Amazing Marketing by Bieber Fans: Fans Plan 'Bieber Buyout' at MOA

With Justin Bieber in town, Bieber fever has been all over the Twin Cities this week! Teeny bopper Bieber fans swarmed to downtown Minneapolis last night before his concert, making the traffic horrific and the ride home from work very long. On Monday, Bieber was at the MOA to take part in a buyout of Bieber CDs for a good cause. Sounds like your typical celebrity PR event, right? However, it wasn't. The neat thing about this publicity stunt was that it was organized by a group of Justin Bieber fans.

A group of Justin Bieber fans used Twitter to gather hundreds in hopes of buying out Bieber's CDs for a good cause. Four Minnesota teens and one teen from Wisconsin who have never met, corralled an anticipated 150 to 200 fellow fans to buy out all the Justin Bieber CDs at the MOA Monday.

Bieber buyouts have taken place all over the country and Europe, but this event may have been one of the largest. The girls are working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to disperse the CDs to children's hospitals across Minnesota.

The event was huge and many more than 200 fans showed up to purchase and donate Bieber's CDs. Bieber was going to make an appearance, but was mobbed on his way to the MOA Best Buy Rotunda that he was advised to leave for his protection.

I can't get over how cool this marketing is. This was a marketing event organized by fans, no one working on the Bieber team. Next, the organizers got fans to buy the artists CDs and then donate them hospitals so that patients would hear his music. Lastly, Bieber gets good PR for contributing to a good cause. The whole thing is brilliant.

Obama's PR Efforts to Assure War in Afghanistan is on Track

This week the Pentagon will attempt to convince the American people that the war in Afghanistan remains on track, despite the mess in military leadership.

Tuesday, General David Petraeus, head of US Central Command, was expected to testify before a Senate committee. This would be his first appearance on Capitol Hill since being picked to lead the war in Afghanistan following Obama's firing of General Stanley McChrystal for criticizing the administration.

Mourning over what he called "a lot of obsession" about the July 2011 withdrawal for US troops, Obama on Sunday defended his war strategy and said the US would assist the Afghans "for a long time to come." When asked about a five-year exit strategy endorsed by the Group of Eight major industrial democracies, Obama told reporters at the economic summit in Toronto, "I don't have a crystal ball." Obama added "I think that right now the debate surrounding Afghanistan is presented as either we get up and leave immediately because there's no chance at a positive outcome, or we stay basically indefinitely and do quote unquoted whatever it takes for as long as it takes." He repeated his view that beginning to pull out troops next year doesn't mean the US will "suddenly turn off the lights and let the door close behind us."

Obama's pick, Petraeus, is a signal that there won't be significant change in strategy. Everyone will be watching carefully to see what other changes might be in store.

The PR effort comes amid mixed reviews on US success in Afghanistan. Obama is advancing a risky new war plan that relies on some 98,000 US troops to prop u the Afghan government and prevent al-Qaida from returning.

This is an important issue for Obama because he said during his 2008 campaign he would end this war and bring troops home. However, he probably did not fully understand the complexity of this war and how hard it would be to suddenly pull out. Obama will need to find a balance between assuring the American people that he is making change and settling down our presence in the Middle East, yet make those who feel nervous about us a retaliation from al-Aida is we abandon the area.

Really? McDonalds Facing Lawsuit Over Happy Meals

The Center for Science in Public Interest is giving McDonald's up to 30 days to stop promoting toys with the purchase of their Happy Meals, saying that the company is contributing to the obesity epidemic that the country is dealing with.

As for McDonald's they insist that "getting a toy is just one part of a fun, family experience," said spokesman William Whitman.

"Tempting kids with toys is unfair and deceptive, both to kids who don't understand the concept of advertising and to their parents, who have to put up with nagging children," said Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in Public Interest.

My personal opinion is that parents should be responsible and take control of deciding what their children eat. When I was five, If I had the choice, I would have eaten a McDonald's Happy Meal every day, but my parents of course didn't allow this. I can see the Center for Science in Public Interest's side, but cannot agree with their call to action. There are a lot of other fast food chains out there doing the same thing, but because of McDonald's size and history of success they are getting blamed for consumer's great lack of self control.

Connected and on Vacation

A year ago I camped in the Boundary Waters area for four days and didn't miss my phone or Internet connect one bit. I didn't even think about it! However, this year the a new debate has sprung up about how 'connected' one should be on their vacation - and the resorts Minnesotans love are trying to decide.

A few boulders are among the most popular sports at the YMCA's Camp du Nord on the southern edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. It's not because of the views. The added elevation gets better cell-phone reception. A few miles north at the Lodge of Whispering Pines, the sauna is the only place that gets a signal, making for a lot of hot conversations.

All of us long to escape the weekly grind, but because of job pressures or a need to stay connected, many of us just can't seem to turn our cell phones off. Then, if we do make an escape, we want a lifeline, a place where we can tap into the world we left behind, even if it means hopping into a car and heading to the nearest town.

This need to stay connected has generated debate among resort and campground operators in Minnesota: How can you balance making visitors feel like they're escaping when they're really not? For the most part, resort owners are accommodating their guest's needs because they realize that vacations aren't what they used to be. And it's becoming evident that vacationers who do want that lifeline don't want to have to go to the lodge to wait in line for a common computer.

Today, jobs are more demanding and some employees 'feel bad' taking vacation time, especially since some worry they may not have a job to come back to if they don't try staying on top of their work while they're gone. Others just like the choice to 'check-in' or not. Regardless, I think we'll see some changes in this area. It will be interesting to see if one campground or resort jumps in offering phone and WiFi service first, and see how they do compared to the rest!

Minnesotans Rate Best in Volunteering

A new national study confirmed that the Twin Cities residents volunteer more of their time to their churches, charities and school than folks in any other metro area in the nation.

More than 900,000 Twin Cities residents, in the city and suburb, volunteered an average of 44 hours a year in 2009, according to the annual report by the federal agency overseeing national service programs. The rest of the state of Minnesota isn't lacking either. More than 1.5 million people volunteered in 2009, the third-highest ranking in the nation.

I think that Minnesota has a couple of things that push it to the top of these rankings. First, we have our "Minnesota nice" personalities. Regardless of the rude person you came across on your way to work today, generally the opinion across the nation of Minnesota people is that we're nice and care about one another and second, we have a strong nonprofit sector funnels volunteer energy.

For years, Minnesotans have ranked near the top nationally on volunteerism, voting and other forms of civic engagement." In fact, the Twin Cities area has topped this same survey for the past four years. The latest study showed that statewide, 1.5 million people volunteered their time, to the tune of 171 million hours last year.

The report showed that 37 percent of Twin Cities residents and those outstate volunteered in 2009. That civic spirit crossed all age groups, from seniors to 20-somethings. Baby boomers were particularly energetic: 40 percent reported volunteering in their communities.

Nationally, volunteerism is on the rise, said the report. More than 63 million Americans over the age of 16 volunteered at least once in 2009, an increase of 1.6 million. This could be because of the high unemployment, people are trying to fill their time while they're looking for work and want to try and help while they have the time.

The increase was fueled by higher volunteer rates among women, especially those age 45 to 54, as well as Americans who were working.

Minnesotans donate their time for many causes, but the top four are projects involving food for the disadvantaged, fundraising, teaching and "general labor," the report said. Roughly a third do their volunteer work at religious organizations and/or schools.

To see the full report, Volunteering in America, go to http://www.volunteeringinamerica.gov/.