The militiamen stationed at a federal wildlife refuge in eastern Oregon are now rummaging through artifacts and documents of the Paiute tribe, sparking outrage among local Native Americans whose ancestors originally occupied the land.
The new video, posted on Wednesday night, has only further enraged tribal leaders who recently called on law enforcement officials to protect native cultural resources at the refuge and to criminally prosecute the militiamen.
“I feel disrespected that they’re even out there,” said Jarvis Kennedy, the tribal council’s sergeant-at-arms. Kennedy said he was too upset to watch all of Finicum’s video. “It’s like me going through their drawers at their house.”
Tribe leaders and federal officials say the refuge stores confidential documents and thousands of historic artifacts, such as baskets, spears, tools and beads. The refuge is also home to Paiute burial grounds, making the militia’s recent decision to pave a road through the refuge particularly alarming.
“I could go to the Bundys where his grandparents are buried,” Kennedy said. “How would they feel if I drove over their grave and went through their heirlooms?” -The Guardian
18 Comments
eric3579says...Every time a video comes out from this crew they just find themselves in a deeper hole. Silly bastards can't seem to do anything right.
RFlaggsays...Fixed that for the Guardian... perhaps they can throw in "allegedly" before the word "illegally" if they wanted to play it overly safe, but let's stop mistreating the word militiamen as this is not what they are. They are using the threat of armed violence to achieve a political goal. That is terrorism. They say they are doing it in the name of God. That makes it Radicalized Christian terrorism.
These guys said they would leave if asked by the local community, they were asked, they've been asked by the tribe, the community, their church, and everyone else. Yet they are still there... They were prepared for the long haul... though apparently they needed to ask for essential supplies, so perhaps they are confused on what being "prepared for the long haul" means.
articiansays...This is infuriating. Now they should all be hung. Seriously.
newtboyjokingly says...Isn't that why people are sending them large dildos, so at least they can pretend to be hung?
This is infuriating. Now they should all be hung. Seriously.
enochsays...capital punishment? like actually hanging these people?
for what exactly?
look,i think their whole protest is mired in ignorance and hyper-patriotism with little or no basis in reality.
i find them to be a bunch of hypocritical right wing zealots,who should be called what they actually are:terrorists.
i find their circular logic and lack of integrity infuriating,and those who support them to be equally frustrating.that when they stated they would leave if the community asked them to leave,and when the community ASKED them to leave..they refused.
i also find the federal governments response to be a brilliant tactic:hang back and allow this gaggle of retards to self-implode.which is EXACTLY what is happening.their support is dwindling incredibly fast,because they are being exposed for the hypocritical radical fascists they are,bunch of assholes with guns.
but to actually hang them? to end their existence?
or am i just missing the sarcasm in your comment?
because the way things are going,and the exposure they are receiving,which was fairly positive at one time in some circles,is creating an atmosphere where these nimrods will never been taken seriously again...ever.
so no need to end their lives.they have effectively destroyed their own credibility as some kind of arbiter of freedom and justice.they are quickly becoming a joke.
that is a form of death isn't it?
and far more satisfying in my opinion.
if i misunderstood your comment,please forgive.
This is infuriating. Now they should all be hung. Seriously.
newtboyjokingly says...OK...I can make a semi-serious argument for capital punishment for these morons (except they would have to be tried in Texas, the only state that executes the mentally challenged).
They are terrorists.
They themselves are likely exactly the people who would say we should just hang those in Guantanamo (and any other Muslim terrorists we find) because...terrorist! If THEY advocate for the execution of terrorists, it's only fair to use their own 'reasoning' on them....which would really mean executing their families too, right? Just because they're too dumb to understand they ARE terrorists doesn't excuse them, and if THEY can advocate for executing terrorists, I can agree with them on a case by case basis, right? Turnabout's fair play, guys. ;-)
capital punishment? like actually hanging these people?
for what exactly?
look,i think their whole protest is mired in ignorance and hyper-patriotism with little or no basis in reality.
i find them to be a bunch of hypocritical right wing zealots,who should be called what they actually are:terrorists.
i find their circular logic and lack of integrity infuriating,and those who support them to be equally frustrating.that when they stated they would leave if the community asked them to leave,and when the community ASKED them to leave..they refused.
i also find the federal governments response to be a brilliant tactic:hang back and allow this gaggle of retards to self-implode.which is EXACTLY what is happening.their support is dwindling incredibly fast,because they are being exposed for the hypocritical radical fascists they are,bunch of assholes with guns.
but to actually hang them? to end their existence?
or am i just missing the sarcasm in your comment?
because the way things are going,and the exposure they are receiving,which was fairly positive at one time in some circles,is creating an atmosphere where these nimrods will never been taken seriously again...ever.
so no need to end their lives.they have effectively destroyed their own credibility as some kind of arbiter of freedom and justice.they are quickly becoming a joke.
that is a form of death isn't it?
and far more satisfying in my opinion.
if i misunderstood your comment,please forgive.
enochsays...@newtboy
well,that certainly would be ironic.
but capital punishment?
i do not think there is grounds for that.
criminal consequences for their actions? maybe a wee bit of time donated to the government?
ok...i think that is reasonable.laws have been broken and they should be held accountable for their actions.
but death?
naw.you would just make them martyrs and confirm the more "fringe" element that their actions are justified.
