Sheehan buys plot in Crawford with son’s insurance money

Ft. Worth Star-Telegram/Sweetness & Light ^ | July 27, 2006 | Jack Douglas, Jr.

[Sam Hill]

From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

Sheehan buys plot in Crawford with son's insurance money

By JACK DOUGLAS JR.

Thu, Jul. 27, 2006

CRAWFORD -- As President Bush prepares to spend some vacation time at his ranch here, not all is peaceful within the peace movement that has doggedly criticized his war policies for the past year.

The Gold Star Families for Peace says on its Web site that its members will again flock to Crawford in August to protest Bush's wartime decisions. Leader Cindy Sheehan is again demanding to meet with the president -- a replay of a year ago -- garnering worldwide attention and making Sheehan, the mother of a fallen soldier, the most familiar face of anti-war protesters.

But Sheehan and Mark Mattlage, owner of the 1-acre property where protesters have been allowed to gather, have had a falling out over scheduling and increased costs for liability insurance.

So, Sheehan has purchased a 5-acre plot in Crawford, saying she did so with some of the insurance money she received after her son, Casey Sheehan, was killed in Iraq.

"We decided to buy property in Crawford to use until George's resignation or impeachment, which we all hope is soon for the sake of the world," Sheehan said in a newsletter, scheduled to be sent to her supporters today. "I can't think of a better way to use Casey's insurance money than for peace, and I am sure that Casey approves."

Now an official resident of Crawford, like Bush, Sheehan predicted in the newsletter that she and her supporters will "enjoy a cordial relationship with everyone."

The anti-war gathering in this tiny town, 20 miles west of Waco, is scheduled for Aug. 16 through Sept. 2. But there is a question about whether protesters will ever get within shouting distance of the president since he is scheduled to be at his ranch mainly during the first two weeks of August, before the protests get under way.

In an e-mail to the Star-Telegram, Sheehan called Mattlage's family "heroic" for "their contribution to the peace movement." Referring to the property used last year, she added: "We left them with a better property and one with amazing positive and peaceful energy."

Mattlage, who no longer lives near Crawford, said he is a registered Democrat but has not opposed Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq. He said he did not lend his land to the protesters for political reasons. Instead, Mattlage said, he was worried that someone would get hurt if anti-war advocates continued to assemble just off Prairie Chapel Road, leading up to the president's ranch.

"We're kind of peacemakers. We didn't want to see anybody get run over on that road ... and we knew nobody else would offer" land, Mattlage said.

He said he did not charge for the use of the land but did require the protest group to reimburse him for the cost of liability insurance, initially amounting to between $700 and $800. For subsequent gatherings, including Thanksgiving and then Easter, Crawford Peace House paid to put in electrical and water lines.

Mattlage said he had no idea so many Sheehan supporters would gather on his property, and he acknowledged some of what the protesters said about Bush and the U.S. in the war made him cringe.

"I did not want a Jane Fonda incident," he said, referring to the actress's 1972 visit to a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft camp that earned her the famous nickname "Hanoi Jane."

Despite some misgivings, the business relationship between Sheehan and Mattlage was friendly and, at times, jokingly flirtatious, according to an exchange of e-mails between the two, provided to the Star-Telegram by Mattlage.

The relationship began to sour somewhat, he said, when he recently learned on the group's Web site that protesters planned to return to Crawford in August. He said he did not agree to let them use the land at that time because it coincided with his family's plans to hunt doves. He said he also did not want Sheehan to use his property when Bush was at his ranch. "I just didn't want his vacation to be interrupted. It was out of respect for the president," Mattlage said.

He said he eventually agreed to let Gold Star Families for Peace use his land in August but only with the understanding that, because of the expected huge crowds, liability insurance costs were going to increase significantly to between $5,500 and $6,000. Mattlage said that, on the advice of his lawyer, he also told the protest group to sign a "hold harmless" agreement that would further free him of liability if something went wrong.

In a newsletter e-mailed to Mattlage and protest organizers on June 23, Sheehan told Mattlage, "I cannot in good faith accept the terms that you and your lawyers are holding us hostage with. ... I fear we will have to find alternatives to using your land ... "

Mattlage, in a phone interview, said Sheehan had initially agreed to pay the higher insurance costs. It made him mad, he said, when she later sent an e-mail to organizers suggesting he was holding her "hostage."

