Current Shareware 1994 January/SHAR194.ISO/textfile/sc_wuse.zip/SC-WUSE.TXT

Text File | 1993-09-06 | 28KB | 567 lines

Intro: The following document was smuggled out from the Sierra Club
headquarters and faxed to Sahara Club sometime around October, 92.

It defines their view of the Wise Use "movement" and outlines their plan of
attack, including pilfering their own members for vast sums of money,
and stifling ANY process through litigation.

This document was marked: INTERNAL USE ONLY, adjacent to the Sierra Club
logo.  It _IS_ authentic, of that there is no question.  All you need do is
pay attention to land use issues and you'll see plenty of what's proposed
here in action.

Other than this brief intro, this document is in its original form.  I have
made no editorial changes whatsoever, though you may catch a stray typo or
two (some were included in the original document as well).

-Patrick Martin
 05 Sept 93
 Borderline! CBCS
 FidoNet 1:102/825
 SurvNet 9:1992/825
 ZyXELNET 18:23/0 700/3
 data/fax [phone]

-----------<Original text follows>------------------------------------------

TO: Michael L. Fischer, Executive Director

FR: Carl Pope, Conservation Director

RE: Who's behind the so-called "Wise Use" coalition,
    What's their agenda and how is it being funded?

---------------------------------------------------

                               _INTRODUCTION_

In August 1988 a group of nearly 300 men and women from all over America
gathered together in Reno, Nevada.

These were representatives of the most environmentally wasteful and
destructive industries in America -- the oil and gas industries, timber and
logging companies, mining and ranching interests, trail bike and off-road
vehicle manufacturers, builders and real estate developers and other
commercial interests -- all exploiters and polluters one way or another of
America's diminishing natural resources and public lands.

They met in Reno to plot the total and final destruction of their common
enemy -- _the_American_environmental_movement_.

And when they were done they had agreed on a plan they called the
_"Wise_Use"_Movement_.

Today, four years and many millions of dollars later, their dangerous and
destructive plan for the environment has emerged: a slick, industry-funded
public relations campaign to gut existing laws and turn over public lands to
special interests for their own exploitative and wasteful use.  And in the
process they intend to destroy the environmental movement -- including the
Sierra Club specifically.

We must address this frightening challenge without delay.  That's what it's
imperative that we first marshall the support of our members so we can, in
turn, alert every American who cares about the environment.

We must call on every Sierra Club member to support swift and forceful
action, to help us quickly launch the most sweeping and aggressive campaign
we have ever designed.

Especially, we must increase our presence on Capitol Hill because we have to
hold Congress' feet to the fire and act as a counterforce to the unrelenting
pressure being exerted on Congress by our opponents who are intent on
slashing environmental protection laws we helped enact.  Their agenda has
_the explicit backing of the Bush Administration through Dan Quayle's
notorious "Council on Competitiveness"_ -- _an industry-dominated group
which meets in closed-door sessions at the White House_.


                     _DEFINING_THE_"WISE_USE"_COALITION_

The so-called "wise use" movement is not one single organization, but a
loosely associated conglomeration of cooperating front groups.  A network of
anti-environmental groups, all heavily financed and controlled by those
businesses and industries that have a stake in the exploitation of public
lands, or engage in the public-be-damned sort of activities that degrade and
despoil our natural environment.

No longer secret, _their deliberate anti-environmental agenda_ has been
boldly promoted and methodically put into action.  And their cynical program
is now gaining power and influence in the halls of Congress with
ever-increasing momentum.

This "wise use" coalition (perhaps more aptly named "land abuse" or "wise
disguise" coalition) through deceptively named "false front" organizations
poses as a populist "grassroots" movement and claims to be protecting the
interests of the average citizen against big government.

BUT when you strip away the public relations spin, and take a look at who's
hiding under the wrapping -- who's spending millions of dollars to promote
their agenda, and what their published agenda is -- then it's easy to see
it's BIG BUSINESS, pure and simple ...

The kind of big business -- Big Oil, Big Gas, Big Timber, Big Mining, Big
Ranching, Big Off-Road Vehicle Manufacturers -- that exploits and pollutes
the public lands, using pseudo-grassroots strategy as cover for their
environmentally destructive agenda.

However, if you peel another layer off, another echelon of characters begins
to emerge.  There arises a disagreeable familiarity or sameness reminiscent
of the characters from the days of the Moral Majority and right-wing
extremist groups who moved into government circles with Ronald Reagan in
1980.  Today, it seems, we're dealing with the same cast of characters.

