NIMBY

If any community agrees action X is required for the good of the whole community, the resistance of a subgroup of this community sparked by (short-term) disadvantages affecting this smaller group is known as NIMBY-behaviour.

Generally speaking, people will want to benefit from the advantages, but disadvantages are suddenly unacceptable. (Also see freerider).
We wanted to build a bunch of windmills near city Y, but those NIMBY idiots keep blocking our plans.
by minusforty September 13, 2008
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