1. I am almost forty percent of the way into Jess Walter's book, Ruby Ridge: The Truth and Tragedy of the Randy Weaver Family.
The standoff on Ruby Ridge hasn't happened yet, but, up to this point, Jess Walter masterfully lays the groundwork for helping readers understand how that standoff came about.
On the one hand, as I see it, the U.S. government's eventual response to Randy Weaver's refusal to turn himself in to face trial grows out of law enforcement's having had to deal with the violence of The Order: the murders, robberies, property destruction, and eventual fiery standoff on Whidbey Island, in 1984, that killed The Order's leader, Robert Matthews. In the aftermath of The Order's violent spree, federal agencies significantly increased their surveillance and infiltration of groups in North Idaho, particularly The Aryan Nations, headquartered in Hayden.
The arrest of Randy Weaver had less to do with any crime he had committed -- he was arrested for selling illegal firearms (sawed off shotguns) -- and more to do with law enforcement's hope that having Weaver in custody would lead them to other members of the white power movement in North Idaho and Western Montana.
On the other hand, pivotal to the eventual standoff was Randy and Vicki Weaver's world view, informed by their interpretation of Scriptures, especially the Old Testament, and their deep, immovable distrust of the federal government and its agencies.
Walters, again, is masterful in laying out how the Weavers, over the years, beginning when they lived in Iowa, developed their worldview and how inflexibly adamant they were in not compromising any of it.
None of this is quite as simple as I've laid out here, but, in general, in the many months leading up to the August, 1992 standoff, Walters gives us a clear picture of law enforcement's efforts to get inside the white power movement and to try to find out what acts of violence they were planning. He also gives us a clear picture of how, as the US Marshals and other federal agents tried to cajole Randy Weaver into turning himself in, Weaver was immovably resistant to their efforts and what a vital role Vicki Weaver played in articulating the Weavers' worldview in scores of letters and in helping to strengthen her husband's resolve to stay put.
The point I'm trying to make here is that the August, 1992 standoff, has its roots in events that were well over ten years old and in study, thinking, and beliefs the Weavers had begun to develop long before the standoff happened.
2. The other day, when Debbie and I ate calamari for dinner, Debbie decided that if the calamari had been air fried, they'd be crunchier and even more pleasing to eat.
So, she ordered an air fryer.
It arrived today.
I got it out of the box, but I haven't yet begun to teach myself how it works and what fun things to eat we might prepare with it.
3. Our second HelloFresh bag held ingredients for ground pork tacos with pineapple salsa. Many of the flavors of this meal were familiar -- the Southwest spice blend, the TexMex sauce -- but adding pineapple juice to the pork, onion, and green pepper as they cooked and topping the tacos with pineapple salsa was new to us.
And it was great!
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