(The following article was sent to me anonymously.  It’s a timely, accurate, and thoughtful essay that needs to be read by every American.)

Are you aware that we the people are under assault in this country?  Maybe not you personally, yet, but when one group of patriots in America is deprived of their freedoms guaranteed to them by the Constitution, it's a hostile invasion of all who stand for liberty.  And that is what happened to the ranchers in Harney County, Oregon, in the past weeks, and in Nevada before that.  There is a systematic taking of our precious liberties.

Why does no one seem to care?

Where is the media on this?  Where are the folks who are focused on restoring our trust lands across the western United States?  Are we to sit and watch those among us get incarcerated for ranching?  For peacefully protesting the egregious treatment they have received from their own government, for years?

We know that these lands do not belong to the federal government.  The federal government manages those lands for we the people under contracts that were supposed to be assigned back to the states years ago.  The federal government contracts grazing leases to local ranchers. These grazing leases abut the ranches owned by private citizens of the United States.  These ranchers, by and large, are good stewards of the lands they lease to use for grazing.  But they are methodically being deprived of the use of the lands owned by we the people, even with legal leases to do so. In Oregon, the Burea of Land Management (BLM) is burning grazing land that is under lease to ranchers for grazing their cattle, and the BLM is burning the cattle, homes, and corrals in the process.  

Shawna Cox:  "We should never be ashamed to be an American....we have to make a difference...this was a man who was killed in cold blood....we need to pray for the men who did this, and we need to pray for the families....This is God's country.  He created the Constitution for us....As a nation, we have to pray." 

01/26/2016.  Victoria Sharp:  "Ryan Payne put his hands up out the window, and they shot at him but missed...They riddled the car with bullets....He (LaVoy) was just walking with his hands in the air, and they just shot him.  I saw him....After he was down on the ground, they shot him 3 more times....They bombarded our vehicle with bullets, they hit Ryan in the shoulder...We were on the floorboard screaming.."

If you haven't been following the Hammond case in Harney County, Oregon, click HERE for the timeline, dating back to the 1970’s, of the cruel and corrupt methods used by both the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM), to drive this family, and many other ranchers, off their land. Click HERE for a Simple Action You Can Take to Help the Hammond Family.  

Ask yourself:  Why are we hearing about so many more catastrophic fires ever since--thanks to the environmentalists and federal agencies--private cattle ranchers and lumber operations have been driven off the land?  Add to this that the federal government controls 3 out of every 10 acres of land in America and is power hungry for more.  Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, said the government’s “massive” control over land has preserved less than 1 percent of endangered species and instead harmed individuals whose livelihoods depend on land ownership. 

Oregon ranchers Steven Hammond and his father Dwight were sentenced in June 2012 as “Arsenal Terrorists.” The maximum punishment for this federal crime is death.  So, what did these ranchers do to warrant their time in prison, and the likelihood that they will be imprisoned again?  

Arizona Senator Sylvia Tenney Allen: Lightning Bolt Update, 10/7/15

Keep Sedona Beautiful has been using the Transfer of Public Lands movement as a reason they are proposing and promoting the Sedona Verde Valley Red Rock National Monument.   This update is to inform you that the perception that transferring public lands to the state would encourage the sell-off of our open spaces to developers is wrong.  Such a perception is not being promoted by those who are involved with this movement.

I have included below a Public Policy Statement ratified by unanimous consent on October 9, 2014, at the American Lands Council multi-state workshop.   American Lands Council has been a leader in the Transfer of Public Lands movement. (Click HERE to download the Public Policy Statement.) 

The policy statement lays out clearly the motives and desires of those who want to fulfill the contract the Federal Government made with the state of Arizona on Statehood Day, February 14, 1912.  Section 4(iv) of the policy statement says:  “Retain Public Ownership of Public Lands: Federal public lands shall become state public lands to be managed in accordance with state and local plans;”

The Payson Tea Party will host Rep. Bob Thorpe (LD6) on Thursday May 21.  Rep. Thorpe will provide his insights on bills from the last legislative session and his thoughts for next session.   Rep. Thorpe is among the legislators who have steadfastly opposed Common Core.  He has also stood courageously on behalf of state sovereignty.  

Only 17% of Arizona is privately owned.  How much do you pay in property taxes?  Through PILT (payment in lieu of taxes), the federal government pays Arizona about $1.10 per acre for our public lands.  That $1.10 per acre is what some Democrats call "largesse."  So, just remember the reason our children have have less money for education than other states.  We're sacrificing them for "the public good."