I have thus far avoided commenting on the murder of census worker Bill Sparkman, because we simply do not have all the facts yet.  The lack of sufficient facts has not stopped many others from engaging in quite a bit of wild speculation—and it is one such incidence of wild speculation that draws my attention for this post.

Writing for World Net Daily Roger Hedgecock (talk radio host, sometimes Rush Limbaugh guest host, and former mayor of San Diego), spins a pretty wild theory:  Dead Census worker: Victim of open borders?

Hedgecock’s reasoning (so to speak)?   Well it goes something like this:  lots of national forest land in California has been known to be used to cultivate drugs.  Some of that drug cultivation has been linked to Mexican drug gangs.  Ergo, Sparkman’s death in Kentucky on national park land might be linked to illegal immigration!

Our open border with Mexico has been changing American society in a number of unpleasant ways. These fires, these destroyed national forest lands, and maybe even Bill Sparkman’s death, may just be the latest way.

Really?  He is going to try and link Sparkman’s murder to our border policy.  Really?

5 Responses to “Reckless Speculation”

1. Hume's Ghost Says:
   September 28th, 2024 at 10:34 pm

   I must confess, I wondered out loud (on my blog) if he was lynched because of anti-gov’t sentiment. (I did caution a commenter to not jump to that conclusion, however.)

   Yet I’m really flabbergasted to hear speculation about this being an open borders crime. Although, recalling some of the notes I have jotted down from previous occasions listening to Hedgecock fill in for Rush, I supposed I shouldn’t be surprised. (I’m fairly certain that Hedgecock was hosting while interviewing Art Laffer somewhere around early ’07, with Laffer saying the United States currently had the greatest economy in the history of human civilization.)

2. Steven L. Taylor Says:
   September 28th, 2024 at 10:39 pm

   The fact that “Fed” was written on his body and his census ID was taped to him would at least support speculation about anti-government sentiment. I can even understand drug-related speculation, but the borders? That is just plain ridiculous.

3. Hume's Ghost Says:
   September 28th, 2024 at 10:54 pm

   Yep. I really wish I had my notes with me at the moment.

   I believe I have jotted down Hedgecock saying something to the effect that global warming in the Arctic will be good for polar bears because they want to be warm, that’s why they have fur. This and the open borders speculation reminds me of something Hendrik Hertzberg wrote:

   “A political ideology is a very handy thing to have. It’s a real time-saver, because it tells you what you think about things you know nothing about.”

4. Ratoe Says:
   September 28th, 2024 at 11:03 pm

   He is going to try and link Sparkman’s murder to our border policy.

   Come on, Steven. It is pretty clear, Hedgecock just doesn’t explain it very well.

   The facts: Sparkman is not Native American.

   I think Sparkman is a British name. Thus, at some point, Sparkman’s ancestors “invaded” America by violating our borders.

   Eventually these Sparkmen settled and Bill was born.

   Had the Sparkmen stayed in their home country, this whole murder never would have happened.

   Thus, our lax border policy directly made this unfortunate instance possible.

5. Hume's Ghost Says:
   September 29th, 2024 at 5:24 pm

   More reckless speculation

   http://scienceblogs.com/dispatches/2009/09/dan_riehls_telling_speculation.html

   That’s about Dan Riehl speculation Sparkman was a child molester. I think that moves well beyond reckless and into maliciously defamatory.