The side where they weren't left out but chose to not attend the meetings where they would have had the opportunity to air their grievances. Reports of vandalism and theft of private property and gunfire from the protesters. The grenade that blew the girl's arm off turning out to be an device being built by the protesters. About how it isn't going through any of their land, and won't be risking contamination of watersheds, etc..
Of course I have no idea which side is correct, or if there are portions of both sides that are correct, I have no way of knowing that. I do know there are certainly profit motivations by the corporation building the pipeline, but there are also leftist motivations to oppose the oil industry at every turn, and virtue signalling... ahhh virtue signalling.
Some of that may be propaganda and lies, how much ?:shrug:?
Here is what NV Assemblywoman Shelly Shelton has posted and her thoughts:
Linda Stapula Kreft Bullard posted the results of her internet research on the DAPL protests. I'd like to address those results here one by one so that Linda does not think my remarks are directed at her. They are directed at every patriot.
Linda Stapula Kreft Bullard - I'd like to answer your honestly obtained assessment two ways. First addressing the conclusions, then comparing them to the honestly obtained assessment of Cliven Bundy by his detractors.
Hopefully everyone will see the hypocrisy that Satan puts within our hearts to divide us and will throw off those chains and work towards unity.
We all learn by reading the opinions and comments of others. If there was anything I've learned in politics, it is to throw aside opinions and dig into facts first, then try to meet the parties involved and read their faces, hear their voices, and investigate their motives and hearts.
What we would hear in committee meetings all day was unfailingly one sided pleas that were usually pre-written by lobbyists who's job was to sway our opinion. The same thing happens on the internet. We have to separate the wheat from the chaff.
So here we go:
You said:
1) "the land where the pipeline is going is not owned by the NA and there are no burial grounds where the pipeline is going; their claims are completely false"
Bunkerville opponents said this:
"The land where Cliven Bundy is grazing is not owned by Cliven Bundy. He has no right to the land because he didn't pay his fees. His claims are completely false.
Both of these statements can easily be proven as true through internet blogs and opinion pieces depending on your beliefs about land and promises by the government. If you believe the government has a duty to keep its promises Both of these statements are false.
The 1934 Taylor Grazing act set up grazing management. It was intended to help stop the range wars and mediate between ranchers and "manage" the use of the land BETWEEN them, not eliminate grazing altogether.
The Grazing act was supported by the ranchers because it was a promise to MANAGE a renewable resource. It has turned into a means to mis-manage the resource and has resulted in the removal of all grazing in Clark County and elsewhere.
The government stopped managing and Cliven stopped paying them because of it. Cliven is more than happy to pay fees when the government does its job.
If you believe the government has a duty to keep their promises you will support Cliven Bundy.
The Sioux:
The 1851 Laramie Treaty was a promise to leave the Sioux alone within the boundaries of a territory that included much of western North and South Dakota. That territory was laid out in the treaty.
When gold was discovered (illegally by the government trespassing on that land) in the Black Hills, the government broke that treaty and even sent in troops to kill innocent Sioux who stood in their way.
They wanted that gold. (Just like they want the minerals under Cliven's and the Hammond's ranches.)
They did the same thing they did to Cliven. They made the Sioux boundaries smaller and smaller effectively "putting them out of business" on any productive land, just like they made Cliven's allotments smaller and smaller reducing his allotment of over 800 cattle down to less than 200, then to none.
The Sioux have an even better case than Cliven. They have at least won in court.
In 1980 the court decided the Government was wrong in taking that land. They awarded the Sioux a cash award to supposedly "make up for it". The Sioux to this day have REFUSED to take that payment with the argument that they don't want money, they just want their land back.
If you believe in property rights (the Sioux's land and Cliven's forage), you must support BOTH or face being double minded and hypocritical.
Regarding the burial grounds.
Today a line of Law Enforcement stands along the top of Turtle hill. They are there right now. Yesterday they put up a line of razor wire to keep the Natives off the hill.
It is undisputed that there is likely at least a few children still buried on that hill. Many adult bodies have already been relocated from that hill in the past. Those are the facts. The natives consider that hill sacred and go there to pray.
That is what they were doing in the video where they were all in the river being sprayed down by pepper spray. It was in that very water that my nephew experienced pepper spray for the first time.
They have always had access to that hill, even when it was owned by a private owner. Now the USFWS has bought that hill in the past few weeks from the private owner and the Gestapo stands guarding it like Fort Knox.
Are we going to believe a government that stands on a hill considered sacred and guards it with razor wire when they tell us they have not disturbed any burial sites?
I guess it will only finally hit home when the government padlocks your church and takes pastors captive like they have already done down south for violating the regulations against ministers addressing political topics.
When it does hit home it will likely be too late.
We wonder why do do not have unity, then refuse to unite ourselves.
