The Aryan Republican Army and the OKC Bombing

The Aryan Republican Army, Elohim City, and the OKC Bombing
by Charles Richardson (nom de plume)
------------------------------------------------------------
"When they (the FBI) find out what I've  really  been  doing
the past two years, they'll really be surprised."
--Pete 'Commander Pedro' Langan, '96

THE ARYAN REPUBLICAN ARMY
=========================
In 1984, Robert Jay Matthews died in a shootout with  police
on Whidby Island, which is located just  off  the  coast  of
Washington state. Matthews was the  leader  of  a  far-Right
wing  group  calling  itself  The  Order.  This  group   was
responsible for a number of bank and armored  car  robberies
in  the  Pacific  Northwest, netting them almost $4 million.
In other  exploits,  Order  members  bombed  synagogues  and
assassinated Alan Berg, a Jewish radio  talk  show  host  in
Denver. The group ended with the death of Matthews  and  the
imprisonment of other members. [2]

A new and disturbing terrorist sect, similiar in  nature  to
The Order, has emerged in the United States. It  is  modeled
after the 'The Order' and The Irish Republican Army  and  is
adopting  the  IRA  structure  of  impenetrable  underground
cells. Calling itself the Aryan Republican Army,  the  group
represents  the  most  paramilitary  and  radical   of   the
American  neo-Nazi  movement.  It  is   committed   to   the
overthrow  of  the  US  government,  the  extermination   of
America's  Jews,  and  the  establishment   of   an   "Aryan
Republic"  on  the  North  American  continent.   "We   call
ourselves the Aryan Republican Army because in some  of  our
tactics, and  some  of  our  goals,  we  have  modeled  the
organization after the successful and yet  undefeated  Irish
Republican Army," said Commander Pedro [1], in  a  self-made
video titled  ``The  Aryan  Republican  Army  Presents:  The
Armed Struggle Underground.'' [4] In the video, Langan  also
advocates that "Federal buildings may have to be bombed  and
civilian loss of life  is  regrettable but expected."

The FBI discovered this terrorist cell by  accident  earlier
this year while investigating a string of 18 bank  robberies
in the Mid West. [1] The bank bandits made off with  upwards
of $500,000 before the FBI caught on to  them.

With a tip from a confidential informant, the FBI  was  able
to pinpoint one of the bank  robbers,  Richard  Lee  Guthrie
Jr., member  of  the  Aryan  Republican  Army.  Guthrie  was
arrested on  Jan  15,  1996.  Two  days  after  his  arrest,
Guthrie told FBI agents they could find co-conspirator  Pete
"Commander Pedro" Langan in a duplex at  585  Reinhard  Ave.
on the South Side. On Jan 18, 1996,  agents  surrounded  the
house and arrested Langan after a brief shootout. [2]

Guthrie struck a  plea  bargain  with  the  authorities  and
fingered Scott Stedeford, Kevin McCarthy, and Aryan  Nations
leader Mark Thomas, as accomplices in  the  bank  robberies,
all of whom have since been arrested by the authorities.

McCarthy plead guilty  to  three  robberies  and  agreed  to
testify against the others, while  Stedeford  was  convicted
of bank robbery in Iowa in November 1996 (and  faces  thirty
years in prison). Langan was convicted  in  Columbus,  Ohio,
on February 10, 1997. Richard Lee Guthrie was  found  hanged
in his jail  cell  shortly  after  he  struck a plea bargain
and fingered the other Aryan accomplices.

Mark Thomas was brought up on charges by a Grand  Jury.  The
Grand Jury indictment says Thomas  "recruited  young  people
at his residence....to rob banks and commit other crimes  on
behalf of the Aryan Republican Army," [3]

Thomas has since said he believed McCarthy,  a  skinhead  he
once described as a son, was an accomplice in  the  Oklahoma
City bombing. He said Richard Guthrie told him  as  much  in
July 1995.

"His exact words were: 'Your young Mr. Wizard took  out  the
Murrah Building,'" Thomas said. [3]

On February 18, 1997,  Thomas  plead  guilty  to  conspiracy
charges of plotting seven  (of  twenty-two)  bank  robberies
and using the funds  to  further  the  cause  of  the  Aryan
Republican Army.

Also arrested on Jan 30, 1997 in connection  with  the  case
was Michael Brescia of Philadelphia. Typical of  the  gang's
robbiers, authorities say, was  a  bank  heist  in  Madison,
Wis., on Aug. 30, 1995. Brescia carried a black-powder  pipe
bomb into a Bank One branch  and  threatened  customers  and
employees with a 9mm pistol, and proceeded to rob  the  bank
of $9,845. [4] Internet postings and a civil  suit  by  some
survivors of the bombing have accused Brescia  of  being  an
accomplice in the Oklahoma City Bombing.

