The Fairbanks Anti-Government Protest Today

Ex-Alaska legislator and former BFF of Veco President Bill Allen, is the guy behind the puppet strings in a rally being held this afternoon in Fairbanks:

FAIRBANKS — A heavy-hitting lineup is expected to step to the podium Wednesday to speak at a “Fed up with the Fed” rally on Wednesday at the Pioneer Park Civic Center.

Speakers will include Congressman Don Young, Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Corey Rossi, director of Wildlife Conservation for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The rally, which runs from 4-8 p.m., is being sponsored by the wildlife conservation group Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife. Young, Murkowski and Rossi will be speaking between 6-7 p.m.

There will also be a dozen “issue booths” manned by a group or agency fighting a specific issue of federal management, such as wildlife management, oil and gas permitting, access issues, mining restrictions, EPA issues and the Endangered Species Act.

Local SFW members Ralph Seekins and Craig Compeau will be emceeing the event.

The rally also is serving as a fundraiser for Jim Wilde, the 71-year-old Central man who was arrested and handcuffed by the National Park Service in September for failing to stop for a boat safety check on the Yukon River. Wilde contested the charges in a trial in Fairbanks earlier this month and a federal judge is currently deliberating the case.

For a suggested donation of $10 or $20, participants can guess how much money the National Park Service spent on the Wilde case. The five guesses closest to the amount, which has yet to be revealed, will win prizes. The top prize is a free picnic lunch and scenic tour at “Gestapo Point,” the spot where Wilde was arrested and handcuffed by gun- and Taser-wielding rangers. Other prizes include a Taser (second); a pair of handcuffs (third); a box of shotgun shells (fourth) and a replica Gestapo badge (fifth).

At the Fairbanks News-Miner, after the rally's references to the Gestapo were criticized in the comments, some have been coming to Seekins' defense for using the term:

What a bunch of misinformation. The Feds joined the Allies in World War II and stabbed Hitler in the back while he was at war with communist Russia during Operation Barbarossa. Read your history Don Young.

Here's the rally poster:
And here's a breakdown of some of the contributions Seekins received from Bill Allen while the former was in the legislature:


Top image - Ester Republic