Militia Takes Over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:19 pm

And the owner of the ranch that had the fence on the refuge border removed is claiming he has never met Bundy and that he works with the BLM with no issues.

But Puckett, who has ranches in several locations and was traveling to Burns Tuesday from more than 100 miles away, said he never heard about the militants' plan to destroy the fence. He feels like he "got drawn into something that I had nothing to do with." He said he doesn't condone the militants' actions and never asked them to cut the fence.

"I am very upset," Puckett said. His ranch hands have already repaired the fence. "They're not coming onto my place no more," he said of the militants. "If they do, I'm gonna have to do something about it. I don't want them going across my ground."

He said he has no beef with the Bureau of Land Management.

"I work with BLM," Puckett said. "I have no problem with them." He said government officials told him of their plans to erect the fence, which he said "has not nor will it affect my cattle operation."

"I am a good steward of the land. ... In no way do I feel that I am entitled to the refuge for grazing," he said.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:26 pm

Enough wrote:They apparently drive into down almost everyday for snacks at the local Quickie Mart.

Then I really don't understand what's happening. Either the feds are laughing so hard they can't come up with plan or there's clearly a different way to handle this than I would have thought. The idea that I could take up arms and claim a visitor's center at a park as mine...leave to get Funyns and Yoo-hoo and then return to my fortress of protest just seems...wrong.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:29 pm

I'm just surprised to learn that there's such a thing as "extreme DUI".

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:35 pm

I find their definition of extreme to be lacking in wow factor.

In Arizona there are specific laws and penalties for people who fall under the category of "Extreme DUI". A person is said to be an Extreme DUI if their blood alcohol concentration is 0.15 or higher within two hours of driving or being in actual control of a vehicle. A person convicted of Extreme DUI is convicted of a criminal misdemeanor.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:36 pm

hepcat wrote:I'm just surprised to learn that there's such a thing as "extreme DUI".

In Arizona, no less.

In most states, what he accomplished is neither physically nor biologically possible.

silverjon · Post by **silverjon** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:52 pm

Extreme!

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:56 pm

I was envisioning this.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:04 pm

Smoove_B wrote:
Enough wrote:They apparently drive into down almost everyday for snacks at the local Quickie Mart.
Then I really don't understand what's happening. Either the feds are laughing so hard they can't come up with plan or there's clearly a different way to handle this than I would have thought. The idea that I could take up arms and claim a visitor's center at a park as mine...leave to get Funyns and Yoo-hoo and then return to my fortress of protest just seems...wrong.

Particularly since the post office is federal property.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:09 pm

Like what if someone anonymously mailed them a pound of weed or a box full of Oxycontin? Then just happened to notify the postmaster general that they heard a rumor those crazy militia guys were going to get a drug pickup at the local post office? They'd be swarmed by postal inspectors and it would be lights out. Although I guess it's good they're not in Texas as I'd imagine receiving that many dildos in the mail might also be a felony. That would make more sense than what I'm reading here.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:32 pm

Subtlety is not something I've come to expect in governmental agency response, but, if it was a conscious decision (and not just ineptitude) to marginalize these yahoos by treating them like reality TV rather than criminals, it's brilliant. The only thing I don't agree with is suspending postal service because, "There might be rednecks."

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Wed Jan 13, 2016 9:53 pm

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Thu Jan 14, 2016 1:09 am

It'd be MUCH funnier ifit was this brand instead:

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Thu Jan 14, 2016 9:46 am

Apparently in addition to the locals trying to get them to leave, there are now also different armed militiamen coming to the area to oppose them. Which sounds like it should end well.

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 9:45 am

Good thing they're all white so we can avoid any bloodshed.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 4:20 pm

Interesting independent journalist interview with one of the militants who lays out how Amon Bundy got the direct calling/message from god to do this. Priesthood curses and all kinds of fun stuff lies herein. The interviewer is Peabody Award winning producer Scott Carrier.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 5:00 pm

Enough wrote:Interesting independent journalist interview with one of the militants who lays out how Amon Bundy got the direct calling/message from god to do this. Priesthood curses and all kinds of fun stuff lies herein. The interviewer is Peabody Award winning producer Scott Carrier.