Aside from robbing  banks,  the  terrorist  cell  stockpiled
weapons  and  ammunition,  and  had  every  opportunity   to
orchestrate  a  terrorist  bombing.  The  FBI   captured   a
shoulder-fired   rocket   launcher,    Semtex    explosives,
hand-grenade canisters, 11 pipe-bombs,  and  an  arsenal  of
guns.  "These  people  had  a  support  system.   They   had
safe-houses  and  very  good  false  documents,"  said  Mike
Reynolds,  senior  intelligence  analyst  at  the   Southern
Poverty  Law  Centre,  which  monitors  Right-wing  violence
across  the  country.  "They  were  clearly  preparing   for
something beyond bank  robberies." [1]   Among  other  items
seized from a storage locker belonging to the group was  the
Irish Republican Army handbook, a terrorist manual known  in
Ireland as the Green  Book,  along  with  an  assortment  of
books on the Irish struggle including A  Little  History  of
Ireland by Seamus MacCall and cassette  tapes  of  a  Gaelic
language course. [1]

ELOHIM CITY - BASE OF OPERATIONS
================================

Elohim City is a 400-acre  compound  located  near  Muldrow,
Oklahoma, about thirty-five miles northwest of  Fort  Smith,
Arkansas. It  was  founded  in  1973  by  Robert  Millar,  a
Canadian who preaches  that  white  Anglo-Saxons  are  God's
chosen people,  non-whites  are  descendants  of  pre-Adamic
species lower than whites, and Jews  are  Satan's  children.
Two dozen of Millar's  34  grandchildren  reside  at  Elohim
City, making up about a quarter of the resident  population.
Elohim City is considered a hotbed  of  terrorist  activity.
Members of the Aryan Republican  Army  used  the  seperatist
compound as a base of operations in  the  years  before  the
bombing.

In 1994, Michael Brescia  moved  to  Elohim  City  where  he
shared a one-story house behind the compound's  chapel  with
Andreas Strassmeir, a former German army lietenant and  head
of security at Elohim City. By the time Brescia left  Elohim
City in 1995, investigators  say,  he,  Stedeford,  Guthrie,
and McCarthy were active in the Aryan Republican Army. [4]

STRASSMIER -- HEAD OF SECURITY FOR ELOHIM CITY
==============================================

As of yet, Strassmier has not been identified  as  a  member
of the Aryan Republican Army, however, he was  friends  with
Brescia  and  various  members  of  the  Aryan  Underground.
According to Robert Millar,  "Strassmier  and  Brescia  were
buddies." In a phone interview with  John  Cash,  Strassmeir
said  he  liked  Brescia  because  ``he   had   a   lot   of
self-confidence'' and was ``a smart guy''.  [20]  Strassmier
also trained members of the Aryan Nations  at  Elohim  City,
and provided instruction in security measures. According  to
ATF Informant  Carol  Howe,  "Strassmeir  talked  frequently
about direct action against the U.S. government, he  trained
in weaponry, and he discussed assassinations,  bombings  and
mass shootings." [20]

Just Who is Andy the German?

Andreas Carl Strassmier is the son  of  Guenter  Strassmeir,
"the architect of German reunification" who was once  a  top
aide to German Chancellor Helmut  Kohl.  Andreas  Strassmeir
spent seven years in  the  German  army,  serving  with  the
Panzer Grenadiers and  an  elite  German  intelligence  unit
whose purpose was  to  feed  disinformation  to  East-German
Communist-bloc agents.

Strassmeir  told  the  London  Telegraph  that  "I've  never
worked for any U.S government  agency,  and  I've  not  been
involved in any intelligence operation  since  my  discharge
from the German army in 1988." But he acknowledged he  first
lived in the U.S. in 1989 because "I was hoping to work  for
the operations section of the DEA.  It  never  worked  out."
More revealingly, he noted that "the right-wing in the  U.S.
is incredibly easy to penetrate if you know how to  talk  to
them. Of course it's easier for a foreigner with an  accent.
Nobody would ever  suspect  a  German  of  working  for  the
federal government."

Strassmeir was assisted in his unsucessful attempts  to  get
jobs with the DEA or INS by  Vinvent  Petruskie,  a  retired
Air Force Colonel and (Strassmeir says) CIA agent  for  whom
Strassmeir arranged to buy used Boeing 747s from  Lufthansa.
Strassmeir received a social  security  number  in  1989  in
Virginia, and  obtained  a  Tennessee  driver's  license  in
1992, using a Knoxville address  provided  by  his  attorney
Kirk  Lyons.  In  1991  some  members  of  the  Texas  Light
Infantry Brigade, a citizen's militia,  followed  Strassmeir
to a federal building and observed him entering it at  night
using  the  key-pad. [20, 22]

After obtaining false documentation and a  drivers  license,
Strassmier was still  unable  to  find  a  job  (other  than
government  informant).  Because  Andy  could  not   legally
obtain a job,  and  because  of  his  apparant  intrests  in
'alternative lifestyles',  Andy  moved  to  Elohim  City  in
1993. At that time,  he  had  lived  in  the  United  States
illegally for five years.

Zara Patterson III, a long time  resident  of  Elohim  City,
summed up Strassmeir's intentions as equally ominous.  "From
the moment Andy got here (mid-August 1991) all he wanted  us
to do was illegal stuff. I had to keep telling Andy that  we
were defensive here... not offensive. I had to keep  telling
him that we didn't want any trouble with the Feds."

