If you’re looking for the roots of modern environmentalism, don’t forget that it arose among capitalist successes, and especially among capitalists. Don’t forget Thoreau and Whitman. Don’t forget Washington’s and Jefferson’s hopes for an agrarian America. Don’t ignore the good work of Lincoln and Grant, especially as we approach the 150th anniversaries of the set asides of Yellowstone and Yosemite. Don’t forget the great capitalists of the Progressive Era, the Muirs, Pinchons, Roosevelts, Carnegies, and Morgans, who worked hard and contributed much to set aside wild lands. Don’t forget the pioneering work of Olmsted, the pioneering massive preservation work of the Rockefellers.

Greens grow out of capitalism, and its successes, often in response to the dangers perceived by capitalists about rampant excesses of waste. We don’t need to look to Germany’s parks and recreation advocates; our tradition in the Americas is much older than that, often much more eloquent, and much more freedom-oriented.