What's happening in Oregon with people occupying headquarters of a federal wildlife refuge is subversive, a direct, armed challenge against the authority of the United States, Chambers said.

"But since white men are doing it," he said, "it's treated in almost a ho-hum fashion: This is what white men do."

It's an example, Chambers said, of what so-called law-abiding Americans do when they get these guns and they don't like what is going on.

If Muslims did they same thing, he said, authorities would kill as many as they could, and then brand every other Muslim as a threat and round them up.

If they were black people, they'd be shot down right now, he said.

When black people have demonstrated across the country against police violence -- unarmed, and not threatening direct violence -- there were military vehicles and military weaponry standing by, Chambers said, even though nobody was taking armed control of anything.

People can be arrested if they articulate a desire or intent to go to Syria or Iraq or Iran, he said.

If the mere expression of an opinion is sufficient to be arrested and charged with a serious offense that can carry years in prison, he said, then it's not unreasonable to bring a bill to deal with the kind of equipment and garb that would bespeak illegal violence.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7228 or jyoung@journalstar.com. On Twitter @LJSLegislature.

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