The end is nigh

I was heavily distressed by the attitude expressed toward Earth First! in your opinion section on Monday (“Earth First! Common Sense Last!” July 16). We’re facing major catastrophic consequences due to destruction of and estrangement from the natural environment at levels never before seen in history. You may see the destruction of communities as an abstract issue, particularly because you’re not the one whose home is being threatened and likely have the economic privilege of never being in that position. There seems to be a false mainstream environmental view that there will be some simple, slow-paced, easy transition to a “sustainable” society, but this is a fallacy.\nIf you want to talk about mainstream system-oriented facts, how about the recent U.N. report that assesses the global average temperature will rise 6.4 degrees in the next century or less? Climatologists like Mark Lynas have estimated the rainforests will be deserts at around 3.4 degrees, and 6.4 degrees means (with no exaggeration) basically the extinction of all life on Earth. Now you may see why people increasingly don’t want to compromise. Buying hybrid cars and shopping at Bloomingfoods is not going to stop global warming or any of the other devastating travesties of modern society. This protest was tame compared to what’s needed to stop the juggernaut of industrial civilization. \nIf you care at all about the continuance of the planet, we’re going to need serious revolution by any means necessary (that includes building takeovers, sabotage, armed struggle, etc.) in order to save it. You hypocritically start by acknowledging that it would be a stretch to call the use of washable writing on the I-69 offices as “extremism,” yet you then go on to call the protestors “ecoterrorists”! As someone whose family very personally suffered on 9/11, I am appalled that you would equate terrorists in al-Qaida with road protestors. Maybe you should use some of the “common sense” you recommend in the title and get more educated about environmental issues before you recommend that people compromise and lobby their politicians for change that will never come.