Januarisays...Honestly we could just send them some rope. My guess is within the week they'll have hung themselves.
Drachen_Jagersays...ISIS takes over land that isn't theirs, tromps around with guns threatening anyone who comes near and destroys priceless historical artifacts.
Oregon Militia takes over land that isn't theirs, tromps around with guns threatening anyone who comes near and destroys priceless historical artifacts.
Can you see the difference?
enochsays...@Drachen_Jager
thats a pretty piss poor analogy.
while i can agree (and did in my original comment) that the militia is,by definition,engaging in terrorism.
i cannot agree to killing these men.
and to compare them to ISIS is a bit of a stretch.
1.they are american citizens.they are sovereign.ISIS are not.
2.while there has been an occupation of land,there has been no evidence of violence nor brutality.ISIS is notoriously brutal and violent.
3.while violence may be implied.they have consistently called this a protest against government over-reach and do not seek a violent resolution.ISIS not only threatens violence but engages on a daily basis.
4.when we consider incidents such as waco or ruby ridge,where there WAS government over-reach with tragic results.the federal governments tactics of standing down makes sense,and is fairly non-controversial and prudent.these nimrods are about to be run out of town by the very community they are proposing to be standing up for.
so how would YOU propose to deal with the situation in oregon?
Drachen_Jagersays...I never said we should kill them.
It's not an analogy, that's a straight 1 to 1 comparison I made.
To your points.
1) I don't think you have any idea what sovereign means. ISIS could claim sovereignty (debatable, I'd say no, but it's debatable) the militiamen absolutely cannot.
2) What's your point?
3) Ha! Then what are the guns for?
4) That's not really a point.
I'd deal with it by arresting them. Blockade the preserve, when they leave, arrest them. Don't allow any food in. Shut off their electricity and water. Tell them they're welcome to come out, unarmed, whenever they're ready.
@Drachen_Jager
thats a pretty piss poor analogy.
while i can agree (and did in my original comment) that the militia is,by definition,engaging in terrorism.
i cannot agree to killing these men.
and to compare them to ISIS is a bit of a stretch.
1.they are american citizens.they are sovereign.ISIS are not.
2.while there has been an occupation of land,there has been no evidence of violence nor brutality.ISIS is notoriously brutal and violent.
3.while violence may be implied.they have consistently called this a protest against government over-reach and do not seek a violent resolution.ISIS not only threatens violence but engages on a daily basis.
4.when we consider incidents such as waco or ruby ridge,where there WAS government over-reach with tragic results.the federal governments tactics of standing down makes sense,and is fairly non-controversial and prudent.these nimrods are about to be run out of town by the very community they are proposing to be standing up for.
so how would YOU propose to deal with the situation in oregon?
Mammaltronsays...As idiotic as these protesters are, the "rummaging" and "rifling" slant on this story is trying pretty hard.
Aside from their ill-conceived, unjustified armed occupation, don't the idiots have at least a tiny point about the poor preservation of those artifacts?
newtboyjokingly says...Yeah well...it was tongue in cheek....but the delicious irony of giving them the punishment they believe terrorists deserve is too good to ignore.
@newtboy
well,that certainly would be ironic.
but capital punishment?
i do not think there is grounds for that.
criminal consequences for their actions? maybe a wee bit of time donated to the government?
ok...i think that is reasonable.laws have been broken and they should be held accountable for their actions.
but death?
naw.you would just make them martyrs and confirm the more "fringe" element that their actions are justified.
newtboysays...No. Not even a little.
They are being stored BY THE TRIBE at this locked, until now secure location. These morons have no right to rifle through their private tribal papers and artifacts because they don't know the tribe is involved and they assume the evil government must be doing it wrong. The tribe is outraged, their opinion is the only one that counts...after all, this is THEIR ancestral land, not the ranchers, and it's THEIR history and PRIVATE papers being pawed through and likely stolen. The terrorists have already been caught stealing things from the park, it's no stretch at all to assume they'll be stealing many artifacts they find 'interesting' or 'improperly stored'....if the natives want them back, they can go ask Bundy for them, right?
As idiotic as these protesters are, the "rummaging" and "rifling" slant on this story is trying pretty hard.
Aside from their ill-conceived, unjustified armed occupation, don't the idiots have at least a tiny point about the poor preservation of those artifacts?
newtboysays...Why are they not being arrested as they leave the compound? It seems easy to arrest anyone leaving the scene, or trying to enter. They'll leave when the dildos run out.
.... so how would YOU propose to deal with the situation in oregon?
TheFreaksays...By all means, let the Paiute come down and claim their property.
Then they can kick these terrorists off of their property.
siftbotsays...Moving this video to newtboy's personal queue. It failed to receive enough votes to get sifted up to the front page within 2 days.
articiansays...Sorry, it turns out my fresh install of my email client decided to sort Videosift emails into the junk folder, so I missed a bunch of replies.
Mainly I was ready to string these guys up for mucking around with historical artifacts. The sensitivity to it is because the current occupiers of this country already wiped out millions of indigenous people, and now the least intelligent among us have to drag what's left further through the mud with their buffoonery.
I also think the way the government has dealt with this is perfect, but, I still cringe when considering the disparity between how this was dealt with, versus so many recent, violent and unnecessary urban confrontations lately.
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