Further proof that all that stuff in the constitution about the right to a speedy trial, the prohibition against excessive bail, and the presumption of innocence and all the other safeguards we supposedly have are all just bullshit.

Two years after their arrests the Hutaree Militia defendants finally going to trial says the Detroit News.

Small measure of justice for Hutaree Militia defendant

The US Attorney's office in Detroit has decided to drop one firearm-related charge against Hutaree Militia conspiracy defendant David Brian Stone, Jr.

Good news for Mr. Stone of course but the underlying fact is that some 18 months have passed since the Lennawee county rifle club's cum terror plotters dramatic arrests and the accompanying propaganda campaign, media circus & photo-op without ever being brought to trial. So now, even if totally exonerated by a jury, they will have been incarcerated for at least two years by the time their trials even begin.

God bless America.

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Hear ye! Hear ye!

Obama administration wants to cut funding for lamprey control programs for Great Lakes (Detroit Free Press)
The feds caused this problem in the first damn place. Now they wanna cut back on fixing it?

Hutaree Militia case from 2010 will not go to trial until 2012 at the earliest (Ann Arbor.com)
No trial = no justice. Those defendants have been rotting in prison for going on two years now. If the evidence the government has is so overwhelming why not go to trial right away? I understand there is usually some pretrial jostling around by both the state and the defense lawyers but two fucking years?

Only 17% say U.S. government has consent of the governed (Rasmussen)
 No surprise to me.

Keep both eyes open when you shoot (The High Road)
Takes some practice if you're not used to doing so but it works better IMHO.

More "Hutaree Militia" nonsense from the feds

The Hutaree militia case drags on .... (Lee Higgins, annarbor.com/)
This snipe hunt would be funny if it wasn't so hurtful and retarded. The feds just want to squeeze these guys as loooonnng as possible hoping they'll crack and plead guilty. If the fed's case is so strong why not go to court immediately?

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War on Terror, redux: The feds continue squeezing the Hutaree Militia defendant's family members in order to flip them into plea deals that require them to testify against their family and friends. Just as with most federal terrorism charges these days the whole package is mainly if not wholly a put-up job by paid agent provocateurs.

From Motown to Murder Town: Thank's to ABC television we have Detroit 1-8-7 a pseudo documentary-style crime drama  about the homicide unit of the DPD. Rather than being known for producing cars Detroit is now to be  famous for its murder rate. I guess the Hollywood types think we should all be grateful and flattered for this show being set in Detroit, even though most of the outdoor scenes were actually filmed in Atlanta and that there are other American cities with higher murder rates than Detroit.

Broke, black, corrupt & devastated: But Detroit's a joke, a pitiful ruin. (see above) while New Orleans which is also broke, black, corrupt and ruined but is still hip and cool enough for an HBO series like The Wire. Go figure? (Bottom line: The lame-stream media arbitrators of cool hate Detroit and love Baltimore and New Orleans, all for reasons unknown.)

Sign of the Times...

The libertarian oriented Reason magazine is the latest to chime in on the fear of Right-wing Militias hysteria that the Obama administration is trying to spread far and wide. The case against the Hutaree isn't as well-founded as what it first appeared in the headlines two months ago, according to the federal judge overseeing the case. The Sixth U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati is now dragging it's feet about releasing the Hutaree defendants on bail at the behest of the US Atty, and which for them must be quite embarrassing. Or it would be if they had any shame.

But in the larger sense (e.g., the political sense), the damage has already been done. The well is poisoned as far as the Hutarees getting a fair trial and the "Beware of those Dangerous Right-wing Militias" trope has been put out there into the public mind from all headlines and news coverage. So, as with most things, the state wins no matter what the outcome is for the Hutarees.

Sign of the times

A sputtering, fuming and astonished US Attorney vows to appeal a ruling allowing the Hutaree Militia defendants to be released on bail reports the Detroit News. And then AUSA goes on to try and link the Hutaree defendants to a recent murder of a Detroit police officer by convicted drug dealer.

Sheesh. More "well poisoning" on the U.S. Attorney's part. The defense lawyers should go for a court order to prevent any more of these ill-considered and prejudicial comments by the U.S. Attorney. And so the Hutaree defendants get to languish in jail despite their legal victory while the U.S. attorney's office appeal wends it way through the legal system.

Sign of the Times...

I was reading the latest revelations from the U.S. Attorney's office in re their case against the Hutaree 8. And my conclusion? Sheesh, what a crock. If what the feds have released so far constitutes their case for sedition then some if not all of these defendants will walk, assuming of course they don't get so intimidated by the threats of lengthy prison terms they plead out in exchange for leniency.

This is nothing. Hating the government is as old and commonplace as American society itself. So, good luck with that feds. You may end up with a Randy Weaver/Ruby Ridge acquittal on your hands unless you get a very gullible jury or the defense team just blows it utterly. My opinion as things stand now.

Sign of the Times...

Things are going pretty bad for militia types when they get narked on by members of other militia groups. And no this was not a Randy Weaver style entrapment operation either. The rival militia members called the the FBI. What solidarity, eh?

