I cannot get past the part where Bundy and his family think that we, the American people, should let them squat on public lands, grazing his cattle, without paying for it. Whether we want to support or not, the public ownership of the land, it is a fact, and they had a contract originally to graze their cattle on that land. They then chose to stop paying for that. Any discussion of personal rights, the ownership of the land, are difficult to get to win the whole act is based on theft. Theft by the Bundys against the American people. Other ranchers pay to use the public land and had the Bundys not wanted to pay any more and not graze their cattle on that land, someone else could have, giving us the revenue for the use of our public land. This is staffed. Simple, corporate welfare if we want to talk about it in a business sense. The bunnies never own any of the slim, they never had a title to any of this land, I believe the family ownership of their own land there in that areatraced back 40 years.
It is very hard to write a post, especially a long post on an iPad, were you can’t scroll up and down very well. But I think the just of my comment is understandable even if I use the word bunnies instead of Bundys. This was our land and they stole the use of it. This is no different than any other example of that, we’re normally focus on FR would say throw them in jail. Further, any other group wanting to arm themselves against the police, we also say shoot them. I like to think that I’m consistent about my views, not allowing one group to get away with what I don’t think another group should get away with. So again, there is the issue of armed theft or resistance, which the Bundys are guilty of and will go to jail. Separately, there is the issue of whether it is in our national interest to continue owning land that the US government bought in 1805. I think there is. But let’s not mix the two discussions, the bunnies are not heroes to be cheered on. let them rot in jail.
There are a lot of strong feelings here about this topic, and I suspect you are in for some flames. But for what it’s worth, I also have a problem with the Bundy’s stopping payments for their grazing permits, but continuing to run their cattle on public land.
I grew up in southern New Mexico, and at that time there were a lot of ranchers down that way; some large but mostly small outfits. All the ranch kids came into town for school, and many of them were my friends growing up. Almost all of those ranchers paid for permits to graze their cattle on public lands. And it seemed to work out pretty well for all concerned.
Every once in a while, a rancher would break the rules; typically running more cattle on the public lands than they had paid for. When they got caught, sometimes there would be a fine to pay, but for repeat offenders sometimes they would lose the right to their permit. When that happened, there was always another rancher standing in line, willing and quite happy to buy the open permit. Always.
I’ve been away from that area for many years, and maybe things have changed. But with the ranch families I used to know, I think probably most of them would not support the actions of the Bundys.
Were it as you have recounted, I too would be critical of the Bundys. But the problem goes a bit further back than just that simple explanation.
Why (and how) does the federal government claim ownership of the vast areas they claim? According to the 17th paragraph of Section 8, Article 1 of the “supreme law of the land,” the federal government cannot own all that land.
I have not studied this case so there’s lots of room for me to be wrong but aside from the habitual disregard of the Constitution there has been no “legal” amendment of the parts that supposedly limit the feds from claiming everything that isn’t nailed down - except responsibility for their actions.
If the Constitution is still in force then all that land the Bundy cattle were gazing actually belongs to the State of Nevada or to the various counties (if that is what the State decreed.) I understand that Cliven Bundy tried to pay his grazing fees to the county or state but was turned away.