When discussing the tree issue with idiots who adopt the "they's just some damn trees..." stance, it would be good to have a comparative analogy to possibly help them understand the gravity.
When you use 9-11 or Pearl Harbor (both completely appropriate in context) the pissy ass whiny bitches start mewling about "national tragedies" and "many people died." No shit. Everybody knows that. But the comparative symbolic relevance (key word symbolic) gets buried in the hyper sensitive drama of those who don't comprehend complexity. It's even happened here among our own -- who, frankly, should know better and disappoint with their responses.
That said, we need some relevant comparisons that wont cause the panty-wearers to immediately start shitting their thongs.
What about these?
Howard's Rock. The poisoning of the trees is akin to some rabid SC fan taking a pick axe and breaking Howard's Rock up into dust. It's just a rock, what's the big deal?
Traveler or Bevo. The poisoning of the trees is similar to somebody turning the USC horse or the Texas Longhorn into hamburger. It's just a horse. It's just a cow. Do you know how many horses and cows die every day? They can get another one.
The Grove. What if some Mississippi State poured radioactive waste on the Grove in Ole Miss, rendering it unfit for human habitation? It's just some grass. Hell, that'll grow back in 130 years when it quits glowing.
When you really consider it, there aren't a lot of traditions that have the staying power, the meaning or the history of the oaks at Toomers. And now I'm pissed off all over again.
It would be sort of like a vietnamese man taking a sledgehammer and destroying the wall in DC. Maybe that's a better analogy that will cause less pissing and consternation from the Chamberlains and Carters.