Posted on 04/19/2010 3:24:51 PM PDT by VRW Conspirator
Stewart Rhodes does not seem like an extremist. He is a graduate of Yale Law School and a former U.S. Army paratrooper and congressional staffer. He is not at all secretive. In February he was sitting at a table at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at a fancy downtown hotel in Washington, handing out fliers and selling T shirts for his organization, the Oath Keepers. Rhodes says he has 6,000 dues-paying members, active and retired police and military, who promise never to take orders to disarm U.S. citizens or herd them into concentration camps. Rhodes told a NEWSWEEK reporter, "We're not a militia." Oath Keepers do not run around the woods on the weekend shooting weapons or threatening the violent overthrow of the government. Their oath is to uphold the Constitution and defend the American people from dictatorship.
SUBSCRIBE Click Here to subscribe to NEWSWEEK and save up to 88% >> But by conjuring up the specter of revolution—or counterrevolution—is Rhodes adding to the threat of real violence? Oath Keepers are "a particularly worrisome example of the 'patriot' revival," according to Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which monitors hate speech and extremist organizations. "Patriot" groups—described by the SPLC as outfits "that see the federal government as part of a plot to impose 'one-world government' on liberty-loving Americans"—are "roaring back" after years out of the limelight, according to Potok. Notorious in the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, the patriot groups seemed to fade away under the shadow of 9/11, but hard times and the nation's first African-American president seem to have brought about a revival—from 149 groups in 2008 to 512 (127 of them militias) in 2009, according to the SPLC.
It is easy to exaggerate the numbers of...
(Excerpt) Read more at newsweek.com ...
The left is in a tizzy because Americans won’t roll over and play dead for ANY Marxists.
http://www.foliomag.com/2010/newsweek-publisher-s-magazine-division-losses-widen-last-year
I would never subscribe to Newsweek. I am, however, a proud member of Oathkeepers
So they are still screaming racism huh? What a bunch of flipping morons.If Obambi had white skin, which he well could have had, he would still be despised by me, and by a lot of others. It makes no difference you media morons! A marxist is a marxist no matter what his skin color is.
I get it now. If you disagree with obama, you “hate.” If you’re Jeremiah Wright, you’re good.
Right. You may notice the Crats are paniced about getting out the Black Base. They are trying to get them excited but with no new Freebies are worried they will not show up in November. They will attempt to scare and anger them to get them to vote.
Second, the Left never seems overly agitated when hate comes from among their own.
Third, Newsweek would do well to tell us where in the Constitution "hate speech" is prohibited. Where in the Constitution does it say that only mealy mouthed, puff ball, inoffensive speech is protected by the First Amendment? (I am opposed to so-called hate crime legislation largely for this reason.) Where were they when Michael Moore, Rosie O'Donnell, Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Alec Baldwin, the so-called 9/11 truthers, and a slew of other Left-wing types spewed vicious tripe against President George W. Bush, and against President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan back in the day? Where have they been since 2008 when the Left generated hideous lies about Gov. Sarah Palin's infant son?
Fourth, someone should buy Newsweek a clue that there is a difference between outright threats to do physical harm, and political speech with which the Left happens to disagree. Furthermore, neither the Right nor the Left have a corner on the market of physical violence in the name of political beliefs. Radical Islamists have much in common with Marxist derivative totalitarians, yet I don't see Newsweek and other Left-wing media wringing their hands about hate from that quarter.
A publishing deathwish. Very hard to understand why they would let support of the left destroy the company. Corporatism?
It is not about media (print or electronic) but about content.
They simply do not get it.
Don’t tell anybody I said this, but you can join oathkeepers right now
oathkeepers.org
god bless America
I wish there were an organization called "Pistol Packing Mamas" - ahhh, that would let white haired ole grannys join.
I made this and wore it every time I went downtown during the election. Had a lot more thumbs up than angry looks.
Weather's warming up up here. I think I'll dig this out for summer. Like I say, I get a lot of thumbs and smiles and fun conversations - but the occasional sour face never says anything - I think they're a bit hesitant to take on a fiesty ole gramma. Smart thinking. I'd wipe the floor with them, verbally.
I wish there were an organization called "Pistol Packing Mamas" - ahhh, that would let white haired ole grannys join.
I made this and wore it every time I went downtown during the election. Had a lot more thumbs up than angry looks.
Weather's warming up up here. I think I'll dig this out for summer. Like I say, I get a lot of thumbs and smiles and fun conversations - but the occasional sour face never says anything - I think they're a bit hesitant to take on a fiesty ole gramma. Smart thinking. I'd wipe the floor with them, verbally.
“Only ‘hatriots’ would actually uphold their sworn oath to defend the Constitution!”
The second ANYONE quotes the racist group “SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER”, just proves the whole premise of that article or interview is BOGUS.
Tear it up and throw it in the cat box. IF your cat will let you. Newsweek isn’t good for anything else.
Well, maybe fish wrapping at the market. Maybe.
Oh, this SO needs to be a new conservative meme!! Know where I can find the HolyO image?!? I’ve got ideas! :-)
Aw come on Wolfstar! You have been around here long enough to know that there are certain unwritten rules here at FR. Anyway, if I did NOT put the barf notice in, someone would post (smarmy voice) "where is the barf notice?" doh!
And what gives the gov’t the right to tell us who to hate? I told some of my liberal “friends” that the healthcare bill is darn likely to cost me my job and/or many others in my line of work. Why shouldn’t I hate the people who pushed it through against the will of the people? It comes down to this, Jesus might have been able to love evil people, but I’m not Jesus. And that crowd in d.c. is evil to the core. The “good” news is, the more they try to quash hatred of evil, the stronger the hatred grows...
From a DTogo vanity:
Tea Party rallies: thousands
Tea Party participants: millions
Tea Party squabbles with Law Enforcement: 0
Tea Parties confronted by riot police: 0
Tea Parties dispersed by tear gas: 0
Tea Party arrests: 0
Tea Parties causing violence/injuries: 0
Tea Parties causing property damage: 0
Tea Parties responsible for the death of anybody: 0
I know, but still, the barf notice is annoying to a very free thinker like me. But it’s a small complaint, and I probably shouldn’t have mentioned it. You’re right. I’ve been around here a long time. :)
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