"I never saw anyone so eaten up with military stuff as  Andy
was," recalled Zara Patterson III. "I was  in  the  Marines,
but Andy was like nothing I ever  saw  before.  He  said  he
wanted to take over security and training here at EC, and  I
said fine. It was one less headache for me."

According to an FBI intelligence report, Strassmeir's  spent
his  time  at  Elohim  City  fortifying  and   operating   a
terrorist training facility.

A May 10, 1995 FBI investigative report says:

"Strassmeir is alleged to be a German citizen  whose  father
was a former member of  the  German  parliament.  Strassmeir
was a  member  of  the  German  military  and  according  to
sources the principal militia trainer at Elohim City."

"Strassmeir has an outstanding  federal  warrant  issued  by
the  Immigration  and  Naturalization  Service  (INS)  since
failing to leave this country in 1991.

"Strassmeir  is  alleged  to  train   platoon-sized   groups
consisting   of   approximately   30   to   40   individuals
approximately  every  three  months  at  the   Elohim   City
facility. These individuals  are  comprised  of  members  of
various militia groups throughout the United States."

"Additional documents reveal that  at  one  time  Strassmeir
was attempting to purchase a 747  aircraft  from  Lufthansa;
however the reason for the purchase is not reflected in  the
documents."

"Sources  have  advised  that  in  1992  Elohim   City   had
approximately 122 truck loads of concrete  transported  from
a  local  concrete  company.  Sources  have  indicated   the
existence of 'bunkers' and  weapons  storage  facilities  at
Elohim City."

In  a  Jan.  2,  1996  interview,   Strassmeir   admits   to
upgrading the Elohim City arsenal.

"They're pretty fully  equipped  over  there  (Elohim  City)
and I can take credit for that," he said. "They  never  even
had any real weapons there  until  after  Waco  (1993).  The
whole response was to Waco... they thought they  were  going
to be targeted."

Strassmier remained at Elohim City until the  Oklahoma  City
Bombing, at which time he  left  the  compound  with  fellow
Elomites Pete and Tony Ward. In a letter  to  the  McCurtain
Gazette from Strassmeir's attorney, Kurt Lyons,  Lyons  says
his client's sudden departure from the  U.S.  was  aided  by
members of Germany's elite counterterrorism unit, GSG-9.

Dennis  Mahon,  Tulsa  representative  of  the  White  Aryan
Resisitence, has named the Ward brothers as  being  possible
OKC Bombing accomplices. When shown an artist's sketch  done
by ABC News of the person that  a  witness  in  Kansas  said
used the name of Bob Kling, Mahon didn't  hesitate,  "That's
Pete Ward." [11]

"Ward," Mahon  explained,  "was  known  at  Elohim  City  as
'Andy's shadow'...Ward went everywhere  Strassmeir  did  and
is dumb as dirt."

THE FIRST PLOT
==============

"It has the potential, down the road, of being the most dangerous
group (Elohim City) in the country."

--Terry Nobles (former member of Covenant, Sword, Arm of the Lord)
Residents of Elohim City being  connected  with  plots  that
were intended to blow up the Murrah building did  not  begin
with  the  Aryan  Republican  Army.  On  April  19th,  1985,
exactly ten years before the bombing of the Murrah  building
the FBI and ATF raided members of James Ellison's  Covenant,
Sword, and Arm of the Lord group. Ellison is now married  to
Reverend Robert Millar's granddaughter and lives  at  Elohim
City.

The 1985 raid on Elohim City  became  a  siege  that  lasted
four  days  before  members  of  the  group  surrendered  to
authorities. After the  raid,  while  preparing  a  sedition
case against Ellison, U.S.  Assistant  attourney  Steven  N.
Snyder, in Fort Smith, Arkansas learned that a plot to  blow
up the building had existed as early as 1983.  [13]  Ellison
admitted in court that he had been involved  in  a  plot  to
bomb the Murrah Building. Another member of  conspirator  in
the 1983 bombing plan was  Terry  Nobles,  now  an  anti-neo
nazi activist. Nobles said "In 1983 we  cased  the  [Murrah]
building, and made plans to blow up that building." [23]

Richard Wayne Snell, another member of the Covenant,  was  a
co-conspirator with Ellison  and  Nobles.  Snell  has  since
been convicted and put to death for the murder  of  a  black
police officer and a businessman he believed to  be  jewish.
[14] Richard Wayne Snell was executed on April  19th,  1995.
The Denver  Post  reported  Arkansas  prison  official  Alan
Ables as saying that before Snell's execution on the day  of
the bombing he had "repeatedly predicted  that  there  would
be a bombing or explosion on the day of  his  death."  Snell
also  reportedly  "chuckled  and  laughed  as   he   watched
television coverage of the Oklahoma City disaster." [13]

THE KEHOE CONNECTION
====================

On July 17, 1997, a $20 million bond  was  set  by  an  Ohio
Judge for Chevie Kehoe, former resident of Elohim City. [27]

Kehoe was  detained  for  questioning  in  the  slayings  of
Tilly, Ark., gun dealer David Mueller his  wife  Nancy,  and
her  daughter,  Sarah  Elizabeth  Powell,   8.   The   three
disappeared in January 1996. Their  decomposed  bodies  were
dredged from the Illinois Bayou near Russellville, Ark. [15]

Kehoe is believed to have used a .223-caliber rifle,  stolen
from Meuller, when he  fired  26  shots  during  the  second
shootout with two Wilmington police officers at the  Clinton
Electrical and Plumbing Supply. The  reader  may  recognized
this shootout as it has  been  featured  on  primetime  tv's
'Cops', 'World's Scariest Police Shootouts', and  'PrimeTime
Live.'

