Dickinson writes: "On Saturday night, dozens of white, armed American
militants stormed a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon seeking to take a
'hard stand' against federal government 'tyranny.' It's a wild story. Here's
what you need to know."
Cliven Bundy's son, Ammon - pictured here, in 2014 - appears to be leading
the takeover of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. (photo: George
Frey/Getty Images)
WTF Is Happening in the Oregon Militia Standoff, Explained
By Tim Dickinson, Rolling Stone
03 January 16
Dozens of white, armed American militants have gathered in the state to take
a stand against government "tyranny"
On Saturday night, dozens of white, armed American militants stormed a
federal wildlife refuge in Oregon seeking to take a "hard stand" against
federal government "tyranny." It's a wild story. Here's what you need to
know.
Q: Where is this?
A: The building seized by the militants is at the Malheur Wildlife Refuge -
a remote, marshy oasis in Oregon's high desert famed for its spectacular
migratory bird populations. The standoff is in the remote southeast of the
state - far closer to the Nevada line (124 miles) and Boise, Idaho (217
miles), than to Portland (305 miles). The closest city is Burns, Oregon,
population 2,800, 30 miles to the north.
Q: What sparked the militia takeover?
A: The answer here is complicated. In short, the militants are outraged
about a mandatory minimum sentence received for arson by a local rancher and
his son.
The ranchers, Dwight Hammond, Jr., 73, and his son Steve, 43, were convicted
of federal arson charges, stemming from a pair or fires on federal land near
their ranch. The first was reportedly set in 2001 to cover up their illegal
poaching of a deer on government property. It burned 139 acres. The second
was reportedly set in 2006 as a defensive measure, to protect the ranch from
an approaching lightning-sparked wildfire. That arson reportedly endangered
volunteer firefighters camped nearby. The government would seek $1 million
in damages. (For a deep dive of the backstory read this piece in The
Oregonian.)
Q: So some Oregon ranchers got busted for arson. Where's the tyranny?
A: The ranchers' case became a cause celebre in the patriot/militia movement
because the pair were sentenced for their arson crimes under a provision of
a law called the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. And
they were oddly sentenced twice.
The federal law in question doesn't just deal with terrorism. It created a
five-year mandatory-minimum sentence for arson on federal land: "Whoever
maliciously damages or destroys... by means of fire...any...real
property...owned or possessed by...the United States...shall be imprisoned
for not less than 5 years."
The first federal judge to handle the case concluded that the mandatory
sentence was too stiff and gave the pair far lighter sentences, which they
served. But the U.S. attorney in the case called foul; the federal
government took the rare step of appealing the sentence. In October 2015,
the Ninth Circuit imposed the mandatory minimum, ruling that: "given the
seriousness of arson, a five-year sentence is not grossly disproportionate
to the offense." The ranchers are due back in federal prison Monday to serve
out their five years each.
But this odd re-sentencing, under a statute that makes it sound like the
cattlemen were being prosecuted for terrorism, inflamed the paranoid
passions of the anti-government patriot and militia movements, and brought
the militants to Burns for a rally on Saturday.
Q: The Bundys are involved in this, aren't they?
A: Yup. Tensions between Western ranchers and the federal government have
been running at a fever pitch since an armed standoff between supporters of
Cliven Bundy and the federal Bureau of Land Management. Recall that Bundy
does not recognize the claim of the federal government to the land that his
cattle roam in Nevada. He owes more than $1 million in unpaid grazing fees
and fines. The feds briefly seized his cattle back in 2014, leading to an
armed standoff that the feds chose to de-escalate rather than risk provoking
another deadly showdown like occurred at Waco or Ruby Ridge in the 1990s.
Q: So Cliven Bundy is in Oregon?
A: No, but at least two of his sons are. Ammon Bundy appears to be leading
the takeover. In a video posted to Facebook, he declares: "We have basically
taken over the Malheur Wildlife Refuge. And this will become a base place
for patriots from all over the country to come and be housed here and to
live here. And we're planning on staying here for several years." Calling
his group "the point of the spear," Ammon Bundy called on like-minded
militants to "bring your arms."
Q: What do the militants want?
A: In a phone in interview with The Oregonian, another Bundy son, Ryan, laid
out the militants' demands: that the Hammonds be released and that the
surrounding federal lands be ceded to local control. "The best possible
outcome is that the ranchers that have been kicked out of the area... will
come back and reclaim their land, and the wildlife refuge will be shut down
forever and the federal government will relinquish such control," Ryan Bundy
said. He added, "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."
Q: Has the federal government reacted to this latest Bundy provocation?
A: Not yet.
