[KurtFF8]

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BURNS, Ore. (AP) — A peaceful protest Saturday in support of an eastern Oregon ranching family facing jail time for arson was followed shortly afterward by an occupation of a building at a national wildlife refuge.
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Ammon Bundy, the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who was involved in a standoff with the government over grazing rights, told The Oregonian (http://is.gd/bK7d4E ) that he and two of his brothers were among a group of dozens of people occupying the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

Ammon Bundy posted a video on his Facebook page asking for militia members to come help him. He said "this is not a time to stand down. It's a time to stand up and come to Harney County," where Burns is located. Below the video is this statement: "(asterisk)(asterisk)ALL PATRIOTS ITS TIME TO STAND UP NOT STAND DOWN!!! WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! COME PREPARED."

In an interview with reporters late Saturday night that was posted on Facebook, Bundy said he and others are occupying the building because "the people have been abused long enough."

"I feel we are in a situation where if we do not do something, if we do not take a hard stand, we'll be in a position where we'll be no longer able to do so," he said.

Bundy said the group planned to stay at the refuge indefinitely. "We're planning on staying here for years, absolutely," Ammon Bundy said. "This is not a decision we've made at the last minute."

Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward told people to stay away from the building as authorities work to defuse the situation, the Oregonian reported.

"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," Ward said in a statement.

An Idaho militia leader who helped organize the earlier march said he knew nothing about activities after a parade of militia members and local residents in Burns walked past the sheriff's office and the home of Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son Steven.

Ammon Bundy's father, Cliven Bundy, told Oregon Public Broadcasting on Saturday night that he had nothing to do with the takeover of the building.
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Militia members occupy US building in Oregon after …
Protesters march on Court Avenue in support of an Oregon ranching family facing jail time for arson …

Bundy said his son felt obligated to intervene on behalf of the Hammonds.

"That's not exactly what I thought should happen, but I didn't know what to do," he said. "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."

His son Ammon told him they are committed to staying in the building, Cliven Bundy told Oregon Public Broadcasting.

"He told me that they were there for the long run. I guess they figured they're going to be there for whatever time it takes_and I don't know what that means," Cliven Bundy said. "I asked him, 'Well how long can ya, how long you going to stand out there?' He just told me it was for long term."

Beth Anne Steele, an FBI spokeswoman in Portland, told The Associated Press the agency was aware of the situation at the national wildlife refuge. She made no further comment.

Some local residents feared the Saturday rally would involve more than speeches, flags and marching. But the only real additions to that list seemed to be songs, flowers and pennies.

As marchers reached the courthouse, they tossed hundreds of pennies at the locked door. Their message: civilians were buying back their government. After the march passed, two girls swooped in to scavenge the pennies.

A few blocks away, Hammond and his wife, Susan, greeted marchers, who planted flower bouquets in the snow. They sang some songs, Hammond said a few words, and the protesters marched back to their cars.

Dwight Hammond has said he and his son plan to peacefully report to prison Jan. 4 as ordered by the judge.

Dwight Hammond, 73, and Steven Hammond, 46, said they lit the fires in 2001 and 2006 to reduce the growth of invasive plants and protect their property from wildfires.

The two were convicted of the arsons three years ago and served time — the father three months, the son one year. But a judge ruled their terms were too short under federal law and ordered them back to prison for about four years each.

The decision has generated controversy in a remote part of the state.

In particular, the Hammonds' new sentences touched a nerve with far right groups who repudiate federal authority.

Ammon Bundy and a handful of militiamen from other states arrived last month in Burns, some 60 miles from the Hammond ranch.

In an email to supporters, Ammon Bundy criticized the U.S. government for a failed legal process.

___

Information from: The Oregonian, http://www.oregonlive.com

I hope the folks who have been whining about Black Lives Matter activists causing minor delays in traffic are going to show some consistency and call for the immediate arrest of these far-right militiamen.

[treely]

Sheesh, the feds don't have to do much of anything. This is the middle of the desert, the high desert far from the nearest town where daytime January highs run around 0 F and often lower. The feds could stop spending taxpayer dollars on heating the building. And/or blockade any food from being brought in. No need to storm the building, just leave them there, till they decide to come out on their own. After all, they aren't causing traffic delays, as long as they don't bother the bird traffic in the refuge in the spring.

