--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You think OWS is radical? You think…" description: "\"You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C. in August against the Keystone Pipeline? W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg" --- # You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical… ![“You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C. in August against the Keystone Pipeline? We're not radical. Radicals work for oil companies. The CEO of Exxon gets up every morning and goes to work changing the chemical composition of the…” quote by Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg) > “You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C. in August against the Keystone Pipeline? We're not radical. Radicals work for oil companies. The CEO of Exxon gets up every morning and goes to work changing the chemical composition of the atmosphere. No one has ever done anything as radical as that, not in all of human history.” [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that true radicalism is corporate environmental destruction, not grassroots activism. **In simple terms:** Corporate actions are the real radical threat. Key Takeaway Focus on confronting corporate climate harm. Themes environment activism radicalism corporate responsibility Mood urgent determined defiant Type political activist When to use this quote - protests - policy advocacy - community organizing - public education Key Concepts climate change civil disobedience environmental justice Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals hold corporations accountable? - What strategies amplify activist impact? A Different Perspective Corporate power can overwhelm grassroots efforts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [August](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/august/) [Ceo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ceo/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Civil disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-disobedience/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disobedience/) [Environmental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmental/) [Environmentalist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmentalist/) [Every morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-morning/) [Human history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-history/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Keystone pipeline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keystone-pipeline/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Oil companies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oil-companies/) [Pollution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pollution/) [Radical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radical/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [We spend a lot of time playing defence against bad things. So, in the US, one of the focusses has been this huge Keystone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-spend-a-lot-of-time-playing-defence-against-bad-things-so-in-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [What I've started to realize is that social media is not just technology - it's become its own entity, full of energy waves. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-somerhalder/what-i-ve-started-to-realize-is-that-social-media-is-not-just/) [Ian Somerhalder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-somerhalder/) > [Why is the Keystone Pipeline the very first, #1 item on the Republicans' agenda? We know that this pipeline runs terrible environmental risks and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/why-is-the-keystone-pipeline-the-very-first-1-item-on-the-republicans/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [But remember this: all of these people that we're talking about, they're friends of mine. They all love the Keystone Pipeline, right? The Keystone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/but-remember-this-all-of-these-people-that-we-re-talking-about-they/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The Senate came one vote short of granting approval to build the Keystone pipeline. Democrats say the pipeline could accelerate global warming. Then people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/the-senate-came-one-vote-short-of-granting-approval-to-build-the/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [We've also taken steps to begin construction of the keystone pipeline and the Dakota access pipelines, thousands and thousands of jobs, and put new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-ve-also-taken-steps-to-begin-construction-of-the-keystone-pipeline/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The Keystone pipeline would add to our domestic supply. It would help us with energy independence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-keystone-pipeline-would-add-to-our-domestic-supply-it-would-help/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [An imposing wall prominently divides the visions of President Obama and congressional Republicans when it comes to economic growth and creating jobs. Solyndra is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-upton/an-imposing-wall-prominently-divides-the-visions-of-president-obama/) [Fred Upton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-upton/) > [The Keystone pipeline will spew a massive amount of carbon pollution into our fragile atmosphere. It should be stopped.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/the-keystone-pipeline-will-spew-a-massive-amount-of-carbon-pollution/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [The Keystone Pipeline decision has taken longer than it took us to defeat Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-heitkamp/the-keystone-pipeline-decision-has-taken-longer-than-it-took-us-to/) Heidi Heitkamp > [I believe, along with Pope Francis and almost all scientists, that climate change is threatening this planet in horrendous ways, and that we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-believe-along-with-pope-francis-and-almost-all-scientists-that/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I think a lot of the reason people are attracted to the Keystone pipeline is because at least we're doing something. There's a fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zephyr-teachout/i-think-a-lot-of-the-reason-people-are-attracted-to-the-keystone/) [Zephyr Teachout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zephyr-teachout/) > [Here in New York City, it's cold. It's so cold the Republicans want to use the Keystone Pipeline to deliver soup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/here-in-new-york-city-it-s-cold-it-s-so-cold-the-republicans-want-to/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [That's why people are standing up again to fight the Keystone pipeline in Nebraska and South Dakota and Montana. Everyone is well aware of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/that-s-why-people-are-standing-up-again-to-fight-the-keystone/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [The Keystone Pipeline is one common-sense step in the right direction to help put more people back to work, reduce prices at the pump,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-blunt/the-keystone-pipeline-is-one-common-sense-step-in-the-right-direction/) [Roy Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-blunt/) ## More by Bill McKibben > [I try not to be either optimistic or pessimistic. I try not to think about outcomes on that scale. My job, it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-try-not-to-be-either-optimistic-or-pessimistic-i-try-not-to-think/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Oil companies are radical because they're willing to alter the chemical composition of the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/oil-companies-are-radical-because-they-re-willing-to-alter-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Whenever anyone challenges anything, the powers that be try to paint them as extremists or radicals or whatever. And I think that's actually nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/whenever-anyone-challenges-anything-the-powers-that-be-try-to-paint/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [My guess is that liberating the fossil fuel industry to frack anywhere they want will drive down the rate at which we're converting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/my-guess-is-that-liberating-the-fossil-fuel-industry-to-frack/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [What makes us different? We're the creature that can decide not to do something that we are capable of doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/what-makes-us-different-we-re-the-creature-that-can-decide-not-to-do/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“The snow was coming down so hard. It looked like the flakes were hurrying to get out of the sky so the next ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-snow-was-coming-down-so-hard-it-looked-like-the-flakes-were/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Most of the men and women who vote in Congress each year to continue subsidies have taken campaign donations from big energy companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/most-of-the-men-and-women-who-vote-in-congress-each-year-to-continue/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“I’ve sat behind a microphone and listened for decades as Americans learned to stop talking with each other and start shouting instead. No discussions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-ve-sat-behind-a-microphone-and-listened-for-decades-as-americans/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [People in low-lying countries like Bangladesh with almost 140 million people who are managing to feed themselves, whose carbon emissions can't really be calculated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/people-in-low-lying-countries-like-bangladesh-with-almost-140-million/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We're putting more carbon into the atmosphere than the atmosphere can absorb. And everybody told us when we started, coz we knew nothing when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-re-putting-more-carbon-into-the-atmosphere-than-the-atmosphere-can/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Everything that the administration has done has been counterproductive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everything-that-the-administration-has-done-has-been-counterproductive/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We use the web to help people organize in the flesh, and then we take the images of those events and put them back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-use-the-web-to-help-people-organize-in-the-flesh-and-then-we-take/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [everyone knows, at some level, that the sharp line between "good weather" and "bad weather" is a fiction, that we need rain as surely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everyone-knows-at-some-level-that-the-sharp-line-between-good-weather/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [The thing about global warming is that you can address it on a great number of levels - in fact you have to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-thing-about-global-warming-is-that-you-can-address-it-on-a-great/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Where people aren't as deeply reliant on fossil fuel as in the United States, it's far easier for them to imagine change on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/where-people-aren-t-as-deeply-reliant-on-fossil-fuel-as-in-the-united/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) [Explore all 299 Bill McKibben quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## More Atmosphere quotes > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Man will not always stay on Earth; the pursuit of light and space will lead him to penetrate the bounds of the atmosphere, timidly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/man-will-not-always-stay-on-earth-the-pursuit-of-light-and-space-will/) [Konstantin Tsiolkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/) > [Pause before you get home and prepare your heart. A peaceful heart leads to a peaceful atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-burns/pause-before-you-get-home-and-prepare-your-heart-a-peaceful-heart/) [Jim Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-burns/) > [Sometimes a minute is really the difference between success and failure. There are times when you finish with ten seconds left, and one extra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-symon/sometimes-a-minute-is-really-the-difference-between-success-and/) [Michael Symon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-symon/) > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“Atmosphere" is a massive song. A lot of people say it's their favorite Joy Division song, but it's not mine; it reminds me too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hook/atmosphere-is-a-massive-song-a-lot-of-people-say-it-s-their-favorite/) [Peter Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hook/) > [Establish an atmosphere that energizes you. Some creative people flourish in confusion; others need to be free from interruption. Many prepare themselves for work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/establish-an-atmosphere-that-energizes-you-some-creative-people/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [Each year we pump at least six billion tons of heat-trapping carbon into the innermost layer of our atmosphere, whose outer extent is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-gelbspan/each-year-we-pump-at-least-six-billion-tons-of-heat-trapping-carbon/) [Ross Gelbspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-gelbspan/) > [It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/it-was-clear-to-me-that-the-white-house-s-solemn-atmosphere-would-not/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [“Bjerknes had come up with equations capable of describing the behavior of the atmosphere. The state of the atmosphere at any point could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullen/bjerknes-had-come-up-with-equations-capable-of-describing-the/) [Heidi Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullen/) > [What one thing does the world need most today-apart, that is, from the all-inclusive thing we call righteousness? Aren't you inclined to agree that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/what-one-thing-does-the-world-need-most-today-apart-that-is-from-the/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [ Jowett, in his day, did probably more than any other single man to let some fresh air into the exhausted atmosphere of the \[Oxford\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-jowett/jowett-in-his-day-did-probably-more-than-any-other-single-man-to-let/) [Benjamin Jowett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-jowett/) Browse all 1,572 Atmosphere quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C. in August against the Keystone Pipeline? We're not radical. Radicals work for oil companies. The CEO of Exxon gets up every morning and goes to work changing the chemical composition of the atmosphere. No one has ever done anything as radical as that, not in all of human history.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill McKibben" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-org-was-radical-for-helping/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atmosphere" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-org-was-radical-for-helping/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/bill-mckibben-1057_atmosphere_you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-o_2240660.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C…” — Bill McKibben", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bill McKibben", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You think OWS is radical? You...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-org-was-radical-for-helping/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-org-was-radical-for-helping/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```