Originally Posted by Phil Hoskins
Bigswede, I know you will think it blaspheme, but land owners hold rights only to the extent assured and actually granted by government. Without government it is grab as grab can
I was going down a parallel path when I saw that. In response to bigswede's assertions that
Originally Posted by bigswede
The protest was in my eyes on a general issue of the rights of western farmers to keep their rights. Many of them actually work their own land. That the stand against the agencies took part on federal should not cloud the principal issue.
and
Quote
The right to manage your own property according to your own will. How hard can it be to understand that?

Let me ask these questions: How did you gain title to that land? Or is it merely possession? If you assert that land ownership means "that right to manage your own property according to your own will" why does that not apply to my land? I have an ownership interest in the Malheur Wildlife Refuge (and all other publicly owned lands) - albeit not a divisible one. My ownership interest is being administered by my representatives - in this case the United States Government through its agents, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, etc. Why, pray tell, are your interests superior to mine?

Bundy was stealing from me, by stealing from the government that protects my interests. Should he not be punished for that? The Bundy boys (and friends) invaded my land and took possession of it by force.

I know, 'swede you'd like to change the facts to pursue your preferred outcome, but that's not how it works. I suppose I could put it this way: Why are you on my property? You assert that you own land: How are you going to prove it? If I simply came into your house and asserted I owned it, can I kick you out? (Yes, it really is that basic) What gives you the right to exclude me? Just answer that one question. I'll wait.

A well reasoned argument is like a diamond: impervious to corruption and crystal clear - and infinitely rarer.

Here, as elsewhere, people are outraged at what feels like a rigged game -- an economy that won't respond, a democracy that won't listen, and a financial sector that holds all the cards. - Robert Reich