It had to happen: Green Biz vs. Save Your Ass Biz

I was wondering when the natives would begin to turn on each other.  There has been a lot of repositioning of companies behind "green" initiatives lately.  Most of the efforts are little more than cosmetic (i.e. Bank of America's statement that their reduced paperwork is "green".  It's smart business and green is a side-effect.)  But some companies have changed fundamental pieces of their business in an attempt to be green.

As we hit a downturn, however, I wonder about the companies that have hired "green" experts or are commiting resources in the pursuit of being green.  Especially as energy prices come down, how feasible is it to sustain these expenses.

Now a blogger at SeekingAlpha has pointed out the conflict that companies must navigate in difficult times.  He focuses on Sun where some key engineers are arguing that helping the world should be a corporate goal.  It should be interesting to watch this dynamic play out.

This seems analogous to what is happening in the newspaper industry.  Newspapers were known as the "Fourth Estate" and they believed they had a moral imperative to ignore financial considerations because their efforts served a larger good.  However, in this latest cycle, one where Bush made capitalism king and societal concerns the court jester, newspapers are being decimated by financial concerns.