Who Owns Oregon? Some Historical Context on the so-called Militia Occupation of Public Lands

[@vlogbrothers]

Oregon's capital is Salem. I apologize. I was not paying attention in fifth grade. -John

[@xxmiraclexx]

+vlogbrothers we forgive you John

[@HelloFutureMe]

+vlogbrothers Did any of us? That being said I didn't have fifth grade. Yay for being from New Zealand.

[@JosephLSelby]

+vlogbrothers I think I need to change my punishment vote in Hank's survey...

[@kelscorpio]

Good. You scared me for a second John. But Oregon forgives you.

[@Restitutor-Orbis]

I was going to call you out, but as you listed two of the greatest things in Oregon... the Timbers, PTFC, and trimet I'll get over it.

[@HypernovaBolts11]

"Like it's not like the building in question is the U.S. Capitol." WE ARE LIVING IN THE WORST TIMELINE!

[@deltablaze77]

I know right, it's almost freaky he said this.

[@trace_tomorrow]

John predicted this timeline so many times and ways.

[@morganherring6958]

@@deltablaze77 What's so weird and trippy to me is the upload date. He said it ALMOST exactly to the day 5 five years before it actually happened. Such an oddly perfectly timed thing to say.

[@deltablaze77]

@@morganherring6958 Wow! I didn't even notice that before, that makes it extra weird.

[@I4getTings]

Re-watching this in December 2021 and I'm thinking. Almost exactly five years later and armed insurrectionists did indeed take over the capital building. And Also how was that less than a year ago!!?!?!?

[@iainawatson]

"Which is both a big deal: armed civilians are in control of a federal building and not that big of a deal. Like, it's not like the building in question is the US Capitol" Welp....

[@devinhiatt9995]

Aged like milk

[@alvinzou8156]

“It’s not like the building in question is the US Capitol”... this has not aged well

[@88miniramvan]

Lol, had the same thought

[@mictuckfluff]

Literally came back to this video to say the same thing.

[@rin.ology_]

This is the comment I am here for

[@TheChessRunner]

I was all ready thinking this was the reason this video showed on my timeline. Sneaky KZbin algorithm

[@Seth9809]

Not at all.

[@SageThyme23]

"Some people with guns decided to take over the refuge's headquarters. which is both a big deal, like armed civilians are in in control of a federal building and no that big of a deal. Like its not like the building in question is the US capital" Little did john know. Whats really crazy is this video was posted on jan 5th 2016 and the capital building was attacked on January 6, 2021

[@kaboomwinn4394]

5 year and 1 day later the prediction is true.

[@tomrogue13]

John really can predict the future.

[@z4nn7]

They weren't even armed bro, calm down.

[@phoenixliv]

@@z4nn7 Well, aside from tazers, baseball bats, bear mace, flash bangs, pitchforks, knives, etc, oh and the bombs that were planted nearby

[@z4nn7]

@@phoenixliv what are you referring to?

[@sisyphusmarble8460]

Intelligence is knowing that Portland is not the capital of Oregon. Wisdom is knowing that Portland is indeed the capital of Oregon.

[@OHYS]

I can't believe that this comment after four years has only 18 likes. I hope this reply gives it a boost

[@vladimird03]

@@OHYS I know your comment is farily old now, and the original comment is even older, but we just managed to double the amount of likes! Yaaaay! :D

[@OHYS]

@@vladimird03 so it did give it a boost

[@stewartgibson5802]

So that's why they're 2 different stats in dnd

[@sisyphusmarble8460]

Lol thanks for the boosts over the years, nerdfighters. John's joke at 0:12 hits a bit different here in 2021.

[@ViveMeorLeti]

Am I the only one intrigued by the fact that the wildlife refuge is called Malheur, which is a French word meaning "misfortune"? Seriously, America? Was "Mount Doom National Park" already taken?

[@camelopardalis84]

I find the name even stranger since the French word malheur does mean what you say but in German is used as a synonym for what would probably be called "mishap" in English. At least if only something rather insignificant is meant when the word "mishap" is used. I have a "oopsie" situation in mind if I hear the word " malheur."

[@JessicaTTG]

Or maybe it used to be a part of French Louisiana.

[@ViveMeorLeti]

+TheIdahoGamer Which makes no difference at all to the question of "Why would you name a place *Misfortune Wildlife Refuge* (or *Mishap Wildlife Refuge*, as Marie said)?" If anything it makes even less sense if it was named by native French speakers, who would definitely have known the name's meaning.

[@ujghjify]

It's named after the Malheur river, where some french canadians' cache of furs was stolen by native americans. Pretty small, dumb reason to name a river "misfortune", but...

[@camelopardalis84]

+Vive Memor Leti Since you asked the initial question and have referred to me after that I feek like telling YOU mainly that there is a place called "Spiegel" close to where I live and also two in Germany and one in Poland. "Spiegel" is German for "mirror".

