They still are. National Forests, too-- our national forests are stuffed with cows.
It sounds like they are already looking for a face saving way to get out of there.
"Late Monday, the apparent leader of the armed occupiers, Ammon Bundy, told OPB reporters that the group — which has branded itself Citizens for Constitutional Freedom — would respect the wishes of the local community.
“This is their county – we can’t be here and force this on them,” Bundy told OPB Monday. “If they don’t want to retrieve their rights, and if the county people tell us to leave, we’ll leave.”
Bundy tells OPB that he hopes to have a community meeting organized within the next day."
Hmm… that makes me wonder whether or not they were hoping for a quick, violent confrontation in order to (in their minds) rally people against an oppressive government.
Despite their rhetoric, they don’t seem to have really thought this one through…
Does anyone really believe they had “thought this one through”?
I figured they had considering that this has been going on with their family for decades. It didn’t seem to be a knee-jerk response which made me think that yes, they had thought this through. (I’m not saying it was necessarily well-thought out…)
What they’re finding is that this is most assuredly not the theme song of the Iowa caucuses.
I predict this ends with no damage and no disruption to the daily life of anyone else (with the exception of the local schools that may be canceling for no reason).
This is in stark contrast to the black lives matter movement, where the participants verbally and sometimes physically harass people that want to shop in Chicago, and set fire to things and steal things in St. Louis… among other things.
This is a few misguided individuals that have no idea what they are doing. Those of you in this thread demanding the government “move in” on the facility are out of line (IMO), unless you would sign up to go in guns blazing.
Cliven Bundy and his sons, including Ammon, the guy seemingly orchestrating this, threatened violence when law enforcement came to confiscate their cattle in 2014. Law enforcement released the cattle and left. While I agree they are misguided, and should have packed adequate supplies, I think they know what they are doing. They have threatened local law enforcement before.
The article goes on to describe violent episodes inspired by the Bundys in the following months. It looks to me like violence and threats against local law enforcement and BLM officials have escalated since that time.
https://www.splcenter.org/20140709/war-west-bundy-ranch-standoff-and-american-radical-right
soccerguy: please read this article. Then I’d be interested in your compare and contrast with Black Lives Matter. And just to be clear, it looks like these guys have been disrupting a whole lot of folks’ daily lives, and causing them to live in fear, for some time.
“If they don’t want to retrieve their rights, and if the county people tell us to leave, we’ll leave.”
That’s hilarious. We’ve been telling them to leave for a month. I think they’re only now considering it because they realize that they’re in over their heads. Let’s hope that’s enough to get them to go home.
Actually, there is a very real market for this type of land. Years ago I purchased (at auction) several hundred acres of sagebrush in Utah’s barren west desert. Earlier this year I decided to put it on the market, had several showings, and sold it to a rancher for cash. He also purchased a neighboring piece and, interestingly, (at least to me) also negotiated an assignment of some adjacent BLM leases.
I have no idea how many acres Bundy owns, but I do know that there are plenty of buyers actively looking for western grazing land.
Bundy owns 160 acres, the size of a Homestead. Although his family weren’t homesteaders on this farm, it probably was a Homestead farm. It isn’t enough land to make a living as a cattle rancher. He needs access to public grazing, and probably water, if he is to continue as a rancher. He is a second generation rancher in that area. It may not be an economically viable choice going forward based on what Saintfan writes. I have sympathy for his situation, but not for his reaction to it. Many have had to give up family farms and find other revenue sources. With any luck, those farms have educated their kids into money making professions. Of course, a lot of professionals have had huge financial set backs the last decade. The economy has been horrible for many. I get how angry they all are out there. I am angry about it all, too. I support government help for small farmers instead of agribusiness.
A few people seem to own a lot of acreage in the west.
Hmmm, maybe now that the Bundys and their supporters are busy in Oregon, it’s time to go back and round up those cows in Nevada while they’re distracted.
@sherpa - but the market for this type of land is very dependent on the location and that specific location’s local economy. If the local economy is strong and the ranchers are flourishing they might want to expand and can afford to do so. I don’t think this is the situation in Bunkerville. I spend significant time in a neighboring state in a rural town where land like this flies off the market. But I also spend a lot of time on “Landwatch” and my impression is that this situation is the exception rather than than the rule. And it has much to do with the specific nature of our town and the fact that most of this land has spectacular views of the Tetons as a backdrop. We also have a very affluent part-time population that fuels the market.
There is actually a parcel of land for sale right now in Bunkerville, NV where the Bundy Ranch is located. It is very similar in size to the Bundy’s parcel and has languished on the market for 1308 days. It is actually priced somewhat below market for that area at $825,000. So land in that specific area just isn’t moving as fast as your parcel in Utah.
But glad to hear that your transaction worked out well.
I don’t normally post anything from The Daily Mail but the tweets are hysterical so I had to share.
I say let 'em come. Then the Feds can round them all up and lock them up in one of those bunkers under Wal-Marts in Texas.
I found this perspective interesting and informative, I don’t believe I saw it posted here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/vickeryeckhoff/2014/04/25/federal-grazing-program-in-bundy-dispute-rips-off-taxpayers-wild-horses/
And more taxpayer assistance the Bundy’s get.
http://usuncut.com/news/5-government-handouts-bundys-receive/
Three things:
- I’m no expert just sharing what I do know.
- family farms through history almost never support more than the oldest son and his family - absolutely there are ups and downs based on weather, input costs and auction prices but all those farmers and ranchers who went west or came from other countries were second sons or even further down the inheritance totem pole (my family included on both sides)
- you would think that this far in the news people would figure out how to pronounce Oregon.
All this and I heard that 40,000 cows died in that heavy snow in the SW recently. The Oregon dispute just seems petty in comparison.
According to the Guardian, the refuge is on the electrical grid (contrary to my previous guess). As some people upthread have suggested, the feds are going to cut their power and block the roads in and out. It’s going to be cold and dark there with no food. If the pump is electric, there will be no water, either. Have fun, guys!
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/05/oregon-wildlife-militia-standoff-power-cut-off