Their last stand?
by digby
Really? They have to be able to take their noisy ATVs anywhere they want or they aren’t free?
An illegal all-terrain vehicle (ATV) ride planned this weekend through Recapture Canyon in Utah is the latest flashpoint between anti-government activists and federal land managers. The illegal ride is already drawing criticism from the Navajo Nation, putting American Indian burial sites and cultural resources at risk, and has even forced the cancellation of a traditional Navajo Warrior welcome home ceremony for veterans.
Yet San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman (R-UT) and his supporters appear determined to defy federal law by riding their ATVs through Recapture Canyon, an area of southeast Utah known as a “mini-Mesa Verde” because it contains one of the highest densities of archaeological sites in the country.
Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher who has refused to pay more than $1 million in grazing fees he owes U.S. taxpayers, has reportedly urged his supporters -– who include armed militia members –- to join Lyman in Utah this weekend.
“We need to help the people of Blanding re-establish who is in control of the land,” said Bundy and his wife, Carol, in an email that was reported by E News. “This is your next stand. Will you be there to help them like you helped us?”
So only people who carry guns and ride around on noisy vehicles get to “control the land.” Good to know. The rest of us just have to put up with it. Because freedom.
*I think people should be able to ride ATVs and own guns. If Cliven Bundy wants to use his ranch as an ATV track and target range, have at it. But they don’t have a right to do whatever they want wherever they want to do it. The rest of us have rights too.
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