Saturday, November 28, 2009
Riddle: When is an arson suspect not an arson suspect?
Answer: When the New York Times decides to call him an "environmentalist."
The headline reveals a certain way of thinking at the Times -- that arson might be a sort-of respectable tactic in pursuit of a higher cause. You know, in the tradition of Howard Roarke, perhaps. But does this conflation of criminality and environmental "activism" really help the cause of the environment in the long run? Perhaps it does among the readers of the New York Times, but I suspect not among Americans with less clouded moral vision.
10 Comments:
By 
John, at
Sat Nov 28, 02:06:00 PM:
Wonder what the NYT will say if these "environmentalist" follow thru on what some would consider a prime target: Newspapers sure kill alot of trees.
By Assistant Village Idiot, at
Sat Nov 28, 03:33:00 PM:
They would then play up heavily the "God Bless America" sticker at his parents' home in NJ and insinuate that he was raised in a fringe right-wing family who want to do away with the first amendment by silencing liberals. His attendance at a liberal college and connections to liberal organizations would be construed as attempts to break free of that repressive atmosphere.
No one would say that directly, of course. That wouldn't be nuanced. Unsubtle, don't you know. But it's not hard to leave the reader with that impression, then wait for the Kossacks and MoveOn to spread it.
By 
, at
Sat Nov 28, 04:06:00 PM:
You compliment the average reader's intelligence by citing Howard Roark without feeling it necessary to explain who and what he is.
By , at
Sat Nov 28, 05:23:00 PM:
"You compliment the average reader's intelligence by citing Howard Roark without feeling it necessary to explain who and what he is."
I'd ask "Who is Howard Roark?", but the sarcasm impaired would construe that as ignorance, and it's probably a bad pun anyway.
Heh.
jefferson101
By , at
Sat Nov 28, 05:31:00 PM:
"The ends justify the means". Karl Marx, Saul Alinsky, NYT et al.
By buck smith, at
Sat Nov 28, 08:38:00 PM:
Uhhhh, arson causes pollution.
By , at
Sat Nov 28, 09:16:00 PM:
Sorry, my moral vision is too clouded to respond.
By Mike, at
Sun Nov 29, 04:22:00 PM:
Is this guy related to Todd Solondz (uncle?) - a moderately famous "transgressive" filmmaker from a few miles away?
By Brian, at
Tue Dec 01, 12:30:00 AM:
Always click the link. The first paragraphs from NY Times:
"Justin Franchi Solondz, an environmental activist from New Jersey who spent years evading charges of ecoterrorism in the United States by hiding out in China, was sentenced to three years in prison by a local court on Friday on charges of manufacturing drugs in this backpacker haven.
After serving his time, Mr. Solondz, 30, who is on the F.B.I.’s wanted list, will be deported to the United States, where he faces charges stemming from what the authorities say was his role in an arson rampage that destroyed buildings in three western states as a member of a group related to the environmental extremist organization Earth Liberation Front."
I see the words "ecoterrorism" and "arson rampage".
By Assistant Village Idiot, at
Sat Dec 05, 12:31:00 AM:
I had checked the link, thank you. And even today, the headline and first sentence say "environmentalist." That is the most prominent adjective, and the one most likely remembered.
