The Age published an oped today slamming the Federal Government's commendable decision to means test its $8000 subsidy of solar panels excluding those pulling in $2000 a week. Its author is a criminal eco-terrorist Alan Gray.
The OC's rural issues reporter has let us know that Alan Gray attacked the offices of a government department on February 1st 2002 when he drove a rental car through the doors of the offices of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment in Nicholson Street to supposedly protest logging, injuring a young patriot security guard just trying to do his job protecting office workers from middle class violent Greens Party militants.
A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH AN ECO-TERRORIST
The Herald Sun at the time reported (Feb 2, 2002 offline) :
ANTI-LOGGING protesters yesterday drove a car into the offices of Environment Minister Sherryl Garbutt.
A security guard was injured when the conservationists drove a rented Volkswagen Beetle up the footpath and through the doors of the Natural Resources and Environment building in East Melbourne about 10.30am.
A guard's foot was run over and his back hurt as he tried to stop the car.
Driver Alan Gray chained his left wrist to the gear stick and refused to budge for almost 90 minutes.
Outside, fellow Cobaw and Wombat Forest Action Group members sought to meet Ms Garbutt so they could present a transition plan to end woodchipping and clearfelling in the state's native forests.
Spokesman Marcus Ward said the Government had for three years ignored the conservationists' alternative forestry plans. "So we felt we had to come up with a more dramatic way to get it through,'' he said.
But a spokesman for Ms Garbutt, who was in Gippsland yesterday, accused the protesters of dangerous grandstanding.
Spokesman Ben Hart said the Government had not seen the group's current logging plan but had examined an earlier proposal and dismissed it as deeply flawed.
"They have not contacted our office seeking to show us this new transition package,'' he said.
"This is just grandstanding. . . . They just want to get on the news.''
Police and Environment and Natural Resources officials branded the protest dangerous and irresponsible.
An unrepentant Mr Gray, who was dressed in a suit and tie, emerged after the car was pushed outside the Nicholson St building by police and security guards, to announce similar protests could be staged in the future.
Mr Gray, a book and magazine publisher from Trentham, was arrested and is expected to be charged on summons with conduct endangering life, assault, assault with a weapon and besetting premises.
The injured security guard, aged in his 20s, was treated at hospital before being released.
Game on.
