This is an outrage. Tim DeChristopher was hailed as a hero for derailing Bush’s last minute illegitimate public land auctions. He introduced a new form of civil disobedience, but by his account – signed in legitimately, was handed a paddle, and bid. The new Justice Department should realize that these punitive measures only have a chilling effect and show the disproportionate power these extractive industries have over our political and judicial system.
Student is charged with obstructing Utah land auction – Los Angeles Times.
A college student was charged with two federal felonies Wednesday for what he contends were acts of civil disobedience — making false bids to run up auction prices on oil and gas parcels on public land near Utah’s national parks….A grand jury charged [Tim] DeChristopher with one count of interfering with a federal auction and one count of making false representations at an auction, Tolman said. The penalty could range from no punishment to a combined sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a $750,000 fine.”
You want to know who should be arrested? The corrupt staff of the US Mineral Management Service at the Department of Interior. Read what the New York Times found out about that:
“[T]he Interior Department agency that collects oil and gas royalties has been caught up in a wide-ranging ethics scandal — including allegations of financial self-dealing, accepting gifts from energy companies, cocaine use and sexual misconduct.”
Sex, Drug Use and Graft Cited in Interior Department – NYTimes.com.
Guess who was auctioning off our land to private mining and oil interests? The Bureau of Land Management, of the Department of Interior. So who really should be facing felony charges? It sure as hell isn’t Tim DeChristopher.
Read more about this story at the late JohnnyRook’s diary at SolveClimate.
Please join http://www.bidder70.org to support Tim!
Unfortunately, no surprise here
you can be a murder or a rapist and get shorter sentences than someone who bids in an auction with no money in defense of the environment.
Profit over people as usual.
This is totally outrageous, but not surprising. It’s really a wake up call for those of us seeking real change, not just reform and working within a corrupt failed system.
Tim’s action was totally effective in monkey-wrenching those leases. That’s why our new Administration is fucking with him. The more effective action we employ, the more they will raise the stakes. (After all, they are charging animal rights kids under anti-terror laws for passing out fliers and chalking on sidewalks.)
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.
And if you are interested in following how your tax dollars are spent on the Green Scare and the “Domestic War on Terror”, check out http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/ for updates.
Hey,
We can be all blase about it, or we could treat it like the outrage it is. These are good resources to follow, but we do have the ability to impact these decisions.
My 2 cents,
Richard
Not blase in the least. I’m outraged about it every time it happens and act on it. Lots of friends, friends of friends and people I’ve never met have been spied on, persecuted, snitched out and sent to jail for radical politics and action. U.S. history is full of examples of the federal gov’t conducting a secret war on it’s citizens.
The government’s actions against Tim are not single events. Unfortunately it’s the norm if you take a hard stand against gov’t and corporate policy and action.