From: [p--o--r] at [chinook.halcyon.com] (Pyotr Filipivich)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.guns
Subject: Waco, Koresh, the ATF, and the Tooth Fairy
Date: 18 Jul 1996 06:05:38 GMT

Randall M Woyicki <[w--i--i] at [andrew.cmu.edu]> writes:
}Finally, I will answer the Waco commentary. I have stated my views
}regarding the situation at the Branch Davidian compound.  Some people
}have gotten upset regarding some details of this discussion (saying ATF
}when FBI is meant, etc).  Pretty much useless common sense stuff that
}people can easily figure out but like to complain about.  I have
}admitted that the operation was foolishly botched.  I have always
}maintained this position.  But it is necessary to see that the Branch
}Davidians fired at law enforcement officials then held a standoff for 51
}days.  Negotiating should have been done.  Some people insist that the
}FBI should have packed up and walked away from it because of the Branch
}Davidians' apocalyptic beliefs.  Problem is that this is not an
}acceptable solution.

We'll start with at the top. 

Koresh took over leadership of the group after the previous leader died. 
Koresh's rival dug up a body and challenged Koresh to a "miracle duel" (q.vid.
Elijah and the Prophets of Baal) Koresh reported this to the authorities, but
the authorities needed more proof.  Koresh and his faction went out to
wherever it was that the rival was, and words were exchanged, followed by
bullets.  The Sheriff called Koresh at home (Mt Carmel) and said, in essence
"David, I'm going to have to arrest you, be ready and have the gun."  Did
Koresh say "No way, thou Servant of Satan!"?  Nope, he said "Okay".  And
Koresh went to trial, and the trial came to no conclusion.
             As Koresh consolidated his authority in the group, he called the DEA for
help in getting an illegal drug lab on the premises removed and cleaned up. 
There wasn't any shoot out, no need for cowboys, just technical aid in dealing
with toxic chemicals.  Keep in mind that this means the lab is _gone_.  Gone,
vamenos, out of here, it has gone to that great meth lab in the sky, the G-men
done hauled it away.

About four years later, the ATF became concerned with its reputation in
Congress.  Budget hearings were due up and they decided they needed a big
spectacular bust.  And they needed to distract attention from the racial and
sexual harassment suits being filed by its own agents (these are some of the
cases that were recently settled for 4 million bucks.).  And here was this
splinter group from an off shoot of non-mainstream religion. (The Seventh Day
Adventists are not exactly the exemplar of American Church doctrine and
practice.)  This group came to the attention of the ATF most likely because
the Branch Davidian were supporting themselves via gun sales. For a church in
Texas, this might not seem that odd; certainly no odder than a religious group
in France going into the wine business, or a monastery near Seattle going into
the espresso bean biz.

So in July of 1992 - six months before the raid, an ATF agent is talking to
one of Koresh's suppliers.  The guy calls Koresh and says 'Dave, there's a guy
from the ATF wanting to know about you.' Did Koresh say "get thee hence, thou
spawn of satan!"?  Not hardly - he said "Come on down!"  The ATF agent said
that the bureau didn't work that way.  Testified before Congress that this was
what went on.

The ATF then went to the US Army and said there was a meth lab on the place,
they needed US Military help to over come this Drug Problem.  (Remember that
meth lab removed some years before - it's "back".)  Now an interesting thing
came out in the Congressional hearing.  Seems that once the ATF got the okay
for military aid, it promptly forgot about the meth lab.  Wanted Bradleys,
assault training, stun grenades - and didn't ask for the sort of specialized
training that one would consider needed if one was going to be going into an
area with explosive chemicals - which a meth lab definitely is.  Fact of the
matter, one of the Army personnel assigned the duty went to the JAG's office
and said "Is this legal, what they are asking us to do?" and was told "this
part maybe, but not the rest."  Whoops.  But the ATF wasn't exactly concerned
with technicalities.
             The ATF after about Feb 12, again according to Congressional Testimony,
dropped any tactical plan but dynamic entry from consideration.

Then we have the week leading up to Operation Showtime.  Now as happens, there
had been some differences of option between some former members and current
members, a nasty divorce in one case.  And this being the 90s, there were
allegations of child abuse and child molestation and other heinous activities. 
Three hundred years ago there would have been accusation of witchcraft,
consorting with demons and Satan Worship.  But we are much more sophisticated
these days.  We don't have such superstitions as witchcraft, we have Child
Abuse.  So the witch smeller persuviants - err Child Protective Agents had
been out to the center and found - no evidence.  [I haven't forgotten Kari
Jewel.  It is interesting, though, that on some of the dates she was allegedly
being used by Koresh, she was in California.  But we'll let that pass.  As did
the mainstream media.]

