'Earth Day co-founder killed, composted girlfriend'

By Thomas Lifson

That's the hilarious (and accurate) headline on a story today from MSNBC, of all places. And it's true. For those who don't remember:

Ira Einhorn was on stage hosting the first Earth Day event at the Fairmount Park in Philadelphia on April 22, 1970. Seven years later, police raided his closet and found the "composted" body of his ex-girlfriend inside a trunk.

A self-proclaimed environmental activist, Einhorn made a name for himself among ecological groups during the 1960s and '70s by taking on the role of a tie-dye-wearing ecological guru and Philadelphia's head hippie. With his long beard and gap-toothed smile, Einhorn - who nicknamed himself "Unicorn" because his German-Jewish last name translates to "one horn" -advocated flower power, peace and free love to his fellow students at theUniversity of Pennsylvania. He also claimed to have helped found Earth Day.

Einhorn is far from the first scoundrel to wrap himself in the banner of concern for the environment, of course. But it is appropriate on Earth Day to remember that elevating environmentalism over human beings is a poisonous doctrine.

Hat tip: Jerome J. Schmitt

Update from Rosslyn Smith:

I dislike it when vicious mountebanks like Einhorn became infamous while their victims remain nameless. Her name was Holly Maddux. and her family waited a long time to see justice done. She was an effervescent wisp of a blond from Tyler, Texas and a graduate of Bryn Mawr. Holly had ended an often abusive five year relationship with Einhorn by moving to New York. She only returned to Philadelphia because when she called to tell Einhorn that it was over for good and that she had a new boyfriend, Einhorn threatened to throw all her belongings out on the street if she didn't hurry back to retrieve them. She did and was never seen again.