Your next point:
"2) the pipeline is not as unsafe as the NA are trying to claim and in fact is safer than rail and other transport methods"
Opponents to Cliven Bundy said:
"Cliven's cattle is more detrimental to the environment than leaving the land unproductive is."
Cliven claims grazing is good for the environment, makes Desert Tortoises thrive, and reduces wildfires.
His opponents say their method is "safer" for the environment because cattle trample Desert Tortoises and eat all their food.
If you believe in the value of historical observation you will realize that both views are right and wrong. We tend to choose facts that agree with our opinion.
If Cliven is not grazing the Tortoises might have a field day for a while with no competition. The grasses may thrive for a while with no humans to walk on it. But when those wildfires start no wildlife is safe.
Pipeline transport is relatively safe. But when a huge spill occurs simple math takes over. A semi truck running off the road with 200 barrels of oil is going to result in less damage than a pipeline leak of 200,000 barrels.
Both views are right in some ways and wrong in some ways. It all depends on what your views are.
If you believe that the role of government is to stay out of our business and let business and people thrive you will support the right of Cliven to graze and the right of business to build a pipeline.
You will also support the right of the Sioux to keep the pipeline off of their property and for the right of DAPL to find another route to build the pipeline. You will also support the right of Cliven to use the forage that belongs to him and keep the BLM away from his cattle.
3) the NA refused or did not attend over 140 meetings where they could have brought up their concerns prior to the pipeline being approved
The Pipeline representative put forth this narrative in an interview with the NYT. It was claimed they tried to set up numerous meetings for input during the month of September 2014 and all were rejected.
He claimed it the Sioux had just let them know they were opposed earlier things may have been different. He called it "regrettable".
The Leader of the Sioux responded yesterday by posting publicly the minutes and a recording of an hour long meeting in September (The very time it was claimed they refused to meet) where they vigorously opposed the pipeline going through the disputed land.
The BLM claimed the Cliven "refused" to pay his fees and that he owed over a million dollars of those "fees". Simple math proves that, at the set AUM rate even if Cliven had paid his fees he could not possibly owe more than $350k for that time period.
If you believe that people will lie to get sympathy for their cause you must give the Sioux the benefit of the doubt as they have now proven the DAPL leadership to have lied.
And you will give Cliven the benefit of the doubt when he says he TRIED to pay his fees to the county and it was rejected.
When faced with making a decision it is my propensity to look with suspicion on the party that has been proven to lie. You will have to choose who you believe.
If you believe people who have already lied to your face early on, you will support the BLM and DAPL.
If you believe liars should be punished for putting false narratives out to the press just to get sympathy you will punish them by opposing the BLM and DAPL.
4) the NA refused offers of support by patriot groups
If you believe in property rights you must support their decision.
They are not saying you cannot exercise your second amendment rights. They are saying that IF you want to join them in this particular protest, they do not want participants who will bring firearms that will interfere with their chosen method of protest.
They are assuming that most patriots will come armed. And I'm sure everyone will agree that they are right in that assumption.
This is no different than Ammon banning the open carrying of long rifles at Malheur. It was his protest, his choice.
5) the NA protests are funded and orchestrated by change.org and other bad guy affiliations...
Perhaps my nephew should make some phone calls and get his check.
The fact is most there have little to nothing. They hitch rides back home when they rotate because many came without a dime or without enough gas money to get home.
We just sent money to him to ensure he had enough money to get home. Am I a part of the "bad guy affiliations" now?
There is a lot more to the story about those who are up there and the splits among them that I will report on later.
I would like to remind you that hundreds of stories have been written stating the Koch brothers funded and orchestrated Bunkerville, Malheur and even COWS (Coalition of Western States)
Any of you who are members, or have participated in these protests know for a fact there is no truth to these claims in spite of the thousands of "internet blogs" claiming to prove it.
After considering the source of the similar claims regarding the DAPL protest, and getting first hand reports on the conditions there, I believe the claims of where they are getting support are just as false as the Koch brothers claims.
Regardless of where support comes from this is America and we have the right to support any cause we wish. I just believe the charges are completely false.
In Bunkerville and Malheur many businesses with the same interests donated everything from food, to money, to travel expenses. How is that any different from businesses and individuals pledging support to the DAPL protesters?
In the end it comes down to one thing. If you are a patriot you believe in the right of protest and civil disobedience. On these rights lie the BACKBONE of our history.
We have every right to disagree with causes. But no patriot should be able to sleep nights as long as there is one FREE SPEECH ZONE within our borders.
It takes a lot of soul searching to leave pre-conceived ideas and prejudices behind and stand together.
But that is what we are going to have to do if we ever want to break the chains of oppression that our Government tries to bind us with daily.
https://www.facebook.com/nvleg/posts/702500103232467:0
https://www.reddit.com/r/NoDAPL/comments/5exdwu/the_standing_rock_sioux_have_released_an_audio/
Some good discussion in the comments on her page too.
