To think if Muslims were responsible for this it would be rolling news coverage

[DadKeepsCalm1]

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/03/oregon-militia-threatens-showdown-with-us-agents-at-wildlife-refuge

Over 150 armed miltia men take control of government building. It's barely being covered over here.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/03/oregon-militia-threatens-showdown-with-us-agents-at-wildlife-refuge

You think if Muslims threatened a site but nothing much happened and most people went home, it would be front page news?

Ok.

I'm sure I haven't quite got the whole picture but why do hundreds of white people with guns marching around, or white people with guns in Walmart, not get shot and/or locked up when 12 year old Black boys with toy guns get shot? Am I missing something major or is the racism and prejudice THAT all-encompassing.

And yes, if 150 Muslims took control of a government building with guns in their possession they would nuke it. From space.

Very good point Mrs.

I thought exactly the same OP.

YANBU OP

2 of you then.

another one here.

Thank goodness for gun control in the UK. The U.S. is utterly bonkers.

You might want to read the article a little more closely. It's federal land that has been occupied, and the 'militia' are right-wing constitutionalists. It's a protest regarding farming rights (burning land so fresh grass grows for cattle which has caused fires on nearby wildlife reserves).

Why have you extrapolated this situation to Muslims? It makes no sense.

Sorry just re-read it myself

It's barely being reported in the US, luckily it's all over Twitter.

I notice a group of white guys are called Militia as opposed to terrorists, blatant racism.

No being Muslims makes no difference. There was an incident on Boxing Day involving over 20 victims - it's been reported that the BBC were banned from covering it.

Some things don't make the news. Media is worldwide, massive population and masses of news daily. It's a decision what makes headlines. It will be influenced by funding backers etc as well.

I've not read the story but hope everyone involved is ok.

I agree OP.

Shirking I think what the op is trying to get across is the double standard attitude of US policy towards Muslims. If Muslims had done something similar it definitely would have been on front page news with headlines screaming ISIS etc.
The 'militia' are most likely to be right wing Donald Trump supporters tbh.

YANBU.

Thanks figureofspeech I realised after I'd posted. And yes, after a bit more reading I'd agree.

If. Big if. What if this "militia" were Chinese, Peruvians or aliens from outer space?

The premise of this thread is a complete nonsense.

This is why they will never control guns. Because they strongly believe they should be able to take arms against their own government when they aren't happy.

I'm not sure, and to me there's almost an element of inverse racism in what's been posted.

Those doing the occupying were white Americans opposing the forces of their own country. Their cause was known, nothing to do with religion but with aspects of local politics.

Had the same size group of Muslims held up a government building in an Islamic state, and for the same reasons, there would have been no coverage either.

If that group of Muslims had occupied a US building for the same reason their might have been a little more coverage, but I'm not sure. And I doubt they'd be shouting ISIS in this particular instance.

Gun ownership and ideas of control through force are nothing new in certain sections of America - this is a local US problem. Why should it be headline news? And why get involved in the 'what-iffery' of 'well what if it WAS Muslims?' It wasn't. They didn't. So don't try to bring them into a story they have absolutely nothing to do with. It's this sort of comment linking Islam with things they didn't do which actually reinforces racism.

Meh. I've been in the town where this is going on. It's a podunk, redneck town and these 'men' are a bunch of uneducated blowhards that are upset because they're losing cheap/free grazing rights because the government is taking the land back for environmental purposes. They'll posture and pose and eventually they'll go on home once they think they've 'had their say'. It's not Ruby Ridge or Waco by a long shot.

This isn't the first of these type of protests. It won't be the last. It isn't even in the top 20 news stories here (other than in Burns).

24 people died in the latest flooding in the USA. All due to climate change. No one cares though.

Yep, Egosumquisum I've already updated my comment.

It's in sky news app top stories here

While I think it is a very worrying problem, and a clear demonstration of the crazy gun laws in America, a group of armed people in the US that are not planning on killing in an surprise attack is called a militia and not terrorists because of the American Constitution, and how America was born. Militia are accepted by the law, as "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed".
As Militia were the backbone of the Revolution, they are now a remnant of this time. Moreover, traditionally, many American have a wariness of a powerful central government, that could infringe on personal liberties. Militia are in mind that they would act if the democratic government were to become a tyranny, which is also something that is kept in mind in the US Constitution. Look at the wariness and distrust that was born when massive military exercises were planned around Texas.

To be frank, I would be as terrified of seeing white people with machine guns in the street as I would be of Black, Arabic or Latino people. Crazy has no colour, religion or creed.