Liberal protesters openly advocate violence against the RNC!

"Leftist protestors and Democratic Party supporters have promised to hit New York City in force during next week's Republican National Convention -- and many of them are openly advocating violence. The “RNC Not Welcome” website advises its protestors, “The only time it's okay to speak about illegal actions is when you are planning them with the small group of trusted people who will be doing the action with you.” This website is far from alone in its open calls to perpetrate violence in the streets to a degree not seen since 9/11. Yet New York City authorities -- Republican authorities, at that -- are offering these protestors into town, even giving these “tourists” discounts during their stay in the Big Apple.

The “RNC Not Welcome” website has become one of the main hubs for anti-GOP organizing. An ad on the site flashes the words “Don't end up like these guys” over an image of two black-masked anarchists obviously lost, arguing over a map. Inside, the site offers maps, transportation information, and legal advice for when (not if) you are arrested, as well as tips for “Basic Activist Security Culture.” The website advises would-be masked assailants, “Assume you are under surveillance if you are involved in organizing mass direct action or anything illegal, and take precautions.”

One of those “precautions” warns that it is “never okay to ask about someone else's illegal activities” or to “discuss your involvement or someone else's involvement with an underground group.” That might disclose the violence -- I'm sorry, “direct action” -- your group has planned.

Although the mainstream media has taken great pains to portray anyone plotting violence against Republican revelers in New York City next week as “fringe elements,” the individuals who run the “RNC Not Welcome” website are considered mainstream enough to have become the public face of the protests. The site's 30-year-old founder and self-described anarchist, Jamie Moran, has been featured prominently in New York Newsday, the British tabloid Guardian, and the New York Times.

And Moran has made it clear it is violence he intends to bring to the Big Apple. Moran was even more forthcoming in the Guardian. “We want to make their stay here is miserable as possible,” he told the British paper. “I'd like to see all the Republican events -- teas, backslapping lunches -- disrupted. I'd like to see corporations involved in the Iraq reconstruction get targeted -- anything from occupation to property destruction.” (Emphasis added.)

Moran's group promises to “liberate” New York City from Republicans.

In the New York Times, the world's most influential newspaper, he branded all police precautions about the protests as “fear mongering.” But in the same article, Moran praised the success of the violent 1999 WTO protests in Seattle, boasting that “direct action gets the goods.” Perhaps that gives a hint as to what he has planned."

FULL ARTICLE

We're going to have to keep running totals on the Kook All Stars over the next week. It's going to be lunacy on a massive scale that I think will make Seattle's 2000 WTO meeting and the 1968 DNC Chicago convention look tame.

I'm expecting such idocy in the next week that the 12 ACT UP people that got naked yesterday in the name of third world debt forgiveness wasn't even worth a post.

Look for a running theme of "Kook All Stars: Volume #...." posts from me in the next week. I promise only to post the best of the best. Garden variety placard bearers and t-shirt wearers need not apply.

[quote name='"PittsburghAfterDark"']
I'm expecting such idocy in the next week...
quote]


So am I, but what would you expect with all those Republicans in town?

That kind of reminds me of that one website, protestwarriors.com. They have videos of some conservatives going to liberal ralies, and many of the protestors there act very violent and vulgar. If I remember correctly, one member of A.N.S.W.E.R actually pushes a pregnant lady. I've never been to a rally/protest, and I don't really plan on attending any as this seems to be the generaly acceptable behavior.

Hopefully, these people will protest peacefully. Violence is certainly not the answer.

[quote name='"David85"'][quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']
I'm expecting such idocy in the next week...
quote]


So am I, but what would you expect with all those Republicans in town?[/quote]

Good one, hurt yourself coming up with it?


Awwww shucks guys, I mean these guys just want to express their opinions (on people). I mean, that's no reason to scan people going in to the convention even if the most powerful man in the world will be there....

... right?

[quote name='"gamefreak"'][quote name='David85'][quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']
I'm expecting such idocy in the next week...
quote]


So am I, but what would you expect with all those Republicans in town?[/quote]

Good one, hurt yourself coming up with it?


Awwww shucks guys, I mean these guys just want to express their opinions (on people). I mean, that's no reason to scan people going in to the convention even if the most powerful man in the world will be there....

... right?[/quote]

Bush deserves to get beat up, you know it and I know it. What with all the shit he talks.
Very few people in the spotlight I've seen lately are as cocky bastards or assholes like Bush.
Most of the time I wouldn't care but he deserves to be knocked down a peg.

Yeah folks, we have our first loon incident and the convention hasn't even started yet.

During an interview on Fox a crazy broke into the building where the convention is being held. No one knows what he was trying to do yet, but he was quickly escorted out. I hope they gave him a good beat down on the way out.

I do want to say, I was watching a rally indoctrination seminar for protesters on C-span today. There was this girl advising the protecters how to behave. And she was basically explaining how not to cooperate with police if someone breaks the law.

One example she used was if protesters break a window. She explained that if the police come up and ask if you saw someone break the window with a brick, you have two options. Either not say anything, which is legal, but she advised against it. Or better yet saying you didn't see anything. She never broached the option that you may have actually seen someone break the window and cooperate with police by pointing out the vandal.

I'm all for the freedom of assembly. But some people go too far when they create mischief and vandalism.

"The causes varied as much as the people shouting support: immigrants' rights, gay rights, universal health care, the Palestinian cause, support for A.N.S.W.E.R, and an end to the killing in Sudan."

I kept flipping through baseball and the C-SPAN cameras showing the march past MSG without commentary. They had cameras in the crowd and stationary above the street. I noticed a few things about this crowd of what I deem "professional" protesters.

