Let’s see what mischief our fellow earthlings have gotten themselves into this week. It’s Saturday and time for a break and maybe a smile or two.
Animals it is for this week. Our BFF.
For politics page down and/or check top posts at the right side of the page. Page may take a few seconds to load. Check for Sound!
Thats all folks. Have a wonderful day.
“Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing six initial actions to address the gun violence public health epidemic,” the White House released late Wednesday. “This Administration will not wait for Congress to act to take its own steps.”
Here are the six actions, from the White House “fact sheet.”
The Justice Department, within 30 days, will issue a proposed rule to help stop the proliferation of “ghost guns.”
The Justice Department, within 60 days, will issue a proposed rule to make clear when a device marketed as a stabilizing brace effectively turns a pistol into a short-barreled rifle subject to the requirements of the National Firearms Act.
The Justice Department, within 60 days, will publish model “red flag” legislation for states.
The Administration is investing in evidence-based community violence interventions.
The Justice Department will issue an annual report on firearms trafficking.
The President will nominate David Chipman to serve as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
Biden’s choice for ATF Director, David Chipman, is a longtime gun control activist who has done extensive lobbying for anti-Second Amendment groups funded by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the Giffords Law Center. He was also involved in the Branch Davidian trial after the government — specifically ATF and FBI — botched a raid in Waco, Texas. Bad decisions made by federal agents ultimately resulted in the deaths of 76 people, including pregnant women and dozens of children.
H/T: Town Hall
The Bunkerville War — Part II
The fight for land rights
by Mustang
In 1848, as part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (ending the Mexican/American War), the United States purchased from Mexico the entire southwestern region of the United States. The federal government has since then owned much of the land that is now Nevada, including an allotment of land previously permitted to Cliven D. Bundy, which was called Bunkerville Flats, Nevada.
In 1861, the Nevada Territory was partitioned from the Utah Territory and, in 1864, Nevada became a state. Nevada’s original settlers in the 1840s and 1850s were Mormons from Utah with a few small-time farmers from Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi sprinkled in. After the War of Yankee Aggression, much of the southwest land was settled by rural farmers, homeless squatters, and small-time ranchers from former Confederate states. Most of these people sought to escape the ravages of war — some of them were fugitives from the law. The ancestors of Cliven David Bundy (b. 29 April 1946) were Mormons from Utah.
Since 1934, federal land in Nevada has come under the management of the US Forest Service, BLM, or its predecessor, the US Grazing Service. More than two-thirds of Nevada’s 70-million acres fall under the authority of BLM; nation-wide, the agency manages around 18,000 grazing permits and leases — in Nevada, around 700. In every permit agreement, the federal government asserts its control over the leased land, so there is no question about whose land it is.
Cliven Bundy’s father, David Ammon Bundy, first obtained a grazing permit from the BLM in 1954. Bundy maintained these permits until 1993. Five years earlier, in 1989, the federal government declared the desert tortoise an endangered species and began to develop a plan to save this creature within Clark County, Nevada.
The government announced their project by asserting that its purpose was “to meet the needs of the tortoise and the people,” such as Bundy, who owned a permit to use the tortoise’s land. In 1991, the US Fish and Wildlife Service approved a short-term conservation plan that set aside 22,000 acres of tortoise habitat around Las Vegas … and did so in exchange for strict conservation measures on 400,000 acres of BLM land south of the city. This arrangement eliminated livestock grazing and imposed strict limitations on off-road vehicle use within protected areas. Unhappily for local ranchers, the final arrangement in 1992 doubled the size of the conservation area, which by then included Bunkerville Flats.
