Leonardo Di Caprio, Bob Geldof and and Mikhail Gorbachev were among the dignitaries momentarily blocked by protesters as they tried to enter BMW's high-octane "Cinema for Peace" charity gala in Berlin last night.
"We aren't leaving till BMW stops making cars," declared Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno (also known as "The Yes Men") as they planted themselves in the middle of the red carpet wearing ridiculous inflatable costumes. "Cars are killing the planet, and charity events that greenwash their image aren't helping."
Despite "tight security" (provided by Flash Security, one of the event's sponsors), the two men were able to waddle through a gap in the fence unnoticed. They made it halfway up the red-carpeted grand staircase of the Konzerthaus Berlin, where they sat down and refused to move. Confused celebrities had to navigate around the six-foot-diameter balls for about five minutes until Flash's tall, blond security guards clumsily removed them by force. The protesters sustained a few bruises and a bloodied nose but were otherwise unharmed.
Although BMW does have an electric car, most of their business is in phallus-enhancing gas guzzlers. The acquisition of petroleum that is used in BMW's cars has been identified as the source of ongoing wars in several parts of the world, making them an unlikely sponsor of an event calling for peace.
In addition to ongoing violence over the acquisition of oil, burning petroleum in BMW engines is accelerating climate change, which already kills 150,000 people per year and by 2050 will make a billion homeless (according to one UN study). Historically, mass displacement of people has resulted in war, which means that if BMW wants to avert war, they should stop making cars. After that they can more honestly celebrate peace with lavish charity galas.
"This is yet another case where we treat the symptoms but ignore the disease," said Yes Man Mike Bonanno. Andy Bichlbaum continued: "If we don’t fix our system and start regulating these companies, they will just keep on destroying the world and throwing parties while it burns."
The Yes Men were already in town to launch their new film "The Yes Men Fix The World" at the Berlin Film Festival when they heard about the unrelated "Cinema for Peace" event and could not resist throwing a wrench in the works.