The 1988 Reno conference that launched the "wise-use movement" brought
together James Watt's _Mountain States Legal Foundation_, mining, timber,
energy companies, off-road vehicle groups, and the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's
American Freedom Coalition, as well as the American Farm Bureau and
(surprise!) the National Rifle Association, the lynch-pin of the gun lobby.

Although their most dependable source of political support on Capitol Hill
has been from the ultra-right wing, such as Senator Steven Symms (R-ID),
Malcolm Wallop (R-WY) and Jesse Helms (R-NC), they are now making disturbing
and surprising in-roads with some members of Congress we've traditionally
counted as our allies.

At the grassroots level, the "wise disguise" groups have been able to turn
out large numbers of supporters at rallies and public hearings for high
visibility in the media.  Some corporate employers provide employees with
incentives to get them to attend events -- cash, transportation and free
time off from job duties.

        The "wise abuse" coalition has flexed its muscles.  Its
        members have increasingly outnumbered environmentalists at
        key public hearings, which has earned them some victories.
        And a phone and fax campaign directed at sponsors of
        television programs critical of cattle grazing and logging
        practices resulted in the withdrawal of major advertising
        support.

A successful tactic they have employed since the downturn in the American
economy is to raise the specter of job loss as a result of any given
environmental protection initiative.


                          _THE_"WISE_USE"_AGENDA_

Their platform, the "WISE USE" AGENDA, calls for an outrageous assault on
the fundamental structure of the environmental protection laws and a bold,
vicious attack against the environmental movement as a whole.

Their agenda calls for opening up of all public lands (in the name of
"fairness") ... for the extraction of mineral and energy resources --
including national parklands and wilderness areas -- and ... clear-cutting
of all old-growth forests.

The environmental movement -- including the _Sierra Club_ and all other
knowledgeable Americans concerned about proper stewardship of our natural
resources and remaining wildlands -- has never before been faced with such a
dangerous threat.

Never before have we been faced with such broad, well-organized, well-funded
and personal attack.

Laws already on the books for which we worked long and hard -- such as the
_Endangered Species Act_ and _Clean Water Act_, both slated for legislative
reauthorization this year -- have been targeted by anti-environmentalists
for slashing and gutting ... by adding weakening amendments, or outright
repeal if they can achieve it.

By the same token, the same lobby opposes any alteration in the _1872 Mining
Act_, which is also being considered this year.  These mining laws -- a
century-old give-away of our public resources -- are based on the archaic
notion that mining is always the "highest and best use" of the public lands.
Under this concept, mining operations can permanently displace camping,
fishing and the wildlife from our public lands.  And mining companies can
take the wealth, and the lad itself, by paying a mere $2.50 an acre -- about
the price of a hamburger.

The "land abusers" plan for the _Endangered Species Act_ is equally
alarming.  They want Congress to give economics more of a role in deciding
whether to save a species from extinction.  They say non-adaptive species --
those the land abusers have already driven to the brink of extinction --
should not be protected.

The best guide to the anti-environment agenda is published in the book,
_Wise Use Agenda_ -- the coalition's "bible" -- where the agenda agreed upon
at the 1988 Reno meeting is spelled out.

The primary author of _Wise Use Agenda_ is a man named Ron Arnold who claims
to be a former Sierra Club member and who heads an outfit called the "Center
for the Defense of Free Enterprise."  A prolific writer and speaker, he is
generally known to the public as the "wise use" coalition's head spokesman
and chief ideologue.  He has interesting friends.

Arnold's link to the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's ultra-right wing American
Freedom Coalition is well-documented.  Some of Arnold's funding comes from
the Unification Church, according to an article in the _Missoulian_ which
explores the relationship between the "moonies" and the "Wise guys."

And the _Seattle Times_ described Arnold and his associate, Alan Gottlieb,
as two of seven people in the Unification Church's network in the Pacific
Northwest.  Gottlieb, a professional fund-raiser for right-wing causes, is a
convicted felon.

Together, Arnold and Gottlieb run the Center for the Defense of Free
Enterprise, and spearheaded the 1988 Reno meeting where the "wise use"
agenda was born, and later published in Arnold's book.

