"Now Is The Time To Stand Up": Armed Activists, Militiamen Seize Federal Wildlife Refuge Office In Oregon
On Saturday, militants seized a remote government outpost following a protest by hundreds of angry citizens.
That could very easily be the opening line for a story about a Mid-East country beset by civil war. Instead, it’s a description of what happened in Oregon yesterday.
It all started back in 2001 when Dwight Hammond and his son Steven set fire to leased government land in what they said was an effort to beat back invasive plant species and - ironically - prevent wildfires. They set more fires in 2006 and were later convicted of arson.
(the elder Hammond)
Both men served time in prison but a judge eventually determined that their sentences were too light and ordered them back to jail.
Some folks were displeased with the ruling and staged a protest that saw some 300 people march through Burns, a city of around 3,000. The procession made a stop by the Hammond residence and proceeded to make an appearance at the local sheriff's office as well.
"As marchers reached the courthouse, they tossed hundreds of pennies at the locked door. Their message: civilians were buying back their government," AP recounts. "A few blocks away, Hammond and his wife, Susan, greeted marchers, who planted flower bouquets in the snow [after which they] sang some songs, Hammond said a few words, and the protesters marched back to their cars."
Enter Ammon Bundy.
Ammon is the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy who famously clashed with the government last year after his cattle were kidnapped by the Feds. Around 400 of Cliven's cows were busy grazing on land Bundy said he owned when the Bureau of Land Managment began to round them up and ship them off to a bovine internment camp at Bunkerville.
The government says the cattle were grazing on public rangeland, which is legal as long as the owner pays a fee. Bundy allegedly racked up some $1 million in such fees and so, the government decided to seize the cows, which the Nevada Bureau of Land Management accused of "trespassing."
Evenutally, the cavalry arrived (literally) as cowboys rode in and broke the cows out of jail. No, really.
Fast forward to November and Bundy's son Ammon was busy trying to come up with a way to keep Dwight Hammond and his son from going back to jail. "Ammon Bundy met with Dwight Hammond and his wife in November, seeking a way to keep the elderly rancher from having to surrender for prison," The Oregonian writes, adding that "the Hammonds professed through their attorneys that they had no interest in ignoring the order to report for prison."
But while the Hammonds have apparently come to terms with their fate, Bundy hasn't and in a brazen move, he and an unspecified number of "outside militants" seized control of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge headquarters, which is a short drive from Burns (where the protest took place).
The federal outpost fell to the militants without a fight presumably because it was deserted for the holidays. Here's more from the Oregonian:
"The facility has been the tool to do all the tyranny that has been placed upon the Hammonds," Ammon Bundy said.
"We're planning on staying here for years, absolutely," he added. "This is not a decision we've made at the last minute."
"The best possible outcome is that the ranchers that have been kicked out of the area, then they will come back and reclaim their land, and the wildlife refuge will be shut down forever and the federal government will relinquish such control," he said. "What we're doing is not rebellious. What we're doing is in accordance with the Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land."
"After the peaceful rally was completed today, a group of outside militants drove to the Malheur Wildlife Refuge, where they seized and occupied the refuge headquarters. A collective effort from multiple agencies is currently working on a solution. For the time being please stay away from that area. More information will be provided as it becomes available. Please maintain a peaceful and united front and allow us to work through this situation," Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward said, in a statement. The elder Bundy weighed in as well, noting that the occuption isn't “exactly what [he] thought should happen." "But I didn’t know what to do,” he added. “You know, if the Hammonds wouldn’t stand, if the sheriff didn’t stand, then, you know, the people had to do something. And I guess this is what they did decide to do. I wasn’t in on that.”
Ammon Bundy explained the rationale for the occupation as follows:
Got that? This wildlife refuge office will become "a base place where patriots from all over the country will live and be housed." Although from the looks of it, space is limited so reserve your spots now:
The Guardian apparently stopped by the refuge for a visit:
The occupation appears to have begun at about 2pm. Two hours later, the Guardian approached the refuge, which lies about 60 miles south of the town of Burns and is only accessible via a lakeside road slick with ice and banked with snow.