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Cliven Bundy's son, Ammon - pictured here, in 2014 - appears to be leading
the takeover of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. (photo: George
Frey/Getty Images)
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/wtf-is-happening-in-the-oregon-mi
litia-standoff-explained-20160103https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/
wtf-is-happening-in-the-oregon-militia-standoff-explained-20160103
WTF Is Happening in the Oregon Militia Standoff, Explained
By Tim Dickinson, Rolling Stone
03 January 16
Dozens of white, armed American militants have gathered in the state to take
a stand against government "tyranny"
n Saturday night, dozens of white, armed American militants stormed a
federal wildlife refuge in Oregon seeking to take a "hard stand" against
federal government "tyranny." It's a wild story. Here's what you need to
know.
Q: Where is this?
A: The building seized by the militants is at the Malheur Wildlife Refuge -
a remote, marshy oasis in Oregon's high desert famed for its spectacular
migratory bird populations. The standoff is in the remote southeast of the
state - far closer to the Nevada line (124 miles) and Boise, Idaho (217
miles), than to Portland (305 miles). The closest city is Burns, Oregon,
population 2,800, 30 miles to the north.
Q: What sparked the militia takeover?
A: The answer here is complicated. In short, the militants are outraged
about a mandatory minimum sentence received for arson by a local rancher and
his son.
The ranchers, Dwight Hammond, Jr., 73, and his son Steve, 43, were convicted
of federal arson charges, stemming from a pair or fires on federal land near
their ranch. The first was reportedly set in 2001 to cover up their illegal
poaching of a deer on government property. It burned 139 acres. The second
was reportedly set in 2006 as a defensive measure, to protect the ranch from
an approaching lightning-sparked wildfire. That arson reportedly endangered
volunteer firefighters camped nearby. The government would seek $1 million
in damages. (For a deep dive of the backstory read this piece in The
Oregonian.)
Q: So some Oregon ranchers got busted for arson. Where's the tyranny?
A: The ranchers' case became a cause celebre in the patriot/militia movement
because the pair were sentenced for their arson crimes under a provision of
a law called the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. And
they were oddly sentenced twice.
The federal law in question doesn't just deal with terrorism. It created a
five-year mandatory-minimum sentence for arson on federal land: "Whoever
maliciously damages or destroys... by means of fire...any...real
property...owned or possessed by...the United States...shall be imprisoned
for not less than 5 years."
The first federal judge to handle the case concluded that the mandatory
sentence was too stiff and gave the pair far lighter sentences, which they
served. But the U.S. attorney in the case called foul; the federal
government took the rare step of appealing the sentence. In October 2015,
the Ninth Circuit imposed the mandatory minimum, ruling that: "given the
seriousness of arson, a five-year sentence is not grossly disproportionate
to the offense." The ranchers are due back in federal prison Monday to serve
out their five years each.
But this odd re-sentencing, under a statute that makes it sound like the
cattlemen were being prosecuted for terrorism, inflamed the paranoid
passions of the anti-government patriot and militia movements, and brought
the militants to Burns for a rally on Saturday.
Q: The Bundys are involved in this, aren't they?
A: Yup. Tensions between Western ranchers and the federal government have
been running at a fever pitch since an armed standoff between supporters of
Cliven Bundy and the federal Bureau of Land Management. Recall that Bundy
does not recognize the claim of the federal government to the land that his
cattle roam in Nevada. He owes more than $1 million in unpaid grazing fees
and fines. The feds briefly seized his cattle back in 2014, leading to an
armed standoff that the feds chose to de-escalate rather than risk provoking
another deadly showdown like occurred at Waco or Ruby Ridge in the 1990s.
Q: So Cliven Bundy is in Oregon?
A: No, but at least two of his sons are. Ammon Bundy appears to be leading
the takeover. In a video posted to Facebook, he declares: "We have basically
taken over the Malheur Wildlife Refuge. And this will become a base place
for patriots from all over the country to come and be housed here and to
live here. And we're planning on staying here for several years." Calling
his group "the point of the spear," Ammon Bundy called on like-minded
militants to "bring your arms."
Q: What do the militants want?
A: In a phone in interview with The Oregonian, another Bundy son, Ryan, laid
out the militants' demands: that the Hammonds be released and that the
surrounding federal lands be ceded to local control. "The best possible
outcome is that the ranchers that have been kicked out of the area... will
come back and reclaim their land, and the wildlife refuge will be shut down
forever and the federal government will relinquish such control," Ryan Bundy
said. He added, "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."
Q: Has the federal government reacted to this latest Bundy provocation?
A: Not yet.
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http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socialize
