667 per centimeter

Climate Lamentation: Call & Response

(Updated 14th September 2018)

(At the site of the West Roxbury, MA, Spectra/Algonquin explosive pipeline)

Cry out! Cry out! Wail in lamentation for all that climate change has wrought … And will wreak upon the children and grandchildren, upon the poor and the disenfranchised, upon the dreams of families who wanted coastal homes to pass to future generations, upon communities, once thriving, decimated because Nature took their land back, according to Her inexorable Law.

The most foolish response to the fact of climate disruption is continuing to expand fossil fuel infrastructure. It is imperative, and it is morally imperative this be stopped.

(In the pictures below, simply clicking upon them will produce a larger image. Return to the presentation by using your browser Back Button.)

A moral group, a brave group, choose to say No, “You … shall not … pass!”. And, on 29th June 2016, a group, including my beloved Claire, were the latest in hundreds to risk arrest, to use arrest to stop a malevolent intrusive upon a peaceful community, one completely opposed to the act.

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 MaryB, Buddhist nun

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 Rabbi F

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 2

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 funeral 5

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 funeral 4

In the morning, an attempt to stop construction was met with a wall of police presence. This could not be challenged, since touching a police officer is a very serious offense.

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 funeral2

Accordingly, the group retreated to a nearby church to regroup, and to plan.

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 regroup

And in the afternoon …

13501796_860340564109300_9181178893876821754_n

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WRL NVDA 6-29-16 the hole

My beautiful wife, Claire, stopping construction, ready to get arrested (in red shirt, left):

IMG9544461

Claire’s Support, Andrea, and Claire’s arresting officer:

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 Andrea and my arresting officer

In the holding cell:

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 holding cell

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 holding cell Jane, Rev Kate, Rev Lindsay, Rev Rali, Paul A

WRL NVDA 6-29-16 KathyH Jane, Revs kate, Heather, Lindsay

And upon bail payment and release, later in the day, the brave group:

0629162026

Update, 2016-06-30, 21:04 EDT

An excellent Vimeo video of the entire day:
https://vimeo.com/172830747

Update, 2016-07-01

I neglected to mention yesterday, that Karenna Gore, the daughter of former Vice President Al Gore, whose movie, “An Inconvenient Truth” was the first popular introduction to many people regarding the climate crisis, took part and was arrested at this action along with 22 others.

Update, 2016-07-01, 17:47 EDT and 23:40 EDT

Sweeet! News coverage:

http://bcove.me/48xq5i7s

http://www.democracynow.org/2016/6/30/karenna_gore_daughter_of_al_gore

http://www.democracynow.org/2016/6/30/tim_dechristopher_on_climate_activism_in

Update, 29th March 2018

The finale, documented here.

Judge Mary Ann Driscoll of West Roxbury District Court decided it was necessary for the protesters to engage in civil disobedience to block the construction of Spectra Energy’s high-pressure fracked gas pipeline and acquitted the activists of civil infractions, according to media reports.

The judge made the decision after hearing each defendant’s testimony. They argued the threat of climate change necessitated their civil disobedience.

Update, 2018-04-04, 16:02 EDT

Major article on the West Roxbury Lateral protests and the decision above in The New Yorker.

Update, 2018-09-14, 17:52 EDT

Distribution line fires in Lawrence and Andover, Massachusetts, 13th September 2018, on Columbia Gas lines.

Responses

  1. Much ado about explosive methane | 667 per cm

    […] frankly, after the approval of the West Roxbury Lateral pipeline despite protests, in which I took part, it was pretty clear the only way to stop these projects […]

    Reply
  2. Natural Gas Companies are Doing Themselves In | Hypergeometric

    […] On the other hand, Schlotterbeck has continued to acknowledge the pipeline situation, particularly in the eastern United States, is a big headache. That’s terrific. […]

    Reply
  3. Greg Robie Avatar
    Greg Robie

    The Judge’s ruling is a much more comforting one than how the Wawayanda 6 trial played out here. This Judge chose to not address the science regarding the necessity defense argument. 44’s/Clinton’s “all of the above” ‘policy’/BAU-by-another-name is the politically expedient response to the existential threat of CapitalismFail’s innate abrupt climate change; its trusted GREED-as-go[]d [responsibility] free markets.

    Looking at the sisterhood of backward collar folk in the pictures I think: Tim DeChristopher. Now a UU pastor in his own right, not only is he pictured in the trench, but has tilled the soil for this civil disobedience action-as-story. To the degree we are in a time parametrized by the systemic irresponsibility of limited liability law enabled responsibility-free markets of GREED-as-go[]d CapitalismFail, and my own experiences derived from civil disobedience relative to the Vietnam “police action”, CD-as-action may not be the action that is assumed. For those who have not engaged in CD, and have had time – like me – to reflect on it, perhaps the perception that investments can be fossil carbon free could become a personal Rubicon for grasping a strategic failure of imagination that is missing from otherwise intended piety.

    As I write this I’m listening to Tim’s most recent webcast that is now prefaced with the news that a jury trial was avoided via Wall Street’s effectively executed Game Theory that 44/Clinton champion … but that the CD defendants are acquitted of the equilivant of a parking ticket.

    What is this denegrating of acts of conscience, if not tyranny … in our time of #tyrannyNrevolution?

    Reply
  4. Gas leaks from the newly built West Roxbury Lateral transmission line | Hypergeometric

    […] West Roxbury Lateral (“WRL”) has long been the subject of protest, opposition, and conflict regarding the […]

    Reply
  5. Okay, Jan, so what’s your view on climate change? | Hypergeometric

    […] We advocate for environmental change, and limiting suburban sprawl, and protest where necessary. […]

    Reply
  6. Paul Emile Anders Avatar
    Paul Emile Anders

    Jan, an awesome account of 29 June. Many thanks.

    Reply
    1. hypergeometric Avatar
      hypergeometric

      Thank you, Paul. I am honored by your comment, and your service in the cause of bringing attention to both the climate crisis and the need to both stop increasing fossil fuel infrastructure and shrinking the infrastructure we have. And I am happy to have been in Support to you for the action on the 23rd of April.

      Reply

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About the author

Sophia Bennett is an art historian and freelance writer with a passion for exploring the intersections between nature, symbolism, and artistic expression. With a background in Renaissance and modern art, Sophia enjoys uncovering the hidden meanings behind iconic works and sharing her insights with art lovers of all levels. When she’s not visiting museums or researching the latest trends in contemporary art, you can find her hiking in the countryside, always chasing the next rainbow.