Chevie Kehoe was assisted in the shootout  by  his  brother,
Cheyne Kehoe. Both brothers had spent time at  Elohim  City.
Robert Millar,  the  bearded  patriarch  of  this  so-called
"Christian Identity" compound, confirms  that  the  brothers
had  lived  at  Elohim  City,  along  with   four   of   the
Pennsylvania men indicted earlier this year in the ARA  bank
robberies. [16]

In recent news, The FBI is investigating claims by a  former
motel manager who says that  Chevie  Kehoe,  member  of  the
ARA, may have known months in advance of  Timothy  McVeigh's
plans to bomb the Oklahoma City federal building.

The FBI has interviewed the motel manager, who  said  Chevie
Kehoe showed up at the Spokane  motel  on  April  19,  1995,
about 45 minutes before the bombing, and said he  wanted  to
watch CNN. He reportedly was ecstatic when a  news  bulletin
reported the blast. [15]

The Spokesman Review newspaper in  Spokane  reported  Friday
that the hotel manager said Kehoe said "it was about  time''
after the explosion was reported. "Days before that, he  had
mentioned  to  me  that  there's  going  to   be   something
happening on the 19th and it's going to  wake  people  up,''
the manager told the newspaper on condition of anonymity.

ARA/ELOHIM CITY LINKS TO MCVEIGH AND FORITER
============================================

What makes this Aryan Army cell so menacing is  the  growing
body of evidence that its members were in contact  with  Tim
McVeigh, the prime suspect in the bombing  of  the  Oklahoma
federal building in April 1995.

McVeigh telephoned Andreas  Strassmier  at  Elohim  City  on
April 5,  1995,  just  minutes  after  reserving  the  truck
allegedly used in the bombing. [8,9]  On  October  12,  1993
McVeigh was stopped for speeding on  the  secluded  road  to
Elohim City. [10] Why did McVeigh call Elohim City to  speak
to Strassmier? What  was  McVeigh  doing  so  close  to  the
'patriot' community at Elohim City?

Even the spiritual leader of  Elohim  City,  Robert  Mollar,
has verified that Michael Fortier had visited  Elohim  City.
From an interview on KOKH-TV OKC, Robert  Mollar  was  asked
if Michael  Fortier  had  ever  been  to  Elohim  City.  His
response, "He might have been here for two or three days.  I
can't answer you. I would  think  it  would  be  before  the
bombing or shortly after. Right in that time frame." [6]

Confirming  Robert  Mollar's  testimony  is  Department   of
Alchohol Tobacco and Firearms Confidential Informant,  Carol
Howe. Among her  more  than  70  reports  to  the  ATF  were
warnings that two Elohim City  subjects  were  casing  three
Oklahoma federal buildings-- and preparing for a  subsequent
bombing. Howe  said  it  was  during  this  December,  1994,
period that Timothy McVeigh and Mike Fortier visited. [12]

"Sometime before Christmas a lot of guys  showed  up  at  EC
(Elohim City). One that I recall was Tim  (McVeigh),  who  I
only knew as Tim Tuttle. He was there with a  guy  who  used
the  name  Fontaine,  a  person  I  now  recognize  as  Mike
Fortier." [12]

Placing even MORE credence  to  this  theory  is  the  court
testimony of Michael Fortier. When  Nichols  Defense  Lawyer
Michael Tigar  asked  Fortier  "..you  said  that  you  were
fearful  of  reprisals  from  the  Aryan  movement  if   you
testified  against  Timothy  McVeigh;   correct?",   Fortier
answered in the affirmitive, "that is correct." [7]

In yet another strange turn  of  events,  Timothy  McVeigh's
sister said in a sworn statement dated  May  2,  1995,  that
Tim gave her (3)  $100.00  bills  and  asked  that  they  be
exchanged for 'clean money' because, her brother  said,  the
bills were "from a recent  bank  robbery  in  which  he  and
others had participated." [17]

Another confirmation  of  this  comes  from  Terry  Nichols.
While being  questioned  on  April  21st,  after  he  turned
himself in at the Kansas police station, Nichols  seemed  to
think that McVeigh was going to rob a bank. The  transcripts
of the FBI questionining indicate  something  very  peculiar
about Terry Nichols and Timothy McVeigh's April  16th,  1995
trip from Oklahoma City to Herington, Kansas.  Nichols  said
that on April 16th, Timothy McVeigh told him "You  will  see
something big in the future." Nichols asked, "What  are  you
going to do, rob a bank?" [18] What this does  indicate,  is
that Terry Nichols did wasn't aware  of  a  bombing  in  the
making,  but  he  was  familiar  with  McVeigh's  links   to
robbery. Why else would Nichols think of bank robbery  right
away, unless he was already familiar  with  McVeigh's  links
to such robbery?

