Environ-What?

People in the first world, particularly those “good intentioned” ones, like to look down at third world people who burnt down forests to make farmland. At least these people are fighting for the livelihoods and survival. The “good intentioned” ones put on the grand altruistic mask of environmentalism to make a few more dollars. We all quite rightly shunt the woman who cut down trees in the part to get a better view for her apartment. But when the same motive is applied towards saving a few trees, then the selfish interest all of a sudden turned into righteous sacrifice. Take the bluff alone the Sea-to-Sky Highway that demonstrators are trying to save for example. They are all saying that expending the road over it destroy a precious unique environment. If this argument holds then it must be the single most micro of environments. But the few trees there do not have enough wood to build half of a house that they live in. They want a tunnel drilled to save the bluff but not one of them say they would pay more taxes themselves to cover the extra cost. This is hypocritical because the real reason is not environmentalism but protection of their property value. The reason is profit, plain and simple. It is not about the environment but their environment, their financial environment. They are in reality asking us all to pay for the improvements to their property value while refusing to do the same for the rest of us. Make no mistake, with better roads their property value will increase. Meanwhile we somehow have to pay more and get less while they are the one who voted in the service cutting government to begin with. It is a pretty wonderful thing: they want better roads, better views, less taxes, more money, others to pull themselves up by their bootstraps while doing their biddings. I am an environmentalist, but not like that!