By Nathan Barton
Good morning! To many people, this is “Holy Week.” The 13th was “Palm Sunday,” and at sunset on Monday the 14th begins the Feast of Unleavened Bread, or Passover. I lose track of all the different names assigned the days of the week, except “Good Friday” and of course, Easter Sunday at the beginning of next week.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread is one of those holy days (holidays) that commemorates liberty: the beginning of the Exodus from Egypt of the children of Israel, their liberation from Egyptian slavery and the beginning of about 280 years of freedom. God’s gift to them, a gift that they attempted to reject several times and finally did in the time of Samuel the Judge (and Prophet) when they finally rejected God (His words, not mine) and demanded a human king, “like all the nations around us.” That should sound familiar to us, as the people of the Fifty States have done the same.
Which is why we have messes (and messages) like the mess in Nevada.
Over the weekend, the escalating confrontation at Bunkerville, Nevada, between the Bundy family and several hundred supporters and 200+ BLM, NPS, FBI, and other federal agents, vehicles and aircraft, supposedly ended with the Feds backing down and withdrawing. There is reason to think that the withdrawal was tactical (NOT “strategic” as so many people wrote, who do not understand the definitions of the words), and that the crisis is not yet over.
Across the border in Utah, there is another crisis coming to a head, between the Iron County government (ironic name, that) and several Federal agencies over wild horses: 2,000 of them in range capable of supporting only about 200 long-term, and eating ranchers out of house and home, as well as being a general nuisance. This is NOT an unusual problem in the West: “rats with antlers” (deer) are a nuisance AND a danger in many regions: few natural predators are present except humans and their predation is overly restricted. So hundreds of us hit deer on the highways, byways, and even our own driveways at times, as they eat crops and despoil flowers and much else: even in cities of 50,000 population or more. Ditto for prairie dogs. In some areas (Rocky Mountain National Park, for instance), elk are a similar danger and problem: their population outstripping the habitat available and destroying it. Similar problems exist with elk, deer, and “wild” bison populations in and around Yellowstone. The FedGov’s agencies are destroying the environment.
Anyway, in Iron County, the local government has threatened to, and started, rounding up the feral horses and transport them or do something to get the population down to a sustainable level, and the FedGov (which has in essence decided that its only course of action is to bully and threaten and use violence) says that it will retaliate. Because of Bunkerville, the possibility of violence has been increased in Utah. And other places.
In South Dakota, various Lakota nations and organizations have begun creating camps to protest against and prevent the construction of the Keystone XL across lands that were once part of their reservations: ironically against not just the pipeline and its supposed environmental nightmares, but against the man-camps.
In many other places, such as the northern San Juan Mountains of Southwestern Colorado, and portions of the huge Navajo Nation homeland (reservation) of NW New Mexico and NE Arizona, new federal rule making and creation of “management plans” are being opposed by both sides: the environist “preservationists” on one side, and the multi-use proponents (and users: snowmobiling, fourwheeling, hunting, grazing) on the other. Again, if we had the government we are supposed to have, these things would not even be issues: the land would be privately owned and while not perfectly-managed, certainly better than the government is able (or willing) to do.
The Washington Times tells us that the Nevada ranch standoff could leave dirt on Harry Reid’s reputation . Mama Liberty asks, reasonably, ” How do you wet a river?” No fooling. Was discussing this with some friends after worship yesterday. Nevada politics is like Pigpen, the Peanuts character.
Both Mama Liberty and I appreciated Karen Kwiatkowski’s commentary, “Early Lessons of Bunkerville”
As with the British Army in 1775, the state’s institutions sow the seeds
of their own destruction. Inflation, crushing debt, and rats leaving the
sinking ship will conspire towards ultimate collapse. As Bunkerville
publicly demonstrated, we the people can peaceably help this process
along. The state will call it reform, transformation, or even
rehabilitation, even as politicians begin to scramble to “lead” the
leaders of this liberty and justice movement. The state will shrink,
in influence at first, as we have seen, then in physical presence,
cohesiveness, and consumption. We will call it victory, and tell our
children instructive fables of evil statist monsters. God bless the
Bundys and their friends, and all of us. It has started!
Over at TMM someone said: I’m curious how many wealthy ranchers are going to come to the rescue of some IIIper that had his door kicked in, dogs shot, and guns confiscated?
