WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE

ENSLAVE THE LIBERTY OF BUT ONE

HUMAN BEING AND THE LIBERTIES

OF THE WORLD ARE PUT IN PERIL

William Lloyd Garrison

     I know that you would rather hear about my take on the interesting things to do, places to visit, and people of rural Kansas.  But since I have taken on the job of giving my views there are things that have to be discussed.  Things that the mainstream media and those with vested interests just don't want you knowing about or having an opinion on.

     The advantage that technology has done is in the fact that I can give you my opinions without being subject to an editor or organization.  It gives me the chance to continue my free lance writing when many publications no longer assign work to free lancers.  It is very gratifying to me all those who pick up my stories every week and publish them in their papers.

     I hope you all will indulge me in the one time I am going to ask you to take a stand and do something for the good of the country.  Freedom is not only bought with the blood of our soldiers.  It is each citizen standing up and voicing their opinions and make their elected representatives respond to the health of our Republic.

     Tell me what all these agencies of the Federal Government have in common?  DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE, RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD, TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY, OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT, CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION, US STATE DEPARTMENT, US ENERGY DEPARTMENT, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, NOAA, US POSTAL SERVICE, AND THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE?

     All these departments of the Federal Government as well as around 40 more all have, and maintain Swat Teams.  The stories pour in almost every day about a citizen being pulled out of their houses in front of their families being investigated about an alleged or suspected offense.  Many times the offenses did not amount to more than a misdemeanor and an allegation.

      You have seen the confrontation in Nevada with the team from the Bureau of Land Management.  The pictures are now coming in of the destruction of watering facilities and digging up the shot carcasses of cattle that were buried on the ranch.  No matter which side you are on in this matter, did a civil dispute warrant the threat to life from a Swat Team?

     This is only a fraction of the actions taken by departments of our government daily.  Also all of these Federal agencies have been on a spending spree of billions of dollars buying the ammunition and equipment for these teams.  Enough demand that the ammunition has become in short supply and the cost has risen dramatically.  More ammunition has been purchased by these agencies than has been expended in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. 

     Traditionally the FBI, DEA, US Marshals Service, state and Regional law enforcement agencies have Swat Teams and very good ones.  The addition of thousands of people to agencies other than these have no business having their own.

     What I am asking you to do is to contact you Senators, Representatives, State Senate and Reps. and the Attorneys General Office to pass legislation and rules delegating the traditional agencies the only ones to legitimately have Swat Teams.

     These stories have been posted in the Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, and dozens of other publications and web sites as to these facts.

     IF YOU DO NOT STAND UP AND DEMAND THIS FROM YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS it may be you for some innocuous perceived infraction whose door is broken down, home and business trashed, and time and money spent proving your innocents.

     WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY?

OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE, IN SPITE OF THE PEOPLE

I CANNOT TEACH YOU VIOLENCE, AS I DO

NOT MYSELF BELIEVE IN IT.  I CAN ONLY

TEACH YOU NOT TO BOW YOUR HEADS

BEFORE ANYONE EVEN AT THE COST

OF YOUR LIFE.

Mahatma Gandhi

     Most of you have by now heard of the range war going on in Nevada.  You have had to because with all the provocative actions taken by the Bureau of Land Management, and the resulting outrage, the news has not been able to ignore it as with other scandals.  This because of the number of cameras catching every bit of the confrontations between the rancher and the supporters.

     This is how the 1st Amendment was supposed to work.  By setting up a '1st Amendment area' in a roped off area three miles away, the BLM hoped to restrict the right of the people to stand up and say that this is wrong.  There is no roped off provision for free speech.

      Many of you may also think you know what the fight is all about and that would be a mistake.  Even though the news has to put up the pictures, even the one where a twenty year old man is shot nine times, they don't have to tell the whole story.  And the facts are still evolving.

     The fact remains that the clash with protesters has conveniently left out the questions that brought the Rangers to Taze Clives son and knock down a woman, was about two backhoes that were brought in.  The only reason to bring in backhoes is to dig.

     Surrounding livestock markets and officials had already told the BLM that they could not bring the stolen cattle into their markets to sell.  What is the alternative?

     Even the facts about the battle that the ranchers have been fighting with BLM has been misreported.  Remember that Cliven Bundy is the last of more than 50 ranchers that used to graze in Clark County.

      It is also a part of the story that Harry Reid's former aid is in charge of the BLM and there is question and a leaked memo putting Harry Reid's son in with a Chinese company that has negotiated to buy a lot of these acres in Clark County for a fraction of it's worth.

      The backing down by the BLM is for the reason that the threat of armed resistance existed.  This is the Second Amendment affect.  Although the last thing that we need is a shooting war between government agencies and the public, this possibility had an affect.

