In the The Sunday Times in the UK today, there is a bizarre story about BAE Systems (read it here). This company produces a variety of products, mainly military armaments. In a report on Sunday, BAE Systems announced that they would be pursuing an environmentally friendly approach to their products, including quieter missiles (so that as they zoom over your home to destroy the village down the road, you’re not irritated by the noisy whine?); military cars, ships and planes with lower CO2 emissions (so that future generations do not live in a messed up world? Oh wait, these vehicles are used for mass destruction – at least they won’t affect the ozone layer, though); missiles that have bio-degradeable components (so that after its killed your friends, it can bring new life by providing compost for your flower bed?); and my favourite: bullets with a lower lead content and missiles with reduced toxins.

Are these guys absolutely joking?

This is an example of the corporate world gone mad. Sure, we preach to our clients that environmental care is becoming an important part of a company’s reporting and ethics. Sure, we tell our clients that in this “connection economy”, we need to be concerned about what our clients are concerned about. And “being green” is important! But, no amount of “green” will cover the red stain of blood on the hands of arms manufacturers. I can only see this bringing ridicule to BAE Systems. I can’t see any government, militia or terrorist changing buying habits of armaments based on environmental factors. Can you?

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