Sign of the Times...

Feds use fear of militias, Islamist terror groups for political advantage and as a means of control - Detroit News (George Hunter)

The story includes the usual quotes from the Southern Poverty Law Center, academics, police and the usual federal alphabet soup of law enforcers who all claim that Michigan is awash in "homegrown terror groups" saying there are 47 of them out there in total. So watch your neighbors, strangers, co-workers, and immigrants folks and be sure to report them to the authorities just in case they're terrorists.

And just to make the whole government approved formulaic news story complete newsman Hunter rehashes the books, DVDs and other reputed terrorist paraphernalia`just for good measure. Hunter makes sure to include that "evidence" seized included "...DVDs titled 'Waco' at the home of alleged Hutaree leader David Stone Sr., along with copies of the novel 'The Turner Diaries' and a book of Adolf Hitler's speeches at the Indiana home of defendant Thomas Piatek, according to court records made public last week." Hey, thanks for that intel George, go get your nugs from Janet Napolitano.

Do we look through the book shelves of everyone the government arrests? Maybe we should from now on. The Detroit News should now include that info in every crime story they publish. Seems fair to me.

Sign of the Times...

Ann Arbor.com has a pretty good list of the items seized from the Hutaree Militia arrestees. Taking firearms, ammunition, knives, swords and other obvious weapons I can see. Illegal items like drugs I can see too. But what about all this other stuff? Like books about Nazis and Hitler. Computers, cameras, uniforms, books about military subjects. None of that stuff is illegal by the way. So why is it noted? Why was it seized? In order to parade it all out in front of the media in order to scare and alarm and prejudice the public who will ultimately be the jury for these defendants is my hunch.

Think I'm blowing smoke here? Okay dear reader, consider this mind experiment. Think about your own home. How would you like it if federal agents and cops went through all of your drawers, garage, basement, attic and storage areas and seized for public display all of your DVDs, video tapes, books. magazines, private photos, computer hard-drives and printed out a list of every website you've ever visited?

And so-called "bomb making materials"? I'll bet a reasonably bright individual could build a simple bomb out of ordinary and typical household items commonly found in everybody's kitchen or garage. Could we cobble all that stuff together and say you had "bomb-making materials" in your house? Yes indeed. Do you have a gun or knife? Who did you plan to kill with it? See what I mean? This whole thing is BS. The gov should save these displays for presentation in a court of law where the defendant's legal counsel is present to give it some context. But don't bet on it.

Sign of the Times...

The Detroit News is reporting that in addition to taking over three counties, assassinating the entire Hudson, Michigan police force, and thereby causing Jesus to return, the Hutaree Militia (all nine of them) also offered to jail-break a confined bomb-making ex-felon too! Wow.

The more the feds reveal their case the more absurd this whole conspiracy thing seems. Leaving aside the apocalyptic return of the deity, accomplishing everything on the ever increasing list the US Attorney's office is providing the media is starting to strain credulity. And keep in mind when you hear all this stuff from the feds through the media that according to relatives the Hutaree commander-in-chief often couldn't even "keep a decent vehicle running" to get to and from work too. And we've already seen the condition of his homestead. But even so, we are told, he/they still had the wherewithal to launch this vast conspiracy of murder, mayhem, terrorism, sedition, treason and bring about a religious apocalypse. And as the Fed's list gets longer and longer it should start to make people wonder about who is really more out of touch with reality in this case.

The feds put an informant inside the group and then recorded every outburst, empty boast, rant, rave and remark and used it to indict them all. But, as previously noted, a good prosecutor can indict a ham sandwich if need be. And whatever else federal law enforcement may be it seems to be good enough to indict these talkative and overwrought types who's principal activity seems to be running their mouths about politics and dressing up in camouflage and posing for pictures with their rifles instead of working a little harder to improve their standard of living.

Sign of the times

If you are an anti-government activist it's important that you not shoot your mouth off to undercover federal agents even if you are just blowing smoke. Even if what you are saying is constitutionally protected political speech. But be that as it may, the US attorney's office in Detroit is making as much adverse information available as possible to the media in order to thoroughly poison the potential jury pool against the so-called Hutaree militia group. And as for any due process rights, well as some famous prosecutor once bragged that he could get a grand jury to "indict a ham sandwich" if he wanted to.
The trouble with this whole case is that the feds seem to have facilitated and encouraged these guys every step of the way. I just hope their lawyers make that fact clear to the jury that is gonna try this case, and that it helps. Angry talk isn't the same as terrorism.

Sign of the Times...

My local newsweekly The Brooklyn Exponent did a poll (non-scientific, needless to say) asking it's readership if our stretch of Jackson, Lennawee and Hillsdale counties are a hotbed of terrorist intrigue. The result: more than 80 percent said "yes". I'd give this a link but the paper has no free website that I can link to, so you'll have to take my word for it. Sign of the times.

Um...maybe there is a link but I'm not sure how long it'll work.