Why the Bureau's PIO was in Waco, and called a couple reporters, if the was
just a routine investigation, hasn't been adequately explained.  The Waco
paper started publishing a series on the Waco Messiah - and the ATF felt they
had to go with Plan A.  [Of course they did, they didn't have a Plan B.]  And
two TV reporters, knowing something was up, were following the scanners and
got wind of the unfolding plan (unraveling would be more like it).  They
couldn't find the place, so they asked a postal worker if he knew where the
place was.  The person they asked was a Davidian, and he called home and said
- there is something going down.

So what did Koresh do?  Deploy the troops?  Start digging trenches? break out
the automatic weapons? Issue arms to the community?  Nope - he told his people
to pray, he prayed, and generally acted as one who hopes for good relations
with the temporal authorities, knowing that they could be pawns of the Evil
One.  Now I know that bothers some that there might actually be people who
believe in a literal Devil who actively seeks to oppose the Righteous.  Heck,
I know it bothers some that there are people who have such quaint notions as
Right and Wrong, but that is their problem.  As I've said - that's a question
for management, I'm just in sales.  But Koresh knew that the Devil was real,
that He had powers over this world, and that the Works of Man were subject to
His malevolent influence.  Specifically, Koresh knew that Satan would bring
the Forces Of Darkness against the people of Righteousness, among which he
counted himself.
             Oh yes, one other thing.  Koresh told the ATF agent in place that he'd
best leave, the ATF was a coming.  And the ATF agent left, called in and said
"He knows".  And the Head office decided the troops in the field didn't need
this info, or didn't realize what this info meant, or just as likely, didn't
understand and had no means of telling the field agents what was happening if
they had..  Not to mention they had a knock and search warrant good until
midnight of the 28th of February.

So the poor field agents drive out to Mt Carmel Center hiding in two horse
trailers so as to make everything appear normal, I suppose.  Once there, they
parked the trailers a hundred yards from the buildings, deployed the troops
from the trailers, got down the ladders, set them up and started climbing onto
the roof.
             David Koresh has gone out to find out what the heck is going on, says
"Hey let's talk about this" and the shooting starts.  Naturally, everybody
says the other guy started it.  But at the time, there was a report of an
agent stumbling and shooting himself in the leg.  Whoops.  But when he yelled
"I'm hit" - what is the natural conclusion his buddies would draw - he shot
himself?  (Remember, these are Highly Trained Professionals, agents of the
Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and FIREARMS, so one would expect them to show some
professionalism and not do something bonehead like shoot themselves.  Right.)
             So Koresh is shot in the hand and abdomen and his father in law behind
him is fatally shot as well. The lawyer for the Davidians says he was shown
bullet holes in the ceilings which the Davidians alleged came from the
Helicopter before any other firing occurred.  It came out in the Hearings that
there was at least one ATF agent on board the chopper with a rifle despite
instructions not to.)  And he also said that there were a lot of bullet holes
in the metal front door, which appeared to be made from the outside in.
             And there is the broadcast footage of the shooting - four agents on the
roof, three go in the window, and the fourth starts to shoot the wall. (Didn't
his buddies just go that way?) And big bullet holes come thought the wall back
at him.  (I guess he didn't owe them money.)

It's interesting the amount of shooting going on, for the service of a Knock
and Enter search warrant on a place alleged to have a meth lab inside (a
distinguishing feature of meth labs is the large amounts of explosive,
flammable and dangerous chemicals involved.  Not the sort of place one want to
be shooting up or using "flash bangs" - better known as concussion grenades). 
Reports I've read at the time indicated that the ATF ran out of ammo, and had
to call for a cease fire to get their butts out of there.  And the agents were
saying they were out gunned, until the PIO got the right story out.
             And the four agents were buried with full honors (wasn't their fault
their leadership is corrupt, necessarily.) but their autopsy reports were
mislaid.  (Jeeze, the Clinton administration is barely in office and official
files are getting lost.)  And the FBI Hostage Response Team is called in, to
once again be the cat's paw for the ATF and save their bacon.  You'd think
they'd learn after a while.
             Now a question come to my suspicious mind - why is the HRT there? 
             Who are the hostages? 
             "Why the people inside!" 
                         There are non-believers in there? 
             "No, the children." 
             The Children.  The children living with their parents in their home have
been taken hostage.  By whom?
             "Well we have reports of Child Molestation going on in there, and Koresh
is having sex with teenage girls!"
             You are aware that the legal age to marry in the state of Texas is 14? 
And that teenage sex is not part of the charter of the Bureau of Alcohol
Tobacco And Firearms?  Or any other Federal Agency, except possibly the
Department of Education, which seems to be promoting it.  You are aware that
in 1992 Child Abuse was not in Federal Jurisdiction unless it occurred on a
Federal Installation, like a military base?. 

