Fox News hit piece on sovereign citizen movement, cites SPLC

[Origanalist]

Sovereign citizen movement rejects gov't with tactics ranging from mischief to violence

Joseph, a self-styled sovereign citizen, thinks mankind has been “hoodwinked” into bowing to governmental authority, making him one of a growing number of Americans who register their alienation from local, state and federal government with nuisance lawsuits, refusal to pay taxes and even violence in extreme cases.

“All are born into the sovereign domain of the prime creator,” Joseph, who declined to give his full name or location, told FoxNews.com in an email. “No code can ever abridge that fact, no amount of manmade thought or words on paper can ever abridge that. Today man has lost sight of himself so bad that he will blindly follow, believe or succumb to anything considered an authority outside or seemingly above himself.”

Dubbed sovereign citizens by law enforcement, the movement numbers anywhere from 80,000 to 300,000 nationwide, according to experts contacted by FoxNews.com. While many live on society's fringe and pose no immediate threat, police are being trained to be wary of sovereign citizens, knowing that they may not respect cops' authority and could be prone to violence.

“We’re five years into a major resurgence of the sovereign citizens movement and even with that, most Americans have no idea that the sovereign citizens movement exists,” said Mark Pitcavage, director of investigative research at the Anti-Defamation League. “It has this uncanny ability to fly under the radar screen.”

"This kind of ideology spreads like wildfire."
- Mark Potok, Southern Poverty Law Center

The anti-government view of sovereign citizens made headlines last month when a Las Vegas couple was accused of plotting to abduct police officers at random and interrogate them in "trials" that would be videotaped and released to the public. David Brutsche, 42, and his accomplice, 68-year-old paralegal Devon Newman, never carried out their alleged plan, but the case was enough to send a chill through the law enforcement community.

Sovereign citizens have no leader, no headquarters and no secret handshake. The term is most often bestowed on them by academics, activists and law enforcement authorities, and not one embraced by so-called members.

"Sovereign citizens don’t call themselves that,” JJ MacNab, who is currently writing a book on the movement, recently blogged. "In fact, if you ask a person if she is a member of the movement, she is likely to respond that the ‘sovereign citizen’ label is an oxymoron, and that she is an individual seeking the truth."

Experts trace the movement to the 1980s, when government protesters exploited the farm crisis by selling fraudulent debt relief programs. That morphed into today's subculture, powered by so-called “paper terrorists” who clog court systems with bogus filings, refuse to pay income taxes and, on occasion, commit violent acts against law enforcement officers.

In extreme cases, sovereign citizens forgo financial schemes and become violent when confronted by cops, most recently in 2010 when Jerry and Joseph Kane, a father-and-son sovereign citizen team, fatally shot two police officers in Arkansas during a routine traffic stop. In the past decade, seven killings of law enforcement officers have been blamed on sovereign citizens.

“It becomes their personal Alamo, their stand against the illegitimate government,” said Pitcavage, who said no signs exist that the number of sovereign citizens in the United States will decrease.


continued at.....foxnews.com/us/2014/01/05/sovereign-citizen-movement-rejects-govt-with-tactics-ranging-from-mischief-to/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+foxnews%2Fnational+%28Interna l+-+US+Latest+-+Text%29[/url]

[RJB]

They quoted both the ADL and SPCL. I'm genuinely curious about the interest that the ADL and SPCL gives to the sovereign citizen movement. It seems out of their jurisdiction. You don't have to be a certain race, religious type to hold such beliefs.

[thoughtomator]

They quoted both the ADL and SPCL. I'm genuinely curious about the interest that the ADL and SPCL gives to the sovereign citizen movement. It seems out of their jurisdiction. You don't have to be a certain race, religious type to hold such beliefs.

Their interest is simple. They want no one to be out of the reach of imposed enforcement of politically correct opinions.

[Brian4Liberty]

They quoted both the ADL and SPCL. I'm genuinely curious about the interest that the ADL and SPCL gives to the sovereign citizen movement. It seems out of their jurisdiction. You don't have to be a certain race, religious type to hold such beliefs.

Anyone who opposes socialism or war for Israel is on their radar.

