Article content

The environmental protesters who are determined to throttle Alberta’s oil industry are so invested in the narrow, regressive world of their own doom-laden vision of the future, and the fanatic, narcissistic righteousness that is the hallmark of that vision, that they see themselves as having a licence to to do just about anything, no matter how morally reprehensible, in the pursuit of their cause.

Civilized debate, respect for one’s opponents, listening to differing opinions and good manners: these are the practices and mores of every other social and political exchange, and are necessary for reasoned debate to take place in a democratic society. Yet the anti-pipeline zealots seems to think that these standards don’t apply to them.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Rex Murphy: The environmental crowd knows no compromise Back to video

Witness that gruesome, arrogant invasion of the National Energy Board (NEB) hearing into the Energy East pipeline in Montreal this week. Three — just three — typically overzealous pipeline justice warriors flamed into the hearing room on Monday, screaming, “It has to stay in the ground.” One of them charged the panel members sitting at the front of the room, forcing the RCMP to subdue and shackle the bellicose buffoon. It was, of course, a stunt — precisely the kind of stunt that passes for protest these days, whenever the save-the-planet gang smells a camera in the distance, a headline in the making or an opportunity derail any legitimate airing of a contentious public issue.