pixie v. to practice sabotage as an expression of environmental politics. Editorial Note: Pixieing can range from mischievous to criminal acts, including occupying a site, crippling machinery, or removing survey markers. Etymological Note: The article cited in the Oct. 2004 citation says, “The Earth Liberation Front initial ELF led to the use of the term ‘elf’ and then to ‘pixie-ing.’” (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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Isn’t there already a term pixie-ing…umm “eco-terrorism”? Pixies are a small troublesome group of fairies, althoug I believe Tinkerbell was one. I mean I’m totally up for learning new slang terms but, aren’t we kind of mudding up the English language a bit? Not affended so much as worried about how words seem to be losing there actual meanings. After-all, if there is already a slang term for it (although I guess one has an issue with the word “Terrorism” now-days)why change the meaning of a fairly charming word to something slightly ugly.
There are a couple of ways I disagree with what you’re saying, Catherine. First, “ecoterrorism” is not a perfect synonym with “pixieing” (that vowel sequence is strange, eh?). Ecoterrorism does not include things as simple as removing surveying boundaries. It can also describe much more severe acts, including despoiling or destruction of land, which are actions take by people who do not respect the environment, whereas “pixieing” is carried out by people who claim to want to protect the Earth and would not ordinarily do things like setting forests alight. Second, “ecoterrorism” is used mostly by some people of an anti-activist mindset to describe the actions of activists, and by some people of an anti-development/anti-mining mindset to describe the actions of developers or mining companies, while “pixieing” is used by some activists themselves.
This is a good point Grant, that Eco-terrorism is more of a derogatory than a descriptive word, however it is my concern that Pixie will also be considered one if used in that way. Lol, not that the word hasn’t had it’s own share of misuse already. I am however, not altogether sure about Eco-terrorists despoiling the land(seems counter-productive), although I have heard of them spiking trees.
It’s not that ecoterrorists (meaning pro-environmental activists) are despoiling the land, it’s that people who despoil the land are sometimes called ecoterrorists. The word “ecoterrorist” has different uses depending upon your political point of view.
Someone called me a little pixie.
Does that mean they think that I am the cause of something bad that I don’t know about?
Really how wide spread is this meaning?