The headline speaks for itself. This article, by Bryan Denson of The Oregonian, came out a few weeks ago, and I thought you all would enjoy it. The owner of Schumacher Furs, remember, had called for new “eco-terrorism” legislation to be used against those protesting his business. He later brought a lawsuit against animal groups and a couple activists, most of which has been rejected.
Here’s the kicker, though, from Denson:
Many Portlanders, including business leaders, were outraged by this collision of old values and new sensibilities. How, they wondered, could anti-fur activists get away with destroying a venerable institution that had stood since 1895?
But it turns out the tale was more fable than fact.
Schumacher Fur Co., one of the oldest family furriers in America, was financially moribund a year before the anti-fur folks came to roost. The company hadn’t turned a profit in a decade, and accountants had appraised its value at zero.
The fall of the house of Schumacher, as recounted in metropolitan court files, is really about two middle-aged brothers who fought so bitterly over the business that they killed it almost entirely by themselves — even as the fur industry soared.
Check out the full article, including the bit about how Gregg Schumacher’s brother allegedly forced him to “clock himself in the face with his own fist.”
In all seriousness, though, this is a good example of the danger of recklessly using all this “eco-terrorism” rhetoric: it can be exploited to instill fear and push a political, or personal, agenda… even one clearly divorced from reality.