Militia Q&A
Disclaimer: Since I haven't yet linked up or formally co-founded a militia unit yet, I speak only for myself and not anyone else! Also, these are briefly written drafts without notes, you can research the matter further at militia sites linked from Eric's InfoCenter if interested.
Q: Are all militia units in the U.S. in agreement with one another?
A: It is apparent as I survey the various "militia" web
sites that this is not the case. There is a somewhat bewildering array of
ideologies represented in the various militia units. While I encourage
involvement in a constitutional citizen's militia, I would also strongly
encourage everyone to understand the background and beliefs of any particular
group they are interested in joining.
Some of the differences I've noted:
1.
Some units are firmly grounded in Biblical values and ground themselves
carefully in God's Word in a manner similar to the founding fathers; others are
humanistic and make no mention of God or foundational religious moorings.
2.
Some units support constitutional government as understood by the founders, with
a government of limited power; others appear to be frankly anarchistic,
apparently denying any role or power to government. (None espouse
socialistic/totalitarian government.)
3. Some units restrict themselves
strictly to military or related activities; others engage in social activism in
some manner (from gun lobbying to protesting racism), in the name of their unit.
Some units even appear to be linked (either in spirit or in membership) with
true religious cults, or with terrorist groups abroad.
Q: Where do you stand personally regarding the differences noted in the prior question?
A: In general, I encourage and espouse what I will call a "reasonable
and mature militia." This will doubtless offend those with whom I disagree
as described below, but so be it. I reject the paranoia of some who fear a
sinister conspiracy to rule the world - extraordinary claims require
extraordinary evidence, for better or worse. I also reject the humanistic "ends
justifies the means" attitude that rationalizes violence or deception or
any other criminal behavior to supposedly defend liberties.
While I utterly
oppose the establishment of a denomination as a government religion, I also
recognize that every government will necessarily be predicated on some sort of
belief system, whether theistic or humanistic. Thus, and because our system was
founded on and is reliant on the biblical Judeo-Christian worldview, I believe
all good U.S. militia units must confess and accept a biblical foundation
regardless of whether each individual member is Jewish or Christian. The
various statements and requirements of our early American government, regarding
Christianity and religion in general, serve as my model.
Secondly, I believe
in liberty, not license. Liberty is the freedom to do whatever
you will, so long as it is not evil - that is, that it does not violate the will
of God. You can never have a "right" to do evil if rights come only
from God. License is the freedom to do whatever you want without moral
restraint. Unfortunately virtually no one appears to understand the distinction
today, such that so-called "libertarians" would better be called "licensarians."
Government does have a legitimate role and functions, and humans should not be
allowed to do evil to themselves or one another. This is one of the most basic
issues separating the militias and ultimately it is what puts the misnamed "libertarian"
groups at odds with our form of Bible-based constitutional government. A
humanistic "libertarian" society would soon discover that evil can
come from the all parts of society, not just the government. See
my paper on this subject.
Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, most libertarians are little more than
liberals who've figured out that Big Government is Not a Good Thing.
Thirdly,
no matter how commendable protesting racism and other activities may be, they
are not the proper function of a militia as such, and engaging in such
activities risks a loss of focus on the part of the militia unit, and potential
liabilities if the unit becomes viewed as a partisan group with its' own agenda.
The proper function of a true militia unit is to safeguard the liberty of the
people, principally by maintaining the rule of the Constitution of the land.
Paranoia or support for violent militant groups abroad who do not have a morally
upright track record has no part in a citizen militia.
Let it be clearly understood that these differences (and others) do exist, and that therefore I by no means endorse militia units in general, and I urge you to use discernment as you investigate them yourself.
Q: How do you reconcile your Christian beliefs with militia involvement, their militancy and the threat of violence?
A: As a Christian I believe I am called to suffer gladly in the face of persecution for the sake of the faith, suffering martyrdom if need be. "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." However, when I am faced with oppression that is not specifically against Christians, and results in harm to non-Christians as well as Christians, I believe part of being a good witness for Christ means being brave enough to stand up and fight for the common good. If I passively allow my neighbor to be oppressed, am I being a good witness? Will he or she listen to my presentation of the Gospel if I am not willing to defend them?
(NOTE: The plight of the Karen people of Burma is good case in point. These largely Christian tribesmen have been fighting an oppressive government that persecutes note just Christians, but tribal folk on all stripes. The oppression is not predicated on the destruction of Christianity, but rather on feeding the power-hungry appetites of the SLORC rulers.)
The abolition of the constitutional republic in America (note the past tense) and the creeping enslavement of our population has been characterized by much non-violent harassment and persecution of Christians, but the oppression affects all of us, regardless of our faith.
