Reader Mos pointed out his comment on an 11 month old post over at A Small Victory. (Rightly so, because I never would have seen it had he not emailed me.)

At issue is the firebombing and eco-terrorism going on in California. Eco-terrorists firebomb SUVs, and then try to claim the moral high ground because SUVs are supposedly huge baby-stomping, tree-burning, ozone-depleting monstrosities that scare and intimidate all those electric car drivers on their way to tree-hugger conventions. One of their terrorist ploys is to attack profit and capitalism, and make the claim that "Big SUV" is raping the environment out of a sick profit motive. I tried to point out that everyone involved in the process was benefiting from the sale of SUVs, while another reader "Mary" tried to point out that some hapless janitor "sweeping the basement" might be inadvertently killed in the fire.

RAVENWOOD posted:
"Not to mention that thousands of honest hard working folks make their living off of selling SUVs and building luxury homes."

-If someone is making money by changing your life and the world you live in for the worse, then it is your responsibility to prevent that from occurring, regardless of how "hard working" or "honest" they are. ELF actions have no sympathy for the people doing these jobs because they are bettering themselves by hurting others. The people taking these actions are standing up for their beliefs and even though they may not be doing it in a manner you can empathetically understand, I would hope that when your ideals and beliefs are challenged you will have the courage to stand up and do more than posting incindiary remarks on message boards.

MARY posted:
"No mention of checking the building to be sure that a janitor isn't sweeping the basement. So much for caring about the poor and underprivileged."

-If you had done more research you may have found a document providing responses to the more common questions about the ELF. I believe it can be found at www.earthliberationfront.com/library/FAQ -if not, a search on google for "earth liberation front ELF FAQ" brings it up. One of the main points made within the FAQ is the definition of an ELF action, and I quote, "The guidelines for the ELF specifically require members to take all necessary precautions to ensure no one is physically injured. In the history of the ELF internationally no one has been injured from the group's actions and that is not a coincidence...If an action similar to one performed by the ELF occurred and resulted in an individual becoming physically injured or losing their life this would not be considered an ELF action. It may have been done for social and political reasons and even may have had the same motives as the ELF but since a life form was injured it would not be considered an actual ELF action."

Setting aside the fact that this is America, and I can drive what the hell I want where the hell I want, I'll try to point out why Mos is wrong.

First of all, I am not making "incindiary remarks". I merely pointed out that it wasn't just big corporations who were profiting from the sale of SUVs and new homes. (If you want to see incidiary, hold on to your butt.) I guess when you are anti-capitalist and anti-American, any profit, no matter who benefits from it, is bad. Placing the ideological view of capitalism aside, lets take a look at the wacky belief that SUVs burning gas is more damaging to the environment than environmentalists burning SUVs. Not that I really have to justify the reason for owning an SUV, it does in fact transport more people and more stuff, making overall travel more efficient. This is especially true when people travel in groups to the store, the movies, or the ball game. It's easier to pack 5 to 7 people into an SUV rather than take several smaller cars. Even when traveling in smaller groups, people are likely to take more than one vehicle when they only have tiny little electric death traps with no leg room to choose from. Simply put, SUVs allow people to the freedom to travel more efficiently.

SUVs are also much safer. You sit up higher and have a greater view of the road and the distractions around you. The vehicles are also safer in crashes, much the same way a 25' 1972 Cadillac would be. With more weight and steel wrapped around you, you are much more likely to survive a collision.

Second, there is no such thing as a safe arsonist. If you want incindiary, go tell some soot-covered firefighter who's trying to catch his breath from an oxygen mask if he thinks arson is as victimless as you try to make it. My guess is that he'll give you a swift kick in the nuts. Arson is arson, and every fire that is set puts people's lives at risk. Even setting fire to an unoccupied building or vehicle requires an emergency response. Sure, the building may be empty, but the fire department has to speed through town, drive through red lights, and run into a burning building to try to put it out. Your contention that all precautions are taken to ensure nobody is hurt is ignorant. Every time a truck rolls out of the firehouse with lights and sirens blaring, lives are being put at risk. Your notion that incidents where people are hurt are not considered ELF actions just seems delusional. It's easy to claim that nobody ever gets hurt when you only count incidents here nobody gets hurt as "actual" ELF actions.

On a final incidiary note, I'll point out that most of these firebombings occur in areas where firearms are banned. I can tell you without a doubt that if I ever catch anyone setting my SUV on fire, someone IS going to be hurt, and I have no apprehension about defending myself and my property from terrorism.