Media racism in Oregon: If the Feds had charged Muslims with 'terrorism' for starting a fire, all hell would break loose on CNN

Monday, January 04, 2016 by: J. D. Heyes
Tags: Hammond Ranch, terrorism, media racism

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(NaturalNews) Thousands of Natural News visitors watched live footage of TalkNetwork.com hosts Pete Santilli and Deb Jordan as they streamed coverage of a Jan. 2 rally in Burns, Oregon, in support of ranchers Dwight Hammond, 73, and Steven Hammond, 46.

For those who are unfamiliar with their case, the Hammonds were convicted in 2012 under a federal anti-terrorism statute, of committing arson on federal land overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. Both were charged in connection with a 2001 fire, and Steven in connection with another fire in 2006. The Hammonds had set backfires – a common technique used in rural ranching communities to refresh the soil and clear away dangerous foliage – some of which burned federal land adjacent to the land they leased from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

A federal court found them guilty of willful destruction and actually charged them with a violation of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, which calls for a minimum sentence of five years in prison. When they were initially convicted, U.S. District Judge Michael Hogan – now retired – gave them lighter sentences because he did not believe they had exhibited malicious intent.

What if they were Middle Eastern and Muslim?

Federal prosecutors appealed Hogan's three-month sentence for Dwight Hammond, and one-year sentence for Steven Hammond – which both had served – because they were far short of the minimum. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed and ordered them re-sentenced in October, which they duly were. And now, they are required to report to prison Jan. 4, to finish their five-year sentences.

Patriot groups and other supporters of the Hammonds say that the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals violated the Fifth Amendment's prohibition against "double jeopardy" – that is, "be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb."

Others have suggested that perhaps there is another element at play – a religious element, in particular. Like, what if the Hammonds were a part of a politically protected religious and ethnic group?

Natural News editor Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, laid it out clearly.

"If the Hammond family were of Muslim faith, the entire mainstream media would be screaming about how ridiculous this terrorism charge is," he said. "But solely because they are white people living a rural lifestyle, they are condemned by the media and largely ignored even as they face the extreme tyranny of an unjust federal government gone bad."

In fact, as evidenced by the live stream supplied by Santilli and Jordan, the only "mainstream media" seen in hours of coverage monitored by Natural News was a news team from KOIN 6, which filed this story.

There is real terrorism – but burning some grass isn't

As the protect and resultant march by patriots and supporters proceeded through the streets of Burn, there were no calls for violence, no rioting or looting, no threats or intimidation – and, noted at one point by Jordan – no massive police presence. In fact, she said she hadn't seen one officer the entire time.

And yet, the Hammonds have been portrayed, literally, as "terrorists" because of accidentally burning some federal land - using a technique that the BLM itself has utilized and which has damaged private property though no one was ever charged or held responsible.

Can you imagine a Muslim family being charged thusly for a fire that, say, got out of hand at a campsite on federal land? Those happen all the time.

This may sound like apples and oranges, but really the point of this piece is to point out the hypocrisy of the politically correct Left-wing mainstream media, which has gone out of its way to protect Muslims in an age where adherents to the Islamic faith have used it as an excuse to kill Americans (you know - real terrorism).

Sources:

http://koin.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcpzhOZq1JQ&feature=youtu.be

http://www.naturalnews.com