The "wise use" movement regards wilderness, wetlands and endangered species
as the three evils responsible for all of their worries.  They have
identified 25 goals.  The most frightening of them are:

    1.  Immediate development of oil resources in the _Arctic National
        Wildlife Refuge_, which will destroy its wilderness qualities, and
        endanger the polar bear and caribou and millions of migratory birds
        who make this their seasonal habitat;

    2.  _Clear-cutting_ all old-growth forests and replanting with single
        species, sterile tree farms of saplings, on the absurd rationale
        that young trees absorb more CO2 and thereby reduce the danger of
        global warming.  Of course they are silent on the irrevocable
        destruction of biodiversity resulting from such a course of action;

    3.  Opening "all public lands including national parks and wilderness"
        areas to destructive mineral and energy extraction operations which
        would degrade and despoil these precious wilds;

    4.  Large scale program of constructing massive new private concessions
        in the national parks, turning some of the gems of our national park
        system -- like Yellowstone and Yosemite -- into Disneylands;

    5.  Gutting the _Endangered Species Act_ by reclassifying some species
        based on an economic means test, ending protection of the California
        Condor and placing other species at risk of extinction;

    6.  Gutting the _WIlderness Act_ by allowing "all commodity industry
        uses on an as-needed basis in times of high demand" on 10 million
        acres of wilderness areas, and allowing "motorized trail travel and
        limited commercial development" on another 30 million acres of
        wilderness lands;

    7.  Opposing reform of the _1872 Mining Act_, an old statute that is
        based on the archaic premise that mining is the highest and best use
        of public land and requires the federal government to sell our
        public land to mining companies ... for $2.50 an acre;

    8.  Funding a massive trail-building program for off-road vehicles on
        public lands by diverting funds from the highway trust fund.  [This
        was achieved last year by the passage of Sen. Symms' (R-ID) bill
        establishing a fund of $30 million a year for trail building;

    9.  Weakening the _Clean Water Act_ by narrowing the definition of
        regulated "wetlands" to permit development of lands that "look dry"
        most of the time.  And to require federal payment as compensation
        for a "taking" when development is restricted by wetlands
        regulations.

        It should be noted that the typical applicant for draining a
        wetlands tract is not a small farmer, but more likely a shopping
        mall builder, land speculator or commercial real estate developer.


If the goals of the "wise abuse" agenda are ever implemented, the entire
infrastructure of the American environmental protection movement will have
been undermined, and the health, safety, welfare and economic well-being of
citizens throughout the nation will be irreparably harmed.

The political goals of the "wise use/land abuse" groups are to elect local,
state and national politicians who agree with their agenda; to defeat
pro-environment office-holders; and to intimidate incumbents into submission
on the issues.  The fiercest political action organization is an umbrella
group called the _"Alliance for America"_, which operates a _nationwide
computer-driven fax network_.

The fax network has a capability that boggles the average mind.  It can
automatically send instant fax alerts to 1,200 locations throughout the
nation thus communicating instantaneously with a claimed 25 million person
network.

Leaders in the "land abuse" groups have stated that they intend ultimately
"to destroy the environmental movement".

What makes the threat real enough to be taken seriously is that they have so
far been surprisingly successful in forging an alliance between _corporate
money_ with _populist-style political organizing_.  And because they are
willing to distort the facts and use the "big lie" to stir up public
hysteria, we are faced with a particularly dangerous beast -- and the
biggest threat ever to the American environmental movement.


                            _SOURCES_OF_FUNDING_

Nationally, the major players are the American Mining COngress, the American
Petroleum Institute, the Mountain States Legal Foundation, the National
Inholders' Association, Arnold's Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise,
the American Farm Bureau Federation, the Alliance for America, the America
Freedom Coalition (founded in 1987 by Rev. Moon's chief lieutenant in the
U.S., Col. Bo Hi Pak), People for the West!, the Wilderness Impact Research
Foundation, the Western Cattlemen's Association, and the Multiple Land Use
Association.

The biggest funding comes mainly from the mining industry, which has given
in the neighborhood of $1 million, and from Rev. Moon, who has given over $1
million.  Powerful political organizations like the gun lobby provide
legislative lobbying assistance and moral support for the coalition.

The obvious conclusion to be drawn from a look at the list of members is
that they all share the same interest in the unfettered use of public and
private lands and waters; park inholders, cattlemen, off-road recreational
vehicle manufacturers and enthusiasts, seashore developers, land
speculators, farmers, loggers, miners, and oil companies.

Every one of them want an end to all government regulation, environmental
regulation, and public input and review of what they want to do with our
land and water.

The membership has some surprises.  The American Farm Bureau Federation, for
example, is a huge, wealthy national organization funded largely through
insurance sales to farmers across the country.  With offices in every state,
it has taken on wetlands protection as a major lobbying focus.

Even more surprising is the Moonie presence.  Their involvement comes
principally, but not exclusively, through the American Freedom Coalition
(AFC) -- Ron Arnold is on the Washington state board of the AFC and another
"wise abuse" leader, Merrill Sikorski, is an AFC staffer.  Rev. Moon
bankrolled AFC, according to the _Missoulian_, with an initial $5 million
and a staff of 70 moonies, as part of an effort to establish a third
political party for "people alienated by the more atheistic and nonreligious
Republican and Democratic parties."

Several general conclusions about sources of funding can be drawn by
examining their published list of sponsors, federal tax returns, records of
the Federal Elections Commission and the Secretary of the United States
Senate.

The principal source of funding has been from corporate contributions,
primarily from the mining industry, and other commercial interests, some of
which are foreign owned.  Off-road recreational vehicle manufacturers
(motorcycles and dirt bikes) are an increasing source of funding, especially
for the groups in the coalition that represent the off-road vehicle
enthusiasts.

Significant resources, financial and in-kind contributions, come from
affiliated organizations like the Farm Bureau, the National Rifle
Association, the National Cattlemen's Association, and others.  At the local
level, while real grassroots giving is probably growing, the documented
supports continues to come from a few, wealthy sources.


                               _CONCLUSIONS_

The environmental community has been slow to focus on the "wise use/Land
abuse" movement.  Instead we have been engaging in a series of separate
battles with different segments of "wise use" adherents or groups --
old-growth ancient forests, grazing, wetlands, etc.

The perception of the "wise use" movement as a conglomerated whole, however,
is beginning to emerge, pushed along no doubt by increasing media attention
to the movement, but also by the realization that they are becoming more
sophisticated, more organized and more unified.

Not surprisingly, national organizations with true grassroots components,
like the Sierra Club, have been among the earliest to detect and monitor the
evolving character of the "land abuse" coalition.

Now with early warning signs that violence-prone, more fanatical groups are
showing up on the fringes of the movement, it is frightening to think of
where this all may be headed.

For example, there is an off-road racing group that calls itself the "Sahara
Club" -- part of the _California Desert Coalition_, a conglomerate of
motorcycle and off-road vehicle clubs, dealers and manufacturers -- who
zealously defend their "right" to chew up the California desert with their
violent, noisy and damaging dirt bike racing activities.

The Sahara Clubbers have publicly threatened to beat up on
environmentalists with baseball bats!  And the specialize in appearing in
large groups at public environmental hearings in a menacing way to
intimidate and frighten away ordinary citizens -- and even celebrities --
who wish to participate or testify for environmental protection measures.

And they have boldly threatened to kill the _California Desert Protection_
bill by extreme disruptive tactics at public hearings where they will make
efforts to embarrass Senator Alan Cranston, the bill's chief sponsor, and try
to intimidate supporters of this historic legislation.

What's frightening is that more and more, violent groups like the Sahara
Clubbers are showing up on the fringes of the "wise use" agenda, and
becoming an accepted part of the coalition.  And -- more and more -- ugly
and violent tactics are to be expected as the name of their game.

These ominous developments portend a seriously more dangerous climate for
our cause in the future.  But it must never deter us from fighting even
harder to protect our environment.

That's why we need immediate emergency funding both to counter them on the
local level and to beef up our campaign on Capitol Hill where the threat to
environmental laws is heating up, where key legislation is under attack
during the 1992 reauthorization process.

And, given the extraordinary dynamics and uncertainties of this fast-moving
political year -- with the Presidential and congressional election campaigns
now heating up -- we need resources to redouble our efforts so we can be
sure the environmental protection laws are not gutted.

In ordinary times, legislative battles such as those we face today are
always unpredictable, but with the highly volatile circumstances of this
election year, anything could happen.

When you consider the political largeness of the lobbyists roaming the halls
of COngress representing our enemies, and the anti-environmental
announcements emanating from the White House, you can see that the
heavyweights are aligned against us and that these are dangerous times
indeed.

I can't stress any more emphatically the need for substantial above-budget
funding for the massive effort we have to make right now to combat these
"land abusers" as they and their highly paid lobbyists press for the
unraveling of environmental law.

We must immediately launch a broad-based aggressive public education
campaign to thoroughly expose the "wise use movement" for the "land abuse
movement" that it really is.

We can't afford to merely react to the "wise use" agenda -- we have to
articulate a strong positive message that will educate, inspire and renew
the public's dedication to wilderness, wildlife and protection of the human
environment.  We must develop a new level of personal commitment to the
environment and the individual willingness to take whatever action is
necessary to stop the destruction.

We need to launch an aggressive nationwide public information campaign, the
likes of which has never before been seen, to expose for Congress and the
American people the outrageous "Big Lie" of the "wise use" abusers.

