Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Weekend Contributor
Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher and scofflaw, was hailed by some people as a folk hero and patriot recently when he—and his followers–engaged in a standoff with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Caty Enders (Esquire) described the scene in Bunkerville, Nevada, as pundits and politicians descended on the Bundy camp last week “to throw in their American flag hats with the BLM protestors.” She said that a FOX News van had been parked by the side of the road for days—and that “militia snipers kept a trained watch” up on a ridge “as Bundy held court.” She added that disciples of Bundy came from far and wide “to share their personal theories as to why the government was enforcing a court order.”
Bundy has had a number of advocates who have spoken in support of his militant stance against the BLM. Those advocates included some prominent politicians and members of the media. Sean Hannity was one of Bundy’s biggest boosters and helped to make him into a folk hero. Hannity talked with Bundy on a number of occasions on his Fox News show. Joan Walsh (Salon) asked a pertinent question about Bundy on Friday: “How does a guy who declared early on ‘I don’t recognize the United States government as even existing’ become a folk hero in the first place?” She said that both Hannity and Fox News should have realized that the Nevada rancher was “too toxic” prior to his “ongoing self-exposure as a racist.” She added that the extremism of Bundy’s statement about the US government “should have been warning enough that Bundy was not only crazy but dangerous…”
Enders posed a question that was in the same vein as Walsh’s: “Exactly how difficult was it, though, to determine pretty early on that Bundy and his followers were using the threat of force to back up some terrifyingly misguided beliefs?” Enders provided some insight into the thinking and beliefs of Bundy and disciples of his with whom she talked.
Members of the Bundy Brigade Speak Out
Enders spoke to a militia member named Mark who was affiliated with the Oath Keepers group. Mark explained to her “the truth behind public land management.” He said, “The assumption is that the BLM is part of the federal government. But we need to check the facts on that one. The BLM doesn’t work for the government: they work for the United Nations. They might as well be wearing blue helmets. If we find out there’s money being exchanged between Harry Reid and the Chinese government, no one should be surprised.”
Another Bundy disciple told Enders that “Bar-certified lawyers, like the ones who prosecuted Bundy, have sworn loyalty to the British government, whose statutes encourage sex with clients. ‘That’s what they do with all their clients.’”
Enders spent time talking to a former cop who chuckled as he related a story about one of his buddies who once worked as a sheriff in New Mexico. He said his buddy got into some trouble after he pulled over a group of illegals one night. He said his pal “didn’t have room to haul ‘em all, so he put a chain around their neck and put a padlock through it, went to the next one, then he chained ‘em to a tree!” Enders said that the former cop then buckled with laughter as he told her how his friend “left ‘em and went to town to get his pickup to haul ‘em all back in. So, you might imagine, that didn’t play well — ha! You’re a young’un, but everything wasn’t against the law, way back when.” The former cop also told Enders that it was now being proved that the Bureau of Land management was acting on orders “from Troy and Harry Reid, who want to build a solar farm on the land — or a wind farm.”
One of Bundy’s disciples drove a beige sedan covered with the following message:
IF YOU WERE BORN IN 1980 AND AFTER. YOU MAY BE IMPLANTED WITH A GOVERNMENT MICROCHIP WITHOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE: GOOGLE DOCTORS THAT REMOVE MICROCHIPS.
Cliven Bundy, God’s Messenger
During the time that Enders spent at the Bundy camp, she witnessed one of the public addresses the Nevada rancher made to his followers. She said that as Bundy—who had just been given a standing ovation—took the stage, he didn’t seem pleased. She said that Bundy reproached the crowd “for failing to follow the word of God – to the letter …”— which he claimed was being “delivered through him.” He wasn’t happy that his supporters failed “to follow his instructions to tear down the toll booths at Lake Mead and disarm the Park Service.” Bundy added, “The message I gave to you all was a revelation that I received. And yet not one of you can seem to even quote it.” He continued, “The records of our bible — how long have they been kept? Thousands of years. They’ve been turned over generation after generation, buried, and all kinds of things happen to ‘em. And yet, here, something I felt was inspired [by God] and yet we haven’t even carried it forth for even a couple of days. Shame on us.”
