Why are ecologists and environmentalists so feared and hated? This is because in part what they have to say is new to the general public, and the new is always alarming.

Hardin suggests that hostility toward ecologists and environmentalists is not only political or economic but also psychological: people often react defensively to unfamiliar ideas that threaten settled habits and assumptions. By framing environmental warnings as “new” knowledge, he implies that public resistance can stem from the discomfort of revising one’s worldview—especially when the message carries implications of limits, restraint, or collective responsibility. The quote also hints at a broader theme in Hardin’s work: that ecological thinking forces society to confront constraints (finite resources, carrying capacity) that many prefer to ignore, and that messengers of such constraints are therefore treated as alarmists or enemies.