Can Someone Help Me Out Here?

Because I really do not understand why these guys have so much trouble grokking the very existence of the U.S. Government. I mean somehow state government doesn't threaten their Marlboro Man image of themselves, but Uncle Sam does?  

San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman (R-UT) and his supporters appear determined to defy federal law by riding their ATVs through Recapture Canyon, an area of southeast Utah known as a “mini-Mesa Verde” because it contains one of the highest densities of archaeological sites in the country.

Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher who has refused to pay more than $1 million in grazing fees he owes U.S. taxpayers, has reportedly urged his supporters -– who include armed militia members –- to join Lyman in Utah this weekend.

“We need to help the people of Blanding re-establish who is in control of the land,” said Bundy and his wife, Carol, in an email that was reported by E&E News. “This is your next stand. Will you be there to help them like you helped us?”

Utah County Commissioner Phil Lyman shares Cliven Bundy’s anti-government views. In his showdown with federal law enforcement officials last month, Bundy made clear he does not recognize the authority of the federal government. “I abide by all of Nevada state laws,”said Bundy, “But I don’t recognize the United States government as even existing.”

Like the Bundy confrontation in Nevada, the illegal ATV ride through Recapture Canyon is intended to challenge federal authority over public lands. Lyman, reports the Salt Lake Tribune, “says the planned ride aims to assert county jurisdiction in the face of federal ‘overreach.’”

If these idiots don't recognize the authority of the Federal Government, I say fine, pull out all federal tax dollars from their counties and states (including military dollars), and let's see how long these red-state heroes survive without all that sweet, sweet blue-state cash. Otherwise, I am at a loss as to why the Feds are not arresting these assholes for breaking the law.

I am sick to death of white guys getting a pass, or at the very least lots of extra consideration not given the rest of the population, when they do something illegal. From the Masters of the Universe rigging the system and robbing us blind, to the Cliven Bundys of the world, to abortion clinic terrorists, to right-wing militia freaks, God forbid we even discuss these men in terms we use for other law-breakers and people who commit terrorist acts, much less bring the force of law to bear against them.

This situation is especially galling because large majorities of citizens in these Western states support public ownership of the lands these yahoos are trying to privatize.

Public opinion research commissioned by Colorado College in February, 2014, found that nearly three in four Westerners –- and 63 percent of voters in Utah — are less likely to vote for a candidate who wants to sell public lands to reduce the deficit. And more than nine out of ten Western voters view their national forests, monuments, wildlife areas, and public lands as integral to their state’s economy.

In an alert to its members titled “Our Public Lands Are Not for Sale,” Backcountry Hunters and Anglers this week called the land seizure movement a “radical cry” that “should alarm all Americans who cherish their freedom to hunt and fish…. Our federal land system and outdoor heritage is the envy of the world and depends on keeping federal public lands out of state ownership.”

But the Freedumb-loving white guys have some powerful, well-connected interests behind them, and as we all know, it doesn't matter if large majorities of the public support policy X if enough campaign cash is lined up on the other side.

According to a new analysis from the Center for American Progress Action Fund, a network of right-wing elected officials, organizations, and prominent commentators share Mr. Bundy’s anti-government views and are advancing proposals to seize or sell-off federal public lands in eight Western states.

This network of so-called ‘Bundy’s Buddies’ includes the Koch-funded organizationAmericans for Prosperity, U.S. Senator and presidential hopeful Rand Paul (R-KY), Utah Congressman Rob Bishop (R-UT), and Utah State Representative Ken Ivory. Ivory leads theAmerican Lands Council — a group dedicated to advocating for the seizure of federal lands.

The Kochs and their John Birch, Libertarian vision for our country is doing more damage than all our foreign enemies combined. They are undermining our public school system, destroying our natural resources, weakening our economy, suppressing voting-rights, supporting gun-violence, restricting women's freedom - I mean, my God, if Al Qaeda were one-eighth as successful in undermining the lives, health, and freedoms of ordinary U.S. citizens, we'd be waging all out war on the perpetrators of these actions.

Instead, "Bundy's Buddies" make up the heart and soul of one of our two major political parties. I know it's only 8:30 a.m., but I think I'll start drinking now.