[69360]

They quoted both the ADL and SPCL. I'm genuinely curious about the interest that the ADL and SPCL gives to the sovereign citizen movement. It seems out of their jurisdiction. You don't have to be a certain race, religious type to hold such beliefs.

You've missed the fact that SPLC and ADL are both hate organizations.

[Brian4Liberty]

Their interest is simple. They want no one to be out of the reach of imposed enforcement of politically correct opinions.

That too, especially at the surface level.

[tod evans]

ADL and SPLC are just propaganda arms of government without the constraints (ha ha!) that other agencies have to operate under...

[Anti Federalist]

police are being trained to be wary of sovereign citizens, knowing that they may not respect cops' authority and could be prone to violence.


but the case was enough to send a chill through the law enforcement community.


In the past decade, seven killings of law enforcement officers have been blamed on sovereign citizens.


no signs exist that the number of sovereign citizens in the United States will decrease.

It has never been safer to be a cop.

Cop killings are at their lowest level, per capita, since the 19th century.

But, gotta keep pounding that "law and order" meme...

FFS.

[phill4paul]

may not


could be


In extreme cases

It's a plague. Run for your lives.

[erowe1]

“We’re five years into a major resurgence of the sovereign citizens movement and even with that, most Americans have no idea that the sovereign citizens movement exists,” said Mark Pitcavage, director of investigative research at the Anti-Defamation League. “It has this uncanny ability to fly under the radar screen.”


So this major resurgence, that is recognizable from the outside by authorities, started in 2008.

There is no doubt in my mind that Ron Paul's presidential run must have been a major contributing factor to that, if not the main one.

[Anti Federalist]

Something needs banning.

[tod evans]

Something needs banning.

Intelligent discourse?

[Keith and stuff]

These are the best people ever. I wish there were more. It's great to watch them in court. It's like those kids say the darndest things videos.

[willwash]

The writing has been on the wall for a while now that the new "terrorist" threat is the disaffected American citizen and not al Qaeda. Alex jones has been covering this for a while...the media has to get Americans terrified of each other first so the state can swoop in to save the day.

Expect to see a lot more fear mongering about the young white male American domestic "terrorist" in 2014.

[tod evans]

Expect to see a lot more fear mongering about the young white male American domestic "terrorist" in 2014.

It's the "old" ones that government needs to worry about...

Old age and treachery...yadda-yadda...

[pcosmar]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGBzTrUP2KE

[JK/SEA]

Intelligent discourse?

no...intelligence.

[Paulbot99]

The SPLC is more of a threat than the KKK. Soon, they will have the power to have individual people arrested.

[pcosmar]

The SPLC is more of a threat than the KKK. Soon, they will have the power to have individual people arrested.

They already do. They are part of DHS, and they train Police.
They created the MIAC Report (and others in other states).

They pick targets and the FBI or others do the grunt work.

[Brian4Liberty]

So this major resurgence, that is recognizable from the outside by authorities, started in 2008.

There is no doubt in my mind that Ron Paul's presidential run must have been a major contributing factor to that, if not the main one.

It could also coincide to the rise of the "Tea Party" movement.

What happened is that people were being elected to Congress that did not follow their big government, establishment, socialist, enforced political correctness agenda, and they decided to fight back by attempting to divide and marginalize.

[devil21]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06VzxxDTnB8

Very good resource for understanding what the sovereign movement is about:
http://truthsetsusfree.com/



ADL and SPLC are just propaganda arms of government without the constraints (ha ha!) that other agencies have to operate under...

I think they're specifically banker propaganda puppets that the gov't requires to maintain the status quo. Bankers > Gov't

[Christian Liberty]

You've missed the fact that SPLC and ADL are both hate organizations.

Yep. I believe I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the SPLC (I honestly know nothing about the ADL, but I have my suspicions) is hateful enough that by comparison, Fred Phelps seems like a friendly guy. At least the WBC is actually known as the hate group that it is. the SPLC is actually seen as "mainstream" and it makes me want to throw up.

So this major resurgence, that is recognizable from the outside by authorities, started in 2008.

There is no doubt in my mind that Ron Paul's presidential run must have been a major contributing factor to that, if not the main one.

thumbs up to Ron Paul.... screw Faux News and the SPLC.


The SPLC is more of a threat than the KKK. Soon, they will have the power to have individual people arrested.