Mama Liberty replied:
We might be surprised. 🙂 But I hope we never need to find out. As for
“rich,” I don’t know why it matters by itself, but I suspect that
Bundy’s bottom line is very complicated with taxes, regulations and
probably a shit load of debt as well. I suspect he’s more “land poor”
than rich – and I’m also sure that the governments, both fed and state,
will leave no stone unturned to strip him of both money and land – even
if they don’t arrange for his death before doing so. All of the other
“rich” ranchers had already been driven out, one way or another.
But I’m really encouraged that at least this phase of the “war” turned
out well. It could so easily have turned into a holocaust… one
momentary slip of trigger discipline, one overeager drone operator
seeing the rifles on the bridge as an attack on the feds… a hundred
other things that MIGHT have happened – didn’t. The rag tag, leaderless
and completely self governing people who gathered there managed to
maintain non-aggression, regardless of their personal background,
opinions, attitudes and so forth.
Even the “jack booted thugs” managed to mostly behave themselves and not
start shooting at people… they had the brains to understand that it
could not end well for them. They knew right away they didn’t have the
overwhelming advantage they always need and try to create. What “works”
in Boston, doesn’t accomplish much in Nevada… hope some of them
learned that lesson.
THAT is the victory here, and I hope it continues.
As do I, milady, as do I.
On to one last item of news, again tied to the season in strange ways:
Three people have been killed in a pair of shootings at a Jewish Community Center in Overland Park, Kansas, by a elderly man who admits he is anti-Semitic and appears to be just filled with hate. Bizarrely two of the people he killed were christians and not Jews, but apparently he didn’t ask for a membership card first But the real story here is that NO one was ARMED and able to defend against this madman. The idiot, excuse me, the Fuehrer’s comments were (as is so often the case) stupid: the three people were not “killed at their prayers” but rather putting on a play and other things. But I suspect that he is angling to keep the ban (in too many places) on people being armed in church and synagogue meeting houses. I find THAT rather odd, that a Jewish congregation would decide putting a play on was appropriate during the High Holy Days, when people are supposed to be remembering and celebrating their rescue from slavery in Egypt. What a world we live in.
The Price of Liberty 
Government: Lies and LIES and MORE LIES
By Nathan Barton
(Originally Libertarian commentary on the news, #14-15F)
Good morning – or not. Should I lie to you and tell you what a wonderful day it is, here in America? If I do, then I’m just like the government. To them, lies come with breathing. They are incapable of telling the truth, of telling anything BUT lies.
Lies to promote their agenda. In South Carolina, the Feebs are raising the ante against people who dare to want small government AND buy weapons. And adding to the usual BATFE pressure against gun shops. The FBI and its agents AND bosses (like Holder) lie constantly about the supposed threats to the Fifty States.
They are lying about the economy. Again and again. We “have recovered” or “we are recovering” or “we’ve reached the bottom and will start back up.” Lies. So it comes as a shock that Family Dollar is actually CLOSING 370 of its stores and slowing construction of new ones. The story doesn’t say where the stores are being shuttered, but this shows AGAIN how bad the economy is, now five years into what I call the Crash of 2009. For many small, rural and frontier communities, Family Dollar and its competitors, low-end retailers, have been a big part of what little economic growth has been taking place. Now, what is next? Will still more towns just roll up their sidewalks?
Mama’s Note: An interesting observation about our local “Family Dollar” store is their ongoing difficulty finding and retaining employees, in spite of so many people looking for work. The store here has a “help wanted” sign on the door most of the time. A number of people I know have applied, but the wages offered are so low, the hours so long and irregular, and the working conditions so rough that they soon walk away and look for something better.
We know that taxes, regulations, Obummercare, and all the rest are a big part of the problem, and any business operating on the ragged edge of a microscopic profit margin as I suspect they do can’t pay well. The manager of this store does an incredible job with what she has. The store is clean and all of the employees are friendly, helpful people. But they live perched on the edge of a sharp blade… and there isn’t much they can do about it. I hope our store won’t be one to close, but I would not be in the least surprised. What a shame.