Bundy expressed frustration because his followers hadn’t been able to deter the BLM “within an hour”—“as the revelation had prophesied.” When an hour had passed, Bundy reportedly got into his bulldozer and decided to march on the BLM himself. His dozer got stuck in the mud—and that led to Bundy’s receiving yet another revelation: “It come to my mind real plain — the good Lord said, ‘Bundy, it’s not your job, it’s THEIR job.’” Bundy reiterated that revelation a little differently in an effort to ensure that his followers understood what he had just told them, “This is not my job, it’s YOUR job.”
Bundy said that he received a message that morning after he prayed. He claimed that he heard a voice say, “Sheriff Gillespie, your work is not done. Every sheriff across the United States, take the guns away from the United States bureaucrats.”
Uncivil Disobedience
Even The Weekly Standard–as well as Glenn Beck–has been critical of Cliven Bundy. The magazine’s Scrapbook explained the whole Bundy situation with regard to grazing fees and court rulings. The Scrapbook said that what had transpired over the years didn’t sound “like the dread hand of tyranny, in Nevada or Washington, oppressing an innocent farmer, or pushing some law-abiding citizen around.” It said it sounded, instead, “like a rancher gaming the system to his own financial advantage, and disguising his scheme in populist rhetoric: refusing to pay a tax which others must pay, and ‘tying up the courts’—for two decades!—as he continues to ignore the law.”
The Weekly Standard:
Far from acting in an arbitrary or capricious manner, the federal government has shown patience and forbearance in the face of lawlessness that customarily lands people in jail. It is worth noting that Bundy’s rancher-neighbors and the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association, who contend with the same federal policies, offer him little support.
Apocalypse Cow – Welfare Rancher, Part 1 (The Daily Show)
Apocalypse Cow – Welfare Rancher, Part 2 (The Daily Show)
SOURCES
Fox News’ new laughingstock: Cliven Bundy — and Stephen Colbert — will destroy Sean Hannity (Salon)
Uncivil Disobedience (The Weekly Standard)
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The numbers are everywhere Chucky. I just gave some. Read them and get back to me if you have any questions. They’re everywhere w/ a quick Google search. Anything else. And, whenever you pontificate about psych issues and your vast experience I will refer to this. Bookmarked.
Despite his attempt to make a sow’s ear out of a silk purse, Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) ends up looking silly. He released data on purchases made with state welfare benefits. He claims they exposed abuse, or even “widespread” abuse, but once the local papers ran the numbers, they added up to >1% of all benefit transactions.
There was just a bit more than 3,000 transactions at bars, sports bars, and strip clubs made with EBT (electronic benefit transfer) cards loaded with TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or welfare) and food stamp benefits between January 1, 2011 and November 15, 2013. The Maine DHHS believes some of those were were simply ATM withdrawals at those locations.
There were approximately 50,000 transactions monthly (1.8 million during the time block studied)), according to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) spokesman. This comes to about .02% of total purchases and ATM withdrawals. Even after being shown that .02% was hardly widespread fraud, Governor LePage doubled down.
The Bangor Daily News reported he said, “This information is eye-opening and indicates a larger problem than initially thought…..These benefits are supposed to help families, children and our most vulnerable Mainers. Instead, we have discovered welfare benefits are paying for alcohol, cigarettes and other things that hardworking taxpayers should not be footing the bill for.”