Other circumstances include that when McVeigh  was  arrested
by State Trooper Charles Hanger, he had 2,000 cash  on  him.
[19] He hadn't had a job in six  months.  Later  information
revealed the the unemployed McVeigh had over $10,000  hidden
away in a number of  bank  accounts,  and  several  thousand
dollars stashed in storage units. [5]

In 1992, Catina Lawson,  who  lived  in  Herington,  Kansas,
remembers seeing  Strassmeir  along  with  Timothy  McVeigh,
whom she dated. Lawson recalled that  Strassmeir  "liked  to
dress in black, and he was real cold  and  arrogant--a  real
jerk." Two other witnesses, Larry and Cathy Wild,  say  they
saw and talked with Strassmeir at a lake north of  Herington
the week before the OKC bombing [21]

STRASSMIER, BRESCIA, MCVEIGH CELEBRATE
======================================

When he wasn't robbing banks and training  with  members  of
the  Aryan  Republican  Army,  Michael  Brescia   apparently
celebrated at a strip club or two.  Five  women  at  a  Lady
Godiva's of Tulsa have identified  Michael  Brescia  as  the
man they saw sitting with Tim McVeigh - and paying  for  the
drinks - on April 8, 1995, 11 days before the bombing. [1]

On  a  program  called  "The  Fifth  Estate,"  the  Canadian
counterpart to this  country's  "Sixty  Minutes,"  reporters
obtained  portions  of  a  security  video  taken  at   Lady
Godivas, the Tulsa Strip club. John Cash, of  the  McCurtain
Gazette has also followed up on this story  and  acquired  a
copy of the video tape.

The videotape  was  taken  in  the  dressing  room  of  Lady
Godiva's on the night of April 8, 1995. A dancer is  clearly
heard saying, "And he said,  'I'm  a  very  smart  man.'....
'You are?'.... 'Yes, I am.'....  'And  on  April  19,  1995,
you'll remember me for the rest of  your  life!'"  Laughing,
she  says,  "Oh,  really?"  "Yes  you  will,"  she  says  he
responded. [25] Smiling wide, the dancer starts to walk  out
of the dressing room where the security camera was  located,
then turns back to  the  other  girls  and  says,  "Weirdo,"
before returning out front. Today it can  be  revealed  that
from photographs, witnesses at the club identified  the  man
doing the bragging as  Timothy  McVeigh,  and  those  seated
with him as Michael Brescia,  and  his  former  Elohim  City
roommate, Andreas Strassmeir. [26] The  witnesses  from  the
topless club agreed to appear on that Canadian  TV  segment,
identifying the photos. [25] The FBI has reviewed a copy  of
the video from the club and has also  interviewed  the  same
witnesses featured in  the  CBC  program,  but  the  Justice
Department has made no official comment on what they  intend
to do with the evidence. Since then, one of  the  witnesses,
Shawn Tea Farrens, 23,  was  found  dead  in  her  apartment
(September 1996)
END OF ARTICLE
Footnotes:

[1] Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, The London Telegraph, Issue 564
[2] Robert Ruth, "Friend's Tip To FBI led to Arrests In Bank Bandits
Case", The Columbus Dispatch, 12-04-96
[3] John P. Martin, "Thomas Indicted in Bank Robberies", The Morning
Call, 01-31-97
[4] Mark Fazlollah, "Eagle Scout was soldier for far right", The
Philadelphia Inquirer, 02-28-97
[5] Lawrence Myers, Media Bypass, 06-95
[6] KOKC, Oklahoma City TV, Robert Mollar Interview, 04-02-97
[7] Terry Nichols Trial Transcripts
[8] Peter Annin and Tom Morganthau, "Blowing Smoke," Newsweek, 02-19-96
[9] Timothy McVeigh Trial, "Darryl Bridges" calling card exhibit
[10] Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, "Did Agents Bungle US Terror Bomb?",
London Sunday Telegraph, 05-19-96
[11] John Cash, "Confessions of a Revolutionary", McCurtain Gazette,
04-01-97
[12] John Cash, "The Spy Who Came In From The Cold", McCurtain Gazette,
02/11/97
[13] Kelly Kurt, Monterey County (California) Herald, Associated Press,
05/20/95
[14] Reuters, 02-08-96
[15] Mark Jewell, "FBI investigating new lead in Oklahoma City Bombing",
Associated Press, 01-17-98
[16] William Jasper, The New American Magazine, 03/31/97
[17] Pierre Thomas, "McVeigh's Sisters Says he Robbed, Carried
Explosives", Washington Post reported in San Fransisco Chronicle,
07-19-95
[18] Patrick E. Cole, "What Nichols Revealed", Time Magazine, 10-06-97
[19] David Johnston, "Just Before He Was To Be Freed, Prime Bombing
Suspect Is Identified in Jail", New York Times, 04-22-95
[20] John Cash, "Strassmeir Helped Fortify, Arm Elohim City Bunkers",
McCurtain Gazette,  04-13-97
[21] Laura Frank,  "Oklahoma  Probe May Touch Tennessee," The
Tennessean, 06-30-96
[22] Orlin Grabbe, "Oklahoma City, Government-Paid Neo-Nazis, and the
FCC", http://www.taci.net/kalliste
[23] Chris Hansen, "City of Secrets", NBC Dateline, 05-30-97
[24] David Hoffman, "Family on Quest for Answers Meets Harassment,
Intimidation", The Washington Weekly, 04/21/97
[25] "The Fifth Estate", The Canadian Broadcasting Company, 10-22-96
[26] John Cash, "Is A Videotape From A Tulsa Topless Bar The "Smoking
Gun" In Oklahoma Bombing?", McCurtain Daily Gazette, 09-25-96
[27] The Militia Watchdog, http://www.militia-watchdog.com, 12-12-97
[28] Judy Thomas, Kansas City Star, Sunday, 03-17-96.