But 1992 wasn’t the first time ranchers complained about the federal government’s control of western lands. Following passage of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 came the so-called Sagebrush Rebellion — when cattlemen, miners, loggers, developers, and farmers argued that federal land ownership harmed their states’ economies and violated the principles of federalism and states’ rights.[1]
The Sagebrush Rebellion demanded that the federal government transfer its control over large amounts of this land to individual states, giving state legislatures the right to make their own decisions about land and resource management. This “rebellion” was diffused when Ronald Reagan appointed James Watt, a Sagebrush Rebellion leader, to serve as Secretary of the Interior. Watt devised and implemented a “good neighbor” policy to manage federal lands, a cooperative arrangement that seemed to appease the sagebrush rebels.[2]
After the government’s adoption of the Turtle Policy, it asked Bundy to return his grazing permit for a refund. Bundy refused, and as a protest of the government’s actions, he also declined to renew his “modified” permit in 1993. In 1994, BLM canceled Bundy’s permit to access Bunkerville Flats. Concurrently, however, Mr. Bundy asserted his “vested right” to graze his cattle on land that had been in use since 1954.
Photo:By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America – Cliven Bundy, CC BY-SA 2.0,
Bundy ignored federal court orders to quit the federal land; not only that, but Bundy also refused to pay his back permit fees or stop grazing his cattle at Bunkerville Flats. Accumulating Fees and court-ordered fines soon approached $1-million. In contrast, excluding Bundy’s fines and fees, ranchers’ total unpaid costs in arrears nation-wide amounted to only $237,000.
The Battle of Bunkerville
On 24 March 2014, BLM announced its intention to close federal lands known as Gold Butte, Mormon Mesa, and Bunkerville Flats. The purpose of the closure was to “limit public access, use, and occupancy during impoundment of illegal cattle to ensure the safety and welfare of the public, contractors, and government employees.” The closure project involved a jaw-dropping 802,571 acres of land, only some of which fell under BLM management. According to federal officials, the confidential nature of on-going law enforcement operations prevented them from giving their standard 30-day notice of intended action.
Reportedly, the federal government offered to buy Bundy’s cattle, resell them, and provide him with the proceeds of the sale — no doubt, less what Bundy owed BLM in accumulated fees. Mr. Bundy declined BLM’s offer. Between 5 and 9 April 2014, federal contractors using horses and a small helicopter penned around 400 head of cattle on the closed range — ninety percent of those animals were Bundy’s. During the roundup, six animals died, four of which the government euthanized because they posed a threat to contractors or employees. One was a prized bull. Ultimately, government officials suspended the roundup out of concern for the safety of the wranglers.
Cliven Bundy wasn’t taking any of this lying down. At the end of March, he sent out notices asking for the help of fellow ranchers and other sympathetic organizations. The media categorized these organizations as “right-wing” and “domestic terrorist.” It was inspired rhetoric designed to incite violence between federal law enforcement officers and citizens who have complaints about the federal government’s perceived abuses.
Whether the complaints were legitimate is for the courts to decide, which they apparently did when they ruled in favor of the federal government. Bundy, however, claimed that federal courts are always rigged in favor of the government and against the people. One can understand how a citizen might develop this view given the fines assessed against Cliven Bundy, as compared to, say, the government’s refusal to prosecute Hillary Clinton for violating federal secrecy statutes.
But if there was any doubt about the Bundy family’s argument, Cliven’s son Ryan cleared the air in plain-spoken language: “If they are going to be out in the hills stealing our property, we will put measures of defense. And they have always asked us, ‘What will you do, what will you do?’ and our stance has always been we will do whatever it takes. Open-ended. And because of that, that’s why they are scared, because they don’t know to what level we will go to protect our property, but we will protect our property.”
In early April 2014, armed citizens from across the United States joined in peaceful protests against the government’s trespass-roundup in what has become known as the Battle of Bunkerville. BLM officials were “concerned” that protests might turn into a twenty-first-century range war. Accordingly, federal officers sought to limit these peaceful protests by establishing “first amendment zones.” Nevada governor Brian Sandoval almost immediately stepped in and demanded the removal of these federal restrictions.
