Showing posts with label sovereign citizens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sovereign citizens. Show all posts

Monday, February 15, 2016

Cliven Bundy Arrested

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Previous Related Posts:
Oregon Standoff Ends Peacefully
Bad Week for Ammon Bundy - Busted
Malheur Occupation Enters Third Week
Bundy Militia Invades Oregon
Bundy Family Shows Up to support Fiore Land Bill
Bundy Ranch Supporters Have Sniper Denial
Wingnuts Declare Victory as Feds Leave Bundy Ranch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The night before the final four hold-outs surrendered at Malheur Refuge, Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy flew into Portland, Oregon, possibly to meet with the lawyers for his sons Ammon and Ryan. Rumor has it he was supposed to fly in with Michele Fiore, who brokered the surrender deal, but he got waylaid somehow. Another rumor is that Fiore set Bundy up to be arrested while she went off to help the FBI negotiate with the final four at Malheur.

At any rate, the Feds had a surprise for Cliven on the tarmac:

From OPB.org
. . . one of Cliven Bundy’s bodyguards waited at the Portland airport for Spirit Airlines flight 869 to arrive from Las Vegas.
The flight landed at 10:06 p.m., 13 minutes before it was scheduled to land, but Cliven Bundy never met-up with that bodyguard. “The bodyguard thought something was wrong,” said Bailey Logue, Cliven Bundy’s daughter. “He called us and told us he was hearing a SWAT team met the plane, and that dad didn’t come out.”
Logue said the family learned the Bundy patriarch was arrested through social media. Shortly after, they called the Multnomah County Detention Center, where officers confirmed Bundy was in custody.
. . .

From Oregonian
Bundy, 69, was booked into the downtown Multnomah County jail at 10:54 p.m.
He faces a conspiracy charge to interfere with a federal officer -- the same charge lodged against two of his sons, Ammon and Ryan, for their role in the Jan. 2 takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Burns. He also faces weapons charges.
The Bundy Ranch Facebook page reported Cliven Bundy was surrounded by SWAT officers and detained after his arrival from Nevada.
He was arrested at 10:10 p.m., authorities said.
The Bundy patriarch had traveled to Portland with plans to go on to Burns, where four occupiers had been the remaining holdouts of the refuge occupation.

From OregonLive
"Many Nevadans would say, 'It's about time,'" said Eric Herzik, professor and chair of the University of Nevada-Reno's political science department.
"But why has Bundy been treated as above the law?" he said. "The feds have shown incredible restraint -- perhaps to the point of consternation by folks who don't see eye to eye with the Bundy gang."
In a report four months after the ranch confrontation, the U.S. Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis warned that many militants viewed the standoff as "a defining victory over government oppression."
. . . If convicted, Bundy, 69, could face up to five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, up to 10 years on the obstruction charge, up to 20 years in prison on the assault interference charges and a mandatory minimum consecutive seven years on the firearm charge. He could also face fines of $250,000 per count.

32-Page Indictment against Bundy via Scribd

Cliven Bundy Criminal Complaint by KGW News



From the Bundy Ranch Facebook:

Cliven has been arrested and is being charged, apparently based on what happened in 2014 at Bundy Ranch.They keep...

Posted by Bundy Ranch on Thursday, February 11, 2016


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Friday, February 12, 2016

Oregon Standoff Ends Peacefully

photo goodbye.jpg

Previous Related Posts:
Bad Week for Ammon Bundy - Busted
Malheur Occupation Enters Third Week
Bundy Militia Invades Oregon
Bundy Family Shows Up to support Fiore Land Bill
Bundy Ranch Supporters Have Sniper Denial
Wingnuts Declare Victory as Feds Leave Bundy Ranch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What started several weeks ago with Ammon Bundy's invasion and takeover of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, ended peacefully on Thursday as the final four militia members were persuaded to turn themselves in to the FBI and go to jail. However, that followed almost 24 hours of nail-biting drama as various far-right sympathizers carried on a livestreaming dialogue with the hold-outs that was half-prayer eeting, half-defiance of authority. Nothing was certain until the last one gave up.

