They’re Certainly Not ‘Patriots’

I read with great interest and appreciation Martin J. Smith’s article on how Marvin Heemeyer tried to level the town of Granby, Colo., with an armored bulldozer and how antigovernment groups declared him a hero (“Martyr Without a Cause,” July 25). It is particularly ironic that a significant number of the caustic statements directed at the town are based on misrepresentation and outright lies. We stand accused of various acts of malfeasance and corruption by parties who, frankly, lie and manufacture fictions they present as “fact.”

I believe these factions must be confronted and their fulminations exposed for the lies they are. It’s a mistake to simply say “they’re blowhards and should be ignored.” They’re hate mongers, and their lack of credibility or basic decency should be rejected. They seek to destroy the foundations of our society, not to elevate it.

The events in Granby were the criminal acts of someone who couldn’t control his anger and was unwilling to recognize that as a society a balance must be struck to ensure the rights of all. There is no reasonable excuse for Heemeyer’s actions, despite the bile spouted by so-called and misnamed “patriots.”

Edward “Ted” Wang

Mayor

Granby, Colo.