On 10 April, protestors impeded a BLM vehicle refusing to grant passage until federal officers explained what they were doing on Bunkerville flats with specialized equipment. Addressing the protestors, Cliven Bundy doubled down by questioning the BLM’s jurisdiction, authority, and police power. Cliven may have been a bit over-wrought when he added that Nevada ranchers were ready to take over the country.
Later, after protestors tied up traffic on I-15 for more than two hours, they converged on Gold Butte, where Bundy’s animals were being held against their will; a tense hour-long standoff occurred. Protestors armed with high-powered rifles took up positions that gave them a good field of fire into the BLM’s position.
Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie (in office from 2007-2015) opined that escalation of the problem rested squarely at the feet of BLM, who largely ignored his advice on handling the matter. Gillespie’s under-Sheriff, Joe Lombardo (who succeeded Gillespie in 2015), stated that the standoff was volatile. Angry armed citizens seemed anxious for a fight. “We were outgunned, outmanned, and there would not have been a good result from it [violence].” The standoff at Gold Butte was resolved when the BLM signaled that the government would return Bundy’s cattle a short time later.
Officials and citizens from several western states seem to support Cliven Bundy’s claim that the federal government was acting beyond its constitutional authority. Politicians in neighboring Arizona, for example, vocalized their support of the Bundy claims — one of whom characterized the Bundy standoff as being similar to the incident in Tiananmen Square. It was a suggestion that the federal government had become as abusive as the Red Chinese in Beijing — an opinion shared by many conservatives throughout the country.
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval sided with Bundy and the protestors, stating publicly that the federal government’s intimidation of the American citizen, its denial of constitutional rights to citizens with whom the federal government disagrees, is unjustified. Members of the Nevada Assembly agreed with Sandoval and voiced their support of Bundy’s refusal to give in. Michele Fiore thought that it was time that the federal government return all federal land in Nevada to the people of Nevada.
Politicians in Utah insisted that federal bureaucrats had become de facto paramilitary units and SWAT teams — they called for the disarming of bureaucrats. In a letter to the White House, Texas Congressman Steve Stockman accused the Obama administration of conducting unlawful paramilitary raids against the United States citizens.
There has been no shortage of infantile rhetoric on both sides of the Bunkerville War. The political left claims that anyone who stands up for their Constitutional rights is a domestic terrorist; the political right responds by declaring the federal government under the Democratic Party in flagrant disregard of the U. S. Constitution. The truth may lie somewhere in the middle of this petty speechifying but still, in 2021, there has been no overtures of peace from either side. The matter remains “unresolved.”
Postscript: The usual conclusion. In this case Reid, his offspring, money and China.
Sources:
Endnotes:
[1] On average, the federal government owns 60% of the land in twelve states within and west of the Rockey Mountains.
[2] The “good neighbor” authority allows federal land management agencies to enter into agreements with state land management authorities to accomplish projects critical to maintaining healthy and productive forests. However, given the number of forest fires that develop annually in the western states, it would appear that work to remove dead underbrush — the kindling materials from which forest fires are conceived — has been less than effective … and perhaps intentionally so.
This is part II. For part 1:
Wishing you a wonderful and glorious Easter with many blessings.
If we are counting on a moral compass to bring the United States out of the wilderness, it doesn’t appear that our organized churches will provide the leadership. Should we be surprised?
U.S. church membership was 73% when Gallup first measured it in 1937 and remained near 70% for the next six decades, before beginning a steady decline around the turn of the 21st century.
As many Americans celebrate Easter and Passover this week, Gallup updates a 2019 analysis that examined the decline in church membership over the past 20 years.
In 2019, It was noted that a majority of white Democrats had become non-Christian.
In Obama’s first year in office, 68% of white Democrats described themselves as Christians, 7% claimed to be members of other faiths, and 24% said that they had no religious affiliation.
A decade later, only 47% of white Democrats call themselves Christians. 10% are members of other faiths, and 42% have no religion.
That was a Pew survey. The Gallup survey for church membership now is even worse recording the sharpest drop in membership among Democrats.
