Shortly before his death, Colby gave me my final assignment. It was the week just before the Oklahoma bombing, and I spent a good amount of time with him in Washington, D.C. I brought him up to date on the Militia of Montana case which he had been following closely, describing in detail the militias' fears that the government was planning an imminent attack on them.
As I sought guidance from him on how to best handle the militia situation, Bill smiled and said, "John, it sounds to me like you have the makings of another book. Believe me," he continued, "I know this Militia/Patriot movement is more significant than most Americans, and particularly the press and politicians, could ever realize. I fear that our government does not understand the nature of this movement, nor its potential significance to this country," Bill said.
As he continued talking, Bill became very intense. "I watched the Anti-War Movement render it impossible for this country to conduct or win the Vietnam War. I tell you, dear friend, that this Militia and Patriot movement in which, as an attorney, you have become one of the centerpieces, is far more significant and far more dangerous for America than the Anti-War Movement ever was, if it is not intelligently dealt with. And I really mean this," Colby concluded.
"What are you saying?" I asked Bill. "Aren't you being a little melodramatic?" I asked him, more than a little upset at what I thought he was saying. "Dangerous?" I continued. "Hell, one Saturday night gang fight in Los Angeles is more dangerous than all the militias combined together from what I can see," I said.
"In fact," I told Colby, "I'm willing to wager that you can't find any incidents of real danger or destruction across these United States that were, in fact, initiated by the militias. Every case I have ever heard about is a situation in which one of these characters was being attacked by some government agency over some rinky-dink crime in the first place," I argued -- "And, so far as I can see, most of the patriot and militia people I have dealt with are the salt-of-the-earth Americans who truly believe they are trying to save America. The typical militia member is usually someone who has a lifetime of activity, establishing that role, first in the military, then as a family man or woman, and also as a businessman or hard-working lifetime employee somewhere. Most often they are mature adults, with twenty or more years of life's experiences and learning behind them, including paying taxes, being property owners, developing their communities.
"They are not, in most cases, an eighteen or twenty-year-old kid, who has never held a job, been spoiled rotten, or ducked the draft or burned a flag or been arrested, or served time, or done drugs, or been a gang member or done drive-by shootings," I almost shouted at Colby, as I discussed this most important issue with him.
"Just what is it that makes the patriot movement and these people so dangerous?" I demanded of him.
Bill was now very intense. He spoke very slowly and very clearly, intending that there be no misunderstanding on my part of what he was saying.
"It is not because these people are armed, that America need be concerned," Bill explained to my surprise. "It is not that these people stockpile weapons and have para-military training sessions, that they are dangerous," Colby continued. "What concerns me is something far more serious, that I fear our politicians do not see, cannot see, and and refuse to deal with," Colby said.
"They are dangerous precisely because of everything you just said. They are dangerous because these people are, in most cases mature citizens who have done everything you just described and who, tragically and in many cases very justifiably, have lost faith in the integrity and honesty of their own government. Yes, they are dangerous because, to use your words, John, they are true patriots who are disenchanted with the government and the system they have grown up loving, supporting and giving their lives and talents for from the moment they were born. For many of them, it is as if they learned their mother was a prostitute and that they are bastards. It really is that traumatic."
I listened to Bill; I looked at him, and said, almost playing the devil's advocate by defending the politicians, "So what, Bill? There have always been unhappy people who think the politicians are crooked; that the government is bad; that the end of the world is coming or whatever. We call them nuts or crackpots or whatever and lock a few of them up now and then and go on with our business. What makes these people so much different or more dangerous than any other group who has tromped through history in the last 225 years of this country's existence?"
Then my friend, the man whom I have found to have a better grip on the processes of history than anyone else, delivered his punch line. "They are dangerous, John, because there are so many of them. It is one thing to have a few nuts or dissidents. They can be dealt with, justly or otherwise, so that they do not pose a danger to the system. It is quite another situation when you have a true movement -- millions of citizens -- believing something -- particularly when the movement is made up of society's average, successful citizens.
"The handwriting is on the wall in several places," Colby continued. "We know from CNN and USA Today polls that about three out of every four Americans no longer trust their own government. And the distance between the government and the citizens is increasing instead of decreasing. And that means, quite simply, John, that there is a base of support for the patriot and militia community which is not visible and may not be seen or understood by our government. Our government and political leaders are still in the mode of viewing the outspoken and visible members of the so-called patriot movement as simply a few nuts who need to be shut up.
This is a very dangerous trend. It is time for government and the media to begin closing the gap between the government, the media and the patriot movement, rather than exacerbating it.