There were no law enforcement agents visible in the area around the refuge. A man with a goatee beard and wraparound sunglasses stood guard, armed with an AR-15-style rifle, and refused entry to the federally owned facility.
He declined to give his name or affiliation, citing “operational security”. He did confirm, however, that the men – several of whom were openly carrying assault weapons – would be camping on the site. “This public land belongs to ‘we the people’,” he said. “We’ll be here enjoying the snow and the scenery.”
This is as close as I was allowed to get to the armed militia occupying the Malheur Wildlife Refuge HQ. #burnsoregon pic.twitter.com/DPztu0VsVU
— Jason Wilson (@jason_a_w) January 3, 2016
The Guardian was allowed to take a few photographs, and then it was strongly advised to leave the scene. Within hours, police had descended on the remote corner of Harney county, blocking roads and urging members of the public to stay away.
Ammon Bundy, whose father became a folk hero among rightwing constitutionalists after his previous confrontation with federal authorities in Nevada, appeared to be a key figure.
He called for other likeminded US citizens to travel to the refuge in solidarity and to support what he said would be a symbolic showdown between impoverished farmers and overzealous federal authorities.
“We’re out here because the people have been abused long enough,” he said in a video interview posted on his Facebook page on Saturday night.
It isn't entirely clear how these "patriots" plan to last "years" in the small building without supplies but that's probably irrelevant because it's difficult to imagine the oppressors in Washington will let this go on for very long. On that note, we'll close with two quotes, one from The Oregonian and one from US Army veteran Ryan Payne who is among the occupiers.
From The Oregonian: "In phone interviews from inside the occupied building Saturday night, Ammon Bundy and his brother, Ryan Bundy, said they are not looking to hurt anyone. But they would not rule out violence if police tried to remove them, they said."
From Payne: "When local and federal authorities arrive whatever else is going to happen will happen”.
(51 votes)
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You mean the "War to Maintain Southern Slavery".
Yes,,, that was their downfall and was ideas of the more militant. Sort of like the Neo-Cons of today. Many in the South deplored slave ownership and only the major plantations had slaves in numbers. Sadly these were the power men of their day and even managed to incorporate slavery in their constitution.
Those were not southern ships that brought slaves to the states. The shipping interests were in the north east. Funny how slavery became and issue after the importation of slaves became illegal as part of the 3/5ths compromise.
Slavery in the colonial period was a mixed bag. John Adams was given a slave as a present, he immediately set her free.
The War of Northern Aggression=The War of Banker Oppression
I hope that many people now know that The Civil War wasn't started because Lincoln wanted to free the slaves.
1958? You must mean 1858.
I know, I know: FFT (fat-finger typo). ;-)
The unlawful and violent nature of present day government shows the South was correct wanting to deal with their own problems as sovereign states. Slavery being one of them.
These people have HUGE BALLS. They need our support...even if it is just from the fucking keyboard. This could go very big. The government will try to squash this. This may be the start folks. Keep an eye on this. Thanks TYLERS for posting this up front.
Yes but can you imagine all the Huffpo, Bill Mahher, liberal sheep bloggers who will mock these brave good people as backward hillbilly losers?
YES...I just watched a CNN interview with Ammon Bundy (Over the Phone) they tried to paint him as some type of terrorist... These are hard working people.
.
This is a video from a marine going to protest...TYLER....PUT THIS FRONT PAGE....THIS IS ALL OF US!!!!!!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbGdMKpHDDE
Randy Weaver got the same treatment. He was described to be a paranoid nut and then an FBI sniper shot (edit) his wife in the face and killed her while standing in the doorway of her own home holding an infant.
(I'm watching the video now the comments seem invaded by shills)
Yeah...I can't believe the comments.....This video must have been spotted by gun grabbers or something. Wait till you hit the 12minute mark... Wow. "We need real men here" FUCK YES!
That right there folks is what real patriot, real man and real balls looks and sounds like.