"I think there are other  people  out  there  and  suspicions
were probably made very early on that Tim McVeigh and  Terry
Nichols were who they were looking for, and  the  same  sort
of resources were not used to  try  to  find  out  who  else
might be involved."

--Nicki Deutchmann, Terry Nichols Jury Foreman

"Witnesses who saw  Timothy  McVeigh  with  John  Doe  2  or
other suspects  were  not  allowed  to  testify  before  the
Federal Grand Jury."

--Hoppy Heidelberg, OKC Bombing Federal Grand Jury member
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(c) 1997 Charles Richardson - (*) free to distribute nonprofit under the
condition that this file is not modified in any way and all notes and
sources are attributed.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 Believe nothing merely because you have been told it... Do not believe
 what your teacher tells you merely out of respect for the teacher. But
 whatsoever, after due examination and analysis, you find to be kind,
 conducive to the good, the benefit, the welfare of all beings -- that
 doctrine believe and cling to and take it as your guide.
 -- Buddha

Hal Turner Admits He Worked for the FBI

http://www.prisonplanet.com/hal-turner-admits-he-worked-for-the-fbi.html

Hal Turner Admits He Worked for the FBI
Kurt Nimmo
Infowars
Wednesday, July 29, 2009

In a lame attempt to save his hide and stay out of prison for allegedly threatening to kill federal judges, the racist talk show host Hal Turner has admitted in court that he is an FBI informant, the Chicago Breaking News Center reports today.

FBI informant and operative Hal Turner seen in state Superior Court in Jersey City in June with his lawyer.

Alex Jones and others have argued for some time that the white supremacist from North Bergen, New Jersey, is an FBI informant.

Assistant U.S. Atty. William Hogan tried to dismiss Turner’s admission. “Hogan said Turner may have had some contact with the FBI as an informant but that it was quite some time ago,” reports Jeff Coen. Recent evidence, however, reveals that Turner has continued his relationship with the feds.

Documentation emerged in 2008 exposing Turner as an FBI operative. “Hal Turner, rising in fame as the most blatant hate talk radio host, self-proclaimed neo-nazi, antisemite, racist who hinted at the need to eradicate Jews — turns out to have been fronting a typical FBI COINTELPRO sting operation,” writes Richard Evans. Hackers managed to gain access to his forum server and revealed correspondence with an FBI agent who was apparently Turner’s handler.

As documented by Brian Glick and others, under COINTELPRO, the FBI subsidized, armed, directed and protected the Klu Klux Klan and other racist groups, including the “Secret Army Organization” of California.

The FBI is notorious for unleashing informants and provocateurs. In 2008, it was discovered that informants working for the FBI were at the center of a supposed terror plot aimed at the Fort Dix Army base in New Jersey. One of the of the informants received nearly $240,000 in taxpayer money for his role in the operation.

In 2007, the FBI was caught manipulating seven impoverished residents of Liberty City, Florida, attempting to get them to blow up the Sears tower in Chicago. As it turns out, the supposed terror plot and the principal source of resources for the group came in the form of an FBI informant posing as an “Al Qaeda representative.” The two informants — Abbas al-Saidi and Elie Assad — earned over $130,000 for their services to the FBI.

Earlier this year, the FBI lured a gang of pathetic would-be terrorists in New York with “piles of cash and gifts and even bags of weed,” according to the New York Post. The men were later charged with plotting to blow up synagogues and military jets.

Other incidents of FBI agents provocateurs attempting to get people to engage in violent and illegal acts are legendary. The McDavid case, for instance, received attention in 2006. “In January 2006, Eric McDavid, Lauren Weiner, and Zachary Jenson were arrested in California and charged with knowingly conspiring to use fire or explosives to damage property,” writes Jennifer Van Bergen for Raw Story. It was later revealed that a paid FBI confidential informant named “Anna” had not only infiltrated peace and justice rallies and anarchist meetings, but had acted as a provocateur in the McDavid case. “McDavid’s attorney, Mark Reichel, states that Anna was always pushing McDavid to do something criminal, taught the three how to make the bombs, supervised their activities, and repeatedly threatened to leave them if they didn’t start doing ’something,’” Van Bergen writes.

