Extremists finding fertile ground in Northwest US

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Nicholas K. Geranios
The Bellingham Herald

KALISPELL, MONT. With its jagged peaks, glistening lakes and lush valleys, the Inland Northwest - stretching from eastern Washington to Montana's Glacier National Park - is a stunningly beautiful and remote part of the country.

It also is a cradle for sometimes-violent anti-government activity - a reputation most recently rekindled by the search for David Burgert. The former Kalispell militia leader is accused of opening fire on sheriff's deputies on a remote logging road in Lolo National Forest.

After a lull following the demise of the Idaho-based neo-Nazi Aryan Nations in 2000, anti-government and white supremacist groups and individuals may be reviving in the Inland Northwest. It's a mostly white, mostly rural area with few job opportunities and a history of extreme activists.