Marine, God bless you, your family and all those standing with you.
Is that Marine Le Pen you are blessing?
I was at Ruby Ridge(being a witness) and sickly disgusted what Janet Reno did in Naples, ID bringing in 400+ troops, equipment & weapons for a family of "5" + friend!!!!
I don't know who is more annoying -- libtard sheep at Huffpo calling these guys redneck losers (without ever examining facts), or the Alex Jones clones who jump in right away and call it all a big false flag.
It's not Alex Jones that is calling it a false flag. Oathkeepers and the national militias are warning their people away, as are the Hammonds.
It is the mark of an educated man to be able to entertain an idea, without necessarily accepting it.
Sorry for the terse response, just trying pry open that myopic closed mind of yours.
Im sorry but this guy seems rather unintelligent. Most likely a provocateur influenced by 'someone'.
Check Twitter if you want to see some liberals gasp about "militias" and "terrorism".
It was only a matter of time before the Tyranny the US Government has exported around the world was going to be used on it's own people.
Is thomas jefferson there? Patrick Henry? The 18th sheeple thought those guys were pretty nuts, no doubt.
Bunker Hill baby.
ZombieHuntClub clearly a troll ID
First is not best
Huntclub is not a word
It's a Typo. He meant "CuntHub".
+1000
zombiehuntclub - funny but i dont get the feeling you will last too long when the SHTF....poor people skills will cull the herd pretty quick.
Maybe that's the message.
The White House is an isolated shack in the middle of nowhere, filled with a nobody. Might as well be unoccupied.
Exactly. I'd like to see all feds frog-marched out of my state too but this ain't the way to do it.
Wake me when they take over a Fageral Building.
War on ranchers
& other "uppity folks":
http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/officers-who-shot-idaho-rancher-in...
The real question are Bundy and the boys like John Brown who showed up a little early to the party and got hung for his troubles or are they on Lexington Green where the shots that are fired will be heard around the world?
Not as early as Neshoba County, Kent State, Pine Ridge, Ruby Ridge, Ferguson, and many more,
but still too early, ... and yet somehow both inevitable and necessary.
Imagine this: 'Yeah right! Near me is this county-run kindergarten, and they have way too much land.
They've just let it fill with wildflowers because of some 'save the bee' shit.
Me and some good ol boys have decided that they are wasting that land- so we've burned it to the ground (in accordance with bronze-age land management methods) and now I am gonna graze some sheep on it.
Fuck wildlife and fuck the county- me gonna make me some moneyand pretend I am some sort of Johnny Reb.'
Rebuttal: I am just a self-serving asshole who can only muster 10% of the locals to support me (300 out of 3000 pop) and in actuality, all I want to do is make a profit at the expense of nature and the other tax-payers whom I have not thought of consulting.
T. Gracchus
you are right,
and yet need to ask why why only the the small players are punished,
while the big players do the same but on a vastly larger scale?
We are all manipulated by a studied exercise of divide and conquer (or rule).
Now or never. Time for the sheeple to wake up.
Yep, someone had to do it. The "long list of abuses" is a whole lot longer than it was in 1776.
Evenutally, the calvary arrived (literally) as cowboys rode in and broke the cows out of jail. No, really.
Wow Jesus appeared?No but Carlos and Juan did.
Jesus was too busy roofing a house.
Good Luck! Mates.
Good luck!
"Calvary"
Now that's funny!
This can only end one way. For me, Baker is just a stones throw.
http://thecivillibertarian.blogspot.com/2016/01/build-lots-of-prisons-fo...
."This can only end one way.."
Stormiing the Bastiille?
Saw on another website where the timing of this is interesting in light of Obama's imminent excutive actions on 'scary guns'.
Waco, the sequel.
Or Ruby Ridge.
Yea, back when Hildabeast was occupying in the White House. The more things change...
Cattle futures anyone?
Waco and Ruby Ridge were defensive, static incidents. This is looking to be a different type of battle.
Convenient as Obama's gun bill is afoot.