Today is the 29th anniversary of FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi killing Vicki Weaver as she stood in the door of a cabin at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, holding her baby. The FBI initially claimed that killing Mrs. Weaver was justified and then later covered up key details and claimed it was accidental. FBI chief Louis Freeh […]
Mises Institute, August 11, 2020 Why I Write by James Bovard I was born in Iowa, raised in the mountains of Virginia, and attended Virginia Tech sporadically from 1974 to 1976 before dropping out to try my luck writing. At some point in the late 1970s, individual liberty became my highest political value and I […]
On Saturday, I gave a talk at the Pennsylvania Libertarian Party state convention. There were so many great folks there and it was a pleasure to speak to a savvy, friendly audience. Richard Schwarz did a pitch-perfect introduction that set the tone for the talk. It’s hard not to like a guy who is always […]
Here is my all-time favorite magazine cover story – my 1995 tribute to FBI boss Louis Freeh. This story came out five months after Freeh publicly denounced me in a letter to the Wall Street Journal. Freeh was outraged over a piece I did on the FBI’s killing at Ruby Ridge. One of Randy Weaver’s […]
Gun Seizures Could Lead to Civil War by James Bovard February 3, 2020 “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15,” declared “Beto” O’Rourke at a Democratic party presidential candidate debate in September. Compelling Americans to surrender their so-called assault weapons is “the newest purity test” for Democratic presidential candidates, according to the Washington Post. […]
My USA Today oped earlier this week on presidential candidate Deval Patrick‘s role in the Ruby Ridge coverup is spurring some controversy. Here’s a podcast I did last year with Pete Quinones (now with the Libertarian Institute) talking about Ruby Ridge, Bundy Ranch, and the dangers of federal agencies off the leash. You can listen […]
In my USA Today piece on Deval Patrick, I mentioned the 542 page confidential Justice Department task force report on Ruby Ridge which was compiled after an Idaho jury trounced the FBI and Justice Department in the Randy Weaver trial. Patrick dismissed the findings of that report and exonerated the FBI, helping spur widespread fears […]
