You may hate SUVs; but read this if you have any thoughts of becoming an ecoterrorist!
It was late August 2003 in the Los Angeles area when more than 125 SUVs were vandalized with graffiti and a Hummer dealership was attacked with Molotov cocktails. Total damage was put at $5 million. Back then gas was cheap and the economy was starting to climb out of the depths of the dot-com bust. That was also the year the Hummer H2 was introduced, and the behemoth SUV quickly became the lightning rod for media attacks from environmentalists who saw them as gas hogs and consumer advocates who feared the vehicle's massive bulk would be a danger to smaller cars on the road.
The SUV vandals spray painted "ELF" on many vehicles that night. Standing for Earth Liberattion Front, that calling card struck fear into the owners of many SUVs, especially those who just plucked down $45,000 for a Hummer and spent another $20,000 on wheels, tires and audio. The ELF gained plenty of media attention but underground or not, there never seemed to be any recognizable leadership, organization or even spokesperson. That uncertainty and stealth-like attacks led to even more fear.
More following the break.
I used to take my morning walks along the boardwalk in front of multi-million-dollar homes in Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach. One day I noticed when one resident purchased a bright yellow Hummer H2. He always parked it on an uncovered carport next to his home since garage space is at premium on the waterfront. Right after the vandal attacks, the homeowner had outside security cameras installed. But instead of pointing them toward the front porch that butts up against the boardwalk to deter beachgoers from entering private property, the cameras were pointed on his Hummer's parking space.
The only person tried and convicted of the crime is William "Billy" Cottrell, a brilliant theoretical physicist from Cal Tech. Part of his defense was that he was just along for the ride and that a friend and his girlfriend were responsible for the firebombings. Cottrell was sentenced to eight years in prison while the other two were never found. This week the LA Weekly ran a lengthy story that focused on Cottrell's incarceration at two California facilities.
Cottrell, who has absolutely no ties to any radical movement, suffers from a high-fuctioning form of autism called Asperger's syndrome. He's great at math but lousy at social skills. Based on interviews with those close to the situation and letters with Cottrell, writer Judith Lewis paints a picture of prison life that is hardly conducive to rehabilitation or even punishment. Cottrell has had educational materials taken away from him. Authorities won't let him work near a water heater or a lawn mower for fear he'll fabricate a bomb. He tried to organize calculus classes for the inmates but was rebuffed. The guards and prison authorities have pinned the "terrorist" label on him. According to those close to Cottrell, he gets threats and taunts by officials as well other inmates. He has been banished to solitary and receives few privileges. Life is so bad for Cottrell, that he might be now forming the radical attitude for which he has been accused.
Cottrell's case is under two appeals; one because the jury did not hear of his autism and the other for a sentencing irregularity. Meanwhile his brilliant mind isn't allowed to cultivate new ideas or even be nourished with reading materials suited for his intellect. This story, as well as the letters that Cottrell wrote to the LA Weekly and links to other stories with significant background information, provide a keen insight into Cottrell but also into a penal system that still has trouble understanding its function in society.
[Source: Judith Lewis / LA Weekly]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tony Belding 5:57PM (3/03/2007)
Are we intended to feel sympathy for the poor, misunderstood terrorist? From where I sit, I'm perfectly happy to let Billy Cottrell's "brilliant mind" rot in the hole where his actions led him.
As for the function of the penal system in our society, that's a debate which goes back decades (at least) and I'm sure will stretch just as far into the future. I don't see how this case really opens up any new insight into the subject.
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Turbofrog 4:15AM (3/04/2007)
I'm sympathetic, mostly because I don't feel property destruction merits an 8 year sentence. We've developed a seriously skewed moral sense that defends materialism far too strongly.
On top of that, though, as soon as you affix the terrorism label to anything it gets politicized, which undoubtedly contributed to this being blown out of proportion.
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Jimmy 10:07AM (3/04/2007)
Terrorism: using violence against civilians for political or ideological goals
Spray painting vandalism is not enough to count as "violence", but arson with a gasoline accelerant is a felony, stupid and dangerous. The arson is enough to turn ideological vandalism into terrorism.
There is also some irony in ecoterrorists buying alot of gasoline for their attacks.
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Michael 11:01AM (3/04/2007)
I am sorry, we have had a 325% increase in our prison population since 1980. At the same time we can not jail corporations (which are considered individuals in the eyes of the law), for criminal neglect that results in deaths or maiming of people. Is what this kid did wrong? Yes! But, 8years? That is too much.
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frank78 1:16PM (3/04/2007)
8 years does seem alot considering the easy sentences that some criminals get. destruction of $5 million in property is no joke. perhaps a more appropriate measure would be to have put him in jail for 2 years and force him to pay back the $5 million by garnishing his income, even if it takes his whole life.
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lynne 7:33PM (3/04/2007)
The question is, who are you identifying with?
Are terrorists = "Them", the disgruntled OTHERS who are destroying "our" stuff in order to fill "us" with fear...or, are terrorists = "us", who are freedom fighters united (or not, as it were) against The Man in his pimped-out Hummer?
Personally, I think putting a physicist in prison is just ASKING for trouble. The movie "Formula 51" comes to mind. Who's gonna offer him a job when he gets "rehabilitated"? Where do you suppose he positions himself (now) in the "terrorists vs. US or Them" debate?
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MyGodBeatsYourGod 12:02PM (3/05/2007)
Yo Tony,
(Warning: Dripping sarcasm ahead.)
Sympathy? What are you folks talking about?
We are a Fascist nation controlled by Corporations that have ALL of OUR legal rights, BUT NONE of our legal RESPONSIBILITIES. (What CEO, or any human, does enough to earn $240,000,000 per year??!!)
WAKE UP. You all are being played like the sheeple you are. Label anybody something unpleasant (current nomenclature is "terrorist") and there is the control. The Mega-Rich and/or Republicans know this talking point like religion.
Our prisons are MOSTLY full of POOR people with DRUG addictions...your prevalent 1940's image of prison is naive. Gang-raped for 10 years for smoking a joint? If that sounds right to you...perhaps there is a small third-world country you should be dictator over.
We will stop the Fascism when the entire board of GM is imprisoned for dealing Hummers to begin with. We imprison Crack dealers, why not Hummer dealers? Both 'drugs' are self-worth modifying, addictive and destructive. (Free markets, indeed)
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Joe 7:43PM (3/09/2007)
Guy shoulda been crucified like the messianic lame brain he is.
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