A THIT-Autographed Race Car!

LONDON - The Honda Formula One team said Monday it will replace advertising and sponsor logos on their car this season with a giant picture of the Earth to raise awareness of environmental issues.

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"The global reach, the number of people we can talk to, is immense, so we can change minds," he said. "We are going in a more environmentally friendly direction with the systems we put on the car and Formula One is really a laboratory for road car technology."

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The team said anyone donating to an environmental charity and pledging to make one change in their lifestyle to improve the environment can have their name placed on the car via a new Web site, www.myearthdream.com.

"Under the concept of 'our car is your car', each name will form a tiny individual pixel which will help build the image of planet Earth on the car," the team said in a statement. "Each name will be visible on the Web site when you make the pledge or under the microscope on the car."

Fry said there would be space for at least two million names and that existing sponsors, who could use the image of the car in advertising campaigns, were staying with the team.

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Formula One's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), and the major carmakers who dominate the sport are eager to scrap gas-guzzling stereotypes and present a new environmentally aware image.

That is no easy achievement, given the fuel consumption and the fact that F1 engines are reduced to little more than scrap metal after about 900 miles of use.

Speaking in a museum with a fine collection of dinosaur remains, Fry said the sport had to evolve if it was to survive.

"Formula One has to change. That's been acknowledged not only by the teams, and us, but also the FIA," said Fry. "Otherwise we will wither on the vine. The technology we spend an enormous amount on in Formula One has to be relevant to road cars ... road cars are going to be more environmentally friendly for obvious reasons and these things (F1 cars) have to lead the way."

Click on the picture above for the full article from Reuters, as posted on MSNBC.

All right, so it's me and 1,999,999 close friends.

Of course I got sucked in to taking yet another pledge. I could have been a prick about it and selected to stop doing something I already stopped doing (like flying) or to stop something I never do anyway (like ironing), but no. I had to play it straight. Stupid conscience...seriously, what's it EVER done for me??

I took the one about changing to a renewable source of energy. When we eventually get into the new house, and we have our budget worked out, we'll likely go Bullfrog. We even toyed with the idea of getting our own windmill!

But that's a post for another day...