Eco-terrorists: Ready to Kill for Their Cause?
According to STRATFOR, an open source intelligence firm, on July 22 special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI arrested Walter Bond in Denver. He was charged with setting an April 30 fire which destroyed the Sheepskin Factory, a Glendale, Colorado, business.
According to STRATFOR, Bond goes by the alias ALF Lone Wolf, and he apparently bragged to a confidential informant that he was also responsible for a June 5 fire at a leather factory in Salt Lake City and a July 3 fire at a restaurant in Sandy, Utah.
Bond is a member of an extremist group called the Animal Liberation Front (ALF). They are allied with a similar organization called the Earth Liberation Front (ELF).
These groups were somewhat in the news a few years ago, but faded off the radar when it became apparent that public sympathies were rather with the business owners whose livelihoods were destroyed and workers who were injured — not the radicals who saw no moral dilemma in spiking trees or torching housing developments.
So far, law enforcement has not focused heavily on organizations like the ALF or the ELF for a couple of reasons. First, because they’re hard to catch. They use an operational model called “leaderless resistance” in which small cells or individual operatives function underground without a command structure. They are in turn given some cover guidance by above-ground political organizations which are very careful not to do anything illegal. They also tend to get cover from a sympathetic media which, when they do report on it, will tend to decry the action and then proceed to talk about the horrors of animal testing.
The other reason these cases don’t get a lot of attention is that to date the terrorists have been very careful not to target people deliberately.
There are some indications this may be changing.
As STRATFOR reports:
According to the ATF affidavit, a search of Bond’s backpack after his arrest revealed that he had a copy of an ALF publication titled “The Declaration of War: Killing People to Save the Animals and the Environment.” The book, which was first published by the ALF in 1991, contends that nonviolent methods such as those laid out by Gandhi and Jesus are not productive (especially when applied to animals) and explains that violence is justified to protect animals, who cannot protect themselves. The book’s author contends that people who seek to liberate animals (which the author refers to as “brothers” and “sisters”) from human oppression and abuse will “use any and every tactic necessary to win the freedom of our brothers and sisters. This means they cheat, steal, lie, plunder, disable, threaten, and physically harm others to achieve their objective.”
In other words, they figure it’s OK to kill people if it will save an animal.
There has been little coverage of this case save for local media. Compare this with the wall-to-wall coverage of the Ohio militia group calling itself the “Hutaree,” arrested in March.
As it stands right now the whole concept of “eco-terrorism” is largely a fantasy invented by the right in this country as a counter talking point to deflect the attention from the right’s inability to deal with real terrorism. For example:
Narco-terrorists have killed hundreds of thousands.
Christian terrorists have committed tens of thousands of acts of terrorism.
Muslim terrorists have committed thousands of acts of terrorism.
So-called “eco-terrorists” haven’t killed anyone. Even though their actions are crimes and can be legally called terrorism, it’s absurd to compare their activities to the FARC, KKK, or Al-Qaeda.
Bad liberal! No biscotti!
I would surely like to hear about these “tens of thousands” of acts of terrorism committed by Christians.
I also find it interesting that you say Christians have committed “tens of thousands”of acts of terrorism, but Muslims only thousands.
Of course, I never said the ALF and ELF killed anyone, in fact, I pointed out SPECIFICALLY that they have been very careful not to to date.
However, that seems to be changing, as you would know if you had actually read the STRATFOR piece.
As for eco-terrorism being a farce, tell that to the loggers in the Pacific Northwest whose livelihoods were ruined by ELF whackjobs who spiked the trees. Or the mill workers injured when a spiked tree hit the saw. Tell it to the developer in Aspen who had invested millions in a new subdivision only to have it all go up in smoke.
I never compared them to Farc or Al Queada. I merely note the difference in media coverage and the escalating violence.
Ecoterrorists have killed people, they’ve just been very careful to make it look like accidents.
They firebomb a home of someone working for a pharmaceutical firm, and a child dies that can’t be evacuated in time.
They’ll either not claim responsibility for that bombing (and/or the press doesn’t report on it) or they’ll claim they never intended anyone to get killed, wanted it “only to be a warning”.
Of course indirectly they’ve caused massive hardship and death as companies stop developing new drugs that can stop deadly diseases, people get permanently disabled in wood mills and logging sites (as you mentioned), etc.
And if they have their way we’ll go back to the good old days of drs. Mengele and Shiro Ishii, using life human “subjects” for medical experiments because they’re worth less than labrats.
Something few people seem to notice is the “definition filter”. This is very like the “filing cabinet bias” researchers have noted; that which does not match expectations gets ignored, that which matches expectations gets remembered, so the naive observer thinks some things are more common than they actually are.
