https://www.hsdl.org/hslog/

This is the sort of thing they put there. Thought you might want to know.

Southern Poverty Law Center Warns of Growing Domestic Terrorism Threat, Urges Government to Take Action

Submitted by smcortez on Tue, 03/05/2013 - 13:26



The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has written a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano warning of the increasing threat of domestic terrorism, specifically from radical right-wing extremist groups. The letter begins, "On October 25, 1994, six months before the Oklahoma City bombing, we wrote Attorney General Janet Rento about the growing threat of domestic terrorism. Today, we write to express similar concerns."


According to the SPLC, "the number of conspiracy-minded antigovernment 'Patriot' groups on the American radical right reached an all-time high in 2012, the fourth consecutive year of powerful growth by a movement that is becoming increasingly militant". There were over 1,300 Patriot groups in 2012, an increase of more than 800% since 2008. The resurgence of this movement, "as well as the broader radical right, has been fueled by the election of America's first black president, the troubled economy, and non-white immigration."


Due to the growing threat and possible dangers, the SPLC is urging the government "to establish an interagency task force to assess the adequacy of the resources devoted to responding to the growing threat of non-Islamic domestic terrorism."


As stated by SPLC President J. Richard Cohen in the letter, "[t]he resources devoted to countering domestic hate and radical antigovernment groups and those they may inspire do not appear commensurate with the threat. [....] [W]e believe it is time to take a fresh look at the issue."


The letter to Attorney General Holder and Secretary Napolitano accompanies a new report released by the SPLC on the state of hate and extremism in the United States. The report can be found in the Spring 2013 issue of the Center's 'Intelligence Report' journal. In addition, the Center has created an interactive Hate Map where individuals can view active hate groups in the country, organized by state.






And this:

20 Years Later: The Waco Siege

Submitted by jmlillie on Thu, 02/28/2013 - 16:36



Today marks the 20th anniversary of the beginning of the Waco siege, which lasted 50 days and ended with the deaths of 76 men, women, and children on April 19, 1993. The siege began when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) attempted to serve a search warrant at the Mount Carmel Center ranch, owned and operated by the Branch Davidians religious group. A gun battle ensued at the Carmel Center, located 14 kilometers from Waco in Elk, Texas.


The ATF attempted to serve a warrant to David Koresh, the Branch Davidian leader, when it suspected that the Branch Davidians were violating federal firearms laws with the possible possession and sales of semiautomatic or automatic weapons. They arrived at the ranch with nearly 100 agents and an 80-vehicle convoy. Media involvement and information leaks meant that the Branch Davidians were not taken by surprise when the ATF arrived to serve its warrant. It is unknown which party fired the first shots - both claim the other - but the February 28th raid led to the deaths of four ATF agents.


The 50-day siege that followed fueled the Branch Davidian's religious beliefs that Judgment Day was at hand. Increasingly aggressive techniques were used to attempt to force the Branch Davidians to surrender, including sleep deprivation (using all-night broadcasts of chanting and the screams of animals being slaughtered), destruction of water tanks, the removal of phone lines and electricity, and other methods.

These tactics created a progressively more desperate David Koresh, who as the siege wore on claimed that he was the Second Coming of Christ.