And on a related note it seems various militia groups were monitoring police radio frequencies and broadcasting their gleanings on their own FCC licensed over-the-air radio station all during the big raid last week. Amazing. And this info, if true, adds more red herrings to this dust-up, at least for me. They appear to be kinda marginal economically yet surprisingly well organized and financed.

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How feds manufacture anti-government activity, so they can claim credit for crushing it -Lewrockwell.com (Will Grigg)

"When the stranger materialized a few years ago, nobody really knew much about him. He seemed like a suitably sympathetic figure and quickly ingratiated himself by offering whatever help he could. No task was too menial for him, and he had a way of finding just what the group needed right when it was required."

Why economists have gained in prestige and influence in recent decades while historians have become less influential - Harvard Business Review (via Brainiac)

A list of wasteful uses to which student fee money is put to in California - LA Times

Funny, but ah...I wouldn't think so if I had to pay it.

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"He was a struggling Michigan resident. He could not keep a decent vehicle running," ... How do you get the money to buy four bombs?"

I was thinking the same kind of thoughts myself this morning while re-reading news accounts from Ann Arbor.com, Detroit News, WSJ, AP and some other sources about the Hutaree arrests. If you look at the picture of David Stone Sr. decked out in his tiger-stripe camouflage fatigues and spit-shined jump boots taking aim with his scoped AR it raises in me the same question Stone's brother raised in his Detroit News interview. How and where does he get the money for all this? Sure people use their income to buy what they want instead of what they truly need, but still... That AR rig he has in the picture goes for $2,500 (retail price, maybe slightly less used) and the spit-shined jump boots and the camo outfit are at least $200 more. And yet Stone lives in a dilapidated house trailer surrounded by junked appliances, old cars and stuff. And yet to re-quote his bro, "can't keep a decent vehicle running".

There's nothing wrong with these guys and Michigan people in general that a decent full employment economy wouldn't remedy rather quickly. Witch-hunts by the feds sparked by over heated private comments recorded by agent-provocateurs and other such stuff may be what Obama and his media allies need and want right now, but the real issue for people who care is to get people like Stone and company back to work at gainful employment.

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How the Left Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the FBI - Independent Institute (Anthony Gregory)
"And so when a progressive like Rachel Maddow cheers that the Michigan militia members can be indicted and imprisoned without having done anything violent, when she reports that the FBI has infiltrated this group for months and stepped in to arrest them just in the nick of time, we should not be too surprised when she fails to make the obvious connection, and fails to be the least bit skeptical of the federal government’s police agents infiltrating a group for months only to discover that that group’s members are saying things about government that amount to “seditious conspiracy.” What kind of Orwellian world is it when the government can arrest people accused only of planning to commit violence against government agents and unleash a “civil war” that we all know is only a fantasy?"

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The Hutaree Militia wanted to "take over" three Michigan counties and force the Feds to start a war to remove them. No kidding, this what the US attorney said in court yesterday according to reports on AnnArbor.com. That is militarily take over three Michigan counties. With just nine core members. Nine. The more this story plays out the more ridiculous the state's case seems. I think the Obama justice department needed a scape-goat and these goofs fit the bill. This fubar militia group don't look capable of taking over their home base of Clayton, Michigan (pop. 303) let alone Hillsdale, Lenawee, and Washtenaw counties.

What really happened is that this fubar commando club went out in the woods shot off their rifles and then shot their mouths off later over beers. Too bad for them that they had a FBI snitch recording all this loud empty "seditious" talk. That's what really happened here IMO. And as for the cop murder & funeral ambush plans? Well, nearby Jackson had a cop funeral just a few weeks ago, remember? If the Hutaree truly wanted to go that route why didn't they bomb that funeral?

What it really comes down to in my opinion is that these goofs shot their mouths off to the wrong people, (an FBI snitch), had "enemies" (I.e.- ex-wives, rival militias, et. al.) who were ready willing and able to rat 'em out, and they happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time politically (Leviathan needed a scape-goat for propaganda purposes.) And so, too bad for the Hutaree. That perfect storm of circumstances may yet result in some lengthy prison time.

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Feds had undercover agent inside Hutaree 9 group say the Associated Press & Ann Arbor.com.

Based on what the news stories say the Feds don't seem to have much else except for an undercover snitch and a pissed off ex-wife. So we'll see what the Feds really have (other than the Obama administration's need to find a bogeyman to scare people) in the way of evidence against them if and when this whole mess goes to trial. And despite the mass media propaganda campaign not everyone thinks this case is a slam dunk.

And, just to poison the well further, it is reported that one of Hutaree 9 may have shot a feral cat. Anyone who'd kill a wild cat in cold-blood is definitely a danger to national security, you see.

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The "Hutaree" Militia suspects finally named & charged - Ann Arbor.com

All nine of 'em. I am really gonna watch these people's trials closely, assuming that they even get one. Given the penalties involved, plea agreements are much more likely. And also for the life of me it still looks to me like this whole "conspiracy" is just a father and his two sons being set up by a pissed-off and scorned ex-wife along with a few hangers-on and family friends. These guys go out in the woods shoot their rifles and "train" and such and then talk shit over beers when it's over. But we'll see.