Eventually, of course, a group of "hostages' were released - and were promptly
handcuffed and held incommunicado.  I thought they were hostages?  At least
the Nazis knew enough to have deportees write a postcard home saying all was
well.

So the HRT decides that what they need to do is cut off the water and power,
in winter, in East Texas.  Definitely the way to make friends and influence
people.  And they needed to put pressure on the people inside, so the search
lights illuminate the buildings all night, and the sounds of rabbits being
killed (horrible screams) were played all night, and the combat engineering
vehicle (which the non-specialist might mistake for a tank) drove over
Koresh's 68 Ranchero, and "bumped" the building a few times in the process.
             As I said at the time - did no one RTFM WRT the apocalyptic personality? 
The sort of actions one would take with an bandit group holed up with hostages
is not the same ones appropriate when dealing with an non-conformist group
with a strong group identity.

So after fifty one days of this, and several visits by Koresh's lawyer, and
negotiations over the phone - a deal was reached.  Of course Koresh had a
"price" - he knew he had been selected to make the final explanation of the
Seven Seals of Revelation and their meaning.  He knew he was meant to get this
information out, and dying a martyrs death before then was not A Good Idea.
             And the next day - the FBI HRT decides that the way to get people out of
a building they considered home was to pump CS gas into the building, ignoring
the manufacturers warning about ensuring adequate ventilation, avoid the
presence of open flame, avoid exposure to young children and people with
respiratory difficulties, no smoking. (And ignoring the detail that the mfg.
has ceased selling it to Israel due to the fatalities caused by the gas when
used in enclosed areas on the West Bank.)  And to make it easier for the
hostages to egress (didn't anyone ever hear about the Stockholm syndrome?) -
they decided to knock holes in the walls with their combat engineering vehicle
(which just looks like a tank to the uninitiated).  And broadcast through bull
horns that "This is not a Raid" all the while.
             So imagine the scene - the forces of Evil are outside your house,
they've cut off the power and the water, they've tortured animals over
loudspeakers.  Members of your family have been shot at when they tried to
leave, other members when they negotiated an exit were handcuffed and that was
the last you saw of them.  Now the same pawns are pumping "poison " gas into
you house, the same time that a tank is crashing into your house, knocking it
down and making it hard to get around inside your home.  The children are
crying, puking and scared - well, then so are you ... and all the time the mob
out side is trying to convince you that this is not a raid.  If this isn't,
what is?

And a fire breaks out.  There is a good stiff wind blowing, the house has hay
for insulation, and is made of wood.  Up it goes in flames.  Of course, the
exits have been blocked by debris, whether intentionally or not is hard to
tell without a time machine.
             Allegedly the firetrucks are held back on orders of the HRT, and
allegedly inquiries were made to the local hospitals asking about their burn
center capacity.  The HRT gather round for a victory photograph in front of
the flames, the PIOs and newsiods interpret the explosion of the propane tank
as evidence the davidians really were caching explosives. And last but not
least - for the day - the ATF runs their flag up the pole over the smoking
ruins.

The survivors are arrested and the media machine goes home.  The ATF makes its
inspection of the site, and then bulldozes it before anyone else can.  The
Texas Rangers are not happy, this happens in their state and they are just to
go along?

The court case isn't as dramatic as the Weaver case - in that one the Defense
attorney's case was [paraphrased] "you've heard the prosecution - the defense
rests".  But the Waco Texas jury found the defendants innocent of the charges
of attempted murder, but guilty of the use of a firearm in the commission of a
crime (the deaths of the federal agents) - which verdict was thrown out by the
judge as nonsensical (how can they be guilty of use of a firearm in a crime
when they are not guilty of the crime they were used in?) until he later
reverse himself and found everybody guilty of being witches, err enemies of
the state, - and sentenced them the maximum allowed by the law.

All this over gun parts.

Sheesh.

--
[p--o--r] at [halcyon.com]  Pyotr Filipivich here, Nikolai Petrovich in the SCA.
Two Questions:
        "Who is John Galt?" is the easy one.  
        "Who hired Craig Livingstone?" is the hard one.