An Eastern Washington legislator, speaking at a “Self-Reliance Rally” of Tea Party activists and survivalists, predicted last weekend that the United States economy is going to collapse and told activists to stock up on ammunition and stay in top physical condition for when that happens.
“We need to prepare for the inevitable collapse that is going to happen: You know it’s going to happen. That’s right, I am a politician and I am standing up here and saying that,” said state Rep. Matt Shea, a Republican from Spokane Valley. The lawmaker’s remarks were reported in the Coeur D’Alene Press.
“When it happens, we need to look at this as an opportunity, not a crisis,” Shea added. “Whose job is liberty? That’s our job.”
Lovely sentiment from an elected lawmaker: the country will collapse, and I'm with the anarchists. And this Shea joker is a real piece of work, too.
Shea is no stranger to controversy. The Spokane Spokesman Review reported an incident, about two years ago, in which he pulled a loaded gun on another motorist in what was described as a road rage incident. He was cited for having a loaded handgun in his pickup truck without a concealed weapons permit.
While a defender of traditional marriage, Shea was also in the news for his recent divorce. The lawmaker’s wife sought two temporary restraining orders and a protection order, and claimed to have been treated like a “possession.” She claimed that Shea insisted that she walk on his left side “because his sword, if he had one, would be on his right side.”
Washington State, out near the Idaho border, is kind of a scary place. These are the people they elect to send to represent them in the state. To represent them in DC? Cathy McMorris Rodgers, chair of the House Republican Conference and author of a lovely guide for House Republicans to use during the five-week August recess to bash the hell out of the federal government they work for.
This doesn't surprise me in the least. More than a few people out there east of Spokane who are hardcore survivalists and would happily see the government burn.
And remember, McMorris Rodgers is the number 4 Republican in the House, behind Orange Julius, Eric Cantor, and Majority Whip Kevin "Aptly Named" McCarthy. She's not fringe, she's leadership.
Food for thought.
///More than a few people out there east of Spokane who are hardcore survivalists and would happily see the government burn.///
ReplyDeleteNot sure what this incomplete sentence even means, but I can assure you that there is no portion of Washington east of Spokane - Spokane is right on the eastern Washington border.
That nitpicking point aside, Washington, west of the Cascades is very progressive, Seattle In particular. And, of course, we financially carry the red parts of the state, even though they fashion themselves to be the rugged individualists and think we are a bunch of socialist hippies.
WA is like much of the US - we have a progressive, highly productive urban part - the area around Puget Sound, saddled with a somewhat benighted and vastly larger rural area, unfortunately containing many troglodytes.
Some things about us to consider:
Both our US senators are women
We approved same sex marriage by popular vote
We approved legal marijuana by popular vote
We have the highest state mandated minimum wage in the nation
At 158, we are second only to California in the number of craft breweries
King, the most populous county in the state is named after Dr MLK and his image is our symbol
Don't paint us all with the same broad brush.
On the other hand, we have enough people out here already, so if you want to convince people that this place sucks and they should stay away, that's fine too.