It’s Getting Hot In Here

Thomas Friedman, the author and NY Times columnist, was invited to Brown University to give a keynote speech on Earth Day, before a packed auditorium. His talk, titled “Green is the new Red, White and Blue” was about how corporate environmentalism (based on putting a price on the atmosphere, and investing in agrofuels and techno-fixes) can restore America to its “natural place in the global order.” This outrageous neoliberal capitalist propaganda was interrupted with a surprise visit from the Greenwash Guerrillas. After splattering him with two green cream pies, leaflets were thrown to the crowd, stating:

Thomas Friedman deserves a pie in the face…

* because of his sickeningly cheery applaud for free market capitalism’s conquest of the planet

* for telling the world that the free market and techno fixes can save us from climate change. From carbon trading to biofuels, these distractions are dangerous in and of themselves, while encouraging inaction with respect to the true problems at hand.

* for helping turn environmentalism into a fake plastic consumer product for the privileged

* for his pure arrogance.

* as the only way to compensate for the ridiculousness of having this fool speak on Earth Day.

On behalf of the earth and all true environmentalists — we, the Greenwash Guerrillas, declare Thomas Friedman’s “Green” as fake and toxic to human and planetary health as the cool-whip covering his face.

In the spirit of true debate and free speech - the Greenwash Guerrillas have challenged Thomas Friedman and all other green capitalists - to a debate duel.

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Last week while organizing a Fossil Fool’s Day action, students at the University of Oregon in Eugene learned that Barack Obama would be visiting the UO within a few days. We switched gears and jumped on the opportunity to send our messages against dirty energy directly to the candidate.

On Friday a few students waited in day-long lines with over 9,000 people to reach the entrance of McArthur Court. Carrying hidden banners, including one worn as a skirt, the student activists handed out loads of materials to the crowd, educating them on ‘false solutions’, such as clean coal, carbon trading and ethanol

Once inside they positioned themselves high in the arena, across from Obama’s podium. Ten minutes into his speech the students dropped two banners over the railing. Reading, “There’s no such thing as clean coal”, the banner was directly in Barack’s, and thousands of others’ vision. The banner stayed up for over ten minutes, until security asked the students to take it down.

Youth in Eugene, and throughout the Northwest, are continuing to build a strong No Coal movement. With Bank of America actions (already in Eugene, Portland and Olympia) and a new proposed coal-fired power plant to fight in Washington, the tides of resistance are rising.