There are divisive forces among us, like the Anti-Golf protestors who descended upon a golf course up north in much the same manner as the traffic blockers in London or the farm occupiers in Holland.

They portray golf as a bunch of carbon-drenched rich folks still living on plantations.  (Never mind that carbon dioxide only makes up a tiny fraction of the atmosphere and turning 200 acres of turf into free housing would mean even more asphalt hot spots and increased surface runoff.)

Golf has made a positive effort to improve its image by reducing water and chemical inputs, increasing wildlife habitat and informing the public of golf's mental health benefits.  The mental health aspect is becoming even more important to a society trapped in concrete canyons, urban noise and endless screen time.

They portray golf as a bunch of carbon-drenched rich folks still living on plantations.

The volatile activists often refuse to listen to actual environmental science, probably due to the media barrage of propaganda.  Protestors can be manipulated by the aforementioned divisive forces who are quite expert in triggering emotional Pavlovian responses to various "emergencies" that once studied, are usually just diversions.  The manipulators know who is vulnerable:  People suffering from overexposure to inflammatory politics and those with too much classroom time and not enough real life.

When I worked in the propaganda field--both military and the even more toxic news media--I learned that the practice of Saturation-Ridicule was very effective on normal working people.  Normal people are reluctant to engage with the wild-eyed screamers . . . for fear of being ridiculed.

At some point, golf will be forced to engage the teary-eyed activists and either submit, like a few of the big cities, or resist.  It would be prudent to plan ahead for protestor disruption and unite with fellow golf citizens to discuss tactics.

Don't wait until they are blocking traffic, disfiguring masterpieces and gluing their backsides to a green.  Consider your response if Anti-Golf occupies your course, blocks your mowers and bike-locks their pencil necks to a spray rig.  What if they pitch tents in the fairways for weeks?  (See Holland's farmers on the youtube.)

ROCKBOTTUM COUNTERMEASURES

Try to keep the media away if protestors occupy your course.  Protestors thrive on attention, maybe because they didn't get enough from their parental units.  Once, when an unscheduled "Nekkid" tournament suddenly took place on our muni, I was able to fend off disaster by blocking out the local news inflators.  By the time the news choppers showed up, everyone had clothes on.

Don't give in to the most tempting tactics, the kind you learned playing hockey, rugby or Murkin football.  While this would certainly help occupiers gain special insights into the wider aspects of trespassing, it will bog you down in legal quicksand. (Few modern folks can take a hit.)

You could conduct PSYOP, (another field I worked in) ranging from not letting the occupiers get any sleep--horns, lights, dogs, specific country music--to never letting them get dry.  The farmers in Holland used slimy manure applications at a very high rate.  As suggested by a brilliant XCGCS I know, blue dye might be fun.  Momma utilizes psychedelic countermeasures for protestors, as explained in the short film that follows this column.  (Ever since Momma saw that golf protestor video, she's been singing "Try that on a small course.")

NOTE:   If Anti-Golf spreads, expect a $300 seminar in February.