By definition, ALF and ELF acts “do not” involve humans being injured. So, if something some ALF or ELF activist does results in injury or death to a human, the action, by definition, is not an ALF or ELF action. And, as the members do not sign up anywhere, pay dues, or carry membership cards, there are few ways to track such injury producing actions to ALF or ELF.
I too would be interested in hearing about these “tens of thousands” of terrorist acts committed by Christians (been listening to Tavis Smiley recently?). I know those Amish communities are hotbeds of terrorism and torture, but still…
Show me a “Christian” terrorist and I’ll show you someone who’s acting inconsistently with the the entire message of the New Testament…and probably a lunatic. That’s slightly different from carrying around a copy of “The Declaration of War: Killing People to Save the Animals and the Environment”, don’t you think?
Seems you opened your mouth too soon. “A Real American,” meet James Lee, ecoterrorist, who pretty much killed himself with police bullets before he could kill more people at the Discovery Channel today.
KKK, a Christian organization? What a simple thing to say!
This isn’t anything new. Speaking as the guy who literally wrote the book on these people, they have been committing arson and vandalism since the 1970′s.
I’ve been saying for years that it’s only a matter of time until they kill someone. Whether it be accidental or whether some nut decides to do int on purpose, it’s going to happen sooner or later.
I love animals, but I must ask, how can animals have rights? They cannot be held responsible or accountable, and ALF specifically states that animals are incapable of defense. So, where is there a base for rights?
“Animals are incapable of defense”? Really? I worked at an animal shelter, and at a vet’s office some years back, and I can assure you that both dogs and cats are very well-armed, and don’t hesitate to use the weapons at their disposal when they feel threatened. I’ve also owned cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs, and these critters are also quite capable of inflicting injury on an unwary owner. Even chickens can be aggressive, especially roosters. Obviously ALF doesn’t have a lot of experience with animals.
They don’t plan on getting any experience, either. Their goal is to remove humans from having any influence, good or ill, on animals. Total seperation.
Their ultimate goal is to remove humans, as in cause humankind to go extinct.
Except for themselves of course, who will be left as “guardians of the planet”.
The notion that two legged mammalian life takes second place to the four legged variety is an established animal rights position. During the holocaust, the ASPCA declined to sign a petition against the slaughter of European Jews on the grounds that protecting human animals was not their mission.
That said, more needs to be done to insure more humane treatment of livestock, especially by consumers. Chickens, for instance, are raised as insensate vegetables. Consumers need to insist on free-range as a minimum for the meat they buy.
Needless to say, those who assault or kill farmers, meat processors, furriers and tanners belong in jail.
“Chickens, for instance, are raised as insensate vegetables. Consumers need to insist on free-range as a minimum for the meat they buy.”
I’m the consumer, and I’ll decide what I “insist” upon, thank you very much.
My priorities are maximum food safety and nutritional value per dollar. If free range can do that, fine. If not, then I give my money to the guy who keeps them as insensate vegetables.
With no appologies, either.
You’re very welcome roots.
Eggs and meats recalled for contamination are pasteurized for resale. Carcasses inspected in kosher slaughterhouses and found diseased are discounted to non-kosher soup companies. All quite nutritional. Bon apetit, Roots.
I demand a cite. I work in the food processing industry. We have to destroy what is recalled.
Searched google and ask.com for citation but no dice. I distinctly heard on FOX that contaminated and recalled eggs can be sold to Egg Beaters and other processors for pateurization and legal retail sale. Egg Beaters has a web post assuring consumers that their eggs are pateurized and safe but doesn’t address the question of whether the eggs might have been initially contaminated and recalled.
I tried calling the FDA to place the question directly but gave up after twenty minutes on hold with repeated messages that my call was important to the FDA on my speaker phone distracting me from other matters I need to attend to.
In any event, I for one am certain that contaminated eggs are pateurized for sale. Meat such as the Wallmart cold cuts recently recalled I am less sure about and for lack of contrary evidence must accept your criticism as valid. Mea culpa.
It might depend on the product, and the contamination. My experience is with seafood, which has to be destroyed, not allowed to be used for anything at all.
I am not familiar with many other products to this extent.
My apologies. All my experience is with seafood, which has to be destroyed. Other products and other contamination may not be treated as strictly.
Taken completely out of context…
SOME contaminated food deemed unfit for human consumption is recycled as food for cats and dogs.
Food not considered kosher but still fit for humnan consumption may be resold to non-Jewish industries.
And that’s as far as it goes.
Again, the comparison to “perfect” somewhere else in the universe pervades the minds of fools.
