And Now, a Word from Our Earth Day Sponsor

"Through concerted marketing and public relations campaigns... 'greenwashers' attract eco-conscious consumers and push the notion that they don't need environmental regulations because they are already environmentally responsible. Greenwashing appears in misleading product labels like 'all natural' and 'eco-friendly'; in television commercials showing S.U.V.'s rolling peacefully through the wilderness; and in the co-opting of environmental buzzwords like 'sound science' and 'sustainability'," writes Geoffrey Johnson in a New York Times op/ed. Today, "petroleum powers [Marathan Oil and ChevronTexaco], big-box developers [Wal-Mart], old-growth loggers [Sierra Pacific] and chemically dependent coffee companies [Starbucks] [are] trying to paint their public image green" by sponsoring local Earth Day celebrations across the country.