20 years ago, 71% of Democrats were members of a church. A decade later, in the Obama years, it fell to 60% and is now down to 46%.
That’s the sharpest drop of any demographic group and a quite striking one. While religious affiliation has dropped across the board, the collapse among Democrats is striking.
Meanwhile, the Californication of the West continues apace with membership in the West dropping from 57% to 38%.
One can offer a speculation.
The decline in church membership appears largely tied to population change, with those in older generations who were likely to be church members being replaced in the U.S. adult population with people in younger generations who are less likely to belong. The change has become increasingly apparent in recent decades because millennials and Gen Z are further apart from traditionalists in their church membership rates (about 30 points lower) than baby boomers and Generation X are (eight and 16 points, respectively). Also, each year the younger generations are making up an increasingly larger part of the entire U.S. adult population.
Still, population replacement doesn’t fully explain the decline in church membership, as adults in the older generations have shown roughly double-digit decreases from two decades ago. Church membership is down even more, 15 points, in the past decade among millennials.
Full story at https://news.gallup.com/poll/341963/church-membership-falls-below-majority-first-time.aspx
That is the best of the swamp today.
COVI-PASS will determine whether you can go to a restaurant, if you need a medical test, or are due for a talking-to by authorities in a post-COVID world. Consent is voluntary, but enforcement will be compulsory.
The old slippery slope. What possibly could go wrong? Bill Gates has his dream come true.
A British cybersecurity company, in partnership with several tech firms, is rolling out the COVI-PASS in 15 countries across the world; a “digital health passport” that will contain your COVID-19 test history and other “relevant health information.” According to the company website, the passport’s objective is “to safely return to work” and resume “social interactions” by providing authorities with “up-to-date and authenticated health information.”
15 countries, including Italy, Portugal, France, Panama, India, the US, Canada, Sweden, Spain, South Africa, Mexico, United Arab Emirates and The Netherlands, the company reports.
Sold: 50 million digital health passports
A British cyber security company, VST Enterprises has signed a contract with international digital health technology firm Circle Pass Enterprises (CPE), owner of ‘Covi-Pass’, to supply 50 million of its ‘digital health passports’ to 15 countries.
VST was founded by tech entrepreneur Louis-James Davis to integrate its state-of-the-art VCode & VPlatform technologies into the Covi-Pass Digital Health Passport, which will be paired with approved testing kits.
Put simply, the user downloads the app to their smartphone device and uploads his/her key information, such as name, address, age. Their identity is then verified using a biometric fingerprint or facial scan. A COVID-19 test is then carried out by an authorised healthcare professional, nurse or medical doctor. The test is geo-fenced to that location – using GPS, RFID, Wi-Fi or cellular data to set a virtual boundary around a geographical location – and the test results are then scanned from the testing kit into the Covi-Pass Health Passport.
A colour mapping system (green, amber, red) authenticates and provides the COVID-19 test history and relevant health information, so the accurate data metrics can assess those who have tested positive and negative and the location only of their testing. The user can then show the Covi-Pass to authenticate their health status. ‘A traffic light system confirms their health status as either red or green, red for positive and green for negative,’ the company points out. ‘The amber colour indicates a countdown timer to when another test would be due and required.
From Healthcare in Europe
These objectives mirror those that Bill Gates has been promoting since the start of the COVID-19 lockdown. In an essay written by Gates in April, the software geek-cum-philanthropist lays out his support for the draconian measures taken in response to the virus and, like an old-timey mob boss, suggests the solutions to this deliberately imposed problem.
Ironically, Gates begins to make his case for the adoption of mass tracking and surveillance technology in the U.S. by saying that “For now, the United States can follow Germany’s example”; He then touts the advantages of the “voluntary adoption of digital tools” so we can “remember where [we] have been” and can “choose to share it with whoever comes to interview you about your contacts.”
More at Zero Hedge
Sources for this post come from a previous post done in June 2020.