[@klins061]

“Which is both a big deal, like armed civilians are in control of a federal building, and not that big of a deal. Like it’s not like the building in question in the US Capitol.” Oh dear lord, he didn’t know yet what was to come on 1/6/2021... 😨

[@vvatto]

He was so innocent!!

[@philipr.7893]

0:16 Hits a little harder now.

[@inTheFayeRealm]

"It's not like it was the US Capitol." Well that intro aged well.

[@Skeletorslurpsspaghetti]

god damn, watching the intro to this video in 2021 hits different

[@apexlegends6727]

+

[@KookieWee]

ALSO it should be noted that the Burns Piute Tribe (pictured at the end of the video) while similar(?) to Northern Piute, is not the same thing. The Burns Piute are a federally recognized tribe, while the Northern Piute are part of the federally recognized Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.

[@juststeveschannel]

Sometimes it is the most important Vlogbrothers videos that bring out the most difficult-to-stomach comment streams. In this case, it's sad that you could do a similar video pretty much every week on the injustice suffered by Native Americans throughout the Americas without ever running out of material. And it's sad that so many of those that might call themselves Nerdfighters don't seem to understand what is Awesome and what is Worldsuck in too many of these cases. Still, thank you, John, for an excellent piece of work.

[@coledonnelly152]

"It's not like the building in question is the US Capitol" Oh boy John wait till you see what happens five years and one day after this upload

[@leviathan6626]

I was going to comment the same thing!

[@Supergforce777]

“It’s not like it’s the us capital” -2016 john green Hold my beer -2021

[@t1kosuave]

I'm really interested in how you and Hank structure the script of your videos! It doesn't ever matter what you're talking about, I never cease to be amazed by your video's regardless of the content.

[@Calicido]

I have read a bit of John Locke about private properties for a philosophy class. I have written an exam, passed the class, but I still don't know if I understand anything. And now this video reminds me how complicated things always are.

[@TechBeck33]

+Calicido Oh god, John Locke's discussion of private property made absolutely no sense to me when I had to read Two Treatises last semester...

[@CaptIronfoundersson]

+Calicido The sign of a truly honest person "I've studied it and I still don't know."

[@RealToWonder]

+Calicido god, locke is a hard read. I studied him multiple times for my major and im still fuzzy on it (probably because his works are dense and boring...)

[@ICantSpellDawg]

Ownership of property is based on your ability to defend it in the best of times, notwithstanding pieces of paper telling people to leave you alone. In the worst of times, defending it requires insane blood sacrifice.

[@99thTuesday]

Locke's theory of private property is useful to know, but it's never what governments use. They instead favour rights derived from the feudal Crown where the King not only rules the kingdom but owns the land of the kingdom.

[@miraspringer5953]

I love it when awesome people talk about Oregon

[@JosephWillingham]

John is blinking in a video! Is this a new 2016 thing?

[@fossilfighters101]

+Joseph Willingham WAIT WHAT HOLD THE PHONE FRENCH THE LLAMA

[@Juniperrrrrr]

+fossilfighters101 I noticed the same thing!

[@nia-aaa]

OH GOD

[@JohnMichaelson]

+Joseph Willingham It's an annoying thing.

[@pranamd1]

+John Michaelson Blinking is annoying?

[@karri3433]

"it's not like the building in question is the US capital" Oh, John

[@lowbes785]

"Its not like that building is the us capitol." Aged like milk.

[@ninboy01]

How isn't this being treated as domestic terrorism? And yes John, as an Oregonian myself; I concur that you are indeed a grapefruit.

[@querps1043]

2nd amendment

[@ninboy01]

Meow said Da Dog "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." That has nothing to do with said Militia illegally seizing federal land. Last I checked... no armed organization can just waltz in & claim land belongs to them.

[@querps1043]

NINmann01 I noticed, but I'm going to guess that'll be these guy's reason

[@ninboy01]

Meow said Da Dog This would be a wholly different conversation if a 'militia' of Islamist's made these claims. I like how it's being ignored, as if it isn't a huge WTF that should be settled immediately. I guarantee, if it wasn't a group of Caucasian Americans, then the media would descend upon them as wolves. It should be treated just as seriously.

[@ninboy01]

illyounotme I certainly don't entertain the idea of it escalating into an armed engagement with shots fired. Either they want to become martyrs, or they'll think they are winning by stalemating the Government. I just don't want those kind of ignoramuses to get away with that kind of abuse of what they misinterpret their civil liberties to be. Because that only encourages other psychos of the same ilk. They rather tote guns spewing nonsense than... I dunno, actual read the constitution?

[@bc9245]

I thought this said "Who owns Oxygen?" and was extremely intrigued.

[@nathanielnelson2645]

+BC Denton Yeah, there's an oxygen master who lives on the top on Mount Everest and secretly owns all of the oxygen in the world. If he gets angry with us he takes the oxygen away and we all die. :)

[@Zecronym]

That sounds like the title of a Vsauce video

[@bc9245]

+Nathaniel Nelson Well i'm liking what he's doing with it so far, keeping those o2 levels good n' high

[@cameronmacdonald8394]

+BC Denton Sounds like a job for VSauce!

