Posted on 01/18/2007 6:47:04 AM PST by sopwith
ONCORD, N.H. -- A couple who claim the law does not require them to pay income taxes continued on separate courses Wednesday, she in federal court in Concord, he barricaded at his fortress-like home in Plainfield.
In interviews by telephone and later at the back door of his hilltop home on 110 wooded acres, Ed Brown denounced the government and noted a handgun tucked in the front of his pants. He said supporters as far away as Australia were offering to come help him defend himself if necessary.
"Most Americans would cower and cringe and raise their hands and surrender like a good little slave," Brown said.
"I won't. Under no circumstances. I do not tolerate cowardliness, oppression, bulliness, and I certainly don't tolerate a federal agency that has absolutely zero jurisdiction in my state, never mind in my county, in my town."
The Browns haven't paid federal income taxes since 1996 because they don't think the law requires them to pay. They argue there is no law requiring individual income taxes. They faces charges of conspiring to evade taxes, conspiring to disguise large financial transactions and disguising large transactions.
Elaine Brown, who earned most of the couple's income, returned to Concord court on Wednesday to continue her trial for tax evasion and failing to collect employment taxes from the staff of her Lebanon dental office.
Ed Brown's trial also continued, with him absent.
"Because he has voluntarily absented himself, he will be tried in absentia," U.S. Marshal Stephen Monier said.
Marshals talked with Brown, but said there are no plans to storm the property. E-mails and Web sites have directed supporters to join Brown, asking "Will Plainfield be another Waco?"
"We're not going there," Monier said. "Let's put this in perspective: every day, we have deputies out arresting dangerous persons." Brown is not one of them.
"We have no intent of escalating this," he said.
Brown, meanwhile, wasn't taking chances.
The large home has a circular tower affording a 360-degree view of the property, which sits off a rural road. Brown said the home's walls are made from 8-inch concrete and if marshals cut his power lines, he can run his home from generators, solar and wind power.
A handful of supporters, including Bob Wolffe of Randolph, Vt., joined him on Wednesday and more were expected.
"Most people are too willing to sit and watch 'Who Loves Raymond?"' said Wolffe, who also does not pay taxes. He said he expects he will be in a Brown-like situation within years.
"We all need to work together and fight the government," he said. "A win here will be the government admitting they were wrong and back off. ... There's a lot more of us than there are of them."
John Miller, a 23-year-old from New Hampshire, joined the huddle inside Brown's home.
"If they come, I'll do what we ought to do," he said.
Brown met with reporters for about 45 minutes outside his home. A day earlier, he invited reporters inside, but on Wednesday addressed them from inside his door frame. A Kubota tractor sat in front of him.
"I don't know all of you," Brown said, later instructing a photographer to stay back. He said federal snipers had targeted him two years earlier and that he could be surrounded again.
In a tirade against the government, the media and global warming, Brown also detailed how his wife, a dentist, was forced to close her practice and lay off her employees.
"We just had reached the American Dream a year ago. All our debts were paid. Now they're here to shut us up permanently," he said.
Brown pays his local taxes of $14,000. "Show me the law and I'll pay the taxes," he said of the federal tax.
Three vehicles blocked Brown's driveway and a sign at the end of the winding path read, "Fed bullies: leave the Browns alone." On a nearby tree, a large sign warned "public servants" and government officials not to trespass. A "Don't Tread on Me" flag was hung on a tree.
There was no sign of any law enforcement nearby.
During the past few decades, Brown has claimed membership in several anti-government and militia groups including the Constitution Rangers of the Continental Congress of 1777, the Constitution Defense Militia and the UnAmerican Activities Investigations Commission, which he founded.
Brown said there's a possibility the situation will end peacefully, if the government leaves him alone.
"If they attack me, I have no choice, do I?" he said.
"Do I see it turning out any other way? Yeah, there's a possibility if they stay away and all obey the law of the land" and let his wife go free.
If not or if he is murdered, he said he and his supporters would demand accountability.
"If I should be killed or imprisoned, or my wife is killed or imprisoned, or both, those responsible will join us," he said.
Render unto Caesar............
What an entertaining read this morning with my coffee.
I guess I'll have to read the article to figure out who is negotiating.
Ed Brown stands barricaded in the doorway of his home, saying he is prepared for an armed standoff as he fights tax evasion charges in Plainfield, N.H., Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2007. His wife, Elaine Brown is negotiating a plea on her own charges in their tax evasion and fraud case. The Browns haven't paid federal income taxes since 1996 because they don't think the law requires them to pay. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)
The home of Ed and Elaine Brown is seen in Plainfield, N.H., Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2007. Ed Brown, who is fighting tax evasion charges, has barricaded himself in the hilltop home, saying he is prepared for an armed standoff. Meanwhile, his wife is negotiating a plea on her own charges in their tax evasion and fraud case. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)
"Most people are too willing to sit and watch 'Who Loves Raymond?"
Come on, Bob.... "EVERYBODY loves Raymond", don't you know that?
To Ed Brown if you are out there, quit being an Ass to Elaine.
What's his screenname here?
Heh heh.
That's exactly what I've been thinking, but haven't quite wanted to post. Thanks for doing it. ;)
Looks like an Old Tractor, in front of an Old Stubborn Coot, Save Elaine!
LOL! Great minds....
Sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind. ;^)
Dang. A possible way out for Brown would be to convert to islam and turn the old homestead into a mosque. The govt may send in forces to protect him if he does that.
You can't fight government in the courts, as they own the courts. You try it any other way, they'll kill you outright.
But we still live in a free country.... right?
http://www.bobwolffe.com/
The federal government is built on the psychology of the withholding tax. The tax laws were written by lawyers, so there are plenty of ways to avoid the income tax via legal means. Usually, it's the upper middle income worker who gets burned by the system; the truck driver who sleeps in his truck and drives 15 hours a day in order to eke out an extra 20 grand a year ends up paying through the nose.
This guy is a saint for taking a vigilante approach to the USA's greatest intrusion on liberty. He is shining a light on the roaches, and we are all beneficiaries of that. May God bless him.
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