[117716] in Cypherpunks
IP: The green commandos
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Robert Hettinga)
Thu Sep 9 10:49:02 1999
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Date: Thu, 9 Sep 1999 10:21:49 -0400
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
From: Robert Hettinga <rah@shipwright.com>
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Reply-To: Robert Hettinga <rah@shipwright.com>
--- begin forwarded text
Date: Thu, 09 Sep 1999 08:30:33 -0400
From: OldBat <bucsplace@cchat.com>
To: ianews <IANews.Publish@Syninfo.com>
Subject: IP: The green commandos
Sender: owner-ignition-point@precision-d.com
Reply-To: OldBat <bucsplace@cchat.com>
Jackie Madison wrote:
> Note: I have a cousin in this little town and she sent me the local news
> paper accounts so I know this account to be true. Jackie
> >
> >http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_btl/19990908_xcbtl_the_green_.shtml
> >
> >
> >
> > WEDNESDAY
> > SEPTEMBER 08
> > 1999
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > •
> >
> > Joseph Farah
> > is editor of
> >WorldNetDaily.com
> >
> > and
> > executive
> > director
> > of the
> > Western
> > Journalism
> > Center,
> > an independent
> > group of
> > investigative
> > reporters.
>
> >
> > The green commandos
> >
> >
> > In March, 40 officers divided into 10 four-man
> > teams swooped in with helicopters in a
> > pre-dawn raid to seize six suspects in
> > Dorchester County, Md.
> >
> > The principal suspect, Robert Gootee, was
> > hauled from his bed and led away in chains.
> > His wife was not allowed to call anyone, nor
> > were her neighbors allowed to come in to
> > comfort her, for four and a half hours.
> >
> > What was the offense that precipitated this
> > action? Was the four-year investigation that led
> > to the armed raid concerned with terrorism,
> > serial homicide or a major drug ring? What
> > type of criminal offenses were involved? Who
> > were these brave law-enforcement agents who
> > defied death to make the arrests?
> >
> > You had better sit down.
> >
> > Gootee was charged with possession of an
> > undersized striped bass, striped bass out of
> > season, untagged striped bass, possession of
> > summer flounder out of season, failure to tag
> > and check deer within 24 hours and possession
> > of a loaded weapon in a vehicle. The agents
> > involved were from the state and U.S. Fish and
> > Wildlife Service. And the target for the raid
> > was the Golden Hills Hunt Club.
> >
> > Gootee, the club treasurer, was hauled away
> > with such "evidence" as deer and duck mounts
> > and a framed photograph of his retriever
> > bringing in a duck.
> >
> > Eventually, 24 other club members were
> > charged with related offenses, including failure
> > to wear sufficient fluorescent orange while
> > hunting.
> >
> > We're in serious trouble, folks.
> >
> > Even as more Americans wake up to the reality
> > of the dangers posed by the gun-toting
> > federales who brought us Waco, a new breed
> > of armed-and-dangerous green commandos is
> > turning our forests into police states.
> >
> > Check out a report in this month's issue of
> > usually low-key Field & Stream Magazine:
> > "Looking for firepower, firefights and other fun
> > stuff? Forget the SEALs; Fish and Game is the
> > place to be."
> >
> > "Wardens may be watching too many cop
> > shows. How else can one explain why
> > increasing numbers of them seem to reject their
> > workday reality and the routine of dealing
> > with essentially law-abiding people in favor of
> > a world in which the everyday sportsman is an
> > ex-army commando ready for a shoot-out or a
> > high-speed car chase?"
> >
> > The story continues: "Recruits to wildlife law
> > enforcement now spend more time learning
> > how to break down the doors of alleged
> > poachers than how to differentiate the various
> > species of sunfishes. The April 1999 issue of
> > Wildlife in North Carolina describes the boot
> > camp that would-be officers go through in that
> > state: 'Relentless physical exercise, material
> > training and plenty of barracks inspections are
> > the norm for the first two weeks of wildlife
> > recruit school ... this includes 40 hours of
> > firearms training as well as many hours
> > mastering defensive tactics to disarm
> > suspects.'"
> >
> > The piece goes on to explain that the rationale
> > used by many agencies for such official
> > militancy is a claim that game wardens are
> > "seven times more likely to be killed during an
> > assault on the job than any other type of law
> > officer." Trouble with that statistic is that there
> > is no basis for it in fact.
> >
> > According to the Federal Bureau of
> > Investigation, in 1997, 65 law enforcement
> > officers of all kinds nationwide were killed in
> > the line of duty. Not one was a warden.
> > Whoops!
> >
> > There seems to be an active effort by
> > government to portray hunters and other
> > sportsmen as dangerous hombres -- all
> > potential killers. That was the picture painted
> > by some involved in the planning of the
> > Maryland raid.
> >
> > Richard McIntire, spokesman for the state's
> > Department of Natural Resources, explained:
> > "We were dealing with people who are known
> > to have weapons," he said, "and who are
> > proficient in their use."
> >
> > Yeah, so? America is a land free precisely
> > because the people have historically been
> > armed and self-trained in how to use firearms.
> > The Constitution not only protects the rights of
> > individual Americans to bear arms, it actually
> > suggests -- and, I believe, accurately -- that it is
> > akin to a sacred duty for citizens to be armed
> > and vigilant.
> >
> > Of course, the picture of the woods as territory
> > occupied by armed anti-government
> > militiamen and dangerous scofflaws doesn't
> > hurt one bit when it comes time to convince
> > legislators that the green cops need more
> > money for training, weapons and manpower.
> > (Remember, the initial assault on Waco was a
> > public relations dog-and-pony show designed
> > to persuade Congress the Bureau of Alcohol,
> > Tobacco and Firearms needed more funds.)
> >
> > It's not surprising, then, that after the raid in
> > Maryland some American flags in Dorchester
> > County were flying upside down. Not
> > surprising and not unwarranted.
> >
> >
> > A daily radio broadcast adaptation of Joseph Farah's
> > commentaries can be heard at http://www.ktkz.com/
> >
> >
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--- end forwarded text
-----------------
Robert A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
