Militia Signs Divide Town In N. Idaho Bonner County Councilman Puts Up ‘Patriot Country,’ ‘Idaho Militia’ Sign On His Land

City Councilman Cliff Jones says he has heard nothing but compliments since he placed official-looking “Patriot Country” and “Idaho Militia” signs near the south edge of town.

Mayor Brian Orr says the complaints have come to him.

“A lot of people in town are unhappy that it’s there, but it’s on private property and there’s nothing we can do about it,” Orr said.

He said two council members and several other residents have complained to him since the signs went up last summer. They fear the community’s reputation will be damaged by the taint of right-wing extremism.

“It does cause some concern that a councilman would put it up,” the mayor said. “Unfortunately, we do have a lot of people in this area of that mind.

The pair of signs - both on the same pole - are along state Highway 41 and look a lot like official road signs. But Jones said they’re on his property, not the public right of way.

Jones said he can see how a stranger from Spokane might do a double-take while driving by, but he’s convinced no local residents have any serious concerns about the signs.

“I’ve had quite a few people stop by and make a compliment on how neat it is, but I haven’t heard anybody indicate there was an eyebrow raised,” Jones said.

In fact, he said, quite a few people have asked where they can buy one of the signs.

Although the signs are neatly lettered and bear a detailed image of a Revolutionary War Minuteman, they are homemade. Jones said he used an overhead projector to copy the image after seeing similar signs elsewhere.

“There is an Idaho personalized (vehicle license) plate that has exactly the same thing on it,” Jones said. “It has the same symbol: the patriot.”

He said his reference to an Idaho Militia reflects constitutional statements that all able-bodied men automatically constitute a militia.

The Idaho state constitution says all able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 45 “shall be enrolled in the militia, and perform such military duty as may be required by law.”

Jones acknowledged that some people may have “misused” the concept of militias, but said he intended nothing “unorthodox or unpatriotic to our country.”

“I put that up as a display of patriotism, no different than if I hang a flag up out here,” Jones said. “I don’t see any difference.”

He noted he has served on the City Council or the West Bonner Water District for about a dozen years.

Mayor Orr cited a water district project as an example of how increasing zealotry among ultraconservatives may be harmful to local public interests. Bonner County commissioners recently tabled land-use regulations local officials proposed to protect the watershed that the West Bonner Water District uses to serve Oldtown and part of neighboring Newport, Wash.

“When the county commissioners rejected this, they said it was violating private property rights,” Orr said. “What they failed to recognize was that we also have a responsibility to protect this natural resource.”

People who are upset about heavy-handed federal regulation often take their frustrations out on local governments, “but local government is closest to the people,” Orr said.

He said he fears rejection of local efforts to balance public and private interests may result in more state and federal intervention.

Just last month, Orr noted, a judge ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to take over Idaho’s water quality program on grounds that the state Division of Environmental Quality took too long to get the job done.

“It would be much better if we took care of these things at the local level,” the mayor said.

, DataTimes