     Also as the BLM pulled back from this fight the papers were served on a rancher in New Mexico to evict him from his ranch that goes back to a Spanish Land Grant.  They are also trying to seize over 100 thousand acres along the Red River in Texas.  The Feds also have still turned off the water in California to save a minnow and let millions of gallons of water pour into the ocean each day.  This has ruined over 100,000 acres of farm land and you are, and will feel it in the grocery store.

     The fact that the majority of the West is held by the Federal government is devastating to state economies and the refusal to follow federal law on turning it back to the states is illegal.

      The final point I make is that the police powers of the nation are supposed to be in the Office of the United States Marshal.  It is mandated that these agencies have general law enforcement done by the county sheriffs.

     The existence of SWAT teams by the BLM, NOAA, Social Security Administration, Federal Wildlife Service, Home Land Security, and a dozen other agencies is an illegal forming of a National Police Force.

      I asked the retired Chief of Police from New York City where the National Police Force came from?  He did not know.  When I pointed it out to him he said that is an excellent question.  I have asked this of others in law enforcement and they cannot cite the law that empowers the build up of military type units in federal agencies that do not have the specific authority of the US Marshal, FBI, or other traditional agencies.

     With the millions of rounds of ammunition being purchased by the Federal Governments various agencies it not only has driven prices up, but has raised many questions.

     Lets hope that those who are willing to fight will stop for cooler heads.  It is a violent incident that all these agencies are waiting for to take this to a new level.

     No wonder Putin just laughs at our government.  Our government does the same things he does.

KANSAS GREAT SPRING FESTIVAL

THE REAL VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY CONSISTS

NOT IN SEEKING NEW LANDS, BUT

SEEING WITH NEW EYES

Marcel Proust

     It is soon time again for the great discovery of the sunflower state.  The last two years it had it's run in Liberal and for the next two years Wamego is going to be host for the KANSAS SAMPLER FESTIVAL. 

     Are you native to Kansas or a newcomer?  Do you know all the interesting things to do in this state.  Well the Sampler Festival is where to find out about it all.  150 Kansas communities, entrepreneurs sell Kansas made products.  Cultural heritage, Kansas entertainers, historic performers, food booths, and the famous Stump for Kansas where you can match wits with Marci Penner on facts about the Sunflower State.

     On May 3rd from 10am - 5pm and Sunday May 4th 10am - 4pm at the Wamego City Park you can take in the springtime finding out what there is to see, do, hear, taste, buy, and learn about Kansas.  Learn about hiking trails, day trips, landmarks, restaurants, off the beaten track eateries, historic sites, architectural gems, hole in the wall performing centers, artists, specialty shops, festivals, bed and breakfasts, and special events.

     I am a big fan of rural Kansas and there is always something I learn about the state.  You do not have to go to expensive locations out of state to have a great time.

     I am also very irritated with the life long Kansans that complain about how boring it is in the state and that there is not anything to do.  Well if you put that I Pad up and get out into the real country you may find what those who come here find.  The most friendly people and interesting places.  Kansas is a sportsman's paradise and we have the visitors to prove it.

      If you are one of those who only drive the Interstate highways then you are passing by some of the most interesting territory and friendly people in the world.

     The committee at Wamego has been working for two years getting ready to welcome you.  As you get there enjoy the Flint Hills and you might pop over to Manhattan and see that great Flint Hills Discovery  Center.

      When you get to the festival grounds make sure you go into the Sampler tent and become a Kansas Explorer and pick yourself up some Explorer merchandise.  Pop by the South Central Kansas booth and say Hi to Cindy and Kay from Medicine Lodge.  Be sure you stop and pickup information about all the bed and breakfasts in Kansas at the KBBA booth.

     When you see Marci Penner and Wendee LaPlant tell them what a great job they did.



CULTURE OF COWARDICE

          NEVER BE BULLIED INTO SILENCE.
                  NEVER ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE MADE A VICTIM.
                        ACCEPT NO ONE'S DEFINITION OF YOUR LIFE;
                                DEFINE YOURSELF.
                                                  Harvey Fierstein