Remember, the militia is inherently defensive in nature. Ordinary citizens will fight to defend their families and their freedom, but are hardly going to run amok in a war of agression and oppression against others. We aren't going to fight so someone else can bloat their ego, or their pocketbooks, or gain power over ourselves or anyone else. THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO SHOULD BE AFRAID OF, AND OPPOSED TO, THE MILITIA ARE THOSE SEEKING TO TAKE AWAY YOUR RIGHTS AND CONTROL YOUR LIFE.
Q: Morris Dees claimed in reports yesterday (11/21) that 40 states ban private militias/ armies, and that these laws should be used to destroy the militias. How can you justify involvement in the militia?
A: The laws are designed to prevent the formation of PRIVATE ARMIES, NOT CITIZEN MILITIAS. I'm not interested in fighting for the sake of someone else's ego. I'm not interested in risking my butt helping someone else gain power, or so I can lord it over other people. I suspect virtually everyone in the American militias feels the same.
The right of the common folk to arm and defend themselves is enshrined in the 2nd amendment and was what gave birth to the United States in the first place. Dees' claim is dishonest because he is attempting to harass, intimidate and otherwise destroy the constitutional citizen militias by applying laws designed to PROTECT, not support the destruction, of our constitutional republic.
Dees is no stranger to the citizen militias:
Head of the
once-righteous Southern Poverty Law Center. Now serves as point man for
Establishment efforts to discredit its most effective critics, the
patriot/militia/constitutionalist movement. Tries to lump hate groups with
militias and call them both militias, while conveniently ignoring evidence of
racism in law enforcement agencies. Alabama Constitutional
Militia
Q: Aren't the militias made up of racists and Neo-Nazis and other dangerous types?
A: That is a lie propagated by the leftist media and other socialists who oppose the militias precisely because they are an obstacle to total destruction of the Republic and enslavement of the people. Notice the complete lack of evidence normally accompanying those allegations.
Dees and others have made the patently false claim that militias are "dangerous" and/or racist in nature. Nothing could be further from the truth. You can find racists in the U.S. military and government easily enough, but they are characteristically told to "get lost" by local militia units. This is ironic since militia involvement is typically held to be open to all, racists (and fascists) being the exceptions. There may be some racists forming their own "militia" units out there, but that doesn't make the citizen militias racist any more than it makes all of America racist because they are American!
For example, Dees is head of the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama. Surely he knows the militia in his own state as well as anywhere else? Surely in a southern state like Alabama, the "militia" would be composed of a bunch of hick white trash Ku Klux Klansmen, right?
Guess again. It was the Alabama militia that was responsible for infiltrating and exposing the racist Good Ol' Boys Roundup. This was a meeting of white local, state and federal law enforcement agents sponsored by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, that wonderful cross between the Keystone Cops and the Gestapo (See for many examples, the article in Soldier of Fortune, Jan. 1997). Among other things, signs warning "niggers" to stay away were posted.
Look at the facts. The defendants in the Oklahoma City bombing were NOT welcomed by the Michigan Militia, despite attempts by the media to show some sort of link. The militia didn't want anything to do with them. If you are a bartender and a Nazi enters your bar, does that make you a fascist? If you kick the guy out? According to the prejudice/"logic" of the media, the answer must be yes. Likewise, the Arizona group, Viper Team was kicked out of the Arizona militia (See Part 10 of linked material). To the extent they engaged in criminal activities, it may have been at the instigation of two government informers within the group.
Other incidents follow this pattern: isolated loners or disaffected groups are being tied to the "militias" in an attempt to brainwash the population; even in most of these cases there is little or no evidence of anything illegal (such as the "plot" in W. Virginia to destroy an FBI facility.) If you love your freedom, you are in a militia unit, or organizing one, or looking for one to join. Don't trust the socialist wannabe slave lords.
Finally, it's worth pointing out that I reject racism as an inherent part of evolutionism (see "real me" on my "About Me" page, and the Racism section in Social Issues), and believe that interracial marriages probably produce the most genetically healthy children. If I co-found a militia unit, the other guys I have in mind who've expressed an interest are black conservative Christians! So anyone who tries accusing me of racism because of their blind prejudice is in trouble.
Q: If you don't believe there is a conspiracy to conquer the world, why are you sufficiently concerned to be a militia activist?
A: I didn't say that I don't believe in such a conspiracy, only that I see no sufficient evidence for such a conspiracy. There is no point in me speculating about such things or making wild guesses. However, one hardly needs to believe in a secret conspiracy to recognize the rather obvious fact that our freedoms are being threatened, that our constitutional republic is being undermined by judicial imperialism, etc. Documentation on many of these attacks can be found at the various militia websites and elsewhere. It is for these obvious and straightforward reasons that I believe armed resistance has become necessary, not because of any abstruse conspiracy theory. See my Government is the Rebel letter for more on this issue.
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