[@marcuskaiser4770]

Well oxygen is a key part of the water molecule. When Disney discovered that water molecules are shaped like Micky mouse ears they sued water for copyright infringement and received the rights to water. Therefore, Disney owns oxygen

[@vampirica89]

"You think you own whatever land you land on" quote from Pocahontas springs into mind. A great observation.

[@lindseyclair921]

“Hank, there are many compelling arguments to be had about government infringing on the rights of citizens...but this is not one of them.”

[@IchBin-meh]

0:11 "... which is both a big deal - Like, armed civilians are in control of a federal building - and not THAT big of a deal - like, it's not like the building in question is the U.S. Capitol" Oh, John of the past. Just you wait.

[@ellenmooreee]

Highlight of my day: John Green saying Portland might be the greatest city in America 💖 (even though we're not the capital 😜)

[@u.s.navyvietnamvetanddynam821]

The annual rose parade was beautiful 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

[@z4nn7]

This comment didn't age well... How's Portland now?

[@heatherrutkowski5056]

@@z4nn7 Even more the greatest city in America. :)

[@michellebailey6216]

@@z4nn7 wait what happened?

[@z4nn7]

@@michellebailey6216 city doesn't know how to run a city.

[@jeffreyhaile4416]

“It’s not like the building in question is the U.S. capital” Don’t worry John it’ll happen soon enough

[@miahamaker114]

came to the comments to find this

[@stiofanobriain7934]

Thoughts go out to the surviving members of the Paiute tribe. May they battle adversity and strive to keep their history and culture alive.

[@TubeHeader]

"At least it's not the U.S capitol" The world has gotten more crazy than you can imagine 5 years ago John. Also its not a seige, if it was a siege it would have been the shortest seige in history, which is why it was not, it was an allowed invasion.

[@felixmarseille6905]

"armed civilians are in control of a Federal building' *2021 just joined the chat

[@SeismicDragon]

Negative points for mistaking the capital of Oregon (its Salem btw) and positive points for properly pronouncing Oregon.

[@fossilfighters101]

+Rob Porritt ...Do people mispronounce it? How? The way John says is the only way I've heard here in Ohio.

[@SeismicDragon]

The wrong way is to pronounce the last syllable like "gone" (or-e-gawn).

[@fossilfighters101]

+Rob Porritt Huh. Well, I didn't know that. Danke.

[@brotherofAnubus]

+fossilfighters101 Some people pronounce it as Ore-GONE. It's horrible.

[@elisabeth146]

+Rob Porritt On the west coast, we barely add the "e" sound in so the word sounds much closer to "organ" but not quite. "Or-EH-gawn" is more of a New England thing.

[@samellareed4714]

John, As an Oregonian I do need to correct one thing in your video, Portland is not the capital of Oregon, Salem is. Common mistake. I have been following this event closely as it hits close to home. I am very torn by the events taking place. Growing up in a small town that has a larger farmer and ranchers population I understand their frustrations and why they decided to take the actions they did. I grew up very conservative, but now living in NYC I find myself left leaning. From what I've read the militia has formed in reaction to the ranchers going to prison for their controlled burns that got out of hand so they were sentence to a required minimum of five years and the militia feels like that is unjust. I honestly don't know where I stand but another video exploring why they are occupying and the back story would be so helpful. P.S. Love all your books, specifically An Abundance of Katherine's

[@wiet111]

+Samella Reed From what I've read, they burned up land to hide traces of their illegal deer-hunting. If that is indeed true, the punishment makes total sense.

[@samellareed4714]

+wiet111 I agree with you on that, if that's what's happened. I also read that the BML office approved their burnings so they knew what was going to happen. The burning were to stop invasive species from coming him. I understand the ranchers because this is their entries livelihood and they know nothing else but it doesn't make this okay. I just hope no one gets hurt.

[@TheAllardP]

+Samella Reed Hard to have good info on the situation, but I heard that the Hammonds (the father and son sentence to prison for the arson) never wanted that to happen. The Bundy clan went help them, there was a protest, but then the Bundy and others went take the Federal Building and the Hammonds just said fuck that shit and delivers themselves to the local sheriff to have no affiliation with the militia. But I might have heard wrong infos.

[@ljm792]

+Samella Reed I've been wondering a lot about this. The articles I've read haven't given me much context for why the ranchers are so angry. They haven't really made their objectives clear during all of this, but obviously there are some long standing tensions between these Ranchers and the Feds. While I agree with what John is saying, he still hasn't provided any more clarification on just what these ranchers take issue with. They feel like they've been wronged by the government, but how? From what I've read it seems that the Hammonds' arrest over the burnings was the catalyst, but the motivations of these ranchers have to be much bigger than that. I mean if we give these guys A LOT of grace, then at the moment this is basically a sit in with the threat of violence. They've said they are prepared for violence, but there hasn't been any yet. On some level this is public protest by citizens, which is an important part of any democracy (on another level, this is people with guns who have taken over a federal building and said that they are ready to kill for it). I just wish I knew more about what they want/how they think they've been wronged.You know, imagine people complexly and all that, even if they have guns.