We have a better, safer food delivery system in place today than at any prior point in human history, anywhere on this green earth.
And its relatively CHEAP too.
Oh yeah, and its enough to feed BILLIONS of people
Basically, if it smells funny, dont eat it.
Your odds of getting sick from something you ate (in america) today are minicule compared to what they were 100 years ago. The chance of DYING from said illness are almost zero.
Stop whining, do some research before you rail against success
I have no argument with anything you say. American agribusiness is the world standard and a blessing to all mankind.
But I’m not a fool and I’m not whining when I tell you that your standards are low and you’re more willing to eat crap than I am. Safe, cheap, abundant crap but crap nonetheless. Enjoy!
I don’t disagree, exactly, but free range chicken costs sharply more. When feeding four adults on one salary, we’ll just close our minds to the evils of insensate veggie chickens. I can’t be a food snob this year.
I think our meat packing is too concentrated. There is a reason all the local butchers are out of business and I don’t think it has anything to do with health safety. To my thinking the current system depends too much on too few and long distance shipping. When there is a recall the loss is huge. We should not make it so hard for local businesses.
Quoting:
“use any and every tactic necessary to win the freedom of our brothers and sisters. This means they cheat, steal, lie, plunder, disable, threaten, and physically harm others to achieve their objective.”
Sounds quite a bit like the Communist doctrine, or the Q’uran
Or like progressives/liberals/democrats…
That’s what Tyler said…
The essentially benign environmental movement was taken over by communists after the Berlin wall came down. It’s a major front in marxism’s war on freedom.
There are no peaceful Marxists. Perhaps there are some who aren’t violent at any point in time, but that is only a tactical response while they work to subvert whatever country they are currently operating in. If the subversion isn’t rapid enough, they will become violent in a flash.
Obama is a perfect example.
Anybody who thinks that he and the Cabal that created him are non-violent is a fool. Let them begin to lose power. Then see how non-violent they are.
But of course, many will scoff that such a gentle soul could possibly harbor violence. Let them then cite the examples of non-violent marxist governments, if they can.
And if you doubt that Obama is a marxist, make a list of his friends and acquantances who aren’t communist, marxist, or radical. Note that “appointees” is excluded, although may of them are marxists as well. There is no way that man would still be in office if he had been any more flagrant than he has been with his appointees. Every single one of the major influencers in Obama’s life have been marxists or anti-American radicals: his mother, Frank Marshall Davis, Bill Ayers, Reverend Wright, Alice Palmer, Valerie Jarett, Andy Stern, Michelle, and David Axelrod. There are probably many more we don’t know about or don’t have enough evidence to put them on the list: i.e., his Community Organizer patrons, Acorn leadership, Union allies, the people who got him into Harvard, the criminal operatives who “won” his elections for him, George Soros, other union thugs.
It’s true that Obama now has non-Marxist allies like Goldman Sachs and many politicians who are not hard-core Marxists. Every single one of those came on board as he shot to fame and power. And every single one will abandom him when he is evicted from power in this country. But the Marxists will stay with him. Bet on it.
The enviro movement was an outgrowth of the anti-freedom movement of the 1960s which was alleged at the time to have been created by the soviets. This was confirmed after the Wall came down.
The enviro movement was never ‘benign’.
It was (and continues to be) the main reason for America’s decline due to the fleeing of major manufacturing offshore to escape enviro-wacko restrictions. It has achieved the soviet’s goal of moving America toward second or third class economic status.
Also, the enviro’s actions leading to the banning of ddt has resulted in the deaths of countless millions in the third world.
little evidence that Obama hates leisure and money but we do have evidence that he is opposed to making a profit. If a profit is so terrible why are you accepting a paycheck? Is income from a paycheck different than a profit from a markup?? Are you not selling your time and expertize? The supermarket employee gets paid from the same markup that keeps the store open. They provide a necessary service to me and are due their hire. But not according to Obama. He would lover for all supermarkets to be non-profits under government regulation. Marxist? Why do we now have only two supermarkets with only three locations when there used to be a dozen or more? It has been the work of these non-profiteers that don’t understand the salubrious function of market share and competition. How does monopoly improve and increase our purchasing power?
Our little dance with Marxist infiltration began in earnest when the Frankfurt School, A.K.A., the Institute for Social Research, fled the rise of Hitler’s national Socialists and landed at Columbia University from 1935 until 1953. Obviously, we had proponents of Marxist doctrine long before that, (Wilson and FDR) but once they had a solid foothold in our school system, they spread insidiously through our schools. From our schools, they were able to gradually gain control over the media, entertainment and government.
