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The fight to protect private property rights here in Thurston County reflects that of many battles taking place across our state and country. It was high time for someone to stand up against government intrusions...so we are.
 We recently began a project called STOP Thurston County (Stop Taking Our Property). The purpose is to address the outrageous actions of government to put the concerns of pocket gophers over those of private property owners. (You heard me right, the pocket gopher-the little rodent that is considered a nuisance by 99% of the country.)
The land restrictions Thurston County residents face are so severe, that people are experiencing life-changing harm. Here are four real-life examples among many.
As a poor widow trying to hang onto her home, Mrs. Baker was told that she would have to purchase 56 acres of gopher habitat in order to be able to sell five of her own acres. She wanted to sell these five acres to be able to pay for taxes and upkeep on the rest of her land.
Mr. Howell lost the use of four-fifths of his property in order to create a private gopher reserve. All so he could build an 800 square foot accessory dwelling unit for his son.
Mr. Weaver was arrested for trying to protect his land from a rodent infestation.
Ms. Bryant lost her house to foreclosure because Thurston County deemed rodents more important than her right to run a daycare business.
I could go on, but you get the idea.
Our goal is to help property owners in Thurston County organize and counter the efforts of radical environmentalists to lock-up the use of their property.
More than 300 attendees showed up on short notice at recent Town Hall meetings we held. The majority signed up to volunteer to help push back against government intrusion into their property.
Not surprisingly, our efforts have generated a lot of press and some interesting responses from government officials.
Disagree with Thurston County's Manager Don Krupp and Thurston County's plan to take your property, and you will be considered "uncivil, rude and inappropriate." Here's part of what he had to say in response to "security concerns" before the recent Planning Commission Meeting:
"There is a group of local activists that has engaged in what I would regard as uncivil, rude and inappropriate behavior, but at no time have any of these individuals physically threatened the County Commissioners or County staff." [download entire post]
So what is this "uncivil, rude and inappropriate behavior" to which he refers?
Apparently when we dare to question our government about the great harm that they have caused in our county and to our neighbors, we are "rude." When we go to the Board of Commissioner meetings and ask questions that are never answered, we are "uncivil." When we offer to debate the Commissioners on this issue, we are "inappropriate." Apparently, Don Krupp prefers that we just shut up, sit back, and take their abuse.
The audacity of citizens to stand up for the protection of their individual rights!
Don Krupp should be reminded that he represents the Commissioner's oath of public service to support the "Constitution and laws of the state of Washington." And that Article 1 Section 1 of the Washington State Constitution reads, "All political power is inherent in the people, and governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, and are established to protect and maintain individual rights."
Governments are established to protect and maintain individual rights. And when Thurston County blatantly abuses people's individual rights, and citizens stand up for them-well, Don Krupp might call it "uncivil, rude and inappropriate."
I call it our patriotic duty.
And what become of this "security" concern?
Thurston County officials decided to subject the public to security screening before attending the planning commission meetings. No kidding...the PLANNING COMMISSION meeting. These are the meetings where staff takes side bets on which citizen will fall asleep first.
But Thurston County staff has just made attending these public meetings more difficult. You will now have to endure TSA-style security screenings before you can go listen to the deliberations.
The Washington State Legislature doesn't even require a security screening to attend their public meetings. What is so special about a local government planning commission that they need security meant for a courtroom? Why would they request security guards?
This week at the Thurston County Planning Commission meeting, Scott Nelson vice-chair of the Planning Commission asked if they could move the meetings back to the old room. He said that there were microphones available for public and that the new location seemed unnecessary. He was immediately shut down by staffer Scott Clark and was told that the meetings would remain in the new location behind security screening.
It begs the question, "Who runs the planning commission meetings?" In this case it seems that staff is in control.
The video above is not the security line at the airport...it's the line to get into the Thurston County Planning Commission Meeting. Amazing indeed.
So what can you do? If you are in Thurston County, please visit our STOP Thurston County website for the latest information about town hall meetings and planning commission meetings.
If you live in another county, sign-up to receive our property rights updates by clicking on the "Subscription Preferences" link at the bottom of or by replying to this email and asking to be added to our list. You may also want to visit our property rights website for more information about what we are doing to protect the private property rights of all citizens.
Sincerely,
Scott Roberts
Property Rights Director |
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