warming and energy.
>
> "With asthmatic children being hospitalized at an ever-increasing rate, it
> is foolhardy and callous for AAA to imply that now is the time to let up
> on auto pollution," he said.
>
> Story by Randy Fabi
>
>
> --- \/   FROM ckwicklow AT 04.11.22 15:03 (Today)   \/ ---
>
>> I was waiting for an appointment today, and picked up the November issue 
>> of
>> the AAA magazine "Via."...the cover story happened to be on San 
>> Francisco.
>> Coincidently, inside there was a message from the CEO about the election.
>> AAA took no stance on the presidential election, but urged readers to 
>> vote
>> for items associated with traffic relief.  Several of the measures listed
>> were local issues, which I knew a bit about.  One of which, I was able to
>> vote on two weeks ago.  Besides several fixes for local nightmare highway
>> bottlenecks (ex. I-80/680 interchange and a fourth bore to the Caldecott
>> tunnel), some measures AAA urged readers to vote for include:
>>
>> -Expansion of car-pool-only lanes.
>> -Expansion of commuter bus service.
>> -Expansion of local bus services.
>> -Express bus services connecting regional rail services to activity &
>> employment centers.
>> -Bus discounts for low-income residents & students.
>> -"Para-commuter" upgrades for elderly & disabled on city-to-city busses.
>> -Incorporation of bicycle & pedestrian travel with all road upgrades.
>> -Stand-alone bicycle & pedestrian path projects.
>> -Expansion of regional rail service (Amtrak).
>> -Expansion of commuter rail service (BART).
>> -Expanded Ferry service from Benicia/Vallejo, Rodeo, & Richmond to San
>> Francisco.
>>
>> I'm not sure where their money is, and I read where their mouth was, but
>> their real attempt to convince the public to vote for the above ballot
>> measures was very clear.
>>
>> It seems that The Better World Club & Car Talk's motives may be just to 
>> make
>> more money.  False advertising and scare tactics bother me more than any
>> potential truth in the advertisement!  When the goal seems to be good, 
>> there
>> is often less scrutiny given to accusations, and forgiveness is given 
>> much
>> sooner for false accusations.  I'm not for one side or the other, but in
>> these and other situations, I do recommend pushing your comfort zones 
>> when
>> trying to understand the side you are not pre-disposed to
>> believe...whichever side that is.
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Daniel Reeves" <dreeves &AElig umich.edu>
>> To: <improvetheworld &AElig umich.edu>
>> Sent: Friday, November 19, 2004 8:50 PM
>> Subject: AAA vs Better World
>>
>>
>> > [re off-topic posts to improvetheworld today:  won't happen again --  
>> > see
>> > discussion on whiteboard at
>> > http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/dreeves/improvetheworld
>> > ]
>> >
>> > Topic at hand:  I've been reading about this and have decided to drop 
>> > AAA
>> > like a hot potato.  They've been using my money to fight against
>> > everything I believe in, like bike paths and mass transit.  Here's what
>> > the car talk guys have to say about it:
>> >
>> > What's new at Car Talk Plaza?
>> >
>> > A chance to put your money where your values are, is what's new.
>> >
>> > Are you a member of AAA?
>> >
>> > Over the years many of you have complained that, aside from providing
>> > emergency towing services, AAA uses your money to support big oil and
>> > everything related to it.  It lobbies for highway construction over 
>> > mass
>> > transit; lower gas prices over fossil fuel alternatives; and spends
>> > millions of dollars of your membership money doing this.
>> >
>> > Want the details?  Check this out:
>> >
>> > http://www.nrdc.org/amicus/01win/aaa/aaa.asp
>> >
>> > Ugly, eh?  Now, a lot of you have said you'd love to join a different 
>> > road
>> > club, BUT are afraid you won't get the same great service (you know, 
>> > that
>> > patented, AAA wait-four-hours-in-the-snowstorm service we've all come 
>> > to
>> > love and trust!).  Well, now there is an alternative.
>> >
>> > It's called Better World.  And it uses virtually the same network of 
>> > tow
>> > providers that AAA uses, so you can get service all over the country, 
>> > 24
>> > hours a day.  The Better World Club was founded by people who wanted
>> > reliable emergency road service but who didn't want their membership 
>> > dues
>> > used to oppose things like bike paths and train service.
>> >
>> > In the interests of full disclosure, Better World is forking over 
>> > dineros
>> > to advertise on the Car Talk web site. But despite this demonstration 
>> > of
>> > poor business judgment, we still think it's a business worth 
>> > supporting.
>> > Better World is trying to do well by doing good.  If you'd like your 
>> > road
>> > service dues to go to road service and not to defoliating the last 
>> > unpaved
>> > parcels of America, you should check them out.
>> >
>> > You can get all the details by clicking on the Better World logo at:
>> >
>> > http://www.cartalk.com
>> >
>> > ...
>> >
>> > USEFUL INFORMATION ALERT:  Tired of paying auto club dues to an outfit
>> > that lobbies against environmental causes?
>> >
>> > Check out the Better World Club. It's an auto club with genuinely 
>> > decent
>> > values-- unlike some others we could name... whose initials just so 
>> > happen
>> > to be AAA.
>> >
>> > Better World Club cares about your...
>> >  *Environmental interests: It gives 1% of its revenue towards
>> > environmental clean up and advocacy;
>> >  *Consumer interests: It even has discounts on hybrid rental cars; and
>> >  *It has the nation's only bicycle roadside assistance program.
>> >
>> > Dump your AAA membership and join Better World!
>> >
>> > If you join via the Car Talk web site, you'll get an extra month's
>> > membership. Check out Better World now at
>> >
>> > http://www.cartalk.com
>> >
>> > --
>> > http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/dreeves  - -  google://"Daniel Reeves"
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>
> -- 
> http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/dreeves  - -  google://"Daniel Reeves"
>
> "There's no moral; it's just a bunch of stuff that happened."
>  -- Homer Simpson
>