Quatloos!

Wow! Notasov! Haven't seen you in a while. Welcome back.

If Ernie is well off, he is probably hiding ownership of real estate in Montana. The Montana Cadastral doesn't show any property there under his name.

That was property data from a Lexis file available to me when I was in federal employment.

In some of the courts in that part of Montana the judges are non-lawyer appointed to handle small claims and traffic courts, so I wonder if they are aware of the flaws in Ernie's arguments or in Ernie's track record.

Altho Ernie has gone to jail, it is not clear if he is paying his fines or if he is complying with court orders (e.g., to obtain hunting/ fishing license, to obtain a driving license, etc.).

I am not privy to the thoughts going on in his head. He was active in the local Tea Party some years back. I think maybe he fancies himself the man on horseback for an alt-right revolution.

fortinbras wrote:Altho [Ernie Tergelte's] adherents paint him as a sort of hermit living in the trees, he has a farm worth more than a quarter million

If that's a formal valuation, $250,000 isn't much of a farm. That amount won't even buy you one combine. Farms can be worth huge amounts on paper, because of the value of arable land and expensive equipment. Farm families often have estate tax problems for this reason.

Edit: rewording for clarity

TheNewSaint wrote:

fortinbras wrote:Altho [Ernie Tergelte's] adherents paint him as a sort of hermit living in the trees, he has a farm worth more than a quarter million

If that's a formal valuation, $250,000 isn't much of a farm. That amount won't even buy you one combine. Farms can be worth huge amounts on paper, because of the value of arable land and expensive equipment. Farm families often have estate tax problems for this reason.

Edit: rewording for clarity

Agreed. While prices vary across the state, $250,000 does not get you much in terms of a farm that can be considered self-sustaining, let alone profitable. Especially if you do not have water rights for that land; having to pay others for the right to irrigate that land is another expense to have to factor into the balance sheet.

I must admit that, from my point of view at the far end of the country, I have no particular insight into Ernie's credit rating or business activities. Perhaps someone in his neighborhood can give us a more informative report on him. I have no idea what Ernie is up to when he's not being a jackass.

Judging from all the kinky happenings in Montana, starting with the Montana Militia and Leroy Schweitzer, and working its way through Rodney Skurdal and down to Ernie, these nuts are plentiful AND have lots of time on their hands.

fortinbras wrote:Judging from all the kinky happenings in Montana, starting with the Montana Militia and Leroy Schweitzer, and working its way through Rodney Skurdal and down to Ernie, these nuts are plentiful AND have lots of time on their hands.

I agree with ND that the only reason they have time on their hands is because these nuts are basically living day-to-day and have no substantial wealth (or if they did, they squandered it or lost It over their pet theories and beliefs). A well-to-do person or even a person who is self-supporting simply doesn't have the time to waste on this nonsense.

Ernie mentioned something about carpentry in one of his videos, so I am guessing that he does handyman jobs in his area for cash. Perusing through some of the local papers in western Montana there are quite a few of these guys offering their services.

The newest Ernie matter involves a Driving While Suspended ticket. He did not show up for court and a warrant was issued. He spent some time in jail refusing to post bond. He was then released on his own recognizance. A pre-trial and jury confirmation hearing are next, then the jury trial. Ernie's next 10 minutes of fame are all he is seeking IMHO. He sure sounds like a true believer though. Juries in Eureka can make trials interesting, but I don't think they will warm up to this outsider all that much. Eureka does have some interesting citizens. We'll see.

Looks like ol' Ernie got into a wrestling match at his trial.

https://youtu.be/Z2pbeLKakiY

I was afraid someone would try to grab the guard's gun.

Tasers, guys, tasers.

They have the additional benefit of making for very entertaining video.

wserra wrote: ↑Thu Mar 29, 2018 9:34 am Tasers, guys, tasers.

They have the additional benefit of making for very entertaining video.

Couldn't happen to a nicer more deserving guy either.

The fringed buckskins and tricorn hats are a nice touch. Nothing says "I reject your authority and substitute my own" like wearing leftover costumes from the 1960's Daniel Boone show.

BoomerSooner17 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 29, 2018 3:55 pm The fringed buckskins and tricorn hats are a nice touch. Nothing says "I reject your authority and substitute my own" like wearing leftover costumes from the 1960's Daniel Boone show.

I have a theory, if you notice, once he lost the hat, he seemed to lose all his power over the court. Therefore we most conclude that he derives all his power and authority through the hat. The hat is key to their power. Once you don the hat you can not be defeated in court. Therefore a simple way to defeat him would be to required hat removal, before court. Perhaps the hat is it own sort of sentient being who controls the mind under it.

I wonder if he sleeps with it...

NYGman wrote:
I have a theory, if you notice, once he lost the hat, he seemed to lose all his power over the court. Therefore we most conclude that he derives all his power and authority through the hat. The hat is key to their power. Once you don the hat you can not be defeated in court. Therefore a simple way to defeat him would be to required hat removal, before court. Perhaps the hat is it own sort of sentient being who controls the mind under it.

But since the act of removing one's hat as a sign of deference to a superior is the origin of the military salute, that would put anyone who removes their hat under Admiralty jurisdiction!