Mattlage sent his one-time friend an e-mail back that said, "You can go away now."

And Sheehan replied: "Okay. Bye."

And yet she refused to buy her son a headstone.

[Tired of Taxes]

Good catch!

[Hydroshock]

lol

[JennysCool]

You can not sugar coat her horridness

She is hanging out with other horrid women who have convinced her that pure, mindless bitchery is "empowerment."

[Stultis]

that protesters planned to return to Crawford in August. He said he did not agree to let them use the land at that time because it coincided with his family's plans to hunt doves.

What's the problem? Keep the protestors and the dove hunt. Better yet, invite Cheney to the hunt.

[Paradox]

Liberals are such narcissists.

[Mo1]

Thanks

[finnman69]

Googe map link to the ranch

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Waco,+TX&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&ll=31.582415,-97.543691&spn=0.002194,0.00442

[Sam Hill]

If you scroll down to reply #54 you will see that all of this stuff from Mattlage is a lie.

[prairiebreeze]

Hard to believe somebody could move so far beyond despicable.

But using your dead soldier son's insurance $$ to buy up property to harrass the CiC certainly qualifies.

I simply can't post what I'd like to call this.....female.

[devolve]

[jmranchman]

"He said he did not lend his land to the protesters for political reasons. Instead, Mattlage said, he was worried that someone would get hurt if anti-war advocates continued to assemble just off Prairie Chapel Road, leading up to the president's ranch."

Mattlage said he had no idea so many Sheehan supporters would gather on his property, and he acknowledged some of what the protesters said about Bush and the U.S. in the war made him cringe.

"I did not want a Jane Fonda incident," he said, referring to the actress's 1972 visit to a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft camp that earned her the famous nickname "Hanoi Jane."


This guy isnt exactly the brightest star in the galaxy from what I can see. He says he "cringed" when he heard the things that Sheehan and the group were saying. You gotta be kidding me.

[scott7278]

She has a mental illness, and I'm not just talking about her liberalism.

[Ruth A.]

Nope, the joke is on her! Her entire south boundary borders Ted Nugent's ranch, directly behind his shooting range backstop... :-)

Please, don't toy with us. There should be gunfire in the background of every interview, if this is true.

[Just A Nobody]

I can deal with anything else she says ... but when she besmirches the good name of her son

While I completely agree with you sentiment, I also find this statement until George's resignation or impeachment equally offensive.

President Bush was ELECTED by the majority of the American people, and has done NOTHING even close to an impeachable offense. This is getting very old and tiresome and why a handful of people are given this much press is beyond my comprehension.

[mass55th]

"Now that she owns property in Crawford, when something goes wrong, she will be responsible."

Anybody in Texas familiar with property laws, owners' responsibilities, etc? What about town or county laws? Will she need a license to conduct a protest on her land? Are there laws regarding the cap on the number of people allowed to attend? How about camping out on the land? Fire & safety laws? Hygiene requirements for people in attendance? Will she be required to have liability insurance? I wonder where she expects the media to park their butts since she's only got one acre. I certainly hope this all blows up in her face...again!

[Aquinasfan]

Mattlage said that, on the advice of his lawyer, he also told the protest group to sign a "hold harmless" agreement that would further free him of liability if something went wrong.

...Sheehan told Mattlage, "I cannot in good faith accept the terms that you and your lawyers are holding us hostage with. ... I fear we will have to find alternatives to using your land ... "

She seems to be stuck in the petulant teenager stage.

[BreitbartSentMe]

Her entire south boundary borders Ted Nugent's ranch, directly behind his shooting range backstop... :-)

Man, if this is true, somebody should contact Uncle Ted, and tell him that we all want to sign up to take our vacations then, and will gladly pay (or donate to charity) to shoot day and night at his shooting range - I'm sure some lucky FReepers have some pretty loud guns - hope it won't interfere with their sleep......

[jdsteel]

I live close enough to give her a taste of her own medicine. I'm willing to campout in a ditch in front of her property, while she is present, and hold signs highly unflattering to her.

Good for you!!!!

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

He probably just now got finished cleaning up after their last visit, and realized after the fact something that most of us knew way before, that leftists don't make good guests.

[potlatch]

THANK-YOU devolve. I see the eagle flying although others might not know to look for it.