----- Original Message ----- From: "Cian O'Connor" <cian_oconnor at yahoo.co.uk>
> Sorry for the probable sophomoric questions, but being
> British, I'm fairly ignorant of this group. My
> understanding was that they only target property, yes?
===============
Yes. Public officials and journalists love to conflate property destruction with violence; keeps the citizenry locked in commodity fetishism.
> >
> > Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., the subcommittee's ranking
> > member, said he could understand Rosebraugh's
> > "frustration" with the government's environmental
> > policies under the Bush administration, "but it's
> > not an excuse for violence."
>
> This kind of sloppy rhetoric really pisses me off.
> Burning down buildings is possibly dangerous, but it's
> hardly violence. Same for spiking trees.
================
The US has a lot of enviro's who are bigtime followers of Edward Abby, who advocated monkeywrenching developers and their machines. Some are anti-technology, most just hate how property is doled out by the ruling class; since they're locked out of real particiapation in property rights issues, they play expensive pranks on guys and gals wearing fancy clothes and driving fancy cars.
>
> > And, he added, although most environmental groups
> > pursue change though traditional means, some
> > groups, including ELF, "abandoned democracy and
> > embraced violence. In that sense, they are all
> > wrong."
>
> Someday somebody must explain to me why the only
> meaningful arena for change is representational
> democracy. In the mean time if it pisses this bozo
> off, pass me the fucking sledgehammer.
=============
Now you're getting the hang of it.
>
> > There was wide agreement that such violent actions
> > are growing and troubling, but fewer answers on
> > what to do to curb it.
>
> Troubling to who? Shareholders? Does the country as a
> whole give a damn?
=========================
Nope. This is the land of mutual indifference.
>
> > "How best to deal with this home-grown brand of
> > al-Qaida?" asked Rep. George Nethercutt, R-Wash.
>
> Because as well all know, burning an Aspen ski resort
> down is JUST like flying a plane into a skyscraper and
> killing a couple of thousand people. Mind you, I guess
> if you own capital they're not to dissimilar - both
> are profit producing entities after all.
>
> > "I propose that we use the model that has worked so
> > well in Afghanistan. Improve our intelligence. Free
> > the hands of law enforcement authorities. Isolate
> > terrorists from allies and assistance. Cut off
> > their funding. Give them no rest and no quarter."
>
> Also bomb Berkley.
>
================
Oh, they'd love to do that.
Ian