The US Department of Agriculture had no choice but to have black currants banned because the plants became a vector for a disease that threatened to annihilate all pines in America
It sometimes startles me how disconnected some people are from nature. I can't imagine all our pine trees dying off, it seems utterly horrific. It would be devastating to biodiversity and I would deeply miss the trees themselves. But to the author:
> It might seem extreme, but this measure was necessary to save the logging industry at that time.
And later:
> The situation has turned so serious that it threatened the existence of US pines. As they are the main element of the logging industry, it must have been dealt with as soon as possible.
