Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy, and several others have been arrested, and someone unnamed has been killed.
The FBI and Oregon State Police report Ammon Bundy, Ryan C. Bundy, Brian Cavalier, Shawna Cox and Ryan Waylen Payne were all arrested.
Officials also said there was one fatality and one person suffered non-life threatening injuries and was transferred to a local hospital.
It is unfortunate that the standoff seems to be ending (but this encounter occurred outside the refuge, and I presume the fanatics instead are still hoping for martyrdom) in violence, but I suppose it’s inevitable that people who babbled about killing or be killed weren’t going to just peaceably surrender.
Let’s hope the heart has gone out of the remaining occupiers and that the rest fades away quietly.
CNN reports, “The deceased was the subject of a federal probable cause arrest, officials said.”
It’s too bad anyone was killed, because even one dead idiot has martyr potential for the faithful.
The Feds have moved in on the wildlife refuge.
First round of felony charges:
There are unconfirmed reports the dead man is LaVoy Finicum, who you may remember was apparently making a living from being a foster parent to a bunch of kids.
RawStory is also saying that the person killed was Finicum citing as their source, “State Rep. Michele Fiore (R-Nevada), who is close to the Bundy family and other militants.”
Emphasis mine.
LaVoy Finicum was the one who stated: — which certainly seems like a tacit threat to commit arson (or perhaps demolish the buildings with explosives) on top of everything else if events came to extremes.
While the worry of potential martyrdom is a real concern, I think the risk of allowing these clowns to continue to believe they could act with impunity would have been greater. I’m just happy that the end is in sight and that, if anyone wound up being shot, it wasn’t any of the locals they’ve put in this situation.
A martyrdom narrative is already building. Michele Fiore, she of the everyone in the family with guns Christmas card, is claimed on Twitter Finicum was shot and killed while unarmed with his hands up.
Tarp Man is the one that said he loved America (or was it the moon?) to ever spend a day in a concrete box. Was pretty much vowing not to be taken alive from the beginning. Got what he wanted I guess. My concern now that there’s been a death, is how the million other militia yahoos around the country are going to react. More violence won’t surprise me in the least.
Anyway, on to more important topics. Abe Vigoda passed away today, age 94.
From the same people who claim that cops never shot unharmed people when the killed is a black.
Imagine if the cops and FBI acted in Oregon the way cops acted in Ferguson. Oh, wait, they wouldn’t – skin colour and gun ownership changes how they handle things.
This could have been stopped peacefully weeks ago. The cops and FBI are as much to blame as anyone for doing nothing and letting it fester. Every day those clowns went untouched, they got bolder. It’s what made today’s shootout possible.
Raw Story also claims it was Finicum who’s been killed.
It’s just skin colour. If the protesters at Ferguson even looked like they had a gun they all would have been gunned down in cold blood.
Now my worry is how are they going to evict those that remain in Malheur. Obviously only the “leaders” were heading to Grant County, which is why they were caught as the number of roads between towns in that area is limited due to geography, etc.
I expect tomorrow we will hear about another shootout at the bird sanctuary tomorrow, and it will include the crazy “Sumo wrestler guy.” I am pretty sure that these idiots have put the eradication of invasive species back a few years (can we consider these “pseudo ranchers” as invasive species?):
http://www.hcn.org/articles/carp-lady-linda-beck-malheur-standoff-could-set-back-conservation-by-three-years
@12.
But they are only repeating the same sources as everyone else.
A new conspiracy theory is forming as we watch. From the latest comments and tweets I’ve seen, Finicum was unarmed (yeah, right) and on his knees when three Feds walked up to him and shot him in cold blood, even though Finicum and the other leaders of the occupation were on their way to meet with the FBI.
The tale grows taller by the hour.
I sure hope more charges are filed. The current ones are serious, but don’t seem to do a bunch of armed-to-the-teeth bullies justice.
However, as convicted felons of a violent crime they would never be able to touch their precious guns legally again, and that will sting.
Donny? Gotta “patriot” here wants to die for his country. Oblige him.
In hindsight, perhaps, but I think the authorities just wanted to avoid another super tense Bundy Ranch stand-off or risk any provocation that could lead to escalation. They probably figured the yahoos would get bored and cold in a week or so and be easier to negotiate with. Also, Finicum and others said they wouldn’t shoot unless guns were pointed at them. WTF? They expect the cops to just mosey up to heavily armed felons with their thumbs up their butts?
Latest says the guy that got mad on Youtube about all the dildos split for home earlier to say goodbye to his fam and make some Facebook posts asking for money before turning himself in. There are still some at the sanctuary negotiating an apparent surrender.
Ragutis @ 19:
Well, he and his buddies don’t have Demon Strength, so they figured the cops didn’t need guns.
Also, everyone knows Imperial Stormtroopers can’t hit the broad side of a barn, so…
(*sigh* I suppose I really shouldn’t be making jokes. I think a single fatality is almost a best-case-scenario with people like this, but still, somebody’s dead and that’s not actually funny.)
> It is unfortunate that the standoff seems to be ending…
What?!
> … in violence,
Phew! That’s a badly placed sub-clause!
