Radical environmentalism

On page 75 in Wandering Home, McKibben discusses the radical environmental group Earth First ! that emerged in 1979.  He also describes how the group was launched on top of Glen Canyon Dam when they “unrolled a massive plastic crack down its face, symbolizing their hope that it would soon disappear.”  Personally, I think this demonstration was a great way (even though it was illegal) to protest the concrete plug in the dam – it got the message out in a clear, creative way, and no object or person was hurt.

Unfortunately, radical environmental groups like Earth First! do not always employ creative, nonviolent ways to get their messages out.  Often these groups practice eco-terrorism consisting of arson, equipment disabling, and tree spiking. I understand feeling passionate about something and wanting to protest and fight for what you believe in but I sometimes think about how radical environmentalism might be hurting the environment in many ways. For example, it is environmentally counterproductive to arson a factory in the name of Mother Nature because not only are you destroying usable materials and creating a lot of pollution but also because the company you are protesting against will most likely use up even more natural resources to rebuild whatever you have destroyed. Radical environmentalism definitely has its pros and cons; I am unsure which outweighs the other.