Considering this blatant history of FBI provocation, it is entirely possible that Hal Turner was encouraged by the agency to issue threats against federal judges. Turner was arrested on June 3, 2009, for issuing threats against two politicians in Connecticut and a state ethics official. He was re-arrested on June 24 and charged with issuing threats against judges of the United States Court of Appeals in Chicago.

It is no mistake the federal authorities arrested Turner at approximately the same time the Department of Homeland Security was coming under fire for its now infamous “rightwing extremism” report that specifically warns about violence on the part of white supremacists who are conveniently connected by the government to returning veterans, defenders of the Second Amendment, pro-life activists, and patriot groups.

It is common knowledge the FBI collaborated with Morris Dees’ Southern Poverty Law Center in a joint effort to create violent white supremacist groups where none existed before. A declassified FBI memo reveals that the SPLC had informants at Elohim City on the eve of the Oklahoma City bombing. “If I told you what we were doing there, I would have to kill you,” Dees said during a press conference.

Hal Turner, by his own courtroom admission, is a classic government patsy burned by the people he attempted to collaborate with. He will likely have a lot of time to think about the stupidity of his actions in federal prison.

Oklahoma City's NBA team to be called Thunder

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jkN_0O4FG2ehgoJTTnwXt0WAbvfQD92VION81

Oklahoma City's NBA team to be called Thunder
By JEFF LATZKE
9-3-8

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Thunder can be heard from miles away, an early warning that a storm is about to arrive. So, perhaps it's only fitting that the name of Oklahoma City's NBA team didn't sneak up on anyone.

Six weeks after the name first surfaced, team officials officially announced Wednesday that the team formerly known as the Seattle SuperSonics would be known as the Oklahoma City Thunder.

"It's hard to keep a secret," team chairman Clay Bennett said after stepping to a podium on the ground floor of the downtown office building where the team is headquartered.

The announcement had long been anticipated, but everyone knew what was coming.

The local ABC affiliate reported in mid-July that Thunder had been chosen as the nickname. Then the NBA Web site listed NBA.com/thunder as a link to the Oklahoma City team's page. Then the Orlando Magic's site listed games against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Even the logo and colors leaked out over the weekend. Then, prior to the 5 p.m. announcement, Thunder merchandise started showing up on the NBA's online store.

"I thought it was great fun. Maybe I have a warped sense of things," Bennett said. "I thought it was a lot of fun. I was disappointed in the image being released."

That left Bennett somewhat surprised that hundreds of people still showed up in the atrium of Leadership Square, watched from their office windows or leaned over a second-floor walkway to hear it for sure.

"My family talked about wanting to come down, and I said, `Well, I don't think it's that big a deal. Everybody seems to know the name already,'" Bennett said.

To unveil the logo, six children joined players Desmond Mason and Damien Wilkins to pull down a curtain as the AC/DC song "Thunderstruck" blared over the loudspeaker. What was revealed was a large blue banner with the logo in the middle, and splashes of yellow at the top and reddish-orange at the bottom.

Bennett said the light blue color coincides with the state flag to represent the inclusion of all Oklahomans, the yellow refers to the sun and the reddish-orange color to the sunset. With the University of Oklahoma featuring crimson as its primary color, and Oklahoma State using orange, Bennett said it was "not too red and not too orange."

Thunder is a fitting moniker for the Oklahoma City franchise, not only as a reference to powerful storms in the area known as Tornado Alley. The Oklahoma City-based 45th Infantry Division carries Thunderbirds as its nickname, and that's a reference to the state's American Indian heritage. Even one of Oklahoma native Garth Brooks' biggest hits was "The Thunder Rolls."

"There's just all kinds of good thunder images and thoughts, and the in-game experience of Thunder," Bennett said. "Just here was a good sense of how that evokes emotion. It's very powerful."

The team name had been the most evident — and talked about — element missing after Bennett announced July 2 that the SuperSonics would be moving to Oklahoma City through an agreement that will have him pay the city of Seattle up to $75 million to settle a lawsuit.

Bennett said the uniforms and mascot won't be unveiled for another few weeks, but T-shirts, basketballs and other Thunder merchandise went on sale immediately after the announcement.

"The guys in the jerseys, if they play, the jerseys are going to look real good," coach P.J. Carlesimo said.

While the team applied for trademarks to six names — the others were Wind, Barons, Marshalls, Energy and Bison — Bennett said the decision on the name had been made "quite some time" ago. He said the names on the trademark applications weren't finalists, and he wouldn't reveal what other names got serious consideration.

General manager Sam Presti told the crowd designing a logo "takes an immense amount of work, and it does take some time.

"Not that anyone was really paying attention to the amount of time it was taking," he quipped.

Team officials said they hope they can make the qualities of character, perseverance, selflessness, community and winning synonymous with Thunder.

