At times it can be difficult to have a common-sense discussion about the relationship between business and the natural environment. The discourse (maybe argument is a better word) tends to be highly charged, and the opposing camps seem to have lost the ability to listen to each other.

The polarization has gotten to the point that either you’re a job-destroying tree-hugger detached from economic reality, or a planet-plunderer, devastating the environment without a thought to anything except the bottom line. You can be pro-environment, or pro-business, but apparently not both.

This state of affairs is self-defeating and turns off reasonable people of all backgrounds. So I have a proposal: For the next few minutes, let’s hit the mute button on the politics. Without the background noise, we can start to have a sensible discussion.

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