[@gertrudemdrtte5892]

+Samella Reed There is a lot left out of the media, John needs to also include other important laws that were made that give the backstory to why the fed refused to turn all this land over to the newly enacted states. Congress created in 1920 the Federal Mineral Lease Act that allowed them to become landlords instead of the trustees they were originally form to be, and control the oil and mineral contracts keeping 50% of the royalties for themselves. The "militants" just came out in their press release that essentially requested that the government follow the Constitution and the land be transferred to the County and Indians in joint management. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17 of the US Constitution says that Congress shall have the power…”To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards and other needful buildings…”

[@alangao4693]

"Like its not like the building in question is the US capitol" Buddy I got a story to tell ya

[@emilyc9887]

I know these videos take a lot of time and effort and research and are probably quite difficult, but I appreciate them SO much! You give us background and a platform to have thoughtful discussions on important current events and that is not something that is easy to come by. Thank you.

[@ack372]

Can I just say that I highly appreciate these videos that explain what's going on in the world. Especially because John is so awesome at thoroughly explaining things

[@SamPhoenixKnight]

“It’s not like the building in question is the US capitol”

[@connorwosepka1632]

“Not like the building in question is the US capital.” Ironic

[@thatfroggie]

“At least it wasn’t the capitol”

[@mlj59]

As an Oregonian I was so excited that John was gonna spend a whole video talking about us:) Yes, we are a cool and awesome state; no sales tax, no having to pump gas, landscapes more beautiful than Hawaii....yeah Oregon is the best!

[@Thebeetleguy]

From one Oregonian to another, I couldn't agree more!

[@ganapatikamesh]

I very much appreciate your thorough and rational explanation of this current news story by putting it through the lenses of the US Constitution, American history, legal precedents, etc which is so very often not presented in other media sources. Thank you for that.

[@unlurkingsentinel6872]

0:16 ...this reads pretty differently now.

[@finchhawthorne1302]

Watching this in 2021 is just a bit eerie.

[@brwneyedgirlx19]

I fear for the comments on this video. Nerdfighters, you're the best. Just a reminder. DFTBA.

[@baileyshepherd6956]

I really appreciate the research you do for your videos. I like coming here knowing that I'm going to learn something, which is unlike a lot of content I see on KZbin.

[@patrickcollier7090]

Aside from the goof on the Oregon capital this is a BRILLIANT video. I should know, I am a grad student studying American history. The history of Western lands and Native tribes is shameful and almost always ignored when land disputes like this make national news. John, DTFBA not that you need the reminder.

[@isaacfletcher3067]

For in the comment section thinking america is the only country in the world that mistreated their natives, think again. Do some research before you send fire and brimstone, show the world you are educated.

[@vlogbrothers]

+Isaac Fletcher Did I say or imply that? -John

[@isaacfletcher3067]

Sorry john I was referring to previous comments. Not your video.

[@andrewmaille8659]

+vlogbrothers nope

[@Sardonac]

+vlogbrothers No. - A Canadian viewer who's used to discussions of his government's bad history of engaging native peoples

[@sodapoplove95]

+vlogbrothers He said "comments" not John. The comments are full of uneducated twits.

[@Kinemagichemistry]

"it's not like the building in question is the US capital" John called it 5 years early 😅

[@KellyNaylor]

Wow. It's not often I see a white man so passionately rip into the concept of Manifest Destiny. It's refreshing. Thank you, John. Keep being awesome.

[@Samantha_yyz]

Man while I was in schoo,l in the US I was so confused by Manifest Destiny. >.

[@louisafish-sadin6732]

WOW. I have seen every vlogbrothers video since Jan 1, 2007 and this is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE.

[@anawickham8251]

Thank you John for bringing up a extremely valid point that is being disregarded. As an Oregonian, I have tried to explain this to my peers but none of them seem to listen. Maybe your influence will finally get people thinking about how they approach this subject.

[@mhello276]

oh no i watched this after the capital got raided and i wonder if 2016 john would even believe the capital could get stormed this soon

[@LawfulGoodSock]

I'm still astonished that more people aren't calling this domestic terrorism.

[@anthonydobbs5047]

+Crazy Lace that is the root of this issue the people being protested for for were re-sentenced as domestic terrorists for setting fires on their own land that spread to federally controlled land. after the judge overturned that as cruel and unusual

[@elliottmcollins]

+Crazy Lace That phrase is more commonly reserved for people who kill people.

