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Lately on this page there has been a large amount of discussion about religious beliefs and the kind of behaviors that I believe religions encourage. Of course, religion is not the only igniter of fanaticism. Fanatics can be set off by politics, sports, rock music, or–in today’s case–environmentalism.
I spent my freshman year at the snug mountain town of Boone, N.C., and in my freshman political science class, we read “Ishmael” by Daniel Quinn. “Ishmael” is a popular novel/dialogue between a super-intelligent gorilla and a curious student. The gorilla tells a history of civilization as an abandonment of the environmentally friendly hunter-gatherer lifestyle. The agricultural revolution was the beginning of the end of humanity’s harmony with the Earth and that all of the problems with the environment today can be traced to that moment.
Last week, a man who claimed to be inspired by Daniel Quinn’s “Ishmael” books– James Lee — took control of the Discovery Channel/TLC headquarters in Washington, D.C. at gunpoint. He was armed and had two explosive canisters strapped to his back. He took numerous hostages, including children at the in-house day care. Eventually, he was shot dead by police and no hostages were harmed. His website is still open and provides a glimpse into the mind of an environmental fanatic.
On the web, Lee railed against Discovery for many things including its programming highlighting commercial fishing, which he claimed was destroying the environment. Taking his cue from Quinn’s “Ishmael” series, Lee demanded Discovery/TLC to cease airing shows that glorify overpopulation, such as “19 Kids and Counting,” and broadcast shows that highlight people, according to Lee, who aren’t breeding any more “parasitic human infants.” He charged the Discovery Channel with not caring about the environment and only about its corporate profits from fake ‘green’ causes.
Some of what Lee believed — particularly regarding TLC programming — is reasonable. He complained on his website that shows like “Kate plus 38” and “25,000 Kids and Counting” are horrendous because they encourage unhealthy population growth. I agree with his complaints, but only because I believe human life is precious and not something to be cranked out every year because of your wacky religious cult. Lee unfortunately crossed that thick line from Duggar derision to hatred of all children.
The moment fanatics separate from reasonable believers is when they turn from respect of the value of the life of the individual person. Unfortunately, Lee came to believe that it is acceptable to take human life — or at least endanger life — to save other people or the world in general. This is the mentality of all fanatics, zealots and nut-balls. This is the common link between Al Qaeda, Nazis, abortion clinic bombers, communist dictators and other monsters.
Environmentalism can become a quasi-religion and its followers can become zealots. Any good cause — political, religious or cultural — can be twisted by both leaders and followers. The two opposing philosophical camps in this fight are Humanists vs. Anti-humanists. Humanists value the individual, believe that human life is intrinsically valuable, and that morality is relatively solid. Anti-humanists believe that the group has priority over the individual, human life is disposable, and that morality is constructed and thus relative. It is not so cut and dry, though. You can be an atheistic humanist or a religious anti-humanist.
Even the most seemingly innocuous beliefs—like saving the planet—can breed anti-human fanatics. Don’t be afraid to question your political party or religious group to see if the hold anti-humanist beliefs. The next time your group leader — or the voice in your head — tells you that it is acceptable to harm others for the greater good: run away fast.