     Back in the 1960's and 70's there was only two ways to legally carry a concealed weapon.  One as a private detective.  The other as a commissioned law enforcement officer.  Since municipal jurisdictions authority ended at the city limits all officers were issued deputy sheriff commissions in their counties.  These commissions were good anywhere in the state.  So many commission cards were handed out to cover all the legitimate needs for concealed carry it was almost like a deck of cards and a political reward for supporters.
     Through this time frame I carried a commission and later a Private Detective license.  There was a legitimate need at the time to have a large pool of auxiliary officers available.  In the largest county in Kansas there were sometimes only three beat officers per shift.  Even though there was a trained Reserve and Lake Patrol, in the event of a huge emergency this large manpower pool could be quickly called up.
      It always bothered me that nationwide if a private citizen stood up against an attacker and refused to be a victim, whether for themselves or others, there was always a statement afterward saying WE DON'T ADVOCATE STANDING AGAINST THE PERPETRATOR or WE DON'T RECOMMEND THAT THE PUBLIC TAKE THE LAW IN THERE OWN HANDS.
     On one hand everyone was happy that the person stood for right but warned that they shouldn't because they could "get hurt".  For a long time it has been a steady line from media and political sources that standing against wrong was not worth the risk.  A line that was very successful in 1930's Germany.
     As the thinking and statistics prove that the only way to defeat evil is to stand up to it.  People of courage were always looked up to through history.  Going to the bare bones 10 Commandments the proper original word was murder and not kill.  There are several definitions of acceptable acts of taking of life in Jewish Law, in Common Law, and our own Justice system.  One thing that was universal was that no one admired a coward.  And most people today don't.  Yet it is in every 'official' message that it is not a good idea to stand for right because you might get 'hurt'.
     Fortunately our founding fathers foresaw what could happen to their great experiment when the freedoms which have been hard won and sacrificed for could be turned against the people.  After attempt after attempt to disarm the American citizen there has been steady progress in assuring that you have the right to defend yourself and others from an evil act.
     Fortunately, God grants Man freedom of choice as does our Declaration of Independence.  You are not required to be a hero.  But I do not notice cowards being admired.

MY BIRTHDAY

ON MY 59TH BIRTHDAY I FIND I NEVER LEFT

SCHOOL, ONLY THE WALLS AND BOX.

I WAS KEPT IN

                                  Roger Ringer

          Five year old kid stopped from saying a prayer in school by teacher who asked for favorite story, boy suspended from school for pointing finger and going 'bang' charged with having a 'class 2 imitation firearm', man who was not cooperating with police has 6 rounds pumped into him (no gun on him), leader of Congress calls all who criticize Obama Care liars, Senator who supports Homeland Security spying is offended when spied on herself.  The list goes on and on.  If you are not politically correct in your thinking or speech you should have no rights.  World War 3 is firing up.  You have to fund abortion even if you believe what your faith tells you.

     It just goes on and on.  What I never would have even considered to be acceptable when I was young is now the norm.  No matter how bizarre and outrageous you have to be 'accepting' or someone will be offended.  Yet I never hear any of those people go out of their way to not offend me.  Funny.

      I write this on my 59th birthday and am overwhelmed at the best wishes piling up on my Facebook.  I realize that there are still people out there who hold the old values as sacred and more agree with me than don't.  Those that don't, and are friends, tolerate my opinion.  In fact the ones who are offended by my opinions and cannot conceive of my opinions generally do not rise to attacking my view points.  There is a difference in discussing and attacking.

     I am more and more being disillusioned at the educational institutions in this country being more worried in mainstreaming thoughts and opinions than encouraging lively discussion and debate.  It is inconceivable to me that many university campuses actual have a designated area for free speech and that penalties can be taken against students that do not register and get permission to use the areas weeks in advance.

     It also amazes me that people can criticize the 'Rich' while eating a $35,000 dollar a plate fundraiser.  That news is made when a startlingly under talented TV star by complaining about how hard she has it raising her kids, and managing her nanny and her nanny's driver.

     It is refreshing to know that there are more incompetent government leaders than ours.  Like you can say the plane is definitely lost in this area, without one piece of wreckage being picked up.  And this is repeated over and over in the news cycle as fact.  Hey guys, let me know when you actually find something!

      Well it is nice to know that everyone in the world is crazy but you and me.  And sometimes I wonder about you.

OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND, PUT HEAD IN GROUND.

                YOU CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON AMERICANS TO DO
                           THE RIGHT THING - AFTER THEY HAVE
                                        TRIED EVERYTHING ELSE.
                                                       Winston Churchill