"It's very unique," said Mason, a former Oklahoma State forward who the Thunder acquired in an offseason trade with Milwaukee. "It's going to take some time getting used to, just like Utah Jazz or Orlando Magic, but I think it's a great thing for the state and a great thing for the city."

Thunder/Marshalls/Energy/Wind/Barons/Bison

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-33-95/Oklahoma-City-Thunder-Marshalls-Energy-Wind-Barons-Bison.html

Oklahoma City Thunder/Marshalls/Energy/Wind/Barons/Bison
July 25, 2008

There have been reports here or there that the team that used be knows as the SuperSonics would be called this or that. They are mostly based on anonymous sources, or some evidence that somebody or other registered this or that web address.

I'm holding out for some better, more solid information before I rename that category over there on the right.

An alert TrueHoop reader (thanks Todd) has some insight of a kind. He points out that an NBA attorney recently made a number of filings with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

You can search the database yourself. If you know how to search (it's a little complicated, but hang in there) you can see active trademark requests, filed July 21, for the following names:

Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Marshalls
Oklahoma City Energy
Oklahoma City Wind
Oklahoma City Barons
Oklahoma City Bison

There is also an inactive request, filed by the same attorney, for the name "Oklahoma City SuperSonics."

Most unusual is that, unlike trademark applications for other NBA teams, these have been applied for by the NBA Development League. (And this whole time I thought all that fuss was about an NBA team! No, just kidding. Insert joke here about the quality of the Sonic roster.) I am not sure if that means anything or not.

So, Thunder, Marshalls, Energy, Wind, Barons, Bison ... I'm going to put on my PR hat and declare that if these are the options, this team is certain to be called the Thunder, the Marshalls, or some name that has not yet come to light.

Energy, Wind, Barons, and Bison all have fatal flaws, in my mind:

Energy: Energy has a nice tie-in with co-owner Aubrey McClendon's business, and the big employers in the region. But it is not a cool word in this context. Using "energy" as a "rah rah" word for athletes strikes me as kind if eighties (like, in fact, "rah rah" itself). This video, in my mind, would set the mood in the locker room of a team called the "Energy."

Wind: Wind? Really? Wind? Synonym of breeze? Maybe they're registering this for the dance team? Or as a desperate ploy related to promote an owner's alternative energy business? Because a team called the wind can never lose a game. Every headline will be "Lakers Break Wind," "Celtics Break Wind," "Pistons Break Wind," etc. That's not good for the NBA. This one is almost more palatable if we interpret it as the verb, with the long "i" sound, as in "wind up toy."

Barons: Clay Bennett and his cronies have behaved in a manner that many have likened to Robber Barons. I dare them to name the team the Barons.

Bison: The tradition of the bison could not be mightier. Nevertheless, it is a reality that in 2008 rich white men can not be seen to be sending a predominantly black group of employees into the workplace with the word "bison" across their chest. No way that happens.

Microsoft, Costco CEOs may keep Sonics in town

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7878668/Microsoft,-Costco-CEOs-may-help-keep-Sonics-in-town

Microsoft, Costco CEOs may help keep Sonics in town
Associated Press
Updated: March 6, 2008

In no way did developer Matt Griffin ever consider owning a professional sports franchise.

With the Seattle SuperSonics seemingly destined for Oklahoma City, Griffin and his big-name partners see no other option than to make a huge financial commitment in an attempt to save the Sonics and pro basketball in Seattle.

"Our interest is not necessarily in being an owner, but seeing a team here in Seattle and seeing KeyArena alive," Griffin said Thursday. "If there was a way to do it without having to own the team, that would be terrific. But these are the cards, (and) we have some generous people here in Seattle that are willing to do this."

Making a last-ditch effort to keep the team, the city of Seattle unveiled a $300 million KeyArena renovation plan on Thursday, along with the heavy hitters of local business who are willing to provide a significant financial stake.

Griffin and his three partners - Microsoft Corp. chief executive Steve Ballmer, Costco Wholesale Corp. president and CEO Jim Sinegal and wireless entrepreneur John Stanton - have agreed to contribute $150 million to the arena renovation, contingent on the group's ability to purchase the SuperSonics or another NBA franchise. Only recently did the group up its offer from about $75 million.

The group hopes to have a viable option for professional basketball in Seattle on the table when the NBA's board of governors meets next month to vote on SuperSonics owner Clay Bennett's application to relocate the franchise to Oklahoma City at the earliest possible date.

"This particular announcement, we think, is a game-changer," Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels said. "The fact that local investors are willing to step up with the first 50 percent of the money to get this job done, as well as the investment they're going to make in buying a team to begin with, changes the game."

While private investment would cover half the arena upgrades, the plan envisions that the city and state would split the other $150 million. Half would come from the city of Seattle, offset by lease agreements and taxes on the renovated arena.

The other $75 million would come from existing taxes already in place to pay off bonds on the construction of Safeco Field. Those bonds are scheduled to be paid off early, and the KeyArena plan would call for the taxes to remain in place through 2016, when they were set to expire.

The state legislature would have to approve a continuation of the taxes.