I really should be used to the sorts of idiotic misrepresentations of veganism and the animal rights movement that mainstream media traffic in, but I ran across THIS today…
Daniel Andreas San Diego, 33, who has ties to animal rights extremist groups, is wanted for his alleged involvement in two bombings in the San Francisco, California, area, according to Special Agent in Charge Richard DesLauriers of the Boston Division. DesLauriers spoke at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2011/11/fbi_fugitive_terror_suspect_da.html
While conflating property destruction with “terrorism” – in violent actions in which no beings were harmed – is itself a bit of needless hysteria, it’s at least an unexceptional part of the conventional thinking; in capitalism, profit and property ownership “rights” trump even concern for human need, more often than not, so it’s not unusual that they’d unquestioningly swallow the “terrorism” meme. As usual, the anti-AR, anti-vegan brigade will want to jump on this; no, I’m not advocating property destruction, but no, property destruction in and of itself is not automatically terrorism, either – it depends entirely on what is being destroyed, and why. From MassLive’s updated report:
On August 28, 2003, two bombs exploded approximately one hour apart on the campus of Chiron, a biotechnology corporation in Emeryville, according to the FBI. DesLauriers said the second bomb may have targeted first responders.
Then, on September 26, 2003, one bomb strapped with nails exploded at Shaklee, a nutritional and beauty products corporation in Pleasanton. San Diego was indicted in the United States District Court, Northern District of California, in July of 2004.
So says the FBI, and they have no interest in misleading anyone about this, now do they?
Monkeywrenching isn’t terrorism. It’s not a tactic I advocate or think is useful, but it’s lazy, hysterical nonjournalism to blindly accept the state’s claims of terrorism without actually digging any deeper.
But, of course, it gets better.
San Diego is known to cook, bake and follow a vegan diet, eating no meat or food containing animal products. In the past, he has worked as a computer network specialist and with the operating system LINUX. DesLauriers said he may make his living with these skills.
If he has continued his vegan lifestyle, San Diego also wouldn’t wear anything made from animals, such as leather.
So, let’s unpack, shall we?
If you see somebody from a distance wearing pleather (which you’ll be able to distinguish from regular animal skin by magic, or something) and you psychically discern that the veggieburger he’s eating contains no meat, dairy or egg, and he announces his Latin sounding name – which will immediately set off alarm bells, since he’s light-skinned, and won’t have a regular American name… he … MIGHT … BE … A … VEGAN … TERRORIST! Maybe just be wary of anyone in hemp shoes with a Latin sounding name, who fits the general description of…
San Diego is white with a light complexion, six feet tall, 160 pounds, wears eyeglasses…
Because, well, you know. PETA. Gives money to the ALF. Or something I heard, somewhere.
Fomenting bullshit hysteria counts as reportage? Really?
babble 