Back in January, Gov. Bob McDonnell staged a strategic retreat on the question of whether to lift the state’s uranium mining ban. He favored giving the issue more study, satisfying the Republican legislators representing Pittsylvania county. They alledged that a precipitous rush to lifting the ban could result in unforeseen consequences. More study, more public input, and maybe a nice long nap, were needed.
It was a classic dodge. But even the most artful of those Republican dodgers probably didn’t anticipate this:
A proposed uranium mine in Southside Virginia will face lawsuits and civil disobedience if the state decides to allow mining, environmentalists said Monday.
Ken Ferruccio of Warren County, N.C., even indicated some activists might resort to illegal “monkey wrenching,” such as damaging construction equipment.
Ah, monkey wrenching. Or eco-terrorism, in the FBI’s eyes. Even Earth First! is a bit leery of resorting to such tactics:
Any person openly spouting off about sabotage should be avoided, as they may either be a wingnut or an agent provocateur.
Pot, meet kettle.
While threats of eco-terrorism are likely no more than that, that the possibility has even arisen shows that more study of the decades-long ban on uranium mining has already failed — spectacularly — to give the local pols the political cover they so desperately wanted.
If anything, it’s made things much worse.
Though I won’t be surprised if the next strategic retreat on the ban is to make it permanent, so as to avoid the possibility of an “agent provocateur” doing something stupid.