Governor LePage seems to be math challenged. He claimed that 47% of Mainers don’t work, despite the fact that 65% are either working or actively seeking work. The remaining 35% are mostly homemakers, retirees, disabled and students.
http://bangordailynews.com/2014/01/07/politics/lepage-releases-ebt-data-showing-transactions-at-strip-clubs-bars-smoke-shops/
http://thetippingpoint.bangordailynews.com/2013/10/22/state-politics/gov-lepage-lets-slip-what-he-really-thinks-about-maine-people/
As Scott S. says, personal history is anecdotal and not proof of anything. In fact, that is exactly why the Frye standard was overturned in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals (92-102), 509 U.S. 579 (1993), followed up by Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, 526 U.S. 137 (1999) and Weisgram v. Marley Co., 528 U.S. 440 (2000).
In order for any claim to be considered, even by a supposed expert, hunches, opinions and anecdotes don’t meet the standard imposed by FRE 702. Furthermore, any such claim presented to a peer-reviewed journal will be rejected out of hand. Opinion is not science, nor is it proof of anything. In short, where are the data?
The line from that movie was, “Show me the money.” In my case, “Show me the numbers.”
Mr. Spinelli
How about a link? Everybody around here gives links. Nobody thinks that is an objectionable request. What gives?
The Good Spinelli appears!
http://oig.ssa.gov/report
I suggest Spinelli report every single person who he suspects of SS Disability fraud.
CNN Money April 2013. Disability Skyrockets.
Let’s take a deep breath. Except for Paul, we all agree that Bundy is a buffoon and freeloader. I am not saying anyone should stop commenting, I don’t want to get a certain someone riled, but why all the acrimony when we agree on the topic presented? Why so personal folks?
Mr. Spinelli
How about providing supporting links?
I hope Paul gets back soon, I’m outnumbered when you factor ion everything, about 2-1.
According to government figures, disability claims have skyrocketed in the past decade. There’s a good report on the CNN website from April of last year. Since 2003, there has been a 29% increase in disability payments to those who have NEVER worked and an incredible 44% increase over that same timeframe for people who have worked. The Obama administration has made it carte blanche for SS disability. Only someone w/ some personal agenda or issues would not see this is a huge problem.
“30 plus years of working disability, work comp, and personal injury cases is not anecdotal.”
Yes it is. Show me a study about how epidemic fraud in the disability system is.
“Speaking @ insurance and police science college classes on the topic is not anecdotal.”
Yes, in fact, it’s the definition of anecdotal.
Later.
Ms. Magliaro,
Why don’t you pick on somebody your own size? This is like Rocky taking on a piece of meat.
Nick: “poor performance by our current prez”
What poor performance? Lying us into a war that costs trillions and killed a half a million? Causing the biggest recession since the great depression? Leaving office with GDP at negative 9% and job losses at 800k per month?
Obama’s non-recession monthly job growth numbers are roughly DOUBLE GW Bush’s 68,000–way below what we needed just to keep up with population growth.
Funny how you guys never mention that “poor performance.”
I would argue that were it not for the GOP, we’d have passed a jobs bill and some serious infrastructure investment that would more than pay for itself, while putting millions of people back to work.
And then there’s the social policies which you, as a libertarian, should support. Ending DOMA. Ending don’t ask don’t tell. The Lilly Leadbetter Act. I could go on and on with the accomplishments of our quite moderate president.
But that would be too much for someone who’s much more interested in personal attacks against me than the actual facts about what’s happening in this country.
You know, GW Bush was governor of Texas for a while. Didn’t help him be a good executive. Feingold would be a fine Governor. Or even President.
Now I’m going to play some bluegrass with friends. You know, something else I can’t possibly do because I’m just a stagehand.
Scott, hopefully Professor Turley sees that Spinelli continues to insult the commenters on this thread, if not on this entire blog. I understand that the Professor wants us to disengage from him, but may I suggest that we be able to defend ourselves against his continuous onslaught of insults.
30 years gobbling up private citizen’s information from government agencys.
Illegal the last I heard.
Speaking @ insurance and police science college classes on the topic is not anecdotal.
Attending and speaking @ many seminars is not anecdotal.
30 plus years of working disability, work comp, and personal injury cases is not anecdotal. What are your credentials on this topic. It seems awfully personal to me.
Not responsive, but thanks.