[@LawfulGoodSock]

+Elliott Collins So it only counts as terror if you kill people? The root of the concept lies in making people afraid. Afraid to send their children to school, afraid to disagree with the people causing the fear, afraid that they'll be caught in whatever crossfire there might be. Terrorism is the weaponization of fear. +Anthony Dobbs The judge ruled in favor of the prosecution about the reason for the first fire: the destruction of evidence of an illegal poaching event on federal land. The second fire endangered fire fighters. But that's beside the point. The Hammonds accepted the appeal. The protesters glommed onto the issue as a platform for protesting the federal government's right to manage and own public lands. Militant protest, to be clear. The Hammonds have clearly stated that they don't support this protest in their favor. Hank actually has some interesting things to say about why nobody has died in this yet if you check out his tumblr: edwardspoonhands.com

[@LawfulGoodSock]

+jjdogbutte Most of them didn't hold their territory with guns. Occupy Wallstreet was completely different because nobody there was using a tacit threat of violence to keep from being moved. The constitution protects peaceful assembly. This does not qualify. Nice straw man argument, though. You almost made me mad for a half second.

[@jjdogbutte]

+Crazy Lace I like how you said "most", making some fall within your definition of "terrorist." Occupy Wallstreet was only somewhat different and although peaceful in some cases was outside of "legal" assembly and within criminal trespass. Occupy Oakland in late Jan 2012 was a violent protest resulting in violence and destruction of property. But, again you're not willing to call those incidents terrorist and happily call these law breaking protestor terrorists. A serious double standard and lack of memory on your part.

[@Marylandbrony]

0:18 *It's always sunny in Philadelphia theme plays*

[@Nat-Ware]

As an Oregonian, I really appreciate this video because I did not know any of this about my state's history. I also appreciate you using the correct pronunciation instead of Or-ee-gon

[@aikifox85]

Might want to edit the video to correct the geographical errors, because, you know, the apology in the comments won't be readily visible on Facebook, etc. Also, thank you so much for this video. This has been the best piece I've seen about this issue.

[@stormelemental13]

That's south-east Oregon John. South-west would be towards the pacific ocean.

[@vlogbrothers]

+Eric Taysom Adding annotation now. SORRY! -John

[@stormelemental13]

***** No worries. :)

[@brianmorton9419]

“Armed civilians have taken a federally controlled building. But it’s not the capitol, so” Bad news, John

[@natep7079]

“At least it wasn’t the capitol...” Yeah...

[@Naiadryade]

OH SNAP. Seriously, this is brilliant. Great explanation of the history, and the best commentary I've seen on this topic yet.

[@gracearms]

I'm from Oregon City, (about 20 minutes away from Portland), and I LOVE THIS. Thank you!

[@jones6604]

am I allowed to show this to my History class or do Vlogbrothers have a copyright thingy? loved the video btw!

[@anti_MATT_er]

You can show videos in your class. It's just like if you were watching it.

[@marcuskaiser4770]

Go ahead, they encourage showing videos of theirs in classrooms. Also check out John's Crash Course world/American history series.

[@sebyiuga2184]

+Imarockstardressedlikeaswiftie unless you are somehow profiting from the showing of this video, there is no way that you could get in trouble for just watching a video on a public video site with other people (even if Hank and John were that kind of people, and they are not)

[@anti_MATT_er]

Marcus Kaiser Nice profile pic.

[@icedragon769]

+Imarockstardressedlikeaswiftie Everything anybody makes ever is copyrighted. You don't have to "have a copyright thingy", every living person does. You have copyright over that comment. I have copyright over this comment. Everything is copyrighted at the moment of creation. What you should be asking is if they will license you the ability to use their copyrighted property for your purposes. In your case, you probably don't need to, because there is an exception in copyright law, material used for educational purposes generally falls into "fair use".

[@wherethebirdsgo]

“It’s not like the building in question is the US Capitol” oof

[@PheonixRising2988]

Supposedly its not about the land of Malheur, its in response to some ranchers doing a control burn on their land to avoid wildfires. This got out of control briefly, but was quickly knocked out. The ranchers are the Hammonds and they were charged with Arson, found guilty and sent to prison for a year for their punishment. They served their time and got out, but a federal judge later saw their case and said they did not serve the minimum time for Arson and demanded they serve 4 more years, even though several years have passed since they got out. The militia believe this to be federal bullying and a violation of Double Jeopardy laws. The Hammonds, however, have chosen to honor the court's decision. So basically they see an ever encroaching government trying to ruin private land owners in order to confiscate their lands, violation of constitutional rights, and outright bullying of ranchers. This is why they are occupying a federal building at this time. It basically follows the principle of, you take stuff from us, we will take stuff from you.

[@PheonixRising2988]

+Sollerite Regardless of who is in the right, I would like this situation to defuse peacefully and that no one gets hurt.

[@PheonixRising2988]

+Sollerite this is also definitely spillover from the Bundy Ranch incident last year. Largely, what we are seeing is an increasing dissatisfaction and polarization of the citizenry and it seems that people are starting to lose faith in the system and have instead decided to use swift, forceful action to get their points across.

[@PheonixRising2988]

+Sollerite I do feel that our democracy just isn't working anymore. Both parties are more focused on countering each other rather than trying to find common ground and solve this nation's problem. In their eyes everyone not part of their party is perceived as a devil and liar while supposedly championing their own cause. Too much surety and not enough questioning attitudes.

