Texas Deputies Shooter Linked To Republic Of Texas Militia; Documents Show History Of Tension

A Texas man with alleged links to an anti-government militia was arrested Saturday after shooting two sheriff's deputies and provoking a 22-hour standoff was arrested.

According to the Texas Department of Public Safety (via the Associated Press), Victor White is connected to the Republic of Texas organization, which the AP describes as a group that "asserts Texas is an independent nation whose government was reactivated in 2005 after 163 years of dormancy." DPS also described the group as a white supremacist organization.

The Republic of Texas pre-dates 2005, however. The group appears to have originated during the term of then-Gov. George W. Bush. The following documents from the Texas state archives shed some light on the group's origins. I have redacted phone numbers which were listed on the documents, but I will make the originals available to major news outlets on request.

June 1995 letter to country sheriffs

This letter claims to be from a group called "Texas Volunteers" which appears to be a precursor to the Republic of Texas. The letter shows the movement's rocky relationship with law enforcement long predates the violence of this week.

The letter warns sheriffs that their duty is to protect the people, not just from criminals but from the federal government (all typos are continued from the original):

The "FED's" have invaded the Counties, and perpertrated acts against the people without taking the steps to make their actions lawful. Since the people elected you to protect them, it is YOUR reponsibility to protect them in all case., even against the illegal acts of the I.R.S. A thief with the I.R.S. or the A.T.F.,or any other FED agency is no less a thief than a drug addict with a smoking gun. [...]

It is our program to support you as you protect the Constitution of the
Republic of Texas against all enemies, foreign and domestic, as per your
oath of office, filed as required by law.

Obviously, supporting the Constitution is protecting the people.

As to those Sheriffs who do not support the Law of the Constitution or
their oaths of office, we will proceed to have them removed from office,
and have them replaced by a Sheriff who will enforce the Constitution,
and act from the power therof.

January 1996 open letter to militia groups

This letter, addressed to known Texas militia and white supremacy groups, appears to announce the formation of the Republic of Texas movement and invites the "commanders and executive officers" of Texas militias to attend a dinner on January 13, 1996 in Austin, Texas.

"We apologize for the short notice," wrote Archie H. Lowe, who described himself as "Secretary of Defense" for the Republic of Texas, "but events have been moving very rapidly and the press of business of the provisional government has been great."

Labels: Militia-Movement, Republic-Of-Texas, Victor-White, white-supremacists

Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink

 

State Department Cables On Muwafaq Foundation

In light of the court decision this week excusing Yasin Al-Qadi from a terrorism financing case filed by victims of the September 11 attacks, here are a few documents I recently received from the State Department regarding the Muwafaq Foundation, Al-Qadi's charity.

State Department Cable, 10/4/1993, "The Impact of [Government of Sudan] Propaganda"

This cable broadly discusses Sudan's aggressive program of Islamization, and the role of several NGOS including Muwafaq in a fleeting reference.

State Department Cable, 9/21/1994, "Anatomy of an Islamist NGO"

This is a detailed account of the Muwafaq Foundation, except that the State Department has redacted derogatory information about the charity citing a "national security" exemption to the Freedom of Information Act. It's not clear to me what could possibly be so important in a 1994 document that it justifies a total redaction of the section dealing with Muwafaq's questionable activities, but I hope to find out after my appeal. The unredacted portion is derived from a meeting between a State Department political officer in Khartoum and several members of Muwafaq's leadership.

The document notes Muwafaq has projects in Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Lebanon. It also notes that Muwafaq has "representatives" in the United States.

State Department Cable, 10/15/2001, Terrorist Fundraising E.O. -- Yassin Al-Qadi

Shortly after the U.S. Treasury Department designated Yasin Al-Qadi and the Muwafaq Foundation as terrorist financiers in 2001, Al-Qadi requested a meeting with the U.S. consul in Jeddah. This secret memo shows that the meeting was scheduled but does not reflect whether it took place or what was discussed.

State Department Cable, 8/22/2006, Saudi Terrorist Financier Yassin Qadi Claims Victory After Turks Release His Assets

The title of this cable from the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh is fairly descriptive. It describes Al-Qadi's successes in getting his name cleared in Turkey and elsewhere. The cable notes that "Qadi's public claim that the [Saudi government] supports his legal efforts is spurious; the [Saudi government] froze his assets in the Kingdom."

Labels: INTELFILES, Muwafaq-Foundation, State-Department, Yasin-Al-Qadi

Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink

 

Zawahiri's New Video: Why No Mention Of September 11?

Brian Fishman at Foreign Policy had an interesting take on Ayman Al Zawahiri's new video, which was released around the anniversary of September 11 but notably does not mention the date or the attacks.

Fishman suggests, if I am reading this correctly, that Al Qaeda may think that recounting its September 11 triumph has gotten old and that its audience "expects more" than a rehash of old triumphs.

