What's the difference between an armed militia and a terrorist cel? The colour of your skin.
Yet again demonstrating the utter stupidity of the Second Amendment which gives people the right to bear arms but not common sense and the fact that the media in the United States is still living in some pre-1960s fantasy whitewash, the way the news has reported the armed annexation of a wildlife refuge by a family in Oregon highlights the underlying racism still prevalent in the media.
Think about this.
(5) the term “domestic terrorism” means activities that—
(B) appear to be intended—
(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;
(ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or
- U.S. Code › Title 18 › Part I › Chapter 113B › § 2331¹
Under the The Code of Laws of the United States of America, the definition of “domestic terrorism” means activities that appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population or to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion.
According to The Oregonian:
Harney County Sheriff David Ward on Sunday afternoon said a group of militants that seized an eastern Oregon wildlife refuge is trying to overthrow the local and federal governments.
Ward said the Harney County Sheriff's Office is working with several organizations to protect county residents and resolve the standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters south of Burns. The group of militants seized the headquarters, which was empty, after a march and protest Saturday in Burns.
Ward said the group hopes to spark a national movement.
- The Oregonian, 3rd Jan 2016
From what I can gather from various news sources, two brothers were in a dispute with the local government over the issue of cattle grazing rights in Harney County, Oregon. They then set fire to pasture lands and were convicted of arson, which the state said would lead to the threat of wildfires but which they said was for the control of invasive plants.
This led to the hostile takeover of a US government building in response by about 150 members of a local militia.
Had this been the takeover of a government building by a group of African Americans, it would have made national headlines in America. Had this been the takeover of a government building by a group of Islamic people, then this would have been labelled an act of terrorism and would have been attacked by Fox News, then shock jocks and then by CNN, ABC, NBC and CBS.
White people with guns is seen as an act of patriotism buy people of various shades of brown in America is seen as fundamentally attacking the American way of life.
"Every one of us has a constitutional right to protest, to speak our minds. But we don't have a constitutional right to use force and violence and to threaten force and violence on others.
And so it is our hope that the protesters there will stand down peaceably, that there will not be a violent confrontation.”
- Ted Cruz, as reported by Politico, 4th Jan 2016³
The fact that Ted Cruz can make a comment like this, indicates that neither the FBI, National Guard, Army or even tactical divisions of police have been sent in. One of the biggest threads in this story isn't what has been said but rather the unwritten rule that exempts white people from being accused of terrorists. Had these people been African American or Islamic, they would probably all be dead by now.
In the Black Lives Matter movement, the motives of people are questioned and words like "immature and "thugs" are brandished about. In this story in Oregon, a very very different set of words are being used.
Instead, a debate is being waged on whether or not this is an act of patriotism of all things. In a country where the NRA is listed as a 501C(4)(A) tax exempt organisation⁴ which exists "for the promotion of social welfare, or local associations of employees, the membership of which is limited to the employees of a designated person or persons in a particular municipality, and the net earnings of which are devoted exclusively to charitable, educational, or recreational purposes" you have to think that something is severely strange.
If you can control language and the colour of words being used, you can ctonrol people's opinions. That is on full display here. Whiteness is a car which provided you can play it, allows you to get away with craziness; including the armed hostile takeover of government facilities and still not be accused of terrorism.
How many sides does an Oregon have? At least two. It has a white side...
¹https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2331
²http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2016/01/sheriff_says_militants_came_to.html#incart_story_package
³http://www.politico.com/story/2016/01/oregon-standoff-republicans-ranchers-217333#ixzz3wJzhcG1p
⁴https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/501
No comments:
Post a Comment