Add the KKK to my "Friendly compared to the SPLC" groups. Frankly, I don't really care about the hate that everybody (almost) knows is hate. Its when its somewhat accepted that it really ticks me off.

Regarding the OP: I saw the thing where that cop was shot at a traffic stop, and while I think that's excessive on the part of those particular sovereign citizens, I frankly have a tough time having much sympathy for the cops. I'm sure I'd feel different if it was a cop I knew personally, but frankly, by the regime's very own doctrine of preemption (Attacking someone because they might attack you) killing a cop... anywhere... is probably justified. I think the odds of a cop shooting at a traffic stop (even ignoring lesser forms of violence like "drug arrests" or whatever) are probably higher than the odds that Saddam would ever have attacked the US. Of course, I reject the regime's logic on this point, but... live by the sword, die by the sword...

I wonder how many of these same SPLC nuts accepted the doctrine of preemption in Iraq, or accept it in Iran. Or if not, at the very least, believe it was an excuse to attack Hitler in WWII.

What's even worse is that most "conservatives" would probably take this article as being "fair and balanced."

[tod evans]

I think they're specifically banker propaganda puppets that the gov't requires to maintain the status quo. Bankers > Gov't

They're so inbred anymore I can't distinguish one from another...

[Origanalist]

They already do. They are part of DHS, and they train Police.
They created the MIAC Report (and others in other states).

They pick targets and the FBI or others do the grunt work.

That ^^^^^

[devil21]

They're so inbred anymore I can't distinguish one from another...

I'll refrain from pointing out the one trait that the SPLC and ADL folks, and banker elites all have in common.

[HOLLYWOOD]

I'll refrain from pointing out the one trait that the SPLC and ADL folks, and banker elites all have in common.

LOL! The Common Denominator... Sleeper Cells of Cultural Marxism

This George Carlin vid hits the nail on the head...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdH38k0iUgI

[devil21]

LOL@Fox News propaganda.


Experts trace the movement to the 1980s, when government protesters exploited the farm crisis by selling fraudulent debt relief programs.

No person ever felt they were a person with natural rights prior to 1980! No one was alive before then!

I don't consider myself a sovereign but I have read up on it and it's interesting stuff. Pretty much the real-world version of breaking the matrix. Yall know that "paper terrorism" is a real threat to humanity!

[Suzanimal]

While many live on society's fringe and pose no immediate threat, police are being trained to be wary of sovereign citizens, knowing that they may not respect cops' authority and could be prone to violence.

That bit should be replaced with "will defend themselves" and that's what's really sending "a chill through the law enforcement community".




“We’re five years into a major resurgence of the sovereign citizens movement and even with that, most Americans have no idea that the sovereign citizens movement exists,” said Mark Pitcavage, director of investigative research at the Anti-Defamation League. “It has this uncanny ability to fly under the radar screen.”

Most of them strike me as people that just want to left alone.


Sovereign citizens have no leader, no headquarters and no secret handshake.

Now this just sounds like something my 13 yo son would write.:rolleyes:


In the past decade, seven killings of law enforcement officers have been blamed on sovereign citizens.

Wow, 7 dead cops in 10 years, this has reached epidemic proportions.

[Origanalist]

Wow, 7 dead cops in 10 years, this has reached epidemic proportions.


It's a plague. Run for your lives.

Run for the hills! Oh, wait a minute......

[devil21]

The comments on the article are mind-numbing. Nothing but morons and obvious paid posters. Barely a cogent argument (pro or con) to be found.

[Origanalist]

The comments on the article are mind-numbing. Nothing but morons and obvious paid posters. Barely a cogent argument (pro or con) to be found.

And you were expecting.......?

[devil21]

And you were expecting.......?

Yeah I should have known but jeez. Even the posters defending sovereignty, which I think would be fairly intelligent people to grasp such a concept in the first place, sound like morons incapable of forming even the basis for a cogent argument.

[NewRightLibertarian]

So this major resurgence, that is recognizable from the outside by authorities, started in 2008.

There is no doubt in my mind that Ron Paul's presidential run must have been a major contributing factor to that, if not the main one.

It's a smear piece to link us with wackos who nobody's heard of but are supposedly the big movement on the rise according to the SPLC.