MYSTERY PETROCHEMICAL CORPORATION hacks the Yes Men

[ Word puzzle hint! Figure out the culprits name and win a prize: Clue: First syllable of "Evil" + middle syllable of "Texas" + final syllable of "moron" = ? The first 5 winners who figure out the puzzle receive a free TV-B-GONE courtesy of the Evil Twin Booking Agency - send submissions to: info [at] eviltwinbooking [dot] org ]

June 28, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THE YES MEN HACKED BY PETROCHEMICAL COMPANY!

Contact: mailto:people (at) theyesmen.org

One day after the Yes Men made a joke announcement that ExxonMobil
plans to turn billions of climate-change victims into a brand-new
fuel called Vivoleum, the Yes Men's upstream internet service
provider shut down Vivoleum.com, the Yes Men's spoof website, and cut
off the Yes Men's email service, in reaction to a complaint whose
source they will not identify. The provider, Broadview Networks, also
made the Yes Men remove all mention of Exxon from TheYesMen.org
before they'd restore the Yes Men's email service.

The Yes Men assume the complainant was Exxon. "Since parody is
protected under US law, Exxon must think that people seeing the site
will think Vivoleum's a real Exxon product, not just a parody," said
Yes Man Mike Bonanno. "Exxon's policies do already contribute to
150,000 climate-change related deaths each year," added Yes Man Andy
Bichlbaum. "So maybe it really is credible. What a resource!"

After receiving the complaint June 15, Broadview added a "filter"
that disabled the Vivoleum.com IP address (64.115.210.59), and
furthermore prevented email from being sent from the Yes Men's
primary IP address (64.115.210.58). Even after all Exxon logos were
removed from both sites and a disclaimer was placed on Vivoleum.com
on Tuesday, Broadview would still not remove the filter. (The
disclaimer read: "Although Vivoleum is not a real ExxonMobil program,
it might as well be.")

Broadview did restore both IPs on Wednesday, after the Vivoleum.com
website was completely disabled and all mention of Exxon was removed
from TheYesMen.org.

While this problem is temporarily resolved, the story is far from
over. Meanwhile, though, two bigger problems loom, for which we're
asking your help:

1. THE YES MEN'S SERVER NEEDS A NEW HOME.

Broadview Networks provides internet connectivity to New York's
Thing.net and the websites and servers it hosts, including the Yes
Men's server. Thing.net has been a host for many years to numerous
activist and artist websites and servers.

At the end of July, Thing.net will terminate its contract with
Broadview and move its operations to Germany, where internet
expression currently benefits from a friendlier legal climate than in
the US, and where baseless threats by large corporations presumably
have less weight with providers. At that time, the Yes Men and two
other organizations with servers "co-located" at Thing.net will need
a new home for those servers. Please write to us if you can offer
such help or know of someone who can.

2. THE YES MEN NEED A SYSADMIN.

The Yes Men are desperately in need of a sysadmin. The position is
unpaid at the moment, but it shouldn't take much time for someone who
knows Debian Linux very well. It involves monitoring the server,
keeping it up-to-date, making sure email is working correctly, etc.
The person could also maintain the Yes Men's website (which will be
updated next week), if she or he wants.

Thing.net also needs a sysadmin: someone living in New York who knows
Linux well. The Thing.net position involves some money and the
rewards of working for an organization that has consistently and at
great personal risk supported groups like the Yes Men over the years.

THE YES MEN AND THING.NET THANK YOU!

THE YES MEN CRASH OIL EXPO - propose burning disaster victims for Fuel

For press and booking requests please click here:

Last Thursday 300 oil industry bigwigs at GO-EXPO (Canada's largest oil conference) heard an outrageous plan to "keep the fuel flowing" in the face of catastrophic climate change and natural disasters. The idea? Use disaster victims' corpses for fuel of course!

Exxon Mobil exec "Florian Osenberg" said not to worry about the future millions of dead people, mainly poor, because they would provide "feedstock" for Vivoleum, a new energy source distilled from human flesh. National Petroleum Council rep Shepherd Wolff called it the renewable resource the industry has been needing: "Something like whales, but more abundant."

Osenberg and Wolf explained that Vivoleum works in perfect synergy with Exxon. "The company's expanded fossil fuel production will lead to catastrophic climate change, resulting in migration and conflicts that would likely disable pipelines and oil wells, thus ceasing the production and transport of food, and starving humanity."

Osenberg continued, "Wouldn't it be equally cruel and tragic for all those corpses to go to waste, instead of being turned into fuel for the rest of us?

Commemorative candles made of Vivoleum, supposedly obtained from the flesh of an Exxon janitor who died while cleaning up a toxic spill, were lit and passed around by the rapt audience. It wasn't until viewing a video tribute featuring a janitor pleading to be rendered into candles after his death that Osenberg and Wolff were forcibly escorted from the stage.

Too bad that the conference organizers didn't realize Osenberg and Wolff were really master hoaxers THE YES MEN. The Yes Men are Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno, two culture jammers who regularly impersonate executives from the world's nastiest corporations, then get themselves invited to speak at conferences on their behalf. While in the spotlight they exercise "identity correction" by telling the truths that the companies would never admit. www.theyesmen.org

Liz Cole is booking speaking dates for Andy and Mike for fall 2007 and winter/spring 2008. Yay! Bring them to your town, and they will share unreleased video, secrets and stories from their latest exploits. which will be featured in the new film, slated for festival release in 2008.

Text of speech, photos, video: http://www.vivoleum.com/event/

GO-EXPO statement: http://newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2007/14/c5086.html

press links:

BOING BOING: http://www.boingboing.net/2007/06/15/yes_men_crash_oil_ex.html

WIRED: http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/06/yes_men_strike_.html

SCOOP: http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0706/S00281.htm

DAILY KOS: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/6/14/214445/536

The Yes Men Need Your Help!

Foul plans are in the works with culture jammers The Yes Men. In just under two weeks, Andy and Mike will speak on behalf of what may be the world's nastiest company, at a very important conference.

Remember when The Yes Men rolled out the Halliburton Survivaball to insurance industry lawyers, extended the Management Leisure Suit of the Future to textile bigwigs, and went on BBC World TV to clarify DOW's feelings on the mess they made in Bhopal?

Well their newest plans are weirder, more tasteless and more elaborate than ever. But they need your help to pull it off. Why? Let's just say that two hundred stinky-poo props don't come cheap.

If you can help, please go here. (ignore the part about shipping and sales tax).

And, go to G8 tv for all the sizzling hot riot porn - no, really, news you won't see anywhere else - about the G8 summit in Heiligendamm.

Not that I am bitter about not being there. Certainly not I.