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Wanna See Ben Affleck in a Corn Suit?
What better way to make flex fuel vehicles and E85 (corn-based ethanol) more hip than by taking several YouTube clips, stirring in some Facebook, MySpace, a Napoleon Dynamite-esque aesthetic and, finally, for good measure a good dollop of Ben Affleck dressed in a corn suit (seriously, just watch it)? Narrated by Phin (who looks suspiciously like a certain silent protagonist), this series of videos, dubbed "Clean My Ride, Flex My Fuel," aims to raise awareness about our (still) shoddy fuel emissions standards and the energy bill that is being debated in the Congress.
Here's what the "Clean My Ride" guys think should be done:
"This is a good start, but the bill still needs provisions to take on the really big stuff - increasing gas mileage requirements and mandating the availability of e85 for flexible-fuel cars that can use either gasoline or ethanol. These tough solutions will slash oil use and slow global warming. To increase energy independence and stop global warming, the House should do what the Senate did: increase mileage standards to 35 mpg by 2020. This would save 1.2 million barrels of oil per day in 2020, save consumers at least $25 billion, and reduce dependence on foreign oil.
The House should also require a certain portion of service stations to sell e85 to replace oil-based gasoline with corn-based ethanol."
Two videos are already up with another four to come in the next few days. Boasting an all-star cast featuring other such "luminaries" as Matt Damon, Jennifer Garner and Jason Biggs, "Clean My Ride" hopes to urge viewers to act by writing to their congressmen and demanding change. Because if watching Ben Affleck in a corn suit won't make you do it, what will?
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