Dissecting the Bundy debacle
How is it that a country with the largest military complex in the world that claims to abide by the rule of law can bow down to such renegades as the likes of the “Yeehadist Bundy boys?”
Is it true that anybody who doesn’t want to follow federal or state laws doesn’t have to do so if they are unconscionably brazen enough, have enough ammo and carry enough heat?
There is no argument about what cattle do to public lands. Taxpayers have lost more than $1 billion over the past decade on a program that allows cows and sheep to graze on those lands. They are a nuisance and have proven to be very destructive. This is why the BLM has to regulate such grazing practices while giving livestock owners one heck of a deal in the process. The only requirement is to pay for this privilege.
Last year alone, taxpayers lost $125 million in grazing subsidies on federal land. Had the federal government charged fees similar to grazing rates on non-irrigated private land, the program would have made $261 million a year on average rather than operate at such a staggering loss.
In the case of Cliven Bundy, the BLM appears to have given up. The million dollars that he owes the government is still due without incident. But it doesn’t stop there. Now after taking a victory lap over the last win with no repercussions, Cliven Bundy has gotten a shot of adrenaline and has now commenced to digging holes and running waterlines over our public land in Nevada as if he owns it.
Ammon Bundy, who has denounced the “tyranny” of the federal government, took out a small business administration loan for $530,000 as of late to run a Phoenix-based company called Valet Fleet Services LLC, which specializes in repairing and maintaining fleets of semi trucks throughout Arizona. He appears to be biting the hand that feeds him.
The more time that passes for the Bundy boys, the more brazen they get, like a cancer that has not been cut out. Oregon has become the next place to rest their sights and throw their bullish weight around in lieu of the fact that no one wants them there.
It is apparent that their idea is to have grazing, mining and logging on all of our refuges and pristine sanctuaries that have been set aside for the public’s enjoyment.
As I watch this ridiculous charade unfold, I know others are asking themselves: “If I were to occupy a state building, tear down signs, fences, allow cattle back in and drive state park trucks around while forcing the workers in that building to work elsewhere, how long would it take before I was in cuffs looking through a maze of bars in the county jail?”
Is there a larger agenda here? Are the “Bundy Yeehadists” being paid off by bigger pockets to privatize all of our public lands? Better yet, is there someone covering for them right now allowing them to have such immunity from our laws?
A kid walks down the street with a pocketknife and gets shot to death, but a group of extreme right winged neo-con bullies is allowed to occupy and damage a state refuge. Again, where is the muscle? Where is the accountability? This breach in our system makes me wonder if I really do have to pay my property taxes this year. Ha!
Bonnie Brown is a Benewah County resident.