Pretty much a hit piece by the Washington Post (what else could be expected from them?) but still an interesting read for both what Soper has to say and how the Post tries to cast it as "wacko". I wonder if there are any similar groups in Hawaii activism? (PM me if you're in the Puna area...
). I'd be kinda surprised given what appears to be near total apathy in the Second Amendment rights activism field, but it'd only take a few people...
Kalley Soper, 4, watches sister Courtney, 16, shoot under the supervision of their father, B.J. Soper, founder of the Central Oregon Constitutional Guard.
Excerpt:
Those in the movement call themselves patriots, demanding that the federal government adhere to the Constitution and stop what they see as systematic abuse of land rights, gun rights, freedom of speech and other liberties.
Law enforcement officials call them dangerous, delusional and sometimes violent, and say that their numbers are growing amid a wave of anger at the government that has been gaining strength since 2008, a surge that coincided with the election of the first black U.S. president and a crippling economic recession.
Soper started his group, which consists of about 30 men, women and children from a handful of families, two years ago as a “defensive unit” against “all enemies foreign and domestic.” Mainly, he’s talking about the federal government, which he thinks is capable of unprovoked aggression against its own people.
The group’s members are drywallers and flooring contractors, nurses and painters and high school students, who stockpile supplies, practice survival skills and “basic infantry” tactics, learn how to treat combat injuries, study the Constitution and train with their concealed handguns and combat-style rifles.
“It doesn’t say in our Constitution that you can’t stand up and defend yourself,” Soper said. “We’ve let the government step over the line and rule us, and that was never the intent of this country.”
* * * * *
The group members are conservatives, do not like former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and generally support Donald Trump. Soper said he would prefer just about anyone over Clinton but would not cast a vote for president this year. He said he thinks casting his vote is “a waste of time” because Oregon’s politics are dominated by Democrats. [Sound like any place we know?]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/national/2016/05/21/armed-with-guns-and-constitutions-the-patriot-movement-sees-america-under-threat/Of course, they have to include the made-up meaningless term "assault rifles" in the "scary" images...
Assault rifles used in a training session by members of the Central Oregon Constitutional Guard.