What are the positions on Global Warming?

Climate Change is so dangerous as to justify violence and sabotage to fight it

Question: What are the positions on Global Warming?
Position‹3 of 3: Radical environmentalists
Argument1 of 2›: Climate Change is so dangerous as to justify violence and sabotage to fight it

Global warming is a threat so big that violent acts and sabotage are necessary to stop it.

The argument

Many movements, such as the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), Earth Liberation Front (ELF), and Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), are frustrated and outraged with climate change and government response to it. These organizations, along with others, support the use of violence or criminal activity to spur policymakers to action. We are destroying the environment with our modern society, and the steps being taken to negate this are either too slow or not enough. Direct and often violent action is the only way to force the world to solve environmental issues. Ecoterrorists use actions such as burning, bombing, and vandalism of environment-harming businesses or enterprises in order to get the message across that climate change needs desperate attention. This can include the destruction of car dealerships, housing developments, oil or logging stations, whaling boats, and more. Direct and destructive action is the only way to ensure that environmental problems will be listened to and dealt with.

Premises

[P1]Groups like the Animal Liberation Front and Earth Liberation Front are outraged that the destruction of the environment continues while government responses remain too slow. [P2] They believe direct, often violent action — burning, bombing, and vandalizing environment-harming businesses — is the only way to force action. [P3] Such sabotage of car dealerships, oil stations, and whaling boats is meant to make environmental problems impossible to ignore. [C] Therefore, because climate change is dangerous enough to justify violence and sabotage, this is the view of radical environmentalists.

Counter-arguments

Although environmental issues are pressing, violence is not the answer. Legal policy and behavior alterations will be more effective than single acts of destruction in the name of the environment.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P2] Violence will not cause a peaceful solution.

Framing

Those who support this stance believe that climate change is a pressing issue worthy of violent action, and that violent action will aid in solving the problem.