Forget the Grinch who stole Christmas — last year it was the “greens.” It appears no issue is too minute for America’s thriving green lobby. From Keystone XL to Gibson guitars, the 2011 list of issues that fell under attack is astounding and demonstrates the indiscriminate nature of the lobby’s targets.
Though there are many notable campaigns, perhaps the most egregious are the ones that destroy local jobs and families.
Atop the list for 2011 was the ongoing assault on local Virginia manufacturer Mercury Paper. Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund, known for their aggressive campaigns, are hell-bent on shuttering a local paper manufacturer in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
They plan to do this by pressuring its main distributors, Kroger and other national retailers, to stop selling its locally made, high-quality and low-cost toilet paper and other paper products.
Right before Christmas, Kroger quietly announced it had caved to Greenpeace and WWF’s campaign to stop its business with Mercury Paper.
By targeting Mercury Paper, Greenpeace and WWF plan to demonstrate that only paper products they deem acceptable can be manufactured, despite the company’s A-plus rating by the Global Reporting Initiative Co. in its 2011 environmental sustainability report and its sourcing of material from already degraded or barren land that does not threaten the rain forest.
If Greenpeace and WWF have their way, retailers like Kroger will capitulate to their extremist demands and destroy 150 well-paying Virginian manufacturing jobs and harm their families.
We’ve seen similar job-killing campaigns tactics this past year. Another prominent 2011 campaign was the mobilization of green groups against Keystone XL, a pipeline that would bring Canadian oil to the United States. The campaigners were ultimately successful in getting President Obama to side with ideological zealotry over real-world concerns.
Groups like the Center for Biological Diversity — involved in some 800 lawsuits since 1999 — helped pressure Obama to delay the pipeline project beyond the 2012 election.
This decision, considered a slap in the face to hard-working Americans, duly exposed the dogged tactics of America’s green groups.
Rounding off the list is the Gibson Guitar raid, exposing the hypocrisy of Greenpeace. Earlier this year, federal authorities shut down Gibson on suspicion some of its wood was improperly labeled by middlemen in faraway countries like India.
Though no charges were formally filed, one wood product engineer was told by federal investigators he may face up to five years in jail for his indirect involvement.
But unlike Mercury, Gibson had been praised by Greenpeace and other groups for its paper sourcing yet still managed to run afoul of federal regulators, questioning Greenpeace’s credibility and demonstrating the selective nature of its targets.
These out-of-state activists have a track record of forcing companies to capitulate to their agendas — no matter the costs. Fortunately, the damage from this harsh approach is not lost on one Kroger official.
Bootleg footage captures a Richmond store manager sympathizing with local Virginians. The Kroger official aptly noted, “If people don’t have jobs, they can’t shop!” While her sympathies are welcomed, they may not be enough to stop the green lobby.
Only time will tell what 2012 will mean for the radical green campaign against free enterprise in America. If other companies follow the lead of Kroger in surrendering to the radical green agenda, the result would be unraveling of job security in the U.S. during a time of worsening economic downturn.
George Landrith is president of Frontiers of Freedom.