I’ve written previously about how Greenpeace is a huge corporate outfit these days. They don’t rent leaky fishing boats anymore. Instead they sail around in $22-million custom-built yachts. Which means they have a lot to lose, a lot of jobs to protect. It also means they can afford the very best public relations advice.
So you’d expect them to have been prepared when the Daily Caller got in touch, seeking their comment on the lurid video produced the by the 10:10 Campaign. You know, the one that shows people who are insufficiently enthusiastic about reducing their carbon footprint being summarily executed.
In fairness to Greenpeace, other environmental groups have so far stayed mum. The Natural Resources Defense Council, Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, the Sierra Club, and the Environmental Defense Fund – none of these rushed to denounce this 4-minute massacre when the Daily Caller offered them the opportunity. Which tells us something right there. If you know anyone who makes a monthly donation to these organizations, perhaps it’s time they reconsidered.
But I really did expect more from Greenpeace. I mean, how much lamer could their response have been? Spokesperson Jane Kochersperger wants us to believe that the only people who are concerned about this video are those in the pay of big oil. We are all, apparently, cashing monthly cheques. Why else would we even be discussing this? In her words:
As an organization committed to non-violence, I think you can imagine how Greenpeace views this material. At this time, the only people promoting the material are climate skeptics and think tanks funded by corporations known for lobbying against climate change legislation.
Actually, I’m not so certain that I know anymore how Greenpeace views this material. Based on the content of the “No Pressure” video, my understanding of environmental thinking is clearly behind the times. Why the guessing game? Why doesn’t Kochersperger just tell us how Greenpeace feels? Why doesn’t she, as does Sony (formerly known as a 10:10 Campaign corporate sponsor) say something like:
we strongly condemn the “No Pressure video.The company considers the video to be ill-conceived and in extremely bad taste.
Isn’t in fascinating that a big bad corporation like Sony appreciates how offensive this video is – yet the holier-than-thous at Greenpeace apparently don’t?
And, for the record, I’ve been following this story closely since it broke a few days ago. I’ve read a lot of commentary. None of it, to my knowledge, has been in any way connected to any think tank. Whatever Greenpeace is paying its PR people, it should demand a refund. This conspiracy-by-think-tank narrative is old. It’s ragged. It deserves a decent burial.
Do they really have no other response? At a moment in which ordinary people need to be assured that environmentalists are sane and sensible, is this really the best Greenpeace can do?