[@stuvs830]

+Sollerite Meanwhile, Trump's narcissism and the profiteer-backers are painting a giant bulls-eye on America. He's the puppet they couldn't groom Sarah Palin into.

[@PheonixRising2988]

I wouldn't say he's a puppet, the man already has a vast amount of wealth. The polarizing environment of the current political world is what led us to allowing him to be top of the polls though.

[@clover7896]

ugh. we are so gross. 😢 and we aren’t taught our history, at least not honestly. most of what i do know i’ve learned by seeking out information on my own - it didn’t come from school. i’m grateful beyond measure for this and the satellite channels and projects that have come from it - THANK YOU for providing thoughtful, engaging, inspiring content so reliably!!! a shining example of the best parts of these interwebs! and also, just some really genuinely good souls. 👌💕

[@oldwornoutjeans]

Thank you so much for including the native context on this issue! Its so rare and so important.

[@YoMichiYourSoFine]

"not like its the capital" aged well

[@HonestlyHonor]

Portland is America's greatest city no doubt. Go Timbers!

[@thegingersheep]

+OhHeyItsHonor It's great but I would not go with greatest.

[@nathanielnelson2645]

+David Olson But we do have the best soccer fan base in the US. I mean, how can you compete with the Timber's Army? They were almost louder than the Crew fans when we were in Columbus!!! And we won the MLS cup!!!!!

[@thegingersheep]

Nathaniel Nelson That I will not argue. Then again I have no other basis for comparison. Either way RCTID!

[@renegaudreau9412]

Yeah. It is

[@ARP2wefightforyou]

+Levi “When will we want wantons” Quickburger5000 Please someone respond. That was on the wrong comment. I meant to do it on the below comment.

[@dancercjt]

John, you know Oregon's capital is Salem, right? Not Portland? :)

[@vlogbrothers]

+Carley Thomas OH CRAP. -John

[@ashtuatara]

+vlogbrothers Good job John. lol

[@jessicaaltamirano157]

+vlogbrothers Portland is Oregon's Central Business District. If I hadn't grown up in Salem I wouldn't have known.

[@brotherofAnubus]

+Carley Thomas Coming from an Oregonian, I wish Portland was the Capital. Would stop the confusion.

[@jessicaaltamirano157]

Originally it was supposed to be Oregon City and then it was supposed to be Portland.

[@louisafish-sadin6732]

This remains my favorite vlogbrothers video of all time.

[@IcyBlondie]

Great informational video with some great food for thought! I appreciate all that you do to help people understand current news.

[@jesskidding9274]

John this video is just so unique, so one of a kind, so... Oregon-al. I'll see myself out

[@vlogbrothers]

+Jess Kidding EVEN YOUR USERNAME IS A PUN. :) -John

[@jesskidding9274]

OH MY GOD MY PUNS HAVE BEEN RECOGNISED BY THE KINGS THEMSELVES. Oh happy day!! (More on my channel, by the way) :D xx

[@GameCriticNoob]

This whole militia thing in Oregon is pretty stupid.

[@StudioUAC]

+Anne Frank who cares

[@TheShicksinator]

I'm in Oregon and depressed that those assholes can't just stay in Nevada. The guy leading this militia is clive bundys brother. He was the jackass who refused to pay grazing fees on federal land, and then proceeded to set up a militia to guard "his" land from the federal government he does not acknowledge the existence of.

[@TheIronDrapery]

+Anne Frank ugh, atleast change your name wen you see things like this.

[@mynameismatt2010]

+Anne Frank Not really.

[@mynameismatt2010]

+sean Hicks When you only tell part of a story you can twist any situation to suit your beliefs.

[@jothamoliver3918]

Woah. 20 secs in. Haunting. I was like looking for something else and, yeah, that comment oh so long ago caught me by surprise.

[@sarahkendall1720]

Thanks John for an interesting video. I have only heard a few things about the militia, and I'm glad you put a video out about this, so I could learn more. I personally like when you and Hank make videos like this that are educational in some way. 😊

[@4y6857]

John, Native Southern Oregonian here. (By that I mean I was born here, not that I am a member of any Native American Tribe. Racially/ethnically/socially I'm a white man...) One small comment that sort of parallels the initial mistake of calling Portland the Oregon State Capital. You caught that one, good on you. Several times, though, you stated that the Malhuer Refuge is in Southwestern Oregon. Not so, the Malhuer Refuge is in EASTERN Oregon (ref: the pop-up map at 2:30). Otherwise, as with most of your and Hank's posts, it was good.

[@beeheart6529]

“It’s not like it’s the US Capital”! 😱😱😱

[@oliverrose7796]

I had to pause this 30 seconds in bc i'm recently getting back into vlogbrothers after a ~7yr break and so I'm watching a bunch of older videos... "It's not like the building in question is the US Capitol." Flash forward to Jan 2021.......

[@cockroach2]

Portland isn't Oregon's Capital. Salem is.

