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Pastimes : The Truth about Waco -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Machaon who wrote (1030)	9/16/1999 3:21:00 PM
From: Jim S	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1449

how Magnanimous we lowly liberal are Aye, matie, there's the rub... <g> The BATF is made up of courageous and well meaning individuals that have a very tough job insuring "our" safety. Do you feel that they deliberately want to make mistakes? That's your point. My counterpoint is that the BATF has an "us against them" mentality, and "them" is anyone besides them. They don't care if they make mistakes, and the are rarely any repercussions if they do. Public "safety" is not chief among their concerns; I think they are a group of misfits who greatly enjoy their virtually unimpeded ability to use their power in just about any way they want, and if they get caught, they simply lie. I doubt they WANT to burst into the homes of innocents, terrorize them, and even occasionally kill them, but if they do, it doesn't keep them awake at night. This is evidenced by the fact that despite numerous such "mistakes," the BATF has not issued a single apology -- heck, they don't even pay for the damage they do when breaking into the wrong house. I hope that the BATF always investigates cults that stockpile large amounts of weapons of war. Investigate? You call Waco an "investigation?" And, maybe you can help me understand your viewpoint here: How many guns can an authorized gun dealer (as the Davidians were) own or possess before it gets classified as "a large stockpile of weapons of war?" If the Davidians had more than what you think they should have, should that have marked them for assassination? I doubt many people would agree with you that "owning too many guns" is a capital offense. And, you're right -- the BATF IS more stupid (and gestapo-like) than you thought. I hold little hope for anything worthwhile from either Danforth or House hearings because of the political repercussions if the full truth were to be told. The complicity of Congress in not providing adequate oversight and in the expansive laws they've written also dictate that much of this story will remain hidden. And I agree also that most Americans have nothing to fear from the BATF. There are too few of them to knock down EVERYBODY's doors. I'm not really afraid of them at all, so long as they're not at MY door. jim