I would expand on that view just a bit. In recent years, Al Qaeda's public image has suffered a lot of ups and downs, and most quantifiable data suggests the downs have been worse than the ups. Al Qaeda did not succeed in rousing the wide Muslim world to rally behind its cause. Instead, it has lost ground. AQ in Iraq was irretrievably tarnished by its own actions, appearing to most observers as a bloodthirsty band of slaughterers who targeted Muslims as readily as Crusaders. AQ in Afghanistan has been driven deep underground, and while franchises like AQIM and AQAP have made headway, they trade on mostly local issues and come off in the public arena as if they are separate operations (reality notwithstanding).

I see two key elements in the Zawahiri speech, which can be read in its lengthy entirety at the Flashpoint Partners site.

The first element is a strong effort to demonize Muslims who do not share Al Qaeda's values. He repeatedly refers to Pakistanis as deviants who have abandoned true Islam, even suggesting that the recent floods were Allah's punishment for said deviation.

His arguments in this message struck me as particularly Islamically wonky, even for Zawahiri, aimed at influential thinkers, clerics and intermediaries in the Muslim world rather than a mass audience of believers.

Most important thinkers who are not with Al Qaeda (including recent defectors from the jihad) have condemned or renounced 9/11, even if they agree with other parts of AQ's platform. For instance, in a recent conversation with a cleric who is a former advocate of military jihad and who is today no fan of the United States and its current wars, he claimed that military jihad has become "corrupted" and that he discourages people from going.

Zawahiri is stubborn, but he's not stupid, and he may have been persuaded that mentioning 9/11 is counterproductive to what he really wants to achieve in his heart of hearts, which is to lead a populist movement.

The second element is recasting the jihad as defensive. This isn't exactly a new tactic; Al Qaeda's argument has always been that its actions were a response to American and Western aggression and occupation of Islamic holy places. Virtually no one in the broader spectrum of jihadist thought sees himself as an aggressor conducting an offensive war.

In this particular message, Zawahiri argues:

The government of Pakistan and its army and security organs have become deeply involved in waging war on the Mujahideen in Afghanistan and Pakistan, whose only crime is that they challenge, resist and perform Jihad against the unbelieving Crusader invader trespassing on the realms of the Muslims and their sanctities in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Emphasis mine. One of Al Qaeda's biggest problems has been that it's tough to convincingly cast the 9/11 attacks as a truly defensive act due to their inherent nature. September 11 was a sneak attack on civilians in a country which was not engaged in combat against Muslims at the time. Mentioning 9/11 undercuts the claim that the mujahideen are being persecuted "only" because they are resisting invasion.

A crucial factor in the decline of Al Qaeda's ideology is the loss of the high ground. At the height of the jihadist movement's popularity and public image, Muslims were stirred to action by singular, ethically clear provocations, first in Afghanistan by the Soviets, then in Bosnia by the Serbs.

Actions have consequences, and even those who agree with Al Qaeda's world view know that Al Qaeda invited the current conflict with its actions. To succeed in the court of popular opinion and re-create the glory days of the jihad, Zawahiri needs to strip away the moral ambiguity created by Al Qaeda's actions and portray himself as the leader of a pure resistance movement. Reminding people of September 11 doesn't really further that goal.

Rewriting the narrative at this late date is, of course, the pinnacle of wishful thinking. But from Zawahiri's perspective, it probably can't hurt to try.

Labels: 9-11, Al-Qaeda, Ayman-Al-Zawahiri, Pakistan

Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink

 

Discovery Channel Hostage Taker James Lee's Manifesto

From CNN:

The man believed to be holding at least one hostage at the Discovery Channel headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, has been identified as James Lee, a law enforcement source tells CNN.

Lee's Web site is down as of this writing, but here's are its former contents.

The Discovery Channel MUST broadcast to the world their commitment to save the planet and to do the following IMMEDIATELY:

1. The Discovery Channel and it's affiliate channels MUST have daily television programs at prime time slots based on Daniel Quinn's "My Ishmael" pages 207-212 where solutions to save the planet would be done in the same way as the Industrial Revolution was done, by people building on each other's inventive ideas. Focus must be given on how people can live WITHOUT giving birth to more filthy human children since those new additions continue pollution and are pollution. A game show format contest would be in order. Perhaps also forums of leading scientists who understand and agree with the Malthus-Darwin science and the problem of human overpopulation. Do both. Do all until something WORKS and the natural world starts improving and human civilization building STOPS and is reversed! MAKE IT INTERESTING SO PEOPLE WATCH AND APPLY SOLUTIONS!!!!

2. All programs on Discovery Health-TLC must stop encouraging the birth of any more parasitic human infants and the false heroics behind those actions. In those programs' places, programs encouraging human sterilization and infertility must be pushed. All former pro-birth programs must now push in the direction of stopping human birth, not encouraging it.