Dang, that's powerful magic. We need to get some wards up pronto.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 6:59 pm

Welp, we have our first arrest.

Oregon State Police on Friday arrested one of the protesters occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge after he drove into town, accusing him of having a stolen vehicle.

The man was identified as Kenneth Medenbach, 62, of Crescent. He was arrested on suspicion of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

Law enforcement officials said Medenbach is currently on federal probation stemming from an earlier militia-related episode in southern Oregon. He was to be booked into the Deschutes County Jail in Bend with bail set at $10,000, officials said.

He is the first person arrested in connection with the armed occupation of the wildlife refuge, taken over two weeks ago.

He was arrested in the Safeway parking lot in one vehicle bearing federal government license plates. A second federal vehicle was parked next to him, but the man police suspect of driving that into town already had gone into the grocery before police arrived.

Both vehicles -- a pickup and a passenger van, bore door signs reading "Harney County Resource Center." That's the new name occupiers have given to the bird sanctuary they occupy, which is about 30 miles southeast of Burns.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 7:41 pm

Enough wrote:Welp, we have our first arrest.

He was arrested in the Safeway parking lot in one vehicle bearing federal government license plates. A second federal vehicle was parked next to him, but the man police suspect of driving that into town already had gone into the grocery before police arrived.

Foiled again!

Who knew grocery stores were sacrosanct.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Fri Jan 15, 2016 8:10 pm

GreenGoo wrote:
Enough wrote:Welp, we have our first arrest.

He was arrested in the Safeway parking lot in one vehicle bearing federal government license plates. A second federal vehicle was parked next to him, but the man police suspect of driving that into town already had gone into the grocery before police arrived.

Foiled again!

Who knew grocery stores were sacrosanct.

No wonder U2K wanted less grocery stores! He was secretly a law and order proponent.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 12:38 am

GreenGoo wrote:
Enough wrote:Welp, we have our first arrest.

He was arrested in the Safeway parking lot in one vehicle bearing federal government license plates. A second federal vehicle was parked next to him, but the man police suspect of driving that into town already had gone into the grocery before police arrived.

Foiled again!

Who knew grocery stores were sacrosanct.

I think if they don't see him driving it, can can't arrest him for driving it.

From Oregon live, it's Heavy metal:

Kenneth Medenbach, 62, of Crescent, and other armed militants left the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge they are occupying, to tear down a section of fence on bordering a rancher's property that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service installed, January 11, 2016, near Burns, Oregon. The removal will allow the ranchers to graze their cattle on the land.

Sad trombone:

Kenneth Medenbach, 62, of Crescent, is was arrested on suspicion of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, a class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison. He was to be booked into the Deschutes County Jail in Bend with bail set at $10,000, officials said.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 1:44 am

Now they're apparently building roads.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 1:47 am

So much for leaving no trace.

Alefroth · Post by **Alefroth** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 2:32 pm

Enough wrote:Now they're apparently building roads.

Possibly over archaeological sites. Hopefully this won't end up in the ancient site destruction thread.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 9:48 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote:
GreenGoo wrote:
Enough wrote:Welp, we have our first arrest.

He was arrested in the Safeway parking lot in one vehicle bearing federal government license plates. A second federal vehicle was parked next to him, but the man police suspect of driving that into town already had gone into the grocery before police arrived.

Foiled again!

Who knew grocery stores were sacrosanct.
I think if they don't see him driving it, can can't arrest him for driving it.

Yeah, I understood the point, it's just kind of insane that you can take over federal property using firearms to enforce your occupation, but the only way they'll arrest you is if you're caught driving a federal vehicle.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Tue Jan 19, 2016 8:26 pm

It gets weirder: Oregon Militiamen Blow Hard, Call Christians to Arms.

At the link you can see two of the militia blowing the shofar, a ram's horn used in Jewish religious practice.

Is this perhaps a Mormon thing, or is it Old Testament envy purely of their own devising? I've never heard of Christians using a shofar (or even referencing it) for anything.

