The fire (or standoff) next time

The militia, rump militia or militia movement is the armed component of the Patriot movement, a somewhat heterogeneous milieu on the far right end of the U.S. political spectrum. These “militias” have nothing in common with regular state militias, but are private organizations, bordering on vigilante squads. Some supporters of these militias have been involved in violent confrontations with the police. The most notorious militia-related individual is domestic terrorist Timothy McVeigh, executed in 2001 for his planning and execution of the Oklahoma City bombing six years earlier.

“The Militia Threat” by Captain Robert L Snow, a police officer from Indianapolis, was published in 1999. It's written in a condescending, repetitive and even somewhat fatuous style (yes, the author is a psychology graduate). That being said, it does give a good overview of this typical American phenomenon. The only thing lacking is a chapter on the history of right-wing populism and right-wing extremism in the United States, which would place the militias in a broader context. In the book, they seem to mysteriously pop out of nowhere at some point in the early 1990's, galvanized by the standoffs at Ruby Ridge and Waco.

Snow describes the exotic worldview of the militias, which is often based on conspiracy theories about the New World Order and the United Nations wanting to occupy the United States and enslave or even cull its population. People in the militia milieu rub shoulders with White supremacists, including the crypto-Nazi Liberty Lobby and “Christian Identity” groups. While a few Jews, Hispanics and Blacks (such as J J Johnson) have joined the militias, the milieu is almost entirely White. However, the author doesn't believe that the bulk of the members are hardcore racists or terrorists. Most militia members have working class or lower middle class backgrounds (my terms – as a good American, Snow never mentions the c-word). They have been run out of business or left unemployed by globalization, and are seeking for answers outside establishment politics. To some people, the conspiracist/populist message of the Patriot movement seems to make a lot of sense.

The militia movement has a “fundamentalist” interpretation of the U.S. constitution, often rejecting all later amendments to the original document. Even their interpretation of the original constitution is peculiar, being heavily slanted in an Anti-Federalist or even anarchistic direction. Militia members often feel they can disregard most or all federal and state laws and regulations. Many of the incidents described in the book seem like the work of petty trouble makers rather than dangerous terrorists.

The main selling point of the militia, of course, is its opposition to all forms of gun control. Snow describes his visit to a gun show in some detail, and reaches the conclusion that there is virtually no *real* gun control in the United States, the militia people being able to buy almost anything over the counter…or under the table. (To a Swedish reader, the gun show chapter is both comic and disturbing at the same time. Somehow, that's how I always pictured Middle America!)

Writing a few years after the Oklahoma City bombing, Snow believes that the militia threat is real. While most militia members are probably nothing more than patriotic preppers, these heavily armed groups do attract a fringe element ready to take further action. Snow recommends people interested in countering the militias to get in touch with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the American Jewish Committee.

While the militias are probably weaker today than in 1999 (the tragicomic occupation at Malheur comes to mind), the grievances which fueled them haven't gone away. If anything, they have gotten stronger. The similarity between the average militia Joe and the average Trump voter is striking. So is the similarity between the militia message and the right-wing populist ditto. Snow points out that some politicians support militia-related themes (his prime exhibit is Idaho Congresswoman Helen Chenoweth), but this is surely because the militia have borrowed their message from earlier and more influential sources.

To be blunt, if (or when) Donald Trump fails to deliver the goods, some of his disgruntled supporters will breathe new life into the militia threat…

Stay tuned for more standoffs.