Good to see the FBI sent in some specialists to deal with the racialists causing a fracas in Oregon.
…wait, why did my comment get flagged as spam? O.O
If this incident has taught us one thing, it’s that the definition of ‘legal’ depends entirely on who you ask. Occupying a government building serving the public? Legal and downright patriotic!
Government prohibiting you to own firearms because you were carrying out your civic duty? Illegal and unconstitutional! So we can ignore that.
People like this might actually view illegal possession as a badge of honour, a token of their resistance against the unlawful US government.* Flaunting lawlessness seems to be popular among the Bundy-crowd(s).
*Are there even checks if felons are violating this restriction? Whenever I read some newsstory about a convicted felon with an illegal firearm, it seems the only reason we know about the weapon is because he was caught using it or because it was found after a search related to some other problem.
Just hope the Feds were wise enough to tape the encounter. And release the tape as soon as the refuge issue is resolved. Secrecy here seems to be only grounds for more conspiracy mongering.
Gorogh, I’m hoping for a tape, too, to kill the whole “unnarmed, kneeling, hands up, begging and pleading for life” stories about the ‘martyr.’
Won’t stop the stories amongst the crazies, but it will shut up the people that believe what they see.
They almost certainly filmed it, it would have been negligent to not do so. It’s possible that it gets the violence edited out though. I’m pretty interested in seeing the approach they took to arresting them. Did the FBI wait for the Bundy cult to reach its destination? Or did they ambush them on a backroad?
It’s funny how they simultaneously think that would be justified use of force when it’s a black kid…
tacitus #16 wrote:
Why, I heard he was on his knees because he was trying to shield his kids.
Not gonna lie, I’m kind of curious to see what Alex Jonesie has to say about this. He breathes tall tales of police executing unarmed patriots.
Sastra @28
FTFY
@30, 28: I think the word you’re looking for is “profit centres”.
@ 11
Nonsense. There was no more chance of it ending peacefully then than there was now. Some of them said from the beginning that they were ready to die for their cause. Of course the authorities should have acted sooner, but the result would have been the same or worse. You think they brought all those guns with them just for show?
NBC has some details.
Two vehicles were stopped on US 395 (not”ambushed on a back road”). The lead vehicle then took off again but ran into a snowbank. Finicum allegedly jumped out brandishing a handgun and was shot.
Hell, even if he was just walking toward them with his hands up, he might have been wearing a suicide vest. I wouldn’t have taken the chance. Would you?
These guys all seem to be socially and mentally marginal. Many have criminal records for stupid, antisocial behavior.
Medenbach has two convictions for long term camping on federal land and was caught stealing a BLM vehicle.
Wampler beat his father to death with a steel bolt.
Stetson destroyed a mobile home for no apparent reason and just got arrested in Harney county for DUI.
The Coopers parents are trying to get custody of his children because they aren’t much into parenting.
Anri(#20) wrote:
Which is why so many people get killed by the troopers since those people forget the last part of that sentence: “when ordered to miss”.
That said the FBI should have been there weeks ago.
The militiamen who are still in the Oregon refuge have put out a call for reinforcements:
Talking Points Memo link.
More from inside the refuge:
Live FBI press conference scheduled to start at 2 PM.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/watch-live-stream-fbi-oregon-militia-arrests
I never said that!!!
But if I did, it wouldn’t be a problem. “Yeah, you got me here. I’ve changed my mind. I’ve got cows and cats to feed and can’t afford to get killed for nothing.”
The new leader of the militiamen is worse than Ammon Bundy as far as I can see.
Link
He’s got a point. Stopped clock and all that.
More nonsense from the militiamen who are still at the wildlife refuge center:
Link
so… He modeled his life after a Futurama episode featuring Bender?
only to the same that everyone in the world can kill with impunity… provided they too have the wherewithal and resources to do so with no witnesses, or else control the witnesses and evidence.
we have all been able to do that, for as long as we have existed as a species.
means nothing.
Conflicting accounts of the death of Savoy Finicum.
neither one of those were actual eyewitnesses, as the shooting occurred quite a distance down the road from where they were stopped.
at least they do contain information about the events that lead up to Finicum attempting to drive away and circumvent the police barricade.
so, in the end, not terribly helpful.
The Pacific Patriots Network has told its membership not to get involved.
http://www.pacificpatriotsnetwork.com/press_release_2016-01-26.php
“There was Ruby Ridge and Waco, now there is Burns.” – B.J. Soper, founder of the Pacific Patriots Network
(insert raised eyebrow smiley here)
(and here one sadly shaking its head)
Supposedly Ammon Bundy issued a request for the remaining folks at the wildlife refuge to stand down and go home.
I’m not holding my breath that they will leave.
I’m guessing most will leave, with a few holdouts like this loon. I’m more worried about how many militia nuts these events will draw there or incite to violence around the country.
I’m curious to see if this’ll be brought up at the Republican debate, and even more interested in how those schmucks will respond.
Some are leaving:
http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-standoff/2016/01/occupiers_begin_to_trickle_out.html#incart_maj-story-1
Unfortunately a hard core bunch have stayed, and it may take some time before they are leave or do something very stupid.