And we need to enlist our most prestigious representatives to reach out to
the broadcast and print media to make sure our side of the story is well
represented in the press and on radio and television for all to hear and
see.

Therefore we need to make an appeal to our members to help with the extra
funding that will be required to underwrite this unprecedented effort which
is already underway.

The following are proposed costs of what I estimate are essential components
of the campaign we need to launch immediately if we are to effectively
defend against the "land abusers" coalition.

(1) For research, analysis and public opinion polls to determine the factors
that fuel the growth of support for the "wise use" agenda -- $10,000.

(2) To complete our research -- already begun -- into the various members of
the "wise use" coalition, to determine their interrelationships, leaders,
corporate support, degree of grassroots support and areas of activity --
$50,000.

(3) To establish and operate a "wise use" clearinghouse to track the
opposition's legislative efforts and legal attacks at the local, state and
national levels -- this information will be shared with other environmental
groups that work with us to thwart bad bills, to share legal arguments and
briefs, and develop counteroffensive bills and materials -- $30,000.

(4) For development of press materials and travel arrangements to press
conferences in each state in the country, exposing the "wise use" agenda in
its true ultra-right wing form -- $30,000.

(5) TO publish a series of major, in-depth reports detailing what would
happen to the quality of life, jobs and the environment in a given area or
region IF the "wise use" agenda was put into effect -- $35,000.

(6) To setup a modest fund to help local groups battling the "wise use" land
abusers, to help with court costs, expert witness fees, and other costs of
litigation, to protect public interest in public hearings, appeals and
lawsuits -- $150,000.

Now is the time we really need the extra help from that special core of
knowledgeable, forward-looking members who have supported us so generously
in the past.

If possible, I hope you can pass this report on to them in hopes that when
they see how urgent our need is right now they will respond quickly and
generously to help us confront this cynical effort to destroy America's
fragile environment.

We must act quickly and forcefully to do all we can to stop those who would
undermine all the environmental protections we have established over years
and years of hard work.


[hand written signature: CARL]

[also handwritten:  WE NEED YOUR HELP.  MLF]



                                 _APPENDIX_

The "Wise Use" movement is led by a coalition of various special interest
groups, political lobbying organizations and trade associations.  Each
member has a specific focus, but all of them share the goals of the "wise
use" agenda.

The include:

o   (a) _Alliance for America_ (organized in November 1991)

o   (b) _American Farm Bureau Federation_ (with over 4 million members in 50
        states)

o   (c) _American Forest Resource Alliance_ (such timber industry giants as
        _Weyerhouser_ and _Boise-Cascade_)

o   (d) _American Mining Congress_

o   (e) _American Petroleum Institute_ (All oil companies belong; funding
        congressmembers who support the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
        Drilling and Breaux/Hayes Wetlands proposals)

o   (f) _American Property Rights Alliance_

o   (g) _Blue Ribbon Coalition_ (500,000 members in national network;
        contributors include: Suzuki, Honda, Harley-Davidson, Yamaha,
        Kawasaki, Rocky Mtn. Oil & Gas, Shell Oil, N. Amer. Helicopter,
        Northwest Mining, and others in this rather eclectic group)

o   (h) _Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise_ (Right-wing direct-mail
        operation trying to steal our members and supporters; funded in part
        by "moonies")

o   (i) _Heritage Foundation_ (Right-wing research)

o   (j) _Montana Plus_, now reorganized as the "_Communities for a Great
        Northwest_" (Want all Montana public land open for public use;
        leader is a star speaker on pro-logging circuit)

o   (k) _Mountain States Legal Foundation_

o   (l) _National Association of Home Builders_ (Current focus is to kill
        Endangered Species Act)

o   (m) _National Association of Realtors_

o   (n) _National Cattlemen's Association_

o   (o) _National Inholders Association_ (Individual property owners who are
        trying to hold on to private holdings within national parks and
        wilderness areas)

o   (p) _National Rifle Association_ (Opposes all attempts to regulate
        fire-arms and works to open up all lands -- including our national
        parks -- to hunting)

o   (q) _National Wetlands Coalition_ (Members include oil companies;
        operates out of Washington law offices)

o   (r) _People for the West_ (100,000 members; aim is to preserve 172
        Mining Act as is)

o   (s) _White House Council on Competitiveness_ (focus of this group, led
        by Vice-Pres. Dan Quayle, is to attack environmental laws and
        regulations by using bogus economic arguments and making back-room
        deals with polluters and other special-interest groups)

o   (t) _Oregon Lands Coalition_ (wants to take spotted owl off endangered
        species list)