Overview - Property Rights and 'Wise Use'

Few antienvironmental zealots bring as much malice to their activities as Arnold and Gottlieb. For instance, speaking of environmentalists Arnold has said,

”We're out to kill the f**kers. We're simply trying to eliminate them. Our goal is to destroy environmentalism once and for all” (Yes, he really did say that, and publicly).

”Our goal is to destroy, to eradicate the environmental movement... We're mad as hell. We're not going to take it anymore. We're dead serious—we're going to destroy them”.

”We want to destroy environmentalists by taking away their money and their members.”

"Facts don't really matter. In politics, perception is reality."

"People in industry, I'm going to do my best for you. Environmentalists, I'm coming to get you."

In 1993 Arnold was interviewed by CNN. He described himself and other Wise Use members as “warrior[s] wielding a sword" which, according to him “has two purposes: to carve out a niche for your agenda, to reshape the American law in your image; and, kill the bastards" (SourceWatch, 2007).

Arnold and Gottlieb are also widely known as masters of direct-mail campaigns and mobilizing anger—skills neither of them denies. Gottlieb’s holdings include the direct-mail house Merril Mail Marketing, the Merril and Free Enterprise Presses (which publish most of his and Arnold’s books), and the Service Bureau Inc. which handles the telephone fund raising and accounting for most of their lobbying and organization efforts. With this juggernaut of resources they have been frightfully effective at blocking environmental and public safety legislation on many fronts.

In their book Trashing the Economy Arnold and Gottlieb write with chilling frankness about their tactics;

"The message of the direct-mail letter must appeal to three base emotions: Fear, Hate, and Revenge. . . . "[The] fund-raising mailer must present you with a crisis—a problem won't do. . . . That crisis must frighten you. . . . If you are not frightened, you won't send money. . . . Then the direct-mail letter must present you with a bogeyman against whom to focus your anger. . . .“