Despite the fervour of social media it is rare to see a federal politician in handcuffs and under arrest, so an old photo of Steven Guilbeault, who until Thursday was a member of cabinet, always piques curiosity, perhaps now even more because the circumstances of his resignation and of his 2001 arrest intertwine.

Guilbeault’s resignation, his turning away from the profile, influence and salary of a cabinet minister on a point of principle — which is opposing an agreement by Ottawa with Alberta to push for a new oil pipeline — rekindles a sense of fire in his belly that he had when first making news as an environmental activist, a reckless radical in the eyes of opponents.

His resignation is perhaps his biggest act of disobedience since his last arrest as a Greenpeace activist, when he sc

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