Comments on: Utah Bill Would Make Environmentalists Like Tim DeChristopher “Eco-Terrorists”

By: Trial Begins for Environmentalist Tim DeChristopher, “Bidder 70″

Trial Begins for Environmentalist Tim DeChristopher, “Bidder 70″ — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 18:55:57 +0000

[...] after, a Utah lawmaker introduced legislation labeling this style of civil disobedience “eco-terrorism”: Noel [the legislator] said [...]

By: Firebird

Firebird — Fri, 28 May 2010 01:36:56 +0000

People who commit these crimes of eco-terrorism are not heros their crinimals and ned to be serverly punushed with longer time in prison and NO PAROLE and NO PLEA BARGINING,

By: arparp

arparp — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 04:31:48 +0000

You're full of crap, and tactics matter when they hurt other people and animals.

By: Bidder 70 « toxic culture

Bidder 70 « toxic culture — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 22:26:45 +0000

[...] Utah is trying to rewrite laws to make people like DeChristopher into eco-terrorists. So there’s a real risk of the backlash subsuming the good that was done, even if you credit [...]

By: Huasipungo » Why Aren’t Terrorists Protesting the Gay Vegan Hemp Store?

Huasipungo » Why Aren’t Terrorists Protesting the Gay Vegan Hemp Store? — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:13:01 +0000

[...] If such a place were to exist, it would truly represent a “domestic terrorist” Axis of Evil. On this site we’ve seen how Pat Boone is fighting “sexual jihadists” and homo-grown terrorism. We’ve seen how “vegetarians are terrorist scum.” And we’ve seen how environmental activists like Tim DeChristopher are “eco-terrorists.” [...]

By: stockpix

stockpix — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 09:09:08 +0000

I think that property damage is wildly counterproductive and is too easy an answer to be very effective. I have little problem condemning it as a crime, but this sort of property damage is clearly not terrorism. At the same time, I completely agree with you on government intimidation, over prosecution and that the constant tarring of the whole environmental movement will not stop at those who do direct actions and will be used against anyone who is actually anywhere near effective. A COINTELPRO style program simply assumes you are guilty of something and prosecutes anyone targeted for anything they could frame, entrap, plant or weasel you into a prosecution for. Few are saints, and in this sort of environment, no one they choose to target is remotely safe. I agree that the mainstream environmental movement needs to wake up to this governmental abuse as a very real danger. I do tend to have some small hope that Dems with oversight charge of these agencies may reign in the most extreme seedy and underhanded tactics, but not very much hope for any real improvement without a major scandal breaking out that rekills the program.

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 07:32:36 +0000

All of the federal agencies are competing for a cut of the federal spending pie, as well as the state and local law enforcement charges. With the enactment of the Patriot Act and the 2 invasions in the Middle East early in the decade, federal funding for all different branches of law enforcement exploded. The pie got a lot bigger, like an earlier post on this mentioned a local police branch getting a tank.
While all of these different agencies are scrambling to not just maintain the general status quo, of their dominance, they also want more funding, or at least more than their competitors.
When people refer to the US Empire wanting to maintain the status quo, I hope they keep in mind that it is in broad terms that they are speaking, and that their is a constant power struggle for more funding and more power going on between the departments.
There is money and jobs on the line. Unfortunately, I think Mason’s 2X sentencing is going to be common place from now on. Anybody know what the last person who burnt down/pipe bombed a Planned Parenthood got or the earlier cross burning example? I’m curious to see what their sentencing was.

By: BB

BB — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 17:16:52 +0000

Alceste wrote:
TWENTY TWO YEARS IN JAIL?!?!? Why not a FINE… I think Americans have lost all sense of reason or perspective when it comes to establishing reasonable penalties for various forms of lawbreaking.

You are assuming, of course, that the U.S. is ruled by the people and not corporate mobsters who control the courts and Capitol Hill.

By: Will Potter

Will Potter — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 16:51:42 +0000

Thanks, Alceste. The comments have indeed been bizarre. It’s terrifying to me that so many people seem to have no problem with vastly disproportionate sentences because of the politics of the crime. That’s a scary amount of power to put in the hands of the government.

By: Alceste

Alceste — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 16:33:42 +0000

The comments you have posted are bizarre. She broke the law, damaged property, yada yada yada, fine. Nobody is arguing that point. But TWENTY TWO YEARS IN JAIL?!?!? Why not a FINE or something? Are all these people really suggesting that because a law happened to be broken, ANY punishment is justified? If so, the US is a strange, strange place!

I think Americans have lost all sense of reason or perspective when it comes to establishing reasonable penalties for various forms of lawbreaking. Having the world’s highest per capita prison population seems to have taken its toll if people think a whole life wasted rotting in prison is the appropriate punishment for a crime like this.