In any case, "CHRISTIANS THE BATTLE TRUMPET HAS BEEN SOUNDED TIME TO RISE! CALL TO ACTION SEND IN THE TROOPS TO STAND WITH US IN BURNS OREGON!" so don't be late.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Tue Jan 19, 2016 9:18 pm

Bring snacks.

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 12:09 am

And we're somewhat ashamed to admit it but we've run out of dildos, bring those too.

silverjon · Post by **silverjon** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 1:36 am

Alefroth wrote:Possibly over archaeological sites. Hopefully this won't end up in the ancient site destruction thread.

I will vouch for the veracity of keeping the exact locations of sites unpublicized to cut down on vandalism and looting.

Bundy: "There are things to learn from cultures of the past, but the current culture is the most important."

I think the current culture says they mostly want that particular land to be a federal wildlife reserve?

Seriously, your regulatory environment can't be all that different from the one I work in, and shit-tons of government land has grazing leases. Just... not ALL of it. Some of it, we protect because other things are important.

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 12:49 pm

Holman wrote:Is this perhaps a Mormon thing, or is it Old Testament envy purely of their own devising?

Definitely not a Mormon thing, at least one that I've ever been made aware of. Sounds more like yet another flavor of homegrown nuttery from these clowns.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 12:59 pm

Holman wrote:It gets weirder: Oregon Militiamen Blow Hard, Call Christians to Arms.

At the link you can see two of the militia blowing the shofar, a ram's horn used in Jewish religious practice.

Is this perhaps a Mormon thing, or is it Old Testament envy purely of their own devising? I've never heard of Christians using a shofar (or even referencing it) for anything.

I've seen it used during the Easter Vigil service in a Catholic church. Since that Mass has part of it's roots in remembering a Passover, it doesn't really seem out of place. I know in terms of icons, it's certainly not unusual.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 1:42 pm

silverjon wrote:
Bundy: "There are things to learn from cultures of the past, but the current culture is the most important."

I think the current culture says they mostly want that particular land to be a federal wildlife reserve?

Very nice observation.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 2:52 pm

Nearly a week since there's been even a small amount of hub bub. Did it quietly go away?

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/ ... -time-soon

Over the weekend, the Oregonian reported that a local sheriff from Grant County, Oregon, said it might be time for the federal authorities to give the militiamen what they want. Sheriff Glenn Palmer said if the feds released Dwight and Steven Hammond, the father and son pair who are currently serving prison sentences for setting fires on federal lands, it "would be a start."

sigh

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 2:56 pm

Grant County Sheriff Oregon

Check out Sheriff Glenn Palmer on the Glenn Beck Show!

Conservative Tribune

One of Oregon’s lawmen just went to bat for the Second Amendment in a big way after he announced he won’t enforce a proposed bill that would require universal background checks in the state.

Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer says that the proposed legislation is “borderline treasonous,” likely unenforcible and will have no effect on the ability of criminals to acquire firearms.

Sheriff is an elected position, with all the concomitant politics.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 3:18 pm

Isgrimnur wrote:
Sheriff is an elected position, with all the concomitant politics.

And a jurisdiction suited to that fact.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 3:36 pm

Yeehadist women know their role, and that role is in the kitchen:

Jernigan joined the handful of women occupiers at the refuge who had come from places like Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. Some showed up with their men; others alone. Some left children back home. They come from different backgrounds and different faiths but they’re united in what they see as a calling: they believe the federal government has gone too far and they’re here to make a hard stand.

For the women, that hard stand comes by way of peeling potatoes and sorting laundry.

While the men militants give the press briefings, lecture reporters on the constitution, and stand guard with semi-automatic rifles, the women sort incoming supplies, make giant pots of chili and wash clothes. The kitchen is the social hub of their occupation. They sing, lounge on couches and share stories in the bunkhouse that once housed seasonal wildlife refuge volunteers. The women tend to be pro-gun rights and anti-federal government, but unlike the men, you rarely see them armed.

Women = no worth out of the kitchen:

For her part, Bass feels like the occupation could end if law enforcement and government officials negotiate successfully. She doesn’t want to soften on the occupiers’ demands about federal lands or their view on clemency for the Hammonds. Still, she wishes she could convince the men leaders to get together and talk, calmly.

