Bridgewater Township official turns to militia for help

[DearAbby]

Story Via Michael Moore Tweet- MMFlint 4 days ago Mich Twp. Supervisor revealed she solicited help from Hutaree Militia--no one outside of Mich carried story: www.michaelmoore.com





Bridgewater Township official turns to militia for help; watchdog groups question decision

By Lee Higgins / AnnArbor.com

Bridgewater Township Supervisor Jolea Mull has twice sought help from militia members this year to search for missing township residents.

The move is drawing criticism from militia watchdog groups, who say Mull is legitimizing an extreme right-wing movement that has a history of being associated with criminal activity.

And the partnership comes as the militia movement is exploding across the country, driven by fears of economic collapse and the potential for a crackdown on gun rights under the Obama administration, watchdog groups say.

About 50 militia members from five units live in Washtenaw County, militia leaders say. They are survivalists, who favor larger local government and a smaller federal government. Members are fiercely protective of their free speech and gun rights.

When Mull learned from Washtenaw County sheriff's deputies that a township woman was missing Jan. 13, she contacted local militia leader Jimmy Schiel.

“She said, ‘Hey, we need help to do a ground search for Anna-Maria Wheeker,” Schiel recalls of their phone conversation that morning. “I said, ‘So you want the militia?' And she said, ‘Yes.”

Schiel, a member of the Washtenaw County-based Michigan Militia Corps Wolverines, 9th Division, 13th Brigade, started making phone calls. He quickly rounded up three members from his unit and three from the Lenawee County-based Hutaree, 8th Division, 20th Brigade.

They responded to the township hall with two search dogs, backpacks containing medical supplies and a non-militia volunteer on horseback. They met with deputies, firefighters and other volunteers before fanning out in the area to search for Wheeker.

More INTERESTING>>>http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latest-news/bridgewater-township-official-turns-militia-help-watchdog-groups-question-decision

[my2sense]

1. This is frightening...it seems this woman is playing with

fire. I hope this does not become a trend as cities/counties facing budget shortfalls begin to lay off law enforcement.

:scared:

[DRoseDARs]

2. I'm not sure I understand the problem in asking for help for a missing person search.

I get that these guys were assholes of the highest order, but ferfucksake they were voluntarily providing their own emergency supplies and voluntarily helping to search for missing persons. The efforts failed, unfortunately, but at least they tried. Either you can make use of these buffoons and their own resources, or you can hope you get enough probably-untrained volunteers quickly enough and provide them yourself with resources to conduct the search. To quote Eve from the song Lady Marmalade: "Why spend mine when I can spend yours?" Even the local sheriffs department appreciated their help. I'm not going to damn the militia for trying to help, and wasting some of their resources in the process. Had she asked for law enforcement help, that would be a wholly different matter, but this wasn't that.