ELF Takes Action Against Biotechnology Research at the University of Minnesota


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 29, 2002


ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA The Earth Liberation Front has taken credit for the setting of incendiary devices at a construction site on the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus. The target of the fire was the university's new Microbial and Plant Genomics Research Center currently under construction.

The Earth Liberation Front is an international underground organization that uses direct action in the form of economic sabotage to stop the destruction of the natural environment. In North America alone since 1997, the ELF has caused over $40 million in damages to entities who profit from the destruction of life.

According to a communique received by the Earth Liberation Front Press Office, incendiary devices left in the main construction trailer and in two pieces of heavy machinery caused extensive damage where they were placed before spreading into the adjacent crop research facility.

The statement went on to say that the facility was targeted for action because "The construction of this research building is being funded by biotech giant Cargill Corporation who develop, patent, and market genetically modified crops, making people dependent on GE foods. We are fed up with capitalists like Cargill and major universities.... who have long sought to develop and refine technologies which seek to exploit and control nature to the fullest extent under the guise of progress. "

A growing movement has erupted internationally against genetically modified organisms (GMO's) including genetically altered food. Contrary to claims surfacing from some of the scientific community, genetically modified plants are not the answer to the world's food shortage. Crops which have been genetically altered promote further pesticide use in larger doses which only end up in the food chain and leaking into the environment. Genetically modified organisms exist for one reason, the drive for profit by large multinational corporations.

This action undertaken by the ELF is just one of a long series of actions and protests taken against the biotechnology industry as a whole over the past few years. The University of Minnesota's genetic engineering research was targeted by the ELF in February, 2000 when activists destroyed transgenic oat research crops and damaged a greenhouse.


My own thoughts:
People like this are no better than those who oppose abortion and yet bomb the clinics that kill all the babies. The work they do is in direct opposition to the goal they wish to achieve for it only galvanizes those they oppose and makes their own cause to be less relevant.
Environmental zealots are wrong and they are only deeping the resolve of the companies they oppose. In their cowardly actions of sabatoge and terrorism, they only make themselves look all the more incapable of tackling a situation in which they have no clue of how to combat their issue in an adult and mature maner.

First off they have not killed anybody. So they are no where near the level of the self-righteous inbreds who kill doctors who perform abortions.

And second of all; do you really think these conglomerates who have such a stranglehold on economy and society would listen to any peaceful assembly by these parties?

No, they haven't killed anybody. Yet.
No, all they have done is terrorize people and destroy property.
That's all.
And they are by no means very distant from those terrorist who kill those that kill babies.
And yes of course they are more likely to heard by using peaceable means.

Bullshit

Yes they may kill someone if they are not careful.
People are probaly so desentized by 9:11 that they won't notice a small explosion where no one dies, -and when only the aftermath is seen.-
I think there is a huge difference between those who kill and those who do not kill.
And yeah they may be heard, but with the apathy people have you need to "whack someone upside the head with a 9-irion to get their attention".

Well, what you don't know is that this group has done these acts of terrorism several times. Here is another example of the militants in action:


ELF Takes Action Against Bureau Of Land Management Wild Horse Holding Facility


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 5th, 2001


SUSANVILLE, CALIFORNIA The Earth Liberation Front has taken credit for the setting of timed incendiary devices at the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Litchfield Wild Horse and Burro Facility on October 15th. The resulting fire caused approximately $85,000 in damages when a barn was burnt to the ground.

In addition, the group cut through four 60-foot sections of wooden fence on corrals holding more than 200 wild horses in an attempt to liberate them from the BLM.

The BLM program of removing horses and burros from public lands is a massively funded venture predicated on the lie that these animals are a threat to habitat needed for domestic livestock. Although the the BLM is charged with protecting wild horses and burros under the Wild Horses and Burros Act (passed in 1971), they also operate a higly subsidized grazing program under which millions of cattle and sheep graze public land. This creates an obvious conflict of interest. The BLM claims that rangeland is being overgrazed by wild horses and burros even though they are outnumbered by domestic livestock by at least a 50 to 1 ratio. This year, the BLM's budget was increased by $9 million in order to facilitate the removal of tens of thousands more animals from the land.

The fact is in many cases, the BLM is operating illegally when it removes these animals from the land. In 1971 when the Wild Horses and Burros Act was passed, 303 herd areas were identified throughout the states where wild horses could roam free. Since then the BLM has eliminated all wild horses in 119 of these areas.

In addition - although the BLM promotes itself as "adopting" out wild horses it rounds up - the reality is that there are few standards and little follow-up on those who adopt the animals, and the number of adopters for domestic purposes is very small. According to an Associated Press article, up to 90% of these "adopted" animals have gone to slaughter for meat and other animal products.

The BLM is currently facing lawsuits launched against its record of lies and broken promises.

