Debating the militia

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

Lou wrote:
>Virtually nobody, Cockburn or militia-hater Adolf
>Reed, has done a serious political-economy study of the Wyoming and Montana
>hinterlands. There is much evidence that there are serious economic
>dislocations taking place which are radicalizing petty-producers such as
>ranchers and farmers. This radicalization does not express itself through
>increased subscription rates to the Nation or Mother Jones.
>
>My big beef with radical and Marxists alike is that they base their
>political judgement on what they read in the NY Times.

During the 80s, agricultural commodity prices went down, and the government
encouraged farmers + ranchers to load up on debt to expand production +
gain the economy of scale. People like Montana Freemen, I think, come out
of the farm crisis. Folks can correct me if I'm wrong; I am not averse to
understanding militia men. Nor does Katha, and she said as much.

However, as I noted in other posts, I do think that some on this
list--many? hard to say--are more willing to make efforts to not only
understand but also to demonstrate understanding toward militia men,
anti-abortion Catholics, etc., in contrast to the kind of dismissive (and
sometimes overtly negative) comments that come in the direction of
so-called identity politics of women, queers, people of color, etc. I don't
think I am the only one who sees the difference.

Yoshie