The police have been shooting tear gas at protesters and terrorizing citizens of Ferguson, isn't this what the NRA has told us to arm ourselves against. Then where is their outrage?

Courtesy of the Daily Beast:  

The National Rifle Association has been warning us about the threat of a heavily-armed and dangerous government crushing dissent for decades. Their leader, Wayne LaPierre, even referred to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms as "jack-booted thugs." 

Their dystopian nightmare sounds exactly like what’s happening in Ferguson, Missouri. 

Yet somehow, the NRA seems to have missed the whole thing with the SWAT teams and the tank-like vehicles and the snipers and the LRAD sound cannon and the tear gas and the rubber bullets being trained on unarmed Americans. Not a peep from LaPierre on this extended assault on citizens of Ferguson, at least that I can find. 

If I were suspicious of their motives--and I am--I might point out that when I visited their 9 acres of militarized gun-fun also known as their convention in Indianapolis, I saw fewer black faces than in your average episode of The Dukes of Hazzard. I'd also point out that LaPierre blows just about every tune he knows on his dog whistle, when warning his membership of the horrors confronting them during this period when violent crime has fallen to its lowest level in a generation: 

"We don't trust government, because government itself has proven unworthy of our trust. We trust ourselves and we trust what we know in our hearts to be right. We trust our freedom. In this uncertain world, surrounded by lies and corruption everywhere you look, there is no greater freedom than the right to survive and protect our families with all the rifles, shotguns, and handguns we want. We know in the world that surrounds us there are terrorists and there are home invaders, drug cartels, carjackers, knockout gamers, and rapers, and haters, and campus killers, airport killers, shopping mall killers and killers who scheme to destroy our country with massive storms of violence against our power grids or vicious waves of chemicals or disease that could collapse our society that sustains us all."

Besides making you wonder who spiked his drink with goofballs, what jumps out about that friendly little harangue? Who do you think LaPierre's speech is meant for when he mentions "terrorists" and "drug cartels" and "carjackers" and "knockout gamers?" 

Valid point.

When the protestors at the Bundy Ranch  were pointing semi-automatic weapons at federal agents and threatening them with violence, the NRA, and just about every conservative in the country, were rushing to stand with them and heralded the importance of the 2nd Amendment in keeping us safe from government overreach.

But the people of Ferguson have just had one of their own gunned down in the streets, have been subjected to tear gas, and now have the National Guard patrolling their streets, and the NRA says nothing?

You know if I were a cynic, I might just think that the NRA believes the 2nd Amendment only applies to people with the right color skin.

You know, if I were a cynic.

P.S. By the way I in NO way think that encouraging the people of Ferguson to take up arms against the police is a good idea, which of course is the same way I felt about the Bundy Ranch standoff.

All I am doing is pointing out the hypocrisy of an organization that on the one hand seems intent on instigating a shootout with law enforcement when the antagonists are white, but clams up when the antagonists are not quite so white.

Cliven Bundy believes that God was on his side during the standoff. Isn't that what every megalomaniac believes?

Courtesy of Politico:  

Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy claims the April confrontation between the federal government and his armed supporters was part of an age-old spiritual battle between good and evil. 

Bundy, a Mormon, told an Independent American Party gathering in St. George, Utah, on Saturday that God provided him personal inspiration in the showdown over cattle in Bunkerville, Nevada, about 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas. 

“The Lord told me … if [the local sheriff doesn’t] take away these arms from federal agents, we the people will have to face these arms in a civil war. He said, `This is your chance to straighten this thing up,’” Bundy said, according to The Spectrum of St. George. 

Bundy said people from across the country rallied around him because they were “spiritually touched,” and he suggested they would not have prevailed had God not been on their side. 

“If the standoff with the Bundys was wrong, would the Lord have been with us?” he asked, noting no one was killed as tensions escalated. “Could those people that stood [with me] without fear and went through that spiritual experience … have done that without the Lord being there? No, they couldn’t.” 

Those people stood with Bundy without fear becasue they trusted that their government would not open fire on them without provocation.

Sadly the federal agents who were simply doing their jobs did not have the same assurances.

Combining this kind of mystical magical thinking, with the sovereign citizen mentality, and military style weaponry. means that it is only a matter of time before some anti-government moron suddenly decides to become a martyr for the cause by killing a federal agent and getting his ass blown away.

The Feds are doing the right thing by waiting it out and going through legal channels to deal with Bundy. But this mindset of good vs evil, citizens vs the government, shows no signs of tapering off.

Sovereign Citizen movement perceived as top terrorist threat.

Courtesy of START:

START researchers David Carter, Steven Chermak, Jeremy Carter and Jack Drew recently conducted in-depth surveys with more than 364 officers representing 175 state, local and tribal (SLT) law enforcement agencies to examine perceptions of: the threat of terrorism; the nature of information-sharing; and whether agencies are prepared to deal with terrorist attacks. Their results are published in “Understanding Law Enforcement Intelligence Processes,” available on START’s website. 

The Sovereign Citizen movement was the most highly ranked threat, with 86 percent of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing that it was a serious terrorist threat. This is a significant increase in ranking from an earlier survey implemented in 2006-2007, which showed Islamist extremists to be law enforcement’s top concern at the time. In that survey, approximately 67 percent agreed or strongly agreed that Islamist extremists were a serious terrorist threat. 

“Identifying and prioritizing a threat is akin to hitting a moving target and evolves as new intelligence, data, and events develop,” David Carter said. “Law enforcement must be steadfast in identifying major concerns, substantiating the concerns, providing products and resources to better understand the nature of the threat, and supporting efforts to respond to such concerns.”

This is not exactly surprising since we have seen a number of sovereign citizen types either threaten to kill law enforcement types, like Schaeffer Cox did in Alaska, or actually follow through with those plans as we recently saw in Nevada. 

We also just saw them gather together and use the threat of violence to turn away federal agents during the Bundy Ranch standoff.

When was the last time Islamic terrorists did that on American soil?

And the truly frightening part is that there are politicians who are protecting these groups and actively seeking their support.

Yes Rick Perry I'm looking at you!

Just can't stop "palling around" with domestic terrorists can you Sarah Palin? Update!

Justin Giles of Wasilla, Ak. Standing guard at the Bundy ranch standoff April 18, 2014.

Hey do you guys remember this picture?

Well I sure didn't.

However a sharp reader did, and they sent me another picture of Justin Giles, which they found while looking through his Facebook page.

Now why does that lady look so familiar?

According to his Facebook page this picture was posted on February 24th, of this year. You know, less than two months before he strapped on his assault rifle and helped a group of sovereign citizens threaten government workers just trying to do their jobs in Nevada.

Hey do you know what else is interesting? It seems that Mr. Giles was formerly Sgt. Giles of the United States Marine Corps.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't taking up arms against federal agents kind of a no no when you are in the Marine Corps, or in the reserves?

And here is another interesting tidbit.

My sources tell me that he is also friends with a certain Maria Rensel, who you may (or may not) remember is behind the "Free Schaeffer Cox" page.

So to be clear Sarah Palin is obviously good friends with a former Marine Sergeant, who took up arms against federal employees in Nevada, and is good friends with a supporter of convicted domestic terrorist Schaeffer Cox. 

I know, I know, probably just a coincidence.

Though there is somebody that we all know who does not believe in coincidences. (Gold star if you can guess who.)

P.S. Here's the part that kind of burns my ass.

@AverageChirps Justin Giles of Wasilla, AK will be easy to find. Sarah will know how to reach him. Plenty of pix. pic.twitter.com/kFhczjlQKI
— Bill Yosemite (@BillYosemite) May 11, 2014

That I was so late putting all of this together.

I really need to hire myself an intern. 

Update: I made some corrections to the post concerning Giles military service.  Originally I was under the impression that he was active duty, but in fact he is currently out of the service.

Really must look into that intern situation.

Sovereign citizen couple murder two police officers in Nevada. Possible links to white supremacy and the Bundy Ranch. Update!

Officer Alyn Beck, 41, and Officer Igor Soldo, 31.

Courtesy of NBC News:  

One of the shooters who ambushed two Las Vegas police officers and shot them to death at a pizzeria yelled “This is the start of a revolution!” before firing, witnesses told police. 

The man and woman then sprayed bullets at a nearby Walmart, gunning down a third person, before killing themselves in an apparent suicide pact, authorities said. 

The officers were eating lunch Sunday at a Cici’s Pizza when the shooters approached. Authorities said they stripped the dead officers of their weapons and ammunition before going across the street to continue the spree.

It was clear that the two shooters targeted the police officers, but why?

Here is more from the New York Daily News:  

The shooters are thought to be a married couple in their late 20s who were new to the Las Vegas Valley, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Police are reportedly investigating links to the white supremacy movement, having found swastika symbols during their initial investigation. 

One of them shouted, “This is the start of a revolution,” before killing one of the officers execution style as they refilled a soda, reports the Review-Journal. 

The second officer was shot several times by the female shooter, but he returned fire, Gillespie said at a press conference. The officer later died at a local hospital while in surgery. Their bodies were escorted by a police motorcade to the coroner's office. 

The killers stripped the officers’ of their weapons and ammunition, before covering the officers with something that featured the Gadsden flag, a yellow banner with a coiled snake above the words, “Don’t tread on Me," according to the Review-Journal. 

The flag was designed by Christopher Gadsden, a Revolutionary War general and statesman, in 1775. It was adopted as the symbol of the Tea Party Movement in 2009. 

Gadsden flag

The two sovereign citizens then went into a nearby Wal-Mart where they killed another man who may have attempted to stop them with his concealed weapon (So much for a good guy with a gun stopping bad guys with guns.), before exchanging gunfire with the police, and eventually retreating to the back of the store where they killed themselves.

Now if you are picking up on the fact that his happened in Nevada, with two people identified as "sovereign citizens," and wondering if there might be a connection to recent events on the Bundy Ranch, well give yourself a gold star.

Courtesy of the Review-Journal:

The shooters were a married couple thought to be in their late 20s who were new to the Las Vegas Valley, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation. Police are looking into their links to the white supremacy movement and found swastika symbols during their initial investigation. 

Residents of the Bruce Street apartment complex gathered outside the building to talk about the couple whose unit was being searched. 

Several neighbors identified the man as Jared, while one called the woman Amanda. 

Like many of the neighbors contacted, Krista Koch said she didn’t know the couple’s last names. She described them as “militant.” They talked about planning to kill police officers, “going underground” and not coming out until the time was right to kill. 

Brandon Monroe, 22, has lived in the complex for about two weeks. He said the man who lived in the apartment that was being searched often rambled about conspiracy theories. He often wore camouflage or dressed as Peter Pan to work as a Fremont Street Experience street performer. A woman lived with him, Monroe said, but he didn’t see her as often. 

They were weird people, Monroe said, adding that he thought the couple used methamphetamines.  

The man told Monroe he had been kicked off Cliven Bundy’s ranch 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas while people from throughout the U.S. gathered there in protest of a Bureau of Land Management roundup of Bundy’s cattle.

Kind of makes sense in way. After all the Bundy standoff brought all kinds of nuts out of the  woodwork to congregate in a place where they felt their anti-government, and racist attitudes would be welcome.

But where did they go after? 

Of course you know that the gun nuts and Bundy supporters are going to quickly identify this as a "false flag" operation by the government to undermine the 2nd Amendment and smear those who participated in the Bundy Ranch standoff right?

Oh yeah, count on it.

Update: You know if these two had not offed themselves they might have received a hosting slot on Fox News. They are certainly well within their demographic.

Update 2: What did I say?

Believe it or not, today Wasilla might get even crazier!

This is coming to Alaska courtesy of the Alaska Republican Assembly, which bills itself as the conservative wing of the Republican party.

In other words, Teabaggers.

According to the site they have not only Rafael Cruz showing up to spread a little Right Wing insanity, they also have disgraced Tea Party candidate Sharron Angle, who tried and failed to take down Harry Reid in 2010, and who now serves as president of something called the National Federation of Assemblies, who refer to themselves as the "Republican wing of the Republican party."

In other words, Teabaggers.

And to round things off there is also former sheriff Richard Mack, who during the Bundy standoff famously suggested that they "should put all of the women up front" in case the federal agents started firing at them.

In other other words, CRAZY Teabagger!

I know what you're thinking.

With this amount of crazy how can Palin NOT be drawn to it like  moth to a batshit crazy flame?

Well she is not on the list of speakers, but then neither is Joe Miller, and you just KNOW he is going to be there.

So she may show up, and she may not.

But if she does, she might actually be one of the saner people in attendance. Imagine that!

Just a taste of how the Right Wing media is covering the Bundy Ranch standoff. This is not good.

Courtesy of something called Natural News:  

The second American Revolution has begun. You are watching history unfold in real time now, and of course the lamestream media has intentionally decided U.S. history isn't worth covering because, frankly stated, the media is largely run by anti-American interests who absolutely do not want any victory by the People to be broadcast anywhere. 

While the U.S. government claims to be supportive of freedom in Kiev or Iraq, it is absolutely terrified of freedom within U.S. borders. 

Among big media, only Fox News has dared cover this story with anything resembling responsible reporting, as you can see in this video. The video text says "Govt backs down due to safety concerns." In reality, BLM backed down because they were grossly out-gunned and didn't want to die. 

In this video, Fox Radio host Todd Starnes says, "For the past five years, we've seen the American people become increasingly frustrated with these government intrusions into their lives. [A tweet characterized this] as the 1st salvo of the American Revolution." 

I couldn't agree more. This was the 1st salvo of the American Revolution, and the framework of the Revolution has now been cast. The People now realize they can defeat tyranny by merely showing up in huge numbers armed mostly with mobile phones and video cameras (plus lawfully-obtained firearms as needed). 

 The "BLM backed down because they were grossly out-gunned and didn't want to die." Imagine if this had been said by the supporter of a domestic terrorist, or hate group.

Oh wait, it was.

They are calling this the "Battle of Bunkerville."  Sound familiar?

In their minds this is the beginning of a war against the federal government that they now feel emboldened to wage, and certain they will win.

I knew this was bad when I first started watching it unfold, but it is so much worse than I could have imagined.

This means that every sovereign citizen type, militia member, and scofflaw out there, now feels that they have the right to resist arrest, brandish weapons against law enforcement, and openly threaten the federal government any time they feel like it.

People are going to die. And it could be a whole lot of people.

P.S. Here is the video that the wingnuts are claiming the MSM is keeping you from seeing. It is from Info Wars, that bullshit Alex Jones website so I refuse to embed it. However it does give some idea as to what has these lunatics all fired up.

The Bundy Ranch standoff, a foreshadowing of things to come?

Cliven Buncy supporters take aim against BLM agents.

Courtesy of Reuters: 

The weekend showdown marked the latest resurgence of violent, anti-government sentiments that have existed in rural America for centuries, said Catherine Stock, a history professor at Connecticut College who specializes in rural militias. 

"The question is whether we're going to see sustained flame-up now. We could see more of that if they actually think that the federal government is going to stand down," she said. 

"It's not the groups, it's not their concerns, it's not their anger, all of that is old, but the federal government backing down? I was like, wow! Seriously?" 

Stock said the rise of right-wing media outlets and websites and the election of Republican politicians who have shifted the party further to the right have given a new legitimacy to groups that were once dismissed as being on the fringe. 

At least half a dozen state legislators from Nevada, Washington, Utah and Arizona attended protest rallies in Bunkerville at the weekend. 

Michele Fiore, a Republican Nevada assemblywoman from Las Vegas who said she joined the protesters daily after getting a torrent of supportive emails about Bundy from constituents, called the resistance "justified." 

"This is historic," she said. "This is the first time we went arm to arm with the federal government."

What happened last weekend could very likely be a seminal event which determines how these sovereign citizen types deal with law enforcement moving forward.

There were reportedly over a thousand armed men willing to engage the BLM and Federal agents in a firefight, over unpaid taxes.

Many of these men had no military training, or if they did it was decades earlier in their lives.

They had no consistent chain of command, and no clear idea of what would determine the right time to fire their weapons.

That means that those agents were in an incredibly dangerous situation, where one trigger happy moron could fire the bullet that resulted in one of the largest massacres in American history.

And that is EXACTLY what the Right Wing is waiting, and hoping for. They want somebody to die at the hands of the federal government, regardless of who fired the first shot, so that they can make them a martyr and essentially move this country toward a civil war.

Never before have the indications been this clear that the conservatives in this country are so angry that they are losing power, and that America is moving toward a more liberal viewpoint, that they are willing to rip the country in half in a desperate attempt to stop the inevitable.

Think I'm exaggerating? I only wish that I were: 

A Tea Party Facebook page called Overpasses for America, clinching just over 79,000 supporters, is calling for a “Shot Heard Around the United States” day on April 19th. The post, showing a picture of a large group of men firing rifles in the air simultaneously in front of a barn, calls on every gun owner to fire into the air at the same time: 

“April 19th, 2014… 12 NOON Eastern Standard Time Every gun owner in the USA is asked to fire their weapon at the same time. Spread the word, share everywhere.” 

April 19th is also the day, in 1775, when the start of the Revolutionary War began. This is the same page who posted a status calling for Harry Reid to be imprisoned for his “deal with Communist China that led to the stand off at Bundy Ranch.” The page, in the last few days, has been riddled with many pictures and articles detailing the fiasco at the Bundy Ranch, calling Bundy and his supporters ‘Patriots’ and seeking to end the ‘bogus lies’ about the stand-off.

Courtesy of Facebook

 Mark my words, there will be a first shot fired into an actual person at some point in the near future.

And when that happens, the only question remaining is for how long after will the gunfire continue.

When people angrily ask me why I am so against American citizens having access to military style weapons, I often think that in due time they will become too shocked by the violence to ever ask me again.