I love animals-YUM
OK-someone had to say it
‘A Real American’! Try ‘A real clown.’
We should all become members of PETA – People for the Eating of Tasty Animals.
“I too would be interested in hearing about these “tens of thousands” of terrorist acts committed by Christians”
He’s just talking about stuff like the mass murder campaign “liberal” Democrats carried out against black and white Republicans back in the 19th century.
Liberals like to call the terrorists “Christians” instead of “Democrats” so as to try and distance themselves from the endless crimes and atrocities they’ve carried out over the years.
Same reason you always hear the Civil War described in terms as North vs. South (As if people fought wars because of their geographical orientation), or Yankee vs. Rebel instead of say, loyal Republican vs. Slaver/Traitor Democrat.
This is all fantasy. The world is full of real threats and you have to make one up. I guess this one just thrills you, even though you must realize it’s imaginary.
Whack jobs firebombing researcher’s houses in the middle of the night while they and their families are at home is an imaginary threat!?!
I’d hate to see what you consider a real one…
Patrick
oh, Glen Beck gathering a few hundred thousand people on the Mall to protest Obama’s destruction of their country by peacefully listening to some speeches and taking their litter with them when they go home after?
Oh the horror!
People who actually clean up after themselves! What IS the world coming to? Don’t they think about all those poor public employees who don’t have jobs because they picked up their litter!?!?
Evil conservatives! It’s all a PLOT!
Patrick
Fantasy? Where were you yesterday? I doubt the people at the Discovery Channel will call it fantasy
Whether or not they qualify as terrorists, extreme eco-people are very strange and in my personal experience, extreme greens are very nasty people.
These are the people who go all tingly at “organic” this and “organic” that. Now “organic” chemistry is all about the chemistry of carbon, because all life forms are based on carbon. Organic equals carbon. Amazingly the greens say that carbon is evil and carbon di-oxide is a pollutant. I’d say that’s strange.
The nasty part? Wilfully destroying the chosen lifestyles of hard working families whose “sin” is to create wealth from nature’s gifts of timber, minerals, fish and livestock. The ecos’ vindictive, bullying actions and ravings have to be experienced first hand to be fully appreciated. They remind me of some of the revolutionary characters in the book “Under Western Eyes” by Joseph Conrad. Chilling.
A while ago I was with my Daughter at a friends farm who raised “free ranged chickens”. She also had free range horses. My Daughter couldn’t wait to get back home to tell her friends who insisted on free ranged chicken eggs what free ranges chickens ate.
I agree. I used to keep chickens, and I’m here to tell you that chickens will eat ANYTHING, including each other!
Prior to the nut jobs becoming environmentalists all conservation efforts were by hunters and fishermen who wanted to maintain sustainable populations of fish and game. Seems to me that is the height of renewable resource management. Interestingly enough the Canadians did a study some years ago that showed much higher population densities and a stronger population base with hunting and trapping of game animals than with out hunting and trapping.
Preservation equals waste and no value for what is being preserved, particularly where living things are concerned, they die anyway.
Utilization creates a value for the resource and insures that it will be managed in such a way as to protect the income stream of those that utilize the resources.
As bad as these Eco-Qaeda are now, just wait.
What happens when someone who thinks that there are too many people (maybe just too many comfortable white people) who has access to biologicals hands them a mutugenic pathogen of some sort?
What happens if these people make common cause with Hugo Chavez, Ahmedinajad, and Hezbollah – or Al Qaeda?
We saw in Oklahoma City what happened when Aryan Brotherhood clowns hooked up with AL Qaeda.
It is just beginning.
Hate to be the ray of sunshine brightening your day (/sarc) but what makes you think they haven’t already done it and are just waiting for the right time to deploy said pathogen?
Perhaps the only thing holding them back is that they want US to die, but THEY want to live. Pathogens that are deadly enough are also indiscriminate. Since these nutjobs are all about discrimination, it presents a knotty problem for them. Maybe they haven’t found a reliable way to distribute antidotes to the “good” people they have deemed worthy of life.
Read “Rainbow Six” by Tom Clancy.
It’s a great extrapolation of what the Gaiaists philosophy leads to when taken to the extreme.
Patrick
I guess the manifesto of one James Lee from Washington DC provides some context for Patrick Richardson’s post. The manifesto is posted by Ed Driscoll at http://pajamasmedia.com/eddriscoll/2010/09/01/gunman-holding-hostage-in-discovery-channel-building/2/
‘As it stands right now the whole concept of “eco-terrorism” is largely a fantasy invented by the right…’–A Real American with no sense of timing
And, then along comes James Lee.
Ouch.