Domestic Terrorism

The "Intelligence Report" is a periodical issued by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The article is quite interesting, but is oddly focused just on the "right-wing" radical groups. Though I believe the site is primarily focused on "hate" crimes. Though I would have thought that the Eco-terrorism that has been seen could fall into the hate crime category.

Ten years after the Oklahoma City bombing left 168 people dead, the guardians of American national security seem to have decided that the domestic radical right does not pose a substantial threat to U.S. citizens.

A draft internal document from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that was obtained this spring by The Congressional Quarterly lists the only serious domestic terrorist threats as radical animal rights and environmental groups like the Animal Liberation Front and the Earth Liberation Front. But for all the property damage they have wreaked, eco-radicals have killed no one — something that most definitely cannot be said of the white supremacists and others who people the American radical right.

I guess I have an issue with them being so upset concerning a draft internal document. Being a draft doesn't mean it was or, was ever intended to be, policy. Am I in error calling this an over-reaction?

Read the article. It provides data that is very indicative of how dangerous the Wing-Nut Right really are. I honestly believe that there are far more violent radical groups on the right. That would likely be the reason that the SPLC has few articles on eco-terrorism.

Though the Eco-terrorism articles are there. Check them out.

Extremists within the environmental and animal rights movements have committed literally thousands of violent criminal acts in recent decades — arguably more than those from any other radical sector, left or right.

Although these extremists have yet to kill anyone in America, they have carried out arsons, firebombings, assaults, and attacks on animal-based businesses and laboratories.

"Have yet to kill anyone" is accurate. I would also point out that they have likely pulled back from the more radical violent actions due to new American legislation and policy on terrorism. No longer will their actions be viewed under the simple actions with the related penalties. Now there will be the addition of terrorism charges with all the extra penalties.