     My how the innocents can be led to the slaughter.  If you don't see it coming it is over quickly.  We are so free from the various agencies of the Federal Government and whims, regulations, and actions they take in other parts of the country.  Very little of Kansas and the Plains are owned or controlled by the Federal government. Consequently, we are blissfully ignorant of how divisive they can be towards the individual farmer, rancher, and land owner.
     Every issue of RANGE MAGAZINE that I receive fuels the resentment that I have for out of control public agencies and the manipulation of them by groups and well heeled individuals with their legions of lawyers and lawsuits.  Yet when someone here reads the magazine they are so shocked that they think it is not true and that the publication is a radical rag.  Yet Range Magazine prints the verifiable truth.  It is their investigative reporters that have uncovered multitudes of unethical and illegal practices.  They also report on the ranchers who are stripped of their rights, properties, and some put into prison.
     How can the government 'of the people' turn into the enemy of it's own citizens?  Power and greed!  The concept that has been the back bone of the US Forest Service that was created and signed into law by Teddy Roosevelt known as 'Multiple Use' has been done away with.  The management of our public lands has been hijacked by interests that are dedicated to destroying the grazing rights of the ranchers that have been leasing the public lands for generations.
      Between special interest groups, political appointees, radical organizations, and a man with the resources to file and pursue lawsuits for decades has driven families off the land.  The resultant mismanagement by our natural resources is creating the largest disaster in years.  Accumulating each season the burning of the west is a result of pop science and political hacking.
     The lie of the Spotted Owl put hundreds of loggers, logging companies and the economies that depended on them out of business.  The 'fragile' owl has been found thriving in second growth timber which had not even been look for before.
     Government employees deliberately cut fence and let cattle into areas off limits for grazing repeatedly so ranchers would be fined and barred from running lease lands again.  Even putting into prison a rancher and son who backfired their ranch to keep the Federal Forest's fire from destroying their property because the back fire crossed into the federal area marginally.  Pictures of US Forestry service fire units staying off private ground paints a terrible picture of politics gone wild. When the private fire resources would fight on into public lands but the reverse was not true.  Who paid the taxes for the federal units in the first place?
     Huge stands of diseased timber stand without a concerted effort to clear them, to prevent future fires, will continue the string of huge fires that have plagued the west.  I have written in the past that the size, severity and scope of the fires in the West has yet to be realized.
      As bad as the last several fires seasons have been we have not seen the worst.  It was published in al Qaeda sites to spread the Jihad to the Western United States.  Many of the fires that the country has suffered have not had the sources identified.  It is not unreasonable to assume that if our own arsonists have started many fires, that those who openly wage war on us will also.
     We will never get a handle on the fires or any other problem until this country puts petty politics aside and start acting like a free nation again.
     If we continue to elect those who have no interest in what is best for their constituents and only follow power politics, we can expect more disasters.
     The drought in the west is having severe consequences because the infrastructure to hold water for these times have been dismantled by radical environmental groups one law suit at a time.  The water to keep agriculture running in California has been diverted around to 'save' a rare bait fish.
      Putting our heads in the sand will still have the same result it always has.  When the head is pulled out everyone will say "how did this happen?"

HOW ABOUT A HOME CONCERT?

 

 

 

"FRIENDS AND GOOD MANNERS WILL

CARRY YOU WHERE MONEY

WON'T GO"

      Margret Walker

 

 

 

     Have you every just wanted to have some friends over, or a lot, for a nice evening but want to avoid dull and boring conversation?  What about a HOME CONCERT? 

     Many people think you have to have a lot of money or connections to get professional entertainers to come do parties or events.  Well there is a type of concert that many entertainers will do as they travel through from one gig to another.  Many of these entertainers are in Folk, Bluegrass, Western, and Acoustic music.  These are entertainers that really love to get to know their fans and are at home setting in the lawn chair in the backyard as in a fancy hotel suite.

     We have a backyard concert twice a year, if we can, and have friends of mine in Western music perform.  We let everyone know what is going on and when.  We make the concert into a pot luck supper so we don't have to figure out what to cook.  We tell everyone to bring one dish and their lawn chair.

     We generally do this on a weeknight because the artists generally have a paying gig on Saturday nights.  We have anywhere from 50 to150 people show up.  But you can do it on the space you have.  Nobody fails to have a good time.

     To make it worth the artists time we put out a jar and all the money donated goes to the artist.  We do not take any part of it.  We, also, put them up for the night and feed breakfast the next morning.  This saves them some expense and let us get to know them better.

      This works well for individual artists and duos.  But we have had all four members of the Diamond W Wranglers here.  I have friends in the Western Music Association that are traveling through here from New Orleans, Albuquerque, and Dallas.  We all have a great time.

     So how can you have a concert at your place?  Simple.  Through the Big Rural Brainstorm that the Kansas Sampler Foundation sponsors there is a group of us that formed KAN-REN (Kansas Rural Entertainment Network).  For now it is a Facebook page.  Like the group and you can find names of entertainers and make connections with people who have had these events for information.

     You do not have to be the richest person in the community to have a good time with good music.  Oh and it is more than music.  We have members who are Cowboy Poets and ventriloquists.

     Remember to LIKE KANSAS RURAL ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK (KAN-REN).