[@brwneyedgirlx19]

+cockroach2 Ouch. I rewatched to make sure he actually said that. And he did. Rest of the information is great though!

[@Waterflame]

He wrote in the comments that he got it wrong. :)

[@cockroach2]

I know, but I corrected him before then. I am so smart! I am so smart! S-M-R-T!

[@MJ-cq6gz]

+cockroach2 No, you're wrong. The Internet has spoken.

[@mattmf01]

You guys are always fun to watch. Keep on schooling people!!

[@kviehdor]

I have to mildly criticize the statement that people "collectively decide" what to do with federal land. We really don't. Most people are so generally unaware of federal decisions that concentrated powers can essentially do whatever they want against the will of American people. Case in point: the process you have just described that started with a native reservation and ended with a much smaller bird watching refuge.

[@garbagetrash2938]

"It's not like that building was the US Capitol" Laughs in 2021

[@birdsforsale9603]

Exactly! It sucks butt that we all just kinda go along with stealing other peoples land and calling it our own, but it sucks even bigger butts to think that there is a group of people that are willing to harm others in the pursuit of taking something that is not and never was theirs, in a 21st century first-world country.

[@kevinhiemenz9877]

We came here, conquered land, it and control the land, and defend the land. I believe the United States owns it. Just like any country did in its beginning to gain control of territory.

[@leahm.9431]

+Kevin Hiemenz I agree with conquering in some of the situations, but for the most part, especially with the Native Americans, we really did technically steal the land.

[@kevinhiemenz9877]

+Leah so the definition of stealing is "to take another person's property without permission or legal right without intending to return it" Indians didn't have laws, and who would we get permission from to take the land their ideals of ownership of land didn't exist. They were nomads. This anti-American history to say Americans did bad things Americans didn't do things the right way in history needs to stop. Yes not everything we did was right looking back but we are a people founded by principles and we move on as people. Are we going to keep limiting ourselves to our past and not advancing as a nation. This is the greatest country the world has seen. we are a group of people who do wonderful things innovation and invention and most of that is absent. Back to the topic The definition of conquer is " overcoming and take control of a place or people by use of military force".

[@kevinhiemenz9877]

+Leah M. We conquered the Indian's territory. What other country would have set up lands where they live and keep their culture? We are the only nation to have a reservation where they don't pay taxes yet live in the United States but police officers can't arrest someone there.

[@leahm.9431]

+Kevin Hiemenz In the eyes of many historians it was technically stealing. That is all.

[@metaknight_ftw9233]

"It's not like the building in question is the US Capitol." If only he knew...

[@deananderson8186]

John is as good as a human can get. He should be your goal in life.

[@muticere]

Being a former resident of Harney County and my parents currently living there are closer to the issue at hand and know more about what's going on. I agree with your points, but I will add that this started a while ago when the people in question created a bonfire on federal land. They were arrested and sentenced to 5 years in prison. Based on their good behavior, the judge who sentenced them reduced their jail time to only 1 year and allowed to them to leave. However, shortly after, a new judge took his place and he overturned the previous judge's ruling and demanded that the people in question return to jail and finish the remainder of their original sentence. This lead to the "terrorist activity" we've all been discussing in an attempt to prevent law enforcement from apprehending the people in question. I believe they were set to return to prison yesterday. There are protests now going on in Harney County's largest city, Burns, against this new ruling and in support of the rebellious action.I for one agree that such a punishment for this small crime is beyond the pale and there is a part of me that is sympathetic to their plight. It isn't just about being able to do whatever you want on federally owned land, it is also about disproportionately strong punishments for minor offenses and about the local legal system jerking these men around and trying to put them in jail when they've already been allowed a reduced sentence. I understand many people have drawn comparisons between this "terrorist activity" and other incidents of terrorism as well as gun violence by minorities and have indicated that the reaction would be different if these weren't "white folks". Also being severely punished for a small offense and getting a raw deal by the legal system is a reality many minorities disproportionately experience in this country. Regardless of any race question, the circumstances at play here are still frustrating, and the individuals in question really ought never to have been treated in such a way that they felt it necessary to take rebellious action and make such a big fuss. Like in Ferguson and elsewhere, how else are you supposed to get people to acknowledge your grievances when the system has chosen to ignore your plea for justice? TL:DR - Everything sucks and anyone can get a raw deal from the law regardless of race. The truth, as always, resists simplicity.

[@MegaLoveless1]

Oh from 2021 this video has some foreshadowing for the american capitol.

[@scottformica9314]

OK so I just watched this today for the 1st time because I'm slightly new and I'm just, like, catching up, and John at the beginning talking about The Bundys storming a federal building but it's not that bad because it's not the US Capitol? Creepy.

[@xzonia1]

Yeah, I just watched it for the first time today, and I've heard nothing after his comment about the federal building being stormed. I'm going to have to go re-watch it now that the shock of that statement has worn off. :(

[@DFTBAiden]

Hi from 2021, and unfortunately, moment 0:19 is no longer true

[@jamestolliver7413]

just wanted to thank you for this video. I think too few people look at historical context and even fewer understand the principal of shared public resources.

