So Now We Are Extremists

On 7 April 2009, the so-called Department of Homeland Security, the entity set to become our very own KGB, issued Assessment IA-0257-09, entitled Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment.  The assessment was never meant for public consumption but was leaked and posted on the internet by the Drudge Report.  I almost dismissed the document as more of the same old government fluff, but as I read it, the hair on the back of my neck began to stand on end and I became imbued with a creeping feeling of dread the likes of which I had not experienced since serving with the Army in Iraq.  Within the pages of this assessment lie myriad examples of just how out-of-touch with mainstream America the federal government has become.

In this blog, I will briefly describe and provide commentary on a few of the most startling sections.

1. On Page 2 in the section titled Key Findings, the government says “rightwing extremists have capitalized on the election of the first African American president and are focusing their efforts to recruit new members…”

First of all, the attempt to play the “race card” is old and tired and frankly ridiculous.  Mainstream America doesn’t care about the president’s race.  What we do care about is the fact that he is a Marxist with extreme socialist and communist ideologies that are in direct contradiction to the U.S. Constitution. We love the president’s race.  We just don’t like HIM.

2. Also on Page 2 in the section titled Key Findings, the government says, “the possible passage of new restrictions on firearms and the return of MILITARY VETERANS facing significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of TERRORIST groups or lone wolf EXTREMISTS capable of carrying out VIOLENT ATTACKS.”

Excuse me, but I am a returning military veteran.  You have just told me that I am damaged goods and that I should be perceived as a threat to national security.  You are telling communities that I am dangerous and some sort of  raging lunatic.  You are also saying I am a victim.  I am not a victim.  I am not a threat.  I am a man who served my country proudly and honorably, with the integrity expected of me.  Now you are inciting the nation to treat me with suspicion and fear.  To whomever is responsible for this OFFICIAL attack on my person and my service, you may promptly kiss my ass.

3. According to the same paragraph, “Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a
single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.”

The rejection of federal authority authority in favor of state or local is EXTREMIST now?  This nation was founded upon the principles of states’ rights.  YOU are the extremist in this situation as you are twisting and ignoring the U.S. Constitution.  Also, we have the right to oppose abortion without being labeled as extremists.  National Right to Life is a single-issue group.  Are they now extremists?  No, they are not.

4. On page 4 in the section title “Economic Hardship and Extremism” the government says, “end times prophecies could motivate extremist individuals and groups to stockpile food, ammunition, and weapons. These teachings also have been linked with the radicalization of domestic extremist individuals and groups in the past, such as violent Christian Identity organizations and extremist members of the militia movement.

So if I believe in the book of Revelations in the Bible, I am an extremist? If I’ve studied the book of Daniel in the Bible I am an extremist?  If I am a Christian, Jew or Muslim, I am an extremist?  The government is flirting with a very common concept to which most Communist governments have clung: the abolishing of religion and the adoption of government-enforced atheism.

This report attacks the very beliefs of mainstream American by labeling conservative issues as “extremist.” What could have prompted such an outrageous display of fear on the part of the federal government?  And what does the government mean on page 8?  It says, “DHS/I&A will be working with its state and local partners over the next several months to ascertain with greater regional specificity the rise in rightwing extremist activity in the United States, with a particular emphasis on the political, economic, and social factors that drive rightwing extremist radicalization.”

Is the government going to direct law enforcement to begin pulling over drivers with pro-life bumper stickers?  Is the government going to conduct surveillance on war veterans returning from Iraq?  Is the government reading this blog right now and tracking down its source?  Is the government going to “investigate” churches that preach end-time prophecy?

To the low-level analysts who churned out this piece of garbage and their bureaucratic overlords at the so-called Department of Homeland Security:  we know this is an attempt to label mainstream Americans as extremists; to label liberty-loving Americans as terrorists; to label war vets as damaged; to label people of faith as threats to the government.  We also know that it will not be your last attempt.  But know that we are watching you and we will expose your subversive agenda every chance we get.  And in the next congressional elections, we are going to comprehensively replace your sponsors and protectors who are so arrogantly and flagrantly abusing the Constitution.  We DO overthrow the government….every time we go to the polls and vote against those like you, who are the real threat to the security and safety of These United States of America. May God have mercy on this nation.