Proving once again just how recklessly out of control the politics down here are, the D.A. is refusing to press charges in the forced evictions of residents from their homes 6 months ago in order to make way for a… yep, Indian casino.
Attached article out of the San Diego Union-Tribune is hopelessly bereft of any of the salient backround details that make this whole ordeal so appalling.
The Jamul Indians east of San Diego have been making plans to build a casino on reservation land and found that there was some property which they wished to develop that was inconveniently owned and/or occupied by its residents.
What the article doesn’t mention is that there was some confusion though on where the exact boundaries of the Indian Reservation were and in order to buy some time to clear up this matter (the properties in question were in this ‘gray’ area), County Supervisor Diane Jacobs brokered a handshake agreement between the Tribe, its financial backers and the residents of the properties in question.
Well lo and behold, that agreement didn’t last as on a Saturday back in March, something called the Tribal Reservation Police descended upon a handful of these residents and forcibly evicted them from their homes. What the article also fails to mention is that the vast majority of the members of this “police” force were no more than off-duty cops from around the San Diego area that signed-up for a little weekend fun playing jack-booted thugs while employing physical force and using pepper spray to roust U.S. citizens from their homes. All this while Sheriff Bill Kollender’s men just stood by and watched, and by some accounts, physically restrained friends of the residents who were attempting to come to their aid against these g*d-dammed Gestapo tactics.
At least one of the evicted residents, Walter Rosales, a Vietnam Veteran, is even a tribal member. Well…. he was until he voiced his objection to the casino plan and he was promptly relieved of his membership by the tribal elders, something else not mentioned in the article.
…and the D.A. Bonnie Dumanis… her hiding behind the legality of not getting involved in civil matters on tribal lands is bad enough but her refusal to answer any questions regarding this situation represents the height of arrogance and un-accountability. So you have a crooked sheriff in the back pocket of the tribe (tribes, actually as the area Indian tribes have been major contributors to his election campaigns for years) and an indifferent D.A…. who to turn to? In situations like this, it becomes apparent why the Founders placed the right to bear arms in the on-deck circle directly after the freedom of speech and religion in the Bill of Rights.
McCain-Feingold ticks us off, but Kelo v. New London makes our blood boil. There is just something about property rights that strikes a nerve. Freedom of speech, gun ownership, trial by jury of peers… these rights are hugely important… they represent the pillars upon which this great democracy is built. But Propery Rights…. there is something more visceral and real about that than all the others. One can crank out banned speech from a computer in the secrecy of one’s house or hide banned guns in that house. But you can do neither without sole possession of that same house.
Apologies for the way-too-serious nature of this post. We try to find humor or something in each of our subjects to parody or poke fun at. We tried but just couldn’t find anything remotely amusing about any of this.
Attached article out of the San Diego Union-Tribune is hopelessly bereft of any of the salient backround details that make this whole ordeal so appalling.
The Jamul Indians east of San Diego have been making plans to build a casino on reservation land and found that there was some property which they wished to develop that was inconveniently owned and/or occupied by its residents.
What the article doesn’t mention is that there was some confusion though on where the exact boundaries of the Indian Reservation were and in order to buy some time to clear up this matter (the properties in question were in this ‘gray’ area), County Supervisor Diane Jacobs brokered a handshake agreement between the Tribe, its financial backers and the residents of the properties in question.
Well lo and behold, that agreement didn’t last as on a Saturday back in March, something called the Tribal Reservation Police descended upon a handful of these residents and forcibly evicted them from their homes. What the article also fails to mention is that the vast majority of the members of this “police” force were no more than off-duty cops from around the San Diego area that signed-up for a little weekend fun playing jack-booted thugs while employing physical force and using pepper spray to roust U.S. citizens from their homes. All this while Sheriff Bill Kollender’s men just stood by and watched, and by some accounts, physically restrained friends of the residents who were attempting to come to their aid against these g*d-dammed Gestapo tactics.
At least one of the evicted residents, Walter Rosales, a Vietnam Veteran, is even a tribal member. Well…. he was until he voiced his objection to the casino plan and he was promptly relieved of his membership by the tribal elders, something else not mentioned in the article.
…and the D.A. Bonnie Dumanis… her hiding behind the legality of not getting involved in civil matters on tribal lands is bad enough but her refusal to answer any questions regarding this situation represents the height of arrogance and un-accountability. So you have a crooked sheriff in the back pocket of the tribe (tribes, actually as the area Indian tribes have been major contributors to his election campaigns for years) and an indifferent D.A…. who to turn to? In situations like this, it becomes apparent why the Founders placed the right to bear arms in the on-deck circle directly after the freedom of speech and religion in the Bill of Rights.
McCain-Feingold ticks us off, but Kelo v. New London makes our blood boil. There is just something about property rights that strikes a nerve. Freedom of speech, gun ownership, trial by jury of peers… these rights are hugely important… they represent the pillars upon which this great democracy is built. But Propery Rights…. there is something more visceral and real about that than all the others. One can crank out banned speech from a computer in the secrecy of one’s house or hide banned guns in that house. But you can do neither without sole possession of that same house.
Apologies for the way-too-serious nature of this post. We try to find humor or something in each of our subjects to parody or poke fun at. We tried but just couldn’t find anything remotely amusing about any of this.
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