"Karen and her business partner, Dave Bilinski, were watching from the outdoor pens of their farm in the mountains of Canada's West Kootenay. The fate of their flock had been taken up by right-wing media, and had become another front in a spiritual war. An angry group of their supporters, with signs and walkie-talkies, gathered on the property. They'd set up a barricade to slow the cops' advance:"
"They knew the government was saying that the ostriches had bird flu, but they were convinced that this was cover for some other, bigger scheme. The feds were conspiring with the United Nations and Big Pharma, they said. Small farmers' rights were being trampled. But Dave and Karen's birds had other, more powerful friends. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was making calls to Canadian officials; Dr. Oz had offered to evacuate the ostriches to his ranch in Florida."
Police arrived at dawn in more than 40 cruisers to enforce a government order to kill ostriches suspected of bird flu. Karen Espersen and partner Dave Bilinski watched from outdoor pens as supporters and activists, amplified by right-wing media, gathered and erected a barricade. Activists camped for months and promoted conspiracy claims about the United Nations and pharmaceutical companies; Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Oz offered assistance. Canadian officials acknowledged U.S. input but maintained biosecurity rules. Law enforcement used drones, occupied the farm, and cut electricity. Supporters issued threats against local businesses and claimed a bomb on the property; a masked man fetched fuel toward a neighbor's house.
Read at The Atlantic
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