[@chrispratt8677]

Hello, John Green. I'd like to start off this comment by saying that this will be a very long comment, and that if you do end up reading it; stay with me. Secondly, I am very reserved, so sharing what I actually think has my hands shaking. To the point:I find it very difficult to get through school. I have As in all of my subjects, but they do not reward me. When I go to school I see my teachers struggling so hard to educate one who refuse to be educated, and I just can't stand it. I sit on the bus as my peers talk about them like a teacher's only goal is to make them miserable. I know that there are kids in every country who would love teachers like mine, including my country. It kills me how none of my friends have read the things I have or follow the news. It seems like absolutely no one cares about what goes on outside of the feudal system that is our school, and as in most feifs, there are plenty of surfs. Now I will tell you how I cope, which brings us closer to my point.First: Vloggers and Gamers like you who I can relate to. (In unexpected ways and expected.)Second: Books! Feed (read what the author has to say after you finish, not before, that makes what he says more meaningful.), we all looked up, The Catalyst, Dreamwood, and Will Grayson, Will Grayson (One of your best books in my opinion, because of how it shows how imperfect reality is but also how story-like it can seem from a perspective. Also, I love Holland 1945.) But anyways, in an extremely condensed version, I wanted mostly to say thanks to you for helping me through some stuff, and to tell you that there are definitely many people like me who would like to tell you how grateful they are to you, but have not been able to tell you yet. There are a lot of us. Thanks.-Quiet Onlooker

[@Lithrus_]

0:03 "Southwestern Oregon" That's SouthEASTern Oregon ;-;

[@thetalantonx]

And yeah, Salem is the capital. As an Oregonian who was paying attention to this when it was happening so much of the video is wrong. A lot of it is awesome and worth thinking about, but there's a lot more room for understanding the details of the situation. And this kinda one-sided coverage of even our history is eye-twitchingly wrong and more than that, not even wrong, like it's so far disconnected from history it's hard to figure out where to begin.

[@Freshette]

Not a Militia, a group of armed terrorists. Or criminals, I would accept criminals.

[@stevemanart]

John, you're choosing to misunderstand the point. While I feel what they are doing is wrong, this is not about political maneuvering. This is a response to federal and local police overstepping their bounds to enforce laws that do not apply to the private property owned by people. And to the people who are calling these militiamen "terrorists", this is the exact kind of thing the second amendment was constructed to to allow. Not even the hundreds of years old interpretations about personal gun ownership, but a by the letter organized militia armed to oppose a perceived threat from the government. They are not instilling fear into the common populace to force political change, they are occupying a government building in protest to legal action. In effect, they're no different than black lives matter, except they're too organized for agitators to use it as a cover for crime.

[@vlogbrothers]

+Dennis X (Steveman) I don't misunderstand the point. The protests are about whether public lands belong to the government and whether the government has the right to regulate the land. (They do, and it does.) The arson that started the protests was a fire started on federal land. The leaders of the protests are from a family that has refused to pay grazing fees on leased federal land for 20 years. This is about nothing but whether the government has the right to own and regulate land. And if it doesn't, then it seems to me that a lot of private property in the U.S. immediately becomes illegitimate. -John

[@KnightRaymund]

+Dennis X (Steveman) wrong on so many levels.

[@ARP2wefightforyou]

*****​ Why would a lot of private property in the U.S. become illegitimate?

[@gardeniabee]

+vlogbrothers I'm not sure about that. My understanding is that the government obtained some of the land (up to 100 ranches?) by unlawful means. Yes, the govt can regulate land it owns; the question is prior to ownership -- were these ranches unlawfully obtained?

[@ARP2wefightforyou]

*****​ I know that this is a persuasive work, but changing to a sad tone is taking advantage of people's illogical tendency to prioritize emotions over logic.

[@amirnm258]

Brilliant. I was waiting for someone to mention this. Thank you John

[@Qermaq]

John, have you listened to Firesign Theater's "Temporarily Humbolt County" and "An American Pageant"?

[@allisonfrazer6264]

“Like it’s not like the building in question is the US capitol” was such a timely joke right now, I thought this video was from 2021

[@TheMrWorme]

0:10 well that didnt age well...

[@Chomuggaacapri]

"It's not like the building in question is the US Capitol." *long sigh* *just a very long and very exasperated sigh* *one more for the road*

[@J801045]

John you're my idol. And you wrote "Looking for Alaska", my favorite book of all time. That is all.

[@meljac9649]

Thank you so much. I'm Navajo (DIne) and there is so much history form tribes and modern issues that most of the public doesn't know about natives. I had no clue that went on with the Paiute people and similarly many don't know about the Navajo long walk or the uranium mining on the Navajo reservation. There are many more that I don't know about but would love to learn. If any one know of not well known incidents like this that have happened to natives or other minorities please let me know. But than you bringing to light past and modern native stuggles.