Cast of Characters - and remember, most of the people who negotiated with the final four were actually going against their own beliefs. In fact, Seim, Fiore, and Hall have been cheerleaders for the sovereign citizens movement and cheered on the Bundy Malheur Occupation! So the whole thing was quite surreal.

Gavin Seim: Owner of the anti-government YouTube Livestream that broadcast the final hours at Malheur

Michele Fiore: Meddling Nevada Assemblywoman who was at Bundy Ranch, she actually did a pretty good job of brokering the deal the night before after flying into Portland to consort with Ammon Bundy's lawyer. Although Fiore believes the same crazy stuff as the Bundy Militia, she accessed her non-crazy side and firmly told the final four they needed to respect the rule of law. At the same time she was quite motherly and sympathetic, asking them if they had eaten and if they had enough water. Slowly she won over Sean Anderson's wife Sandy, who was nearly hysterical at the idea of surrendering to the FBI, whom she was convinced would kill them on sight. They had a discussion about the movie "Braveheart" and the next day Sean Anderson gave himself up while playing a bagpipe dirge from that movie.

Franklin Graham: Son of evangelist Billy Graham and far-right icon, stayed on phone praying with hold-outs and agreed to be there during surrender, probably because it will be great for fundraising.



KrisAnne Hall: Far-right lawyer who came online to do some self-promotion of her strange anti-government Constitutional ideas during Seim's livestream. When David Fry balked at leaving his bunker, she kept trying to talk him into leaving with a mixture of Christian Bible stories comparing Fry to Jesus, which Fry threw back into her face by stating he wasn't a Christian anyway. At the last minute he told Seim and Hall that he had a gun to his head, Hall decided to be scolding instead of empathetic, leading listeners to wonder why she of all people was talking him down instead of a professional with psychological training.

In the end, David Fry ate a cookie and smoked a "last cigarette," then told an FBI negotiator that he was willing to come out if all the police would shout "Hallelujah," to which they eagerly agreed. The loud "Hallelujah" could be heard over the livestream as Seim and Hall sat in complete silence, listening. When it was over, Hall burst into tears saying she wanted a bath and a massage, because of course, it was all about her and not the troubled suicidal young man with a gun to his head.











Last hours on Seim's Livestream - Ending at 3:14:14
























From The Oregonian:

What happens next, from the FBI Statement:
  • The refuge will remain closed for "some number of weeks" as law enforcement maintains security checkpoints around the crime scene.
  • Agents are scouring the refuge to ensure no one else is there. Then they will search for bombs, which could take days.
  • Then  teams will document and collect evidence. Forensic examiners will work to recover and process computers and electronic devices. Collection could take several weeks, and analysis could take several months.
  • Other teams will work on cultural property investigations with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Burns Paiute Tribe to identify and document possible damage to artifacts and sacred burial grounds. The process could take weeks.
  • Through the process, the FBI will consult with Fish and Wildlife Service about returning the refuge to the agency.



The remains of "Camp Finicum"








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Monday, February 1, 2016

Bad Week for Ammon Bundy

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Ammon Bundy sits in jail in Portland Oregon along with most of the leaders of the Malheur Occupation in Burns. I say "most" because one of them is dead - LaVoy Finicum, otherwise known as "Tarpman" was killed by Federal agents when he tried to draw his pistol on them during a traffic stop.





Video of Finicum's death - warning, may be disturbing:





Later, the FBI let it be known that the "window was closing" for the rest of the scofflaws at Malheur Refuge, and if they wanted to skedaddle they'd better do it quickly. Most of them packed up and fled into the night, going back to wherever they came from. But four remained, now known as the "Bundy Gang":

via USA Today
The Oregonian identified those remaining at the refuge as David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio; and Sean Anderson, 47, his wife, Sandy, 48, and Jeff Banta, 46, of Elko, Nev.

