Will Potter

I’ll Be Talking About Terrorism Rhetoric and Civil Liberties at “Becoming the Change”

I’ll be talking about how “eco-terrorism” rhetoric threatens civil liberties at “Becoming the Change,” the 22nd Annual International Compassionate Living Festival, on October 6 in Raleigh/Durham NC. I’ll be presenting on the civil liberties panel with Lauren Regan of the Civil Liberties Defense Center, and look forward to seeing the fine folks from Herbivore again. […]

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BBC Nixes Muslim Suicide Bomber for “Eco-terrorist”

From The Observer: The BBC has abandoned plans to screen a fictional terrorist attack by Muslim suicide bombers in the primetime drama Casualty after internal clashes over whether the highly sensitive subject matter would cause offence. BBC drama executives were keen to push the storyline and may even have started filming, a source close to […]

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Red Dawn II: Patrick Swayze vs. Al Gore

The title of this site, and the term “Green Scare,” of course refers to the similarities between two eras of government repression: the government witch hunt for suspected communists, during the Red Scare, and the government witch hunt for suspected “eco-terrorists,” during the Green Scare. I think the comparison is useful in talking about these […]

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Discussion of “Eco-terrorism” Scare-mongering on Bill Maher?

Barb, a GreenIsTheNewRed.com reader, wrote in to the Bill Maher show (producers are looking for show ideas) asking that he discuss the labeling of environmental and animal advocates as “terrorists.” She asked that I post some info in case anybody else wants to do the same. Here’s a bit more from her: I thought it […]

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Industry Group Says Mainstream Animal Advocates “Consorting With Terrorists”

The genius of the Red Scare, and now the Green Scare, is that once you have completely demonized an entire group of people (either labeling them “communists” or “eco-terrorists”) you can slowly extend that scare-mongering in ever-wider circles. So first you brand someone who vandalizes an SUV as a “terrorist” (an absurdity in its own […]

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Take the “Terrorism Quiz”

Take the quiz! From a bizarre website put up by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Hmm. I wonder how industry groups would fare. I think it’s especially interesting that the mini terrorism tutorial lists “domestic terrorists”: • White supremacists • Anti-government groups • Anarchists • Separatists • Single issue groups But animal rights […]

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Priorities, Priorities

So we’ve heard over and over that so-called “eco-terrorism” is the “number one domestic terrorist threat,” according to the FBI. Interesting, then, how the FBI’s “Top Ten Stories For the Week Ending August 10, 2007,” places the “number one domestic terrorist threat” at… number two. Second to a health care fraud case. 1. Houston: Six […]

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New Report from National Lawyer’s Guild, With Section on “Applying Terrorist Label to Activists”

Just like during the Red Scare, the National Lawyer’s Guild has been consistently out front during this “Green Scare” as well. The guild has condemned the politically-motivated application of the “terrorism” label to property crimes, and the use of vague and overly broad legislation like the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act to chill dissent. A new […]

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New Comic Book on “Eco-terrorism” From Marvel Imprint

It looks like Minx, a division of Marvel Comics, will be putting out a graphic novel on “eco-terrorism” shortly. There’s not much info about it available, except for a writeup at ComicBookResources.com: “Burnout,” by author Rebecca Donner with art by Inaki Miranda is about Danni, a girl who moves to the Pacific-Northwest with her mom, […]

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Paul Sentenced to 4 Years… and a Book Report

A federal judge sentenced Jonathan Paul to four years and three months in prison for his role in a 1997 fire that destroyed the Cavel West horsemeat packing plant in Redmond, Ore. He had confessed to helping make the diesel and soap mixture, the s0-called “vegan Jell-O,” that was used, and acting as a lookout. […]

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