Conference taveng::bagels

    re .1:

    I don't think that all Sears tires are made by Michelin.  They only
    advertise some lines as "Made by Michelin."  BTW, according to a
    note in CARBUFFS, Uniroyal and B.F. Goodrich were recently bought
    by Michelin.

    I too was about to buy Michelins, but will look elsewhere (and write
    a letter).

    Re .0:
    
    Too bad Michelin didn't take parts of Lebanon out of their
    guide.....considering what the 16" shells from the guns of the USS NEW 
    JERSEY did to the Syrian missile batteries located on Lebanese soil
    in 1983.
    
    Mark
    Chief Radioman
    US Navy Reserve

Shalom Y'all,

While I decry what Michelin has done, and while I personally would support
a boycott of their products, we are not allowed to encourage others to
participate in a boycott in DEC notesfiles (though my reading indicates that we
are allowed to mention our own participation).  Because of that policy,
I have hidden note .1.  We can, however, encourage people to contact Michelin
and let them know what they think.

As a side issue, Kleber tires are also made by Michelin.

Gavriel
_who_recently_bought_Michelin_tires_8^{(

    re: .4
    
    So edit my note to remove the verb "advise".
    
    --David

    Could anyone clarify where these particular Michelin
    travel guides are distributed? Is this guide for
    world-wide distribution, Mideast-wide, North-Africa only ?
    
    Yes, initially (some years ago) ALL Sears-Roebuck
    radial-ply tires (not bias-ply) were manufactured and
    private-labeled for Sears by Michelin, I believe.
    This is no longer (exclusively) the case.
    
    Other interesting facts or allegations about Michelin:
    
    Certainly Michelin was a major, and probably the dominant,
    operator of rubber plantations in French colonial Indochina.
    
    Also, it is rumored that throughout the USA's Vietnam
    intervention, some (or many) Michelin rubber plantations
    continued to operate in Indochina, markedly unscathed
    by the widespread military hostilities. Where (North/South),
    whether, and how this could have been true is a bit mysterious.
    Of course, nasty little "wars" emit many unfounded rumors.
    
    As an aside, I'd like to hear how/whether various Arab oil
    countries influenced American oil firms, such as Aramco,
    to adopt anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist positions, publicly
    and/or behind the scenes. I've started a topic (899.*) for
    that. 

    Out of curiosity, what country does the map give Israel to?

    From what I could gather from the CAMERA newsletter, Israel is not
    omitted from the map itself, but rather from the "maplet" on the cover
    which shows the area enclosed by the map.  On this maplet, the
    countries are indicated by name, and a number of major cities are
    indicated by name and "dot".  The name "Israel" is omitted, as well as
    all cities within Israel.  I do not know whether Israel's boundary is
    shown (if so, it would be the pre-1967 boundary, of course), but if it
    is omitted, you can assume that Michelin has given Israel to Jordan.
    
    It is possible that Michelin used some clever device, such as a
    trademark or compass rose, to obscure Israel on this little map, so as
    to have a defensible reason for leaving out the items of text mentioned
    above.
    
    This obvious attempt at appeasing anti-Israel tire-buyers is an insult. 
    If Israel were in fact omitted from the large, unfolded map as well, it
    would be an outrage.  Actually, it would be an outrage committed
    against Jordanian, Lebanese and Syrian Arabs, who might get seriously
    injured if they accidentally wandered across the Israeli border as a
    result of using such an inaccurate map!
    
    Firestone makes a good tire, and they're owned by Bridgestone of Japan.
    And Rand McNally makes a good map, and they're not even in the tire
    business.  I mention these names solely for informational purposes, as
    I obviously would never discourage anyone from purchasing products from
    a company that would prefer the extinction of my people and its
    homeland.
    
    Ed

re .0,.9:

Has anybody actually *seen* this map?  If Israel is on the map itself, but
not on the cover, how would that appease anti-Israel map buyers (or tire
buyers)?  Who buys maps for the cover?

Strange as it sounds, I guess I'll have to track down the map before
I buy tires.

    Is this a case of Israel not being in "Arab North Africa"? It is not an
    Arab country. Or is this a technicality that they maybe adhering to.
    I'd like to see this map and find out. If it is the case, then a letter
    of explanation is in order.
    
    Russ

I tried finding this map in the Harvard Square Map Store, but the
only Michelin maps I saw had Israel.  However, I didn't look closely
at the cover, but only the contents.

It's of course possible that they publish differnt maps for different
parts of the world.

Martin.

    The local correspondent will check this up. However, as with many other
    Industrial bodies (DEC included), I wouldn't be surprised if Michelin
    were counting Israel as "European" country.
    
    Surprisedly yours,
    
    Chris

re: .8

>>    Out of curiosity, what country does the map give Israel to?

From the picture in the CAMERA report - Jordan.  It shows Egypt, with Cairo
largely noted, Suez in between, and Jordan, with Amman largely noted.  

Waky

    Hmmm... My bookstore up here does seem to have "normal" Michelin maps
    of the area. Could it be that you ran across one destined for arabic
    countries?
    
    Remember, many people in Europe have two passports, for instance,
    because some arabic countries wouldn't grant you access if you had an
    Israel visa. I do ignore whether the reverse is true, as well.
    
    Searchingly yours,
    
    Chris

    Does anybody have any new information about Michelin? I may be in the
    market for some new tires and "used" to like Michelins.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Dick

    My Michelin Atlas shows Israel, no sweat.
    
    Reportingly yours,
    
    Chris

   I read a short article a few weeks back in the Jerusalem Post.
   It seems that someone in California (I think) was upset that Israel 
   was left off the map and got on Michelin's case about it.  I 
   don't recall if the article said that they actually apologized 
   but they did acknowledge the issue and had it fixed to the person's 
   satisfaction.

From the Int'l J. Post 02June '90

PUTTING ISRAEL ON THE (MICHELIN) MAP       by Tom Tugend/LA

Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, as well as Ashdod and Netanya, have reclaimed their 
rightful places in the Michelin Guide, to the great satisfaction of a feisty 
Los Angeles journalist who blew the whistle on their exclusion.

A couple of months ago, Herb Brin, publisher of Heritage, a Jewish weekly,
picked up Michelin map No. 954, titled "Northeast Africa, Arabia."  What he 
found, or rather did not find, set his blood aboiling.

When Brin's blood boils, the result is usuaslly a pugnacious editorial, which 
in this case appeared under the unequivocal headline, "Michelin stinks."  
Referring to the map, Brin noted that "Israel does not appear, nor does 
Jerusalem.  The name Amman is shown where Jerusalem ought to be.  Other cities, 
such as Tel Aviv and Haifa, are also omitted.

"Michelin did what the Arabs could never do on the battlefield - wipe Israel 
off the map.  But Michelin should live so long.  And since we have a reputation 
about not mincing words in such matters, we repeat: Michelin stinks."

The editorial found its way to Michelin's U.S. headquarters in South Carolina, 
and within six weeks a Kevin F. Clemens, manager of media relations, wrote back 
a soothing letter and included the latest update of the controversial map, 
released in April.

"As you will see," Clemens wrote to Brin, "your concerns have been addressed."  
And indeed, on the new version of the map, the legend "Israel" appears in large 
print.  All major Israeli cities are listed, and a sharp-eyed reader may even 
spot Kiryat Gat, Dimona and Hadera.