No More Violent Standoffs

As the ongoing standoff between the Montana Freemen and the FBI continues to drag on day after day with little to no change, I become a little more heartened.

Not, of course, because a group of heavily armed outlaws are currently occupying a barn surrounded by federal agents, refusing to give themselves up to the justice system. Clearly, the group of Freemen pose a dangerous threat to the proper conduct of government.

I am heartened because--surprisingly--both federal agents and outside militias are acting calmly, carefully and sensibly in a concerted effort to avert violence. It is a tribute to the efforts of both sides that the standoff remains bloodless.

Both sides are painfully aware of the bloody ends of federal seiges at Waco, Texas and Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and both are trying to prevent the same from happening in Jordan, Montana. Unlike at Ruby Ridge, where a seige ended in the death of a 14-year-old boy and his mother, federal agents are acting with remarkable prudence.

The federal agents delayed a direct confrontation until the local townspeople were ready to form their own posse. They are now maintaining a loose perimeter around the barn and surrounding property. Agents began with negotiations, not shooting.

For the most part, the militias who support the Freemen are acting with caution too. Leaders are asking their members to stay home. Instead of scheduling their gun-free protest near the farm, the Idaho-based Freemen patriots gathered 120 miles away so law enforcement agents wouldn't be unduly concerned.

This concerted effort to act calmly and rationally is born of fear. But that fear and new-found sense of caution may be the only positive effect of Waco and Ruby Ridge.

I sincerely hope that fear reaches a few people who don't seem horrified enough. One of the Freemen now in custody warned the crowd that this could be worse than Waco.

Of course, the seige isn't over yet, he could still be right: the possibility of bloodshed is still very real. But I think this time, it's a whole different ball game and not just because of the fear.

For one thing, there are no children in the barn with the militia members. That alone is comforting fact; this is not going to be a slaughter of people who have never violated a single law. (All those inside the barn are trespassing, currently).

For another, people who haven't acted with care in the past are making a large effort to do so now. Many militia members, who are often portrayed in the media as groups of raving, trigger-happy madmen, are very rationally and deliberately avoiding provoking federal agents.

There have been no guns at the protests, which has remained completely orderly. The protests were planned and held deliberately far away from the site of the standoff.

In addition, the federal government, smarting from damaging Congressional investigations into the Waco and Ruby Ridge tragedies, has finally decided to stick to the rules. This time, the rules of engagement are stable and the orders are coming from a single source.

This time, there hasn't been any shooting, provoked or not. There haven't been any ill-planned raids or deliberately botched negotiations.

But the most significant difference is that one very dangerous group is absent--there are no ATF agents on the scene.

Since the freemen aren't wanted on firearm charges, the ATF is conspicuously absent. Those agents who actually fired the guns and made the worst of the decisions at Ruby Ridge and Waco aren't there to force violence with their rash actions.

The ATF should have been disbanded as soon as the Congressional committees determined just how much blood was on the agency's hands.

But perhaps, if the FBI proves it can handle a standoff and negotiate a conclusion, the federal government will see the light. If the ATF is seen as both useless and vicious, maybe the U.S. will finally have a law-enforcement branch that deserves our trust.

Valerie J. MacMillan's column appears on alternate Thursdays.