Monday, October 13, 2008

Are We Too Poor To Care About The Planet?

I wonder what chemical industry new employee manuals look like:

Day One: Create outgoing voice mail message
Day Two: Read Tips on How to Scare Small Communities Memo
Day Three: Discuss new 401(k) plan with HR director

Do you think they also have those stupid mentor/mentoree (is that even the right word?) programs where the new employee visits a public hearing with a long term employee in a town that is trying to take back their right for self determination by deciding plastic bags are unnecessary in their community? I'm only suggesting this because I keep seeing that really big chemical lobby firms are showing up all over the place in rural communities. It's kind of weird that some guy that lives in Georgetown or Fairfax and works in Alexandria would fly up to Maine to discuss how banning single use plastic bags hurts small business and community. It just has to be part of the new employee training program for ACC. I mean really . . only freshman employees should have to do something so humiliating.

But my real reason for this post is the scare mongering of the chemical industry during the economic crisis we are all facing. I keep seeing articles about how we may have to rethink how important this green movement we have going on because soon we are going to be too poor to care about that kind of stuff. There was this absurd article on the front page of MSN.com that was titled: Will Any Money Be Left For the Environment?


Day Four: Talk in public about how being 'green' is anti-business.

Employee manuals are so predictable.