Census worker found hanged in Rural Kentucky...

[dabrockster]

I do not understand why people would do such a thing.

I also see this as more fuel to the talk about home grown militia's being dangerous..

Link:

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090924/D9ATL1BO0.html

[wuapinmon]

I was a Census enumerator in 2000 in Provo, Utah. Some people refused to speak with me at all, becoming hostile that I was on their property. When I explained that I wasn't soliciting and that it was the law that they had to complete a census form, some people would slam the door; some would threaten to release their hounds a la Montgomery Burns; some would break down in tears and tell me how they were hiding from their ex-husbands.

Census workers have a hard job; hardly anyone liked talking to me except old retired folks who gave me the "when I was a kid, all of this was pasture and orchards" speeches.

[TripletDaddy]

Being a census worker is dangerous!

[Green Lantern]

Being a census worker is dangerous!

Now I'm hungry for fava beans and chianti.

[statman]

I do not understand why people would do such a thing.

I also see this as more fuel to the talk about home grown militia's being dangerous..

Link:
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090924/D9ATL1BO0.html

Ummm - because rural Kentcky (along with Humboldt County, CA) is the marijuana capital of the US. Feds - any Feds - running around the hills asking questions, poking there nose into other people's business, is going to be seen as an unwelcome and threatening intrusion.

Earlier in this centrury, it was moonshiners who would have done this. Now it's marijuana growers.

(I was hometeaching last night with a guy who grew up in rural Kentucky. When I asked him about the incident, his immediate reaction was "I haven't heard about it. He must've stumbled on to someone's marijuana field")

[LiveCoug]

I was a census worker in 2000 in rural Duchesne county. That was an interesting experience. Some places, I had to drive my car up into the mountains on a crappy dirt road in order to find some trailer to get a census. The road usually became too dangerous to drive and I had to hoof it to find these people. I don't know why I did it. When I got to these peoples hideouts/cabins/trailers, they were usually not too happy. I had a shotgun turned on me a couple times. Good times.

[RobinFinderson]

Ummm - because rural Kentcky (along with Humboldt County, CA) is the marijuana capital of the US. Feds - any Feds - running around the hills asking questions, poking there nose into other people's business, is going to be seen as an unwelcome and threatening intrusion.

Earlier in this centrury, it was moonshiners who would have done this. Now it's marijuana growers.

(I was hometeaching last night with a guy who grew up in rural Kentucky. When I asked him about the incident, his immediate reaction was "I haven't heard about it. He must've stumbled on to someone's marijuana field")

It makes no sense for a pot-farmer to turn a murder into a political statement, and thus draw even more police focus on their operation. If you end up killing someone to protect your illegal business, you want to discard the body discretely.

This murder was committed by someone who wanted to make a political statement. That just doesn't fit the typical weed farmer's MO.

[smokymountainrain]

I was a census worker in 2000 in rural Duchesne county. That was an interesting experience. Some places, I had to drive my car up into the mountains on a crappy dirt road in order to find some trailer to get a census. The road usually became too dangerous to drive and I had to hoof it to find these people. I don't know why I did it. When I got to these peoples hideouts/cabins/trailers, they were usually not too happy. I had a shotgun turned on me a couple times. Good times.

Sounds like the makings of a good 'Deliverance' sequel.

[Goatnapper'96]

Ummm - because rural Kentcky (along with Humboldt County, CA) is the marijuana capital of the US. Feds - any Feds - running around the hills asking questions, poking there nose into other people's business, is going to be seen as an unwelcome and threatening intrusion.

Earlier in this centrury, it was moonshiners who would have done this. Now it's marijuana growers.

(I was hometeaching last night with a guy who grew up in rural Kentucky. When I asked him about the incident, his immediate reaction was "I haven't heard about it. He must've stumbled on to someone's marijuana field")

Marijuana fields are generally located a great distance from where people live. Even the ruralest of rural rednecks in Kin-Tuckee! I am not denying that perhaps that redneck Appalachian mistrust of outsiders and the federal government might have played a significant role, just that I doubt the census guys stumbled upon any field of wacky-packy.

[pellegrino]

It makes no sense for a pot-farmer to turn a murder into a political statement, and thus draw even more police focus on their operation. If you end up killing someone to protect your illegal business, you want to discard the body discretely.

This murder was committed by someone who wanted to make a political statement. That just doesn't fit the typical weed farmer's MO.

You underestimate rural Appalachia. They've revolted many times before.

[statman]

It makes no sense for a pot-farmer to turn a murder into a political statement, and thus draw even more police focus on their operation. If you end up killing someone to protect your illegal business, you want to discard the body discretely.

This murder was committed by someone who wanted to make a political statement. That just doesn't fit the typical weed farmer's MO.

Who saids anythign about a political statement? And who said anythign about discrete? The pot fields are hardly secret. And they did not discretely get rid of the body to serve as a very public warning to the next census worker/IRS agent/BATF agent/any other 'Fed' who might want to go wandering into the hills that they'd be a lot safer if they stayed away.

Or the murder was completely unrelated to marijuana, and someone wanted to make it look that way...

[Teenage Dirtbag]

"Agents are trying to determine if foul play was involved and whether it had anything to do with Sparkman's job as Census worker, Beyer said."

So...is their other theory that he was overcome with guilt for working for the "man", so he carved "Fed" into his chest and hung himself?

[FN Phat]

I live in rural Kentucky. I work with some folks that I would not be surprised to find out that they have someone swinging from the trees.

[RobinFinderson]

Who saids anythign about a political statement? And who said anythign about discrete? The pot fields are hardly secret. And they did not discretely get rid of the body to serve as a very public warning to the next census worker/IRS agent/BATF agent/any other 'Fed' who might want to go wandering into the hills that they'd be a lot safer if they stayed away.

Or the murder was completely unrelated to marijuana, and someone wanted to make it look that way...

Can you point to a single documented case where a Kentucky marijuana farmer murdered a federal worker and then set the corpse up as a scarecrow to put fear into the hearts of other government workers?

You are saying that this looks like a murder by a marijuana farmer. Fine. Based on what?

[statman]

Can you point to a single documented case where a Kentucky marijuana farmer murdered a federal worker and then set the corpse up as a scarecrow to put fear into the hearts of other government workers?

You are saying that this looks like a murder by a marijuana farmer. Fine. Based on what?

Based on a couple centuries of behavior of moonshiners in the same area.

Marijuana. It's the new moonshine...