3. All programs promoting War and the technology behind those must cease. There is no sense in advertising weapons of mass-destruction anymore. Instead, talk about ways to disassemble civilization and concentrate the message in finding SOLUTIONS to solving global military mechanized conflict. Again, solutions solutions instead of just repeating the same old wars with newer weapons. Also, keep out the fraudulent peace movements. They are liars and fakes and had no real intention of ending the wars. ALL OF THEM ARE FAKE! On one hand, they claim they want the wars to end, on the other, they are demanding the human population increase. World War II had 2 Billion humans and after that war, the people decided that tripling the population would assure peace. WTF??? STUPIDITY! MORE HUMANS EQUALS MORE WAR!

4. Civilization must be exposed for the filth it is. That, and all its disgusting religious-cultural roots and greed. Broadcast this message until the pollution in the planet is reversed and the human population goes down! This is your obligation. If you think it isn't, then get hell off the planet! Breathe Oil! It is the moral obligation of everyone living otherwise what good are they??

5. Immigration: Programs must be developed to find solutions to stopping ALL immigration pollution and the anchor baby filth that follows that. Find solutions to stopping it. Call for people in the world to develop solutions to stop it completely and permanently. Find solutions FOR these countries so they stop sending their breeding populations to the US and the world to seek jobs and therefore breed more unwanted pollution babies. FIND SOLUTIONS FOR THEM TO STOP THEIR HUMAN GROWTH AND THE EXPORTATION OF THAT DISGUSTING FILTH! (The first world is feeding the population growth of the Third World and those human families are going to where the food is! They must stop procreating new humans looking for nonexistant jobs!)

6. Find solutions for Global Warming, Automotive pollution, International Trade, factory pollution, and the whole blasted human economy. Find ways so that people don't build more housing pollution which destroys the environment to make way for more human filth! Find solutions so that people stop breeding as well as stopping using Oil in order to REVERSE Global warming and the destruction of the planet!

7. Develop shows that mention the Malthusian sciences about how food production leads to the overpopulation of the Human race. Talk about Evolution. Talk about Malthus and Darwin until it sinks into the stupid people's brains until they get it!!

8. Saving the Planet means saving what's left of the non-human Wildlife by decreasing the Human population. That means stopping the human race from breeding any more disgusting human babies! You're the media, you can reach enough people. It's your resposibility because you reach so many minds!!!

9. Develop shows that will correct and dismantle the dangerous US world economy. Find solutions for their disasterous Ponzi-Casino economy before they take the world to another nuclear war.

10. Stop all shows glorifying human birthing on all your channels and on TLC. Stop Future Weapons shows or replace the dialogue condemning the people behind these developments so that the shows become exposes rather than advertisements of Arms sales and development!

11. You're also going to find solutions for unemployment and housing. All these unemployed people makes me think the US is headed toward more war.

Humans are the most destructive, filthy, pollutive creatures around and are wrecking what's left of the planet with their false morals and breeding culture.

For every human born, ACRES of wildlife forests must be turned into farmland in order to feed that new addition over the course of 60 to 100 YEARS of that new human's lifespan! THIS IS AT THE EXPENSE OF THE FOREST CREATURES!!!! All human procreation and farming must cease!

It is the responsiblity of everyone to preserve the planet they live on by not breeding any more children who will continue their filthy practices. Children represent FUTURE catastrophic pollution whereas their parents are current pollution. NO MORE BABIES! Population growth is a real crisis. Even one child born in the US will use 30 to a thousand times more resources than a Third World child. It's like a couple are having 30 babies even though it's just one! If the US goes in this direction maybe other countries will too!

Also, war must be halted. Not because it's morally wrong, but because of the catastrophic environmental damage modern weapons cause to other creatures. FIND SOLUTIONS JUST LIKE THE BOOK SAYS! Humans are supposed to be inventive. INVENT, DAMN YOU!!

The world needs TV shows that DEVELOP solutions to the problems that humans are causing, not stupify the people into destroying the world. Not encouraging them to breed more environmentally harmful humans.

Saving the environment and the remaning species diversity of the planet is now your mindset. Nothing is more important than saving them. The Lions, Tigers, Giraffes, Elephants, Froggies, Turtles, Apes, Raccoons, Beetles, Ants, Sharks, Bears, and, of course, the Squirrels.

The humans? The planet does not need humans.

You MUST KNOW the human population is behind all the pollution and problems in the world, and YET you encourage the exact opposite instead of discouraging human growth and procreation. Surely you MUST ALREADY KNOW this!

I want Discovery Communications to broadcast on their channels to the world their new program lineup and I want proof they are doing so. I want the new shows started by asking the public for inventive solution ideas to save the planet and the remaining wildlife on it.

These are the demands and sayings of Lee.

Labels: Discovery-Channel, Hostages, James-Lee

Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink