The "Bringin' In The Troops...Who Were Those Guys?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  June 6, 2020 in the small town known as Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania and the troops have arrived!  A local group had organized a "Black Lives Matter" rally in the center of town.  As people began to assemble about lunchtime for the rally, someone noticed a fellow up on the roof of a nearby business carrying semi-automatic weapons as well as a sidearm.  Very well equipped to go to war!  And, he wasn't the only one!  So, who invited these guys and who are they, anyway.  It was insane and dangerous, to say the least.  The Elizabethtown Police Chief was notified and he said he had been notified the night before that a few of the local businesses planned to have security inside their shops.  But, evidently it is not unlawful to carry a weapon if you have a permit to do so.  

A lone gunman stands watch on a rooftop in Elizabethtown.

Then it was noticed that store owners were wearing a piece of green tape on the front of them.  Why?  They did not say if they had, or had not, invited these armed men to town, but the green tape telling the gunmen who they were not to harm made them look pretty suspicious.  A Lancaster Newspaper reporter asked one of the gunmen, who was recognized as an Elizabethtown resident, what group it was that he belonged to and why where they at the rally.  The guy, who refused to give the reporter his name, said he belonged to a group called the Domestic Terrorism Response Organization.  The group has about 300 members in central Pennsylvania and is dedicated to protecting businesses, citizens and homes.  So, who are they protecting, and from whom?  All rally participants were marching peacefully along the sidewalks.  One black man, Alaak Deu, a 21-year-old walked up to a white policeman who was standing along the street, and asked him, "Is being Black a crime in Elizabethtown?"  Policeman Dustin Ryan replied, "Absolutely not!"  And then the two hugged!!  Well, it turned out that there were two militia groups in attendance on June 6.  One of the groups was known as the Carlisle Light Infantry and are a direct descendent of the Carlisle Light Infantry that marched with George Washington against the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania and fought for the Union in the Civil War.  The other group, now calling itself the Domestic Terrorism Response Organization, identified itself as "Anti-ANTIFA" on a newly created Facebook page June 1, but changed it to Domestic Terrorism Response Organization shortly after President Trump declared the loosely organized American anti-faxcist movement to be a domestic terror group.  One of the gunmen told a newspaper reporter he was there to protect everybody...store owners, police and protesters.  The newly incarnated Carlisle Light Infantry, in its modern incarnation, now describes itself on its website as the "living, breathing, operational element of the 2nd Amendment as defined by the signers of the constitution of the United States as 'a well regulated militia.'"  On their website they say: "We live in a time where we as citizens are apprehensive, even afraid of our uniformed officers.  We're doubtful and suspicious of our local elected officials.  Our leaders do not have our best interests, our families and our livelihoods in mind as they make decisions that effect every aspect of our daily lives.  We therefore live in a time where it's our personal and civic duty to stand up for what's right and protect what matters most."  Wow! They claim to not discriminate against anyone, but there isn't a single black or brown face in any of the photos posted on the website.  Many members say they have lost faith in this country and its institutions, including the political system, the police and the military.  But, they also have a fear of people of color, immigrants, diversity and a world not dominated by white people.  And, could it be, just maybe, that they did show up in Elizabethtown just in case the Black Lives Matter rally got out of control so they could step in with their weapons and quell the situation?  Well, another rally is scheduled at Elizabethtown's Borough Park for today at 1:00 PM.  They claim they haven't been requested by any business for assistance, so they won't be here.  We will see!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.