13 October 2016
Throw these direct action pipeline vandals in the calaboose
They’re young, arrogant, impatient, self-righteous as an ISIS street preacher — and they’re determined to stop oil and gas pipelines by hook, crook, and monkey wrench, instead of by litigation and lawful political organizing. Two days ago, reports Democracy Now, ten of these direct action lost souls were arrested:
…for attempting to shut down all tar sands oil coming into the United States from Canada by manually turning off pipelines in Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota and Washington state. The group, which calls itself Climate Direct Action, includes five activists and five other supporters and videographers. They posted pictures and videos online that showed them cutting chains and turning the manual safety valves to stop the flow through the pipelines.
Is this nonviolent civil disobedience? Not in my book. It’s intellectually lazy vandalism. Arrest them. Try them. Convict them. Send them to jail for a few nights, then give them a bayonet and a rabbit’s foot and send them to clear land mines in the third world.