The action undertaken by the ELF is just one of a long series of actions and protests taken against the Bureau of Land Management facilities and programs.


In closing its communique, the ELF states "In the name of all that is wild we will continue to target industries and organizations that seek to profit by destroying the Earth."

I think the important word here is "zealot". For the purpose of this discussion, the word "fanatic" is more accurate.

Any idea, principle, belief, or movement can have its fanatics, or people who believe that they and only they, are right, can be right, and that all others are expendable in the spread of said belief.

That philosophy is the basis of terrorism. It is also the basis of righful protest. The real question is where the line between those is.

At what point does the action taken become "going to far."

When the lives of those who have not had any involvment in the protested act, -or those that where involved but did no direct harm- are lost.

When it becomes destrucive instead of construcive?Having a fanatical view is one thing but acting like a fantic is different. I dunno I just think zealots are just discribed as religious fanatics.

Let me tell you the "evils of environmentalists" Try having them spike trees, one not only does this open the tree up to bugs and disease, potentionally wiping out a whole forest, but then some logger with his handy dandy chain saw hits the spike, the bladed chain snaps and slaps him across the face, possibly killing him.
They are big city out of state fat cats, that come here for two months of the summer, buy up the land, build houses raising property taxes for everyone and then they leave during the winter, and the locals are stuck paying taxes out of stater environmentalist raised and no jobs because these same people took them away because it's forest...they try to tell people how to live and use their money, influence and terrorist tactics, not caring who they destroy, and ending up destroying the very nature they are trying to protect...

Jordyn,

What is your house, or the dwelling in which you live made of? What forms the interior, the warm walls within which you live?

This is all very depressing... It seems that theres no real solution to our problem. We can't save the enviroment without risking economical damage and not enough people care about the Earth to try alternatives. It's no wonder that enviromental fanatics take such destructive actions on big companies. The way I see it is that we must all put forth an effort to preserve our habitat. People need to realize that for every action there is a reation. Companies that suffer property damage due to ELF are only victims of Karma.

lol how about I shoot you for no reason that karma too?:p

I prefer to be called a conservationist rather than an "environmentalist". The environmentalist cause has been intertwined with other political causes that have nothing to do with ecology.

*Laughs*

We're all gon' die anyway.

I don't see it as such a bad thing, the conflict I mean.

Without our industries, the way of life you lead as you know it would cripple and fall. However, if these industries were left to operate unchecked, how long do you think it would be before they did something you didn't agree with?

All in all, I'd say industry has killed/harmed more people than environmental zealots. Especially when you consider the many times we've gone to war for oil..

The real problem facing the environment and peace is the population bomb. Face it, we are on a planet of diminishing resources.


A case in point is the so called "energy crisis" in California. It is really an overpopulation crisis as the consumption has outstripped the energy resources. To fix the problem we can build more nuclear power plants or we can reduce the population by a promotion of birth control here & abroad and then enact restrictive immigration laws.

Of course it will not happen as both the so called "right" and "left" have their partisan reasons to stay on the present course.

What will happen is that the Earth will be covered up under a vast megalopolis where the average person will never get to see a forest, prarie, or clean oceans.

honestly it's aluminum, fake wood and plastic I believe...and I'm not against all environmental issues...and what does my house have to do with my statement? I'm not fond of environmentalist either...so what exactly is your point?

We will never get a real effort going on environmental issues if we keep ignoring the population bomb.

The Earth has over 6 billion people, a million are born everyday.

While it is true that modern Industrial nations have a negative birth rate, there is massive migration of economic refugees from the many poor and overpopulated countries of the so called "Third World".

The population bomb will not be defused until...

1) Immigration is halted.

2) Birth control becomes a requirement for countries that need foriegn aid money (Lest we feed and they breed).

Monetary rewards offered for voluntary sterilization. Especially for unemployable, non-productive members of society.

4) Taxes be increased for people that have children.

Violence is never an answer. Destroying scientific faciltiies isn't an answer, and these people are not only fanatics, they're idiotic fanatics. There are ten thousand bigger problems in the enviroment than people building better crops to feed more people. These rich upper-class college kids talk some good shit about stopping the growing of better grains while they eat wheat-grass juice and tofu, but they're not part of the hundred of millions of people starving to death all over the World. When you cannot argue your point logically and instead resort to petty violence, it's a sign that you're wrong in your beliefs.



Your ava kicks ass btw, Jordy.

a) Halting immigration? Are you an idiot? Immigration is necessary for the improvement of Third World Countries. Their best and brightest come here to learn, then go back to their own countries to improve life there. 90% of doctors in Third World Countries studied in First World Universities.

b) Forced abortions? Are you an idiot? Why not just round people up into camps so we can gas them? Take a look at Communist China, and see just how well forced Abortions have worked for them.