This crowd was all ABB (Obviously.) and huge on the GIMME GIMME GIMME aspect. I was stunned at the lack of variety of signs and the creativity of the slogans. BUSH LIED, Healthcare Not Warfare, or Immigrant Rights or **EDUCATION PHRASE HERE** Not Bombs seemed to be 60%+ of the signs.

There were also numerous streetwide banners that had the organizational names below their ABB phrase, they typically included words like "Proletariat", "Socialst" or "Progressive". In other words, this was the fringe radicals. I also noticed a large amount of union signs from the SEIU so who knows how many union members were in this crowd that marched today so they got a free trip to NYC Friday-Sunday or Monday but didn't give a rats ass about the cause. Don't think it's possible? Only about 1-8 to 1-10 in the union groups had signs.

The other thing that cracked me up were when they actually did do man/woman on the street interviews. Not one person out of 40+ I saw interviewed mentioned John Kerry or how there was a better choice available to the people. All they could do was talk about generally being against war or wanting free something; free healthcare, free college educations, free housing, free money (Loan forgiveness for various groups of Americans.) not one person though mentioned they had a choice coming up in less than 70 days. The tone I took away from every person was a sense of non-reality, they almost didn't know why they were marching except they didn't like Bush.

If anyone else spent time watching this did you notice that there's a big FOX News billboard at 33rd and 7th Avenue? The funniest thing was there were chants.... against the billboard . I mean c'mon, they alternated between "FOX News Sucks" and "FOX News Lies" depending on the group passing by. Who the shaq fu chants against a billboard ? Is it going to talk back?

The last thing I wanted to point out was that IMHO these were typically the same shiftless and aimless people you see lounging about in coffee shops and crashed in the chairs and on couches in book stores reading books they'll never buy. Poorly dressed, rag tag looks about them, few had pride in their appearance. About 1-10,000 had something of ANY value on them like a camera or even something as trivial as a wrist watch. The rest were dressed like the slobs playing hacky sack or ultimate on a college campus.

Outside the union people I'd really like to know who paid to get these people here to show up, they didn't look like the bridge and tunnel crowd.

The thing that really killed me were examples of such blind obvious stupidity. I saw several signs relating to an erosion of freedom of speech or civil rights. Did it not dawn on these people that 50+city, state and federal government agencies allocated over $50 million dollars to protect 250,000+ Americans that would be able to safely and hopefully peacefully assemble and address their political grievances in a public forum? Isn't that ENSURING your civil rights and freedom of speech? Did you not see the massive dumptrucks filled with sand at intersections with 7th avenue that were established as mobile barriers against a car comb attack? Or how about the dozens of uniformed personnel with automatic weapons? Did it not occur to these MENSA rejects that police states don't allocate funds and resources to be denounced on worldwide television?

I'm glad the major protest went off without violence. I hope the rest of the week is as uneventful.

[quote name='"gamefreak"'][quote name='David85'][quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']
I'm expecting such idocy in the next week...
quote]


So am I, but what would you expect with all those Republicans in town?[/quote]

Good one, hurt yourself coming up with it?
[/quote]

Nope, unlike some I don't have to strain my brain making bad jokes.

Plus it's better than any of the "jokes" (there aren't really jokes because they aren't funny) that PAD has made.

while I'm for the right of anyone to peacably assemble and protest for whatever reason, I just can't stop asking myself WHAT protesting actually achieves? The people being shouted down aren't going to agree with you, people watching your display aren't going to want to side with such childish tactics, most will find you annoying, and others will hide behind you to incite some type of violence or other illegal activity like a riot.

You'd achieve just as much by standing at your front door and shouting your political positions down the block; you'd certainly be less prone to being arrested, teargassed, trampled, or pickpocketed.

It seems to me that there are better avenues to use for protesting. Perhaps a grass roots organization that buys advertising on a local network or radio station. Billboards, fliers, or even letters to the editor. Just about every sign carrying, slogan shouting protestor achives nothing but tooting his own horn for selfish pleasure and nothing more.

[quote name='bmulligan']while I'm for the right of anyone to peacably assemble and protest for whatever reason, I just can't stop asking myself WHAT protesting actually achieves? The people being shouted down aren't going to agree with you, people watching your display aren't going to want to side with such childish tactics, most will find you annoying, and others will hide behind you to incite some type of violence or other illegal activity like a riot.

You'd achieve just as much by standing at your front door and shouting your political positions down the block; you'd certainly be less prone to being arrested, teargassed, trampled, or pickpocketed.

It seems to me that there are better avenues to use for protesting. Perhaps a grass roots organization that buys advertising on a local network or radio station. Billboards, fliers, or even letters to the editor. Just about every sign carrying, slogan shouting protestor achives nothing but tooting his own horn for selfish pleasure and nothing more.[/quote]

Actually, bmulligan, I'd have to say the demonstrators accomplished quite a bit. More than 200,000 people peaceably crowded the city streets and came damn close to drowning out Cheney's opening-day remarks (made, not surprisingly, against the altered New York City skyline -- is there no depth to which these folks won't sink in their attempts to portray Bush as Fearless Leader).

You will note in your morning paper, I dare say, that as much is made of the protest as of Cheney's remarks. That's the power of protest -- to show that it's more than just one crackpot or one fringe group buying up ad time. You can't dismiss a crowd of almost a quarter of a million people as just fringe whackos. And if you do, you're kidding yourself.

[quote name='bmulligan']while I'm for the right of anyone to peacably assemble and protest for whatever reason, I just can't stop asking myself WHAT protesting actually achieves? The people being shouted down aren't going to agree with you, people watching your display aren't going to want to side with such childish tactics, most will find you annoying, and others will hide behind you to incite some type of violence or other illegal activity like a riