As part of her punishment for aiding the Earth Liberation Front in burning $40 million worth of property, ecoterrorist Rebecca Rubin has been sentenced to read David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell and Nature’s Trust by Mary Christina Wood.U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken also ordered Rubin to serve 5 years in prison and pay $13 million in restitution.
Aiken apologized for her actions in a letter in which she also detailed how she became an animal rights activist after reading books as a child. Here is an excerpt:
For as long as I can remember, I have been sensitive to the suffering of animals. My favorite books as a child were Charlotte’s Web and Beautiful Joe, both which centre on mistreated non-human protagonists. I gave my grade seven speech on cruelty to animals, and I read and wrote on environmental and animal issues throughout middle and high school.My whole life I wanted (or wished I was) a veterinarian, and were it not for the cruelty inflicted on animals in the schooling, I believe that I would have pursued that goal. (Via NBC News).