I can just hear Thomas Sowell (or Milton Friedman) taking part in this conversation with the CEO of North Face:
SOWELL: Why would you refuse to brand your North Face gear with the Innovex Downhole Solutions company logo, as you advertise you will, and readily do on gear ordered by other companies.
NORTH FACE CEO: It goes against our environmental image, and we don't want to be seen as collaborating with oil companies or the implicit approval of petroleum products by doing so.
SOWELL: Really? I was just curious, how do you get your products to market? Aren't they sent to market by ships burning fossil fuels, aircraft burning fossil fuels, and trucks run on fossil fuels?
NORTH FACE CEO: We, uh, pay carbon credits to, uh...compensate...
SOWELL: I didn't know that. Can you provide the name of a company who you purchased them from?
NORTH FACE CEO: I don't have that at my fingertips...I'll, uh, have to circle back on that...
SOWELL: And don't you have factories in Communist China, who has been the biggest emitter of CO2 emissions for years? Do you purchase carbon credits to offset the pollution there?
NORTH FACE CEO: I'll have one of my aides contact you with that information. But the point is, drilling for oil is not good for the earth, and we don't want to be seen supporting oil exploration.
SOWELL: Aren't the vast majority of North Face's apparel—its hoodies, snow pants, coats and many other items in its product line, like backpacks and tents—made with polyester, polyurethane and nylon, all of which come from petroleum. Even your fancy North Face fleece jackets are made of polyester. Are you paying for carbon offsets on those as well? And even if you are, if you fight oil drilling and exploration, that will drive the cost of nearly everything in your already extremely expensive product line?
NORTH FACE CEO: We, uh...we're ah, committed to...uh, fighting corporate greed, and...global warming...
SOWELL: Ah...I see. Much like Arreck Bahlwin in "Team America"!
Well Done!
North Face, my ass.