The very best of the swamp.
Adrienne’s corner has an excellent post up and worth a visit.
don’t say no, but hell no!
Excellent article on why we must resist now.
White House started pushing ‘vaccine passports.’ Here’s what we need to do to stop it.
How is this to start out the week? Will she survive her Caturday night misstep? It makes our Nation’s other problems seem small now doesn’t it? A real statement about how far off the rails we have become in our cancel culture.
Maybe if she would just kneel?
Other than this everything is swell in the swamp.
A difficult year for all of us. It is hard to believe a year has gone by since we began the Covid journey. On a personal note is has been devastating to our retirement community. 20 deaths and over 150 became very sick with the virus.
We became more like prisoners of war than happy Golden Age retirees. I have posted about the experience previously:
Marooned in No Man’s Land – a nursing home
The above post first appeared in American Thinker referenced now per their requirement.
We are left with what I suspect is the Stockholm syndrome. The feeling of possibly living on death row for so long is abating and the pouring out of gratitude to our captors who locked us up and kept us alive is surreal. Apparently I am the only one who sees the dichotomy of this. In fairness we did well compared to other retirement communities. The dirty secret that it was not only nursing homes that were affected to such an extent. Congregant living is our description. Cottages and apartments for independent living. Continuing care as we march through the time machine and take our licks and get support as needed to go through it. I suppose it could be compared to living on a cruise ship. I have found no studies excluding nursing home deaths from deaths in communities such as our. A good portion of our deaths were non-nursing home deaths as I understand it as well as the Covid illness.
I would be remiss not to thank all of those here who braved the unknown and were willing to work hard here to keep us alive and well. From the guards who allowed in only those necessary to keep us alive to the many college age kids who were more than willing to take the risks and remained happy and upbeat as they went about their business.
The retirement community got its first dose of Moderna with the second dose coming up soon. We are now able to avail ourselves of our various dining options for the first time since forever with strict seating arrangements. For a few brief moments of dinning we are able to see “faces” wow. No activities yet. The toll taken on the older folks is telling.
Sadly several of our blogging friends who visit here often and comment, lost their loved ones recently as well. As we remember all of the lives lost and pray that the families may find peace, let us keep “Always on Watch” and our “Friend from Florida” in mind.
Always on Watch
Thursday, March 4, 2021
This morning, Mr. AOW (1949-2021) passed peacefully at the hospice facility: end stage renal failure with complications. His passing was expected the past ten days or so. He was at the hospice for eight and one-half days.
Your Friend from Florida
The outpouring of love and care and prayers is overwhelming. I am so blessed by your kind words, good advice, and love. Thank you. I am humbled.
Joseph (Joe) Nicholas D’Orsaneo, 83, passed away at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center and walked into the arms of Jesus on February 16, 2021, after a short and devastating battle with COVID-19.
I am choosing a selection from last Easter that brought me much Peace of mind. I hope it does for you to.
“You Do Not Walk Alone” traditional Irish blessing Original music by Elaine Hagenberg
I suggest watching this is full screen.
Wishing you a good day with much Peace.
Let’s see what mischief our fellow earthlings have gotten themselves into this week. It’s Saturday and time for a break and maybe a smile or two.
Animals rule this week.
For politics page down and/or check top posts at the right side of the page. Page may take a few seconds to load. Check for Sound!
I will end today with “The Healing Power of Nature” Music by Mandarava and Miyagi~ “Inner Silence”
Wishing you a wonderful day with much Peace.
All you need to know about plugs and his presser yesterday. Apparently he needed pictures to identify the reporters no doubt pre-selected. They’re all numbered…. Good grief.
He had his prepared answers to questions.
It’s was a testimony of triumph over senility.
It comes down to the ego for Joe.
Bonus time. Just as a reminder of our swamp creature Nancy Pelosi
Nope Nancy not how it is suppose to work.
The best of the swamp on a Friday.
Paul Revere Award
Women and Guns (click)