[Saeko]

far right groups who repudiate federal authority.

I hope they all get shot.

[Varax]

Sorry, I just can't get over that their target is a remote wildlife refuge in Oregon. Yes I know why they chose it, but way to stick it to the federal government!

[Godstud]

There must be some sort of media blackout about this, since there is very little information anywhere.

Homegrown terrorists take over a government building and nothing is done? Where is the national guard?

Criminals, the lots of them!

[KurtFF8]

There must be some sort of media blackout about this, since there is very little information anywhere.

It's the front page of almost every major news site I visit. Guardian, Yahoo News, AP, CNN, etc.

[Drlee]

I agree with Treely. Very simple actually. Do just what he says with some nice touches.

Jam their cell phones so they can't communicate with the outside. Jam any radios or televisions they may have with them. Close the refuge to the public and declare the park a "no weapons allowed" government facility if it is not already. Arrest anyone who attempts to enter the property with or without a gun. These people are already stupid but in a day or two, when they are cold and hungry, they will realize that it is all for naught.

[Eauz]

They should all be rounded-up and sent to re-education / labour camps. We don't need reactionary rednecks running around freely in society.

[Zamuel]

Homegrown terrorists take over a government building and nothing is done? Where is the national guard? Criminals, the lots of them!

Terrorists ... ? Did they shoot a raccoon or what ? The most interesting aspect of this is the ? re-sentencing after time was already served. This seems kind of questionable ... and worthy of public attention. Especially when the original offense seems to be about burning brush on leased government land ... ?

Zam

[treely]

Jam their cell phones so they can't communicate with the outside. Jam any radios or televisions they may have with them.

They don't even have to do that. Just turn off the electricity and the batteries will run down.

[Rei Murasame]

Seems like you can't burn a bush on leased government land without being sentenced twice to increasingly long jail terms. What I'm wondering is why the militia is even bothering to be diplomatic about this.

Their friends are going to go to jail for four years, for setting fire to a bush. That's more than you'd get for committing an actual crime somewhere.

They ought to be doing a bit more than merely occupying a nature observatory in response at this point. They have not yet gone far enough.

[mikema63]

I doubt it's so simple as all that.

This is all being led by the son of cliven bundy, who was using federal land to feed his cattle. From which he makes quite a lot of money. Without paying the fees for doing so.

He also stood off against the feds with some armed guys and was promptly forgotten.

This seems to be more a continuation of that original conflict started by a rich rancher who wanted to mooch of taxpayer owned property.

Edit: The sentence itself seems to be caused by mandatory minimum sentencing, which is pretty bad in the US in all honesty.

[Rei Murasame]

Bundy is saying that he feels 'compelled to intervene', but I can't seem to detect any money for him in doing that. I think that Bundy is only involved in this one because he likes to have his name in the news, he doesn't seem to be part of the economic framework of this particular crisis as far as I can see.

But someone tell me if I'm wrong.

[mikema63]

I have no idea, all I know is that the government allowing armed men to simply take over federal buildings is unacceptable. Even if they are unimportant ones.

The same goes for the whole Cliven Bundy thing as well. What group besides white ranchers would ever dare to point a gun at a government official and not expect to have their body torn into pieces by various weaponry?

[Godstud]

They are aiding and abetting known criminals. They should be treated as such, by the lawful authorities.

[Rei Murasame]

Both of you need to keep in mind that in this case the 'lawful authorities' are a collection of snivelling liberals. Why should any of us care about the liberal comfort level in Oregon?

To me it seems far more productive to just support the protestors and hope that the protestors 'burn the bitch down', as they say.

NB: And for consistency's sake (since I know I'll be asked this), that is the same as my view of BLM in Chicago, why should I care if BLM decides to 'burn the bitch down', if the 'bitch' is controlled by Rahm Emanuel? Let him have it. It's gloriously ironic.

[The Immortal Goon]

1. It was not double jeapardy as the militias try to spin it. The Hammonds were tried, sentenced, and then went through the appeals process where they ended up with extra time. This is not the same case being tried twice.