“But I’m a nobody,” she said. She said she will stay at the refuge as a cook, “for as long as it takes. We women, we are helpers,” said Bass. “That’s how we are created, and that’s what we do here.”

The same article mentions the numbers of militants has increased to around 50 these days but the total of women is dwindling. Gee, I wonder why? Oh and OPB has confirmed there are now children staying on the refuge.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 3:58 pm

Enough wrote:Yeehadist women know their role, and that role is in the kitchen:

Jernigan joined the handful of women occupiers at the refuge who had come from places like Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. Some showed up with their men; others alone. Some left children back home. They come from different backgrounds and different faiths but they’re united in what they see as a calling: they believe the federal government has gone too far and they’re here to make a hard stand.

For the women, that hard stand comes by way of peeling potatoes and sorting laundry.

While the men militants give the press briefings, lecture reporters on the constitution, and stand guard with semi-automatic rifles, the women sort incoming supplies, make giant pots of chili and wash clothes. The kitchen is the social hub of their occupation. They sing, lounge on couches and share stories in the bunkhouse that once housed seasonal wildlife refuge volunteers. The women tend to be pro-gun rights and anti-federal government, but unlike the men, you rarely see them armed.
Women = no worth out of the kitchen:

For her part, Bass feels like the occupation could end if law enforcement and government officials negotiate successfully. She doesn’t want to soften on the occupiers’ demands about federal lands or their view on clemency for the Hammonds. Still, she wishes she could convince the men leaders to get together and talk, calmly.

“But I’m a nobody,” she said. She said she will stay at the refuge as a cook, “for as long as it takes. We women, we are helpers,” said Bass. “That’s how we are created, and that’s what we do here.”
The same article mentions the numbers of militants has increased to around 50 these days but the total of women is dwindling. Gee, I wonder why? Oh and OPB has confirmed there are now children staying on the refuge.

Now all they need is an egotistical, charismatic leader to turn it into a full-fledged religious cult.

the women sort incoming supplies,

The men no longer have to take on the task of sorting boxes upon boxes of dildos? Ok, time to end this thing.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 6:26 pm

Something something limp dicks.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Tue Jan 26, 2016 3:02 pm

One day we are thinking this is devolving into a crazy cult's final curtain call and then the next day we are back to just general crazy unhinged wingers that amuse us. Click the below if you dare, or if feeling particularly brave watch the video in all its fanny-slapping glory here.

Spoiler:

Just how bored are the armed militants occupying the property's gift shop/office building?

One of the more broad-in-the-beam "patriots" has posted a YouTube video with a bizarro challenge to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie: Come to Oregon and battle him in 10 sumo rounds.

If Christie can win just one of the rounds, Idaho-based occupier Kelly Gneiting says the "militia" will end the standoff and walk away.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Tue Jan 26, 2016 3:05 pm

Enough wrote:One day we are thinking this is devolving into a crazy cult's final curtain call and then the next day we are back to just general crazy unhinged wingers that amuse us. Click the below if you dare, or if feeling particularly brave watch the video in all its glory here.

Spoiler:

Just how bored are the armed militants occupying the property's gift shop/office building?

One of the more broad-in-the-beam "patriots" has posted a YouTube video with a bizarro challenge to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie: Come to Oregon and battle him in 10 sumo rounds.

If Christie can win just one of the rounds, Idaho-based occupier Kelly Gneiting says the "militia" will end the standoff and walk away.

"Come validate our crazy with your crazy! Please?"

I think they're lacking leadership and a coherent plan. If they never get that, great.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Tue Jan 26, 2016 3:42 pm

Some drunk idiot was arrested for DUI while driving his pellet gun to join to Bundy militia.

Video here. (It gets good at about the 5:00 mark.) You can watch some very professional State Troopers try not to laugh while he claims that he's a Green Beret Colonel and an Irishman and lethal freaking warrior and that he'll kill them all. Ronald Reagan sealed his records of action in Central America. He's the Last Hope, and he's going to the standoff to kill Federals.