They aren't hurting anyone. They don't feel like anyone is listening to them, and really - no one has been listening to them. No one cares. They aren't a minority living in a city - they're working people angry that the government keeps slowly stealing the land they own and giving bullshit reasons. They've made a stink about it through appropriate channels, and they were ignored. They make a stink about it publicly so people will listen, and their point is swept under the rug so the government can point out 'guns! guns! look they have guns!'

People were rioting in Ferguson, burning down buildings and looting, when a guy roughed up a store clerk and was shot. Police were told to anticipate and overlook people spitting, throwing bottles and rocks at them, fires, etc. Because people had the right to behave that way when they were angry.

There's been no rioting, no fires in Oregon. It's the peaceful protest that people should be looking at as examples of how protests are supposed to go. And people are making the same lame-game comments about their protests that were made about the sit-ins black people had in the 40s and 50s. 'They aren't supposed to be there' 'It's private property' 'They just need to find another way to do it'. The only difference is these protesters have guns and back then black people were rarely allowed to have them. (Kind of like today. Has anyone noticed cities with high concentrations of black people have the strictest gun laws, and gun laws are made so if you have any sort of record you aren't allowed to own a firearm? Being black on a Friday means you aren't ever allowed to have a gun to defend yourself if you are a law abiding citizen. So only criminals have them. /shrug Another conversation.)

But it's been inconvenient for the government to have people point out that they are stealing from American citizens, harassing people who speak up about it; inconvenient for the state's politicians to have people point out their complacency. There's a recordable amount of people asking 'Why ARE you harassing these guys? This is kind of fucked up - can we talk about this?'. They haven't done anything violent, they've just refused to move.

I read something a journalist out there posted aboutbeing advised by the FBI to leave by 4PM, but it isn't anything concrete. Who can trust journalists?

People are being told to disburse from the refuge now that 'their leader' has been taken into custody, and now there's a dead guy to drive the point home. No one else is scared about this? Is it just me? 'Protests' about criminals being shot are allowed, but a protest questioning the government and demanding actual answers and actual change instead of BS lip service is met with government force? It seems like protests over anything that can get a quick media sound bite and cause low level social unrest gets prime time, but anything requiring actual work from the government can't get the time of day.

I feel so bad for those guys out there. I don't want anyone else to die. I'm a little disgusted that our president hasn't stepped up to try and explain the situation or address the protesters considering their issues revolve around government, but he's out of office soon so I'm sure he's got other things going on. Sorry to rant. Just nerves.