They use all kinds of lies. A recent editorial in a mainstream media outlet slanders American combat veterans as “white supremacists” and the backbone of the KKK and other groups. I am sure that my friends and associates who are combat vets from as far back as Korea, who happen to be black, Jewish, AmerInd, and Asian are very definitely “white supremacists” – every one of them. Especially those who are Lakota or Navajo. Of course, this is trying to get around the fact that the man who murdered three people at Jewish facilities in Kansas a few days ago is a long-time DEMOCRAT who is a racist and a Jew-hater from way back. And that many of the most notable of mass-killers in recent years are NOT the libertarian or conservative right-wing fanatics that the FBI and all the other DOJ and FedGov thugs try to make them out to be: Aurora, Connecticut, and elsewhere: we see mentally deranged people, usually “liberal” in political beliefs, and filled with hatred for themselves, their families, and others. YES there are combat veterans who have proved to be evil and deranged, and there are thousands who have been unable to cope with it and kill themselves and sometimes others. But it is NOT all of us, it is not a majority of us, it is not even a small minority of us.
Of course, that slander isn’t much different from what the Majority Leader of the US Senate is getting away with. Listen to what Harry Reid is saying: “Those people who hold themselves out to be patriots are not. They’re nothing more than domestic terrorists . . . I repeat: what went on up there was domestic terrorism. There were hundreds—hundreds of people from around the country—that came there. They had sniper rifles on the freeway. They had assault weapons. They had automatic weapons. . . . [They said they had] children and women lined up because if anyone got hurt we wanted to make sure they got hurt first, because we want the federal government hurting women and children. . . . What if others tried the same thing? . . . Clive Bundy does not recognize the United States. He says that the United States is a foreign government. He doesn’t pay his taxes. He doesn’t pay his fees. And he doesn’t follow the law. He continues to thumb his nose at authority.”
I want to look at this closely. This man is SUPPOSEDLY a loyal American, who has taken multiple oaths to uphold the Constitution, who has tremendous power, is a proponent of “democratic” political philosophy, and a Latter-day Saint in good standing. This one statement (and the truth) prove that he is a liar, an ENEMY of democracy and liberty, and an ENEMY of both the American people and the Constitution. And one VERY fearful man. Let us ignore HIS (intentional) ignorance of weapons (sniper rifles/hunting rifles, self-loading weapons or assault weapons, no doubt all with 30 round magazines) and look at the rest. It is HIGHLY unlikely that any of the people coming to the Bundy’s aid had automatic weapons, but if this is the definition of a terrorist (to have sniper rifles, “assault weapons,” and automatic weapons), then WHO were the terrorists at Bunkerville? THE FEDGOV AGENTS, that is who! There was a DISCUSSION about having women (NOT children) on the front line, but the video shows that is NOT what actually happened. (This is a whole other issue to be discussed. But remember, Reid is one of the Tranzis that wants women to be front-line combat infantry when he and his colleagues, Tranzi trash that they are, send out American troops to create and enforce a Pax Americana. And to bomb, strafe and kill the women and children of foreigners!) His personal attacks on Bundy are groundless lies. But I admit that Reid should know what it means to thumb his nose at authority, as he does it EVERY DAY to the US Constitution and the people who supposedly established and ordained it and elected him to office. Much as I have despised this man in the past, it is a pale match to the roaring torch of contempt I hold for this murdering, lying, thieving, power-mad man now. WHERE ARE THE DANITES??? WHERE ARE THE BRIGHAMITES? How can ANY civilized people or polity put up with this thug?
Since 1980, men’s wages have risen only by 6 percent, while women’s wages have risen by 60 percent… and we wonder just what is going on. IF it is true that women get only 77 percent (or 88 percent – depending on whom you believe) of men’s wages, it must be only because they are extremely selective in the universe that generates those numbers, and the situation is getting worse. Graduation rates for men (from both high school and college) are dropping: it is women more and more who are getting diplomas. Lies and more lies, getting bolder and bolder.
Mama’s Note: Besides… if it were true that women always receive less… why would any business hire a man? If money is the only criteria, women would have all the jobs. 🙂
Like this very recent lie about ObummerCare. In total, only 3.9 million people actually enrolled in insurance plans through the state or federal exchanges — not 7.1 million…Gee, you think that “new studies” are needed to indicate problems? The Fuehrer AND EVERY THUG who works for him are chronic, pathological liars. They CANNOT tell the truth. I know a few pathological liars, and I don’t trust them AT ALL. Why can people not see the evil of the Fuehrer?
Mama’s Note: Unfortunately, all the lies and hype and arguments over the website and the wishy-washy enforcement are hiding the real truth. No government has any possible legitimate authority to regulate, much less mandate, the market for health insurance or the provision of medical services. None… nada. This mess will only continue to get worse until people realize this, and refuse to be manipulated this way.