Letters to the Editor
xothermrick
Published Letters: 1
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ELF paranoia
[Read the article: Is Briana Waters a terrorist?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]A few facts, decide for yourselves if they are linked:
Back in 2003, I was the Executive Officer (paid administrator) of my local chapter of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). In the summer of that year, I attended the national convention of my peers. We heard a presentation by a "terrorism expert" about the danger posed by ELF. The talk struck me at the time as another example of manufactured paranoia, plenty of which we had seen recently. ELF seemed to me to be not exactly a confederation but a flag that could be raised by any disaffected anti-development radical who chose to turn to arson. It's pretty easy to spray-paint ELF on the side of the structure you are about to burn.
In early 2004, the NAHB staged their annual International Builders Show in Las Vegas. The keynote speaker, and God only knows what he was paid for his uninspiring speech, was former President George H.W. Bush.
In January 2005, the NAHB was one of those generous donors that ponied up $250,000 to help fund George W. Bush's inaugural celebration.
Home builders of course are swayed by the prospect of having a nearly-finished building torched by arsonists. Luckily, they had Attorney General Ashcroft on their side, to bring the full weight of the Patriot Act to bear on the eco"terrorists". It clearly pays to be on the right side of this administration. Too bad there will be no more further chances to contribute to Bush inaugural galas.