2. The Hammonds have explicitly said they do not support or stand with the militia's actions..

3. The militia is from Nevada and crossed into Oregon. Even in rural cowboy country, they have little to no support from Oregonians, hence the hashtag, #OregonUnderAttack

4. These mother fuckers are terrorists, even if people are whistling Dixie pretending that they're not. One of the leaders, Sam Hyde, is a fucking Klansman.

If they had been Muslims taking over Federal property, I know most of ye fuckers would be up in arms. Since it's white Christians (as is normal for this wackiness) we get a, "ho hum," response from the Party of Order on this board.

I say kill them all with extreme prejudice. They went in promising to, "kill or be killed." Fine, they made their choice. We should go in there, kill everyone we must, and hang everyone else as reactionary Neo-Confederates. One of, if not the, last progressive movements of the bourgeoisie was crushing the Confederate slime. It is a holy and revolutionary duty of the bourgeoisie to finish cleaning up this filth, and we must support them.

But they will not.

They are right-wing Liberals concerned with how it will look on television and what crocodile tears the patriotic Republican Party will shed in the defence of traitorous human filth.

This is happening in my state, I say kill them all.

[KurtFF8]

Their friends are going to go to jail for four years, for setting fire to a bush. That's more than you'd get for committing an actual crime somewhere.

Riiiight:

The seeds of the current situation were sown in 2001 and 2006. In both those years, the U.S. government said the Hammonds set fires that spread onto land managed by the BLM. The 2001 blaze burned 139 acres of public land, according to court documents; the 2006 fire — for which only Steven was convicted — burned another acre of public land.

...

Under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, which increased the penalties for arson committed against federal property, the mandatory minimum punishment for such crimes was upped to five years in federal prison. The law, which was passed in the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing, struck the judge presiding over the sentencing as too harsh — and off-base in this instance.

At the time, Hogan sentenced Dwight Hammond Jr. to three months of prison, and Steven Hammond to a year and one day. The federal government wanted the full five years, appealing the shorter sentences and eventually winning that appeal in 2014.

As usual, the militia movement and their supporters' arguments are based on nonsense.

Also let's not pretend these were just some poor innocent ranchers who are facing tyrannical oppression as these militia folks are claiming. From a little earlier in the article:

The animus harbored by Dwight and Steven Hammond for federal land agencies dates back decades. Both men were reportedly arrested for obstructing federal officials in 1994 — in protest of which "nearly 500 incensed ranchers showed up at a rally in Burns," according to High Country News. But even before that, the Hammonds bristled at the authority of managers of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

"[Dwight] Hammond allegedly made death threats against previous managers in 1986 and 1988 and against [Forrest] Cameron, the current manager, in 1991 and again this year," High Country News reported in 1994.

It's actually a pretty good article for contextualizing what's going on, although it should have a section on the militia movement and its white supremacist origins.

Why should any of us care about the liberal comfort level in Oregon?

And why should anyone care about the whining about "tyranny" from reactionary militia movement types?

To me it seems far more productive to just support the protestors

There couldn't be a more absurd and laughable stance than to support these "protesters."

[Zamuel]

Bundy is saying that he feels 'compelled to intervene', but I can't seem to detect any money for him in doing that. I think that Bundy is only involved in this one because he likes to have his name in the news/

It does look like this guy is trying to create an issue. I note that this the SON of Cliven Bundy, not the old man.

I do think there -IS- an issue here, but it's one for the courts, and not the militia. The sentencing judge felt the "Federal anti-terrorism statute" and it's minimum 5 year sentence was inappropriate ... A brush fire is not quite the same as bombing a federal building ... "It just would not be — would not meet any idea I have of justice, proportionality," was the judges public comment.

As noted the PROSECUTION appealed that judges sentence and got the 5 year minimum applied. I would say that creates an issue of "Cruel and Unusual Punishment" which is constitutionally forbidden. I suspect the defendants intend to purse that argument. They are clearly NOT pleased by the Bundy / Militia intervention.

That being the case, federal action is probably unnecessary, beyond waiting for the "protesters" to give up ... offensive activity by the government is exactly what the agitators/protestors would like to provoke. I seriously doubt they will attract any followers, beyond the usual Media / Internet nut cases.

Zam

[Godstud]

Their issue may indeed be unconstitutional, but the reaction of the militia is what I see as the real problem. They should not be involved, and their "threat" is what should be considered. Otherwise, I agree with Zamuel.