Bundy's wife and lawyer tried calling the remaining four a few nights ago while the world watched on the Livestream. They pleaded with the four to go ahead and leave and offered to get them lawyers, mainly because Ammon and his brother Ryan were told by a judge that none of them will walk free until the refuge is back in government hands.

So this has become a Catch-22 situation. Bundy's freedom now depends on people who were called to Malheur by . . . Ammon Bundy. And they won't leave because Ammon and the late Finicum preached to them that "taking back" the land from the Feds was a cause worth dying for, and the reason they were heavily armed. Sean Anderson and his wife say they are convinced that God sent them there to "make a stand," which is exactly what Ammon said about the place -- before he got arrested. Now Ammon says he's made his point, he never meant it to be an "armed standoff," and is "done with Oregon," but apparently Oregon is not done with him.

Also the FBI seems to have finally cut off communication for the four remaining Militia members, and they have not livestreamed in about 48 hours.



The only member of the group
released so far is Shawna Cox, but that
turned out to be a "mistake." She returned
to Portland and was fitted with an ankle bracelet,
confined to her home in Nevada. While all this was
happening her son-in-law died in a fire.









One member "disappeared" from
Malheur the night Finicum Died:
Blaine Cooper
Whereabouts Unknown







~~~~~~~~~~~~









Some believe Santilli was a "snitch" all along:



















Sean Anderson, a member of the Wisconsin Militia, sounded off about how he was going to kill FBI members and it was all caught on video. But now he is afraid to leave because he doesn't want to be arrested for conspiracy like the rest of them. All four want to be "pardoned" and walk free because they were "left behind."





Meanwhile other militia types are distancing themselves
from the Bundy Gang.













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Monday, January 18, 2016

Bundy Malheur Occupation Enters Third Week

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Previous Related Post:
Bundy Militia Invades Oregon
------------

The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Oregon, remains the site of an occupation by several of rancher Cliven Bundy's sons and their sovereign-citizen firearm toting friends.

They remain holed-up in the office of a biologist while they stockpile grub and rant about the Feds. Meanwhile, law enforcement has taken a hands-off approach, allowing sympathizers to bring them food and moral support, and allowing the squatters to come and go, even to adjoining states to drum up support. This begs the question of whether the lukewarm reaction is because the Bundy freaks are too armed and dangerous, or merely too white.

If you are as frustrated as I am, sign the petition:



Of course the Feds want to "avoid another Ruby Ridge or Waco," which is the usual explanation. An yes, they are out in the middle of nowhere in the middle of winter, so perhaps the FBI and BLM are merely waiting them out until they get cabin fever. However, there are local people there who have to drive the same lonely roads, and who have been followed around by these creepy guys as they "protect" the land they claim as theirs. Not to mention the local Paiute tribe, who have the real claim to the land in the Malheur Refuge. Why has the Federal Government left the innocent people of Burns, Oregon, at the mercy of these backwards delusional crybabies with guns?





People did have some fun sending weird stuff to the Militia members, such as a bag of candy d***ks and some sex toys, and watching militia member John Ritzheimer melt down into a tantrum on a facebook video. But honestly - mail trucks and FedEx were able to deliver the stuff directly to the compound. No biggie french fry, except that these folks are criminals!




LaVoy Finicum, a 54-year-old Arizona rancher and one of the group’s leaders, says the siege will continue until the federal government cedes control of the 187,000-acre refuge to Harney County.
“It needs to be very clear that these buildings will never, ever return to the federal government,” says Finicum, who wears a cowboy hat and a Colt .45 pistol holstered on his hip.
. . . On Friday, one of the protesters was arrested in Burns and charged with theft of federal property after he drove a refuge pickup truck into town. It was the first arrest since the occupation began.
-- Washington Post



LaVoy Finicum or "Tarpman" ~ What A Guy!!!
Used foster children as "main source of income."





Refuge? What is a Refuge?







The self-described militia occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge disabled surveillance cameras around the area, saying the FBI had installed them to keep watch. “This in my opinion is unreasonable search,” said LaVoy Finicum, who is acting as a spokesman for the group. He then went on to goad law enforcement: “Come pick them up.”
-- Slate







On Saturday, Kierán Suckling, the executive director and founder of the environmental group Center for Biological Diversity, stood in the parking lot of the Refuge where the armed occupiers hold their daily press conferences.
“We’re here as the public to speak up for our lands and say this is public land, Bundy and your militia, go home,” Suckling said, holding a sign that read “Stop Bundy Land Grab.”
-- Oregon Public Broadcasting





Oregon Senator Martic Heinrich reached out to the Justice Department this weekend:



And law enforcement isn't totally ignoring the Bundy Militia:












But . . . he went back to Malheur:













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Saturday, January 9, 2016

Bundy Militia Invades Oregon

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One of the offspring of Nevada Rancher Cliven Bundy has invaded eastern Oregon to defend a couple of ranchers who set a fire and burned up some public land. Actually, the two ranchers (named Hammond) have surrendered to Federal prison for the next five years, but that didn't stop Ammon Bundy. No, he and some other militia nuts took over the office of a biologist at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, and have said they will not leave until their demands are met. They are demanding that the Federal Government "back off" and give all the public land to the ranchers for their cattle. Oh, and they want the Federal Government to stop enforcing inconvenient laws, like no arson and no overgrazing. Stuff like that.

Twitter has been on overdrive, labeling this group #YallQuaeda #WhiteISIS #YokelHaram #Cowliphate

Also see below for #tarpman and #BundySnackMovieTitles

Given the 5th grade education of Bundy and his pals, and their lack of knowledge about government, it's pretty much been a clown show from the beginning. Even the townspeople in nearby Burns, Oregon, some of whom are sympathetic to the Bundys and Hammonds, still want the militia to leave. The local Sheriff has met with Bundy and asked him politely to pack up and leave, but he refused - because he's just not that smart. While the FBI and Bureau of Land Management have taken a hands-off approach so far, I doubt this will last too much longer.

Meanwhile, please send snacks to the Bundy Militia because gosh darn golly-gee, they remembered the guns but forgot the food!



From the New York Times: "Crackpots in Cowboy Hats"
The leader, Ammon Bundy, is the son of Cliven Bundy, the deadbeat rancher and Fox News hero who still owes more than $1 million in unpaid grazing fees. The elder Bundy says he doesn’t recognize the government. The younger Bundy recognized it enough to get a federal loan guarantee for his fleet repair business in the rugged sprawl of Phoenix.
Ammon Bundy says God drove him to break into the offices of an agency that works on behalf of pileated woodpeckers, yellow warblers and other avian wonders. Bundy’s not leaving, he says, until land that we own — that is, every American citizen — is taken from us and given to some unnamed private entity.
Yes, it’s comical — white privilege mixed with a “Hee Haw” parody. The only thing Bundy and his fellow burglars have accomplished thus far is to leave behind enough evidence for prosecutors to file numerous criminal charges against them.

From Oregon Live
(Sheriff) Ward was accompanied to the remote location by Sheriffs Brian Wolfe of Malheur County and Andy Long of Tillamook County as well three rigs carrying heavily armed law enforcement officers.
Ward met Bundy on the side of Lava Bed Road, a handful of media surrounding the men. Bundy was accompanied by Ryan Payne, a self-styled militiaman from Montana.
Ward explained he was there to resolve the standoff. He said he didn't want anyone to get hurt.
"We need to find a peaceful resolution and get you guys out of here," he said.
Bundy, wearing his trademark cowboy hat, told Ward, "We mean no harm to anybody."
Bundy went into his oft-repeated comments about why the militants had arrived to take over the refuge.
"We're here for the people of Harney County," he said. "We're here because people were being ignored." He said citizens have complained over and over about federal land-use issues.
"Yet, sheriff, you would not address those concerns," Bundy said. "We're getting ignored again."
Ward replied, "I didn't come here to argue."
















Town Hall Meeting:







Local Paiute Tribe Speaks Out







Tarp Man
















Please Send Snacks!









































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Thursday, May 7, 2015

Holy Chinooks! Texans Fear #JadeHelm15 Takeover

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In the scary world of right-wing Obama-hating "alternative news" anything can become a conspiracy theory. But when there's a hint of the federal military being involved, then the Bizarro World of Alex Jones goes into full gimble-lock and they spin away into outer space like Apollo 13.

A bunch of loonies in Texas fear that Evil Emperor Obama has finally decided to "invade Texas" and start locking people into concentration camps so he can have a third term. Of course, they've been predicting this since 2008 when Obama was elected President, because what else would a Muslin Bolshevik Facist Socialist BLACK Kenyan Dictator do but herd white people around like a bunch of Cliven Bundy's cows? Git along little dogies!

From Alex Jones Info Wars
“Jade Helm is a challenging eight-week joint military and Interagency (IA) Unconventional Warfare (UW) exercise conducted throughout Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah and Colorado,” according to an unclassified military document announcing the training drill, which runs from July 15 through September 15.

Multiple branches of the US military, including Green Berets, Navy Seals, and the 82nd Airborne Division, will participate in the 8-week long exercise, which may result in “increased aircraft in the area at night.”

Troops will be tasked with honing advanced skills in “large areas of undeveloped land with low population densities,” and will work alongside “civilians to gain their trust and an understanding of the issues.”

The exercise, in which some participants will be “wearing civilian clothes and driving civilian vehicles,” lists Texas and Utah as “hostile” territory.


I have no problem with Utah and Texas being listed as "hostile." After all, the "Sovereign Citizens" in those states constantly threaten to secede or disobey the government. In fact, Jade Helm 15 could simply be an experiment to see just how much these nutjobs hate their country and want to shoot at our own military. What better way to teach Texas a lesson than to send in the troops for "exercises" with black helicopters just to drive them out of their minds and show them who is in control.

Now I sound like a conspiracy theorist, but seriously folks, the real pro is Greg Abbott, Governor and Top Clown of Texas. Now maybe he was just pandering to the Tea Party Libertarians, or maybe he is just crazy, but this looks really bad for Texas. Stop doing this stuff!

From the Austin-American Stateman:
Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday directed the Texas State Guard to monitor Operation Jade Helm 15 to make sure that Texans’ “safety, constitutional rights, private property rights and civil liberties will not be infringed.”
. . . it came amid concerns fueled by Texas talk radio host Alex Jones and his website, Infowars.com, that the military exercise might actually be a precursor to martial law.
“BREAKING! Texas Gov. To Send State Guard To Monitor #JadeHelm Exercise,” Jones tweeted on the governor’s announcement.
Concerns about Jade Helm 15 spilled over Monday night at packed special meeting of the Bastrop County Commissioners Court, where commissioners found themselves facing hostile questions for agreeing to let U.S. military forces train on private property in rural areas of the county this summer as part of the exercise.

After the Military calmly explained that is was just a military exercise, he rolled back the cray-cray:

From Statesmen:
"We are playing a pivotal role of government and that is to provide information for people who have questions,” Abbott said. “It is clear that people in Bastrop had questions, it’s clear from the questions I have received in my office that people have questions about it, and as governor and as government, I think we have an obligation to answer questions of citizens. And, by us working with the Special Operations Forces, we are able to provide information to citizens who were concerned about it.”

Rick Perry also put in his 2 cents worth, sounding less crazy than Abbott at least: "Trust the Military."
I think if you're one of these guys it’s okay to question your government — I do it on a pretty regular basis. The military's something else. "You know, I think our military is quite trustworthy. Civilian leadership – you can always question that, but not the men and women in uniform.




Then of course there is Louie Gohmert, another Texas Rodeo Clown. He just doesn't like that whole "hostile" label on Texas. Even if they sound hostile every day. And stupid. And hostile.

Gohmert via Vox
Once I observed the map depicting ‘hostile,' ‘permissive,' and ‘uncertain' states and locations, I was rather appalled that the hostile areas amazingly have a Republican majority, ‘cling to their guns and religion,' and believe in the sanctity of the United States Constitution. When the federal government begins, even in practice, games or exercises, to consider any U.S. city or state in 'hostile' control and trying to retake it, the message becomes extremely calloused and suspicious.


The Jade Helm operation could really "heat-up" the Southwest this summer as Alex Jones has meltdowns and Rick Perry probably goes back to the border and Greg Abbott hides in the Gov's mansion shaking in his boots and Gohmert remains Gohmert. So make some popcorn while you wait for the black helicopters:

OMG, Chinook Helicopters in Texas and Kansas!
(Well, guess what, I've seen these in TN also.
It's the National Guard having weekend maneuvers. Doh.)



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Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Cliven Bundy and Sons Show Up for Nevada Land Hearing

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Previous Related Posts:
Vegas Shooters Inspired by Bundy Ranch and Alex Jones
Bundy Ranch Militia Moves to Utah
Cliven Bundy Talks About "The Negro" as #GOP Stampedes Away From #BundyRanch
Bye-Bye Bundy
Wingnuts Declare Victory as Feds Leave Bundy Ranch
Bundy Ranch Stand-Off in Nevada Attracts Militia

~~~~~~~~~~~

On Monday March 31, 2015, the Nevada Legislature had a special Committee Meeting to hear public comments on the law AB408, also known as the "Bundy Bill." This abominable piece of legislation would make it possible (in some alternate universe) for Nevada to "take back" their land from the Federal Government, then sell it to the highest bidder. Or, they could just give it to the ranchers who have been using it for cattle leases - you know, like Cliven Bundy did last year.

The sponsor of this bill is Michele Fiore, the crazy Nevada Assemblywoman who once flipped out on the Chris Hayes Show as she talked about how the Bureau of Land Management had harrassed Cliven Bundy's cattle during the stand-off last year. You know, the same cattle he has been letting graze on public land for 25 years without paying his grazing fees. The cattle that actually now belong to the Federal Government, but which for some reason the BLM will not seize as payment. This whole thing baffles me.





The reason Bundy and Fiore want this bill passed is so Nevada can set a legal precedent for all the other western states overseen by the BLM. They want all public land opened to cattle grazing, mining, and hunting, and probably want it policed by the Bundy Ranch Militia instead of the government. That sort of leaves the rest of us out of the process, which is the point because they want their own little kingdom, and couldn't care less about wildlife, hikers, or Native Americans. 

First the "Pro" people spoke, led by one of Cliven's sons, Ammon Bundy, who invoked the Bible, the Constitution, and God, and it went downhill from there. It amused me that many of the libertarian types also mentioned raising tax revenue on the land for the state instead of the Fed, but then these are the same people who don't want to pay taxes on the roads they travel, or pay those darn grazing fees anymore.

Most of the people speaking "Against" the law were Conservationists or Native Americans (who actually have a claim on the land, you know), and a few were just very eloquent citizens worried about running into crazy people with guns whenever they want to take a walk in the desert.

The third group were the supposed "Neutrals," although they all turned out to be more Bundy-ites, including Cliven's other son Ryan!! My favorite "Neutral" was an out-of-state gal from California who waved her hands in the air and said she was afraid of Harry Reid, Red China, Saudi Arabia, and ISIS, at which point the chairwoman reminded her she was supposed to be neutral. It was that kind of meeting.

I watched this hearing for hours yesterday, and live-tweeted, so many of the tweets below are from my account. If something is in quotations, it is a verbatim quote - even though some of them seem beyond bizarre - like the woman who held up a spur to make her point, or the guy who name-dropped Bob Dole for some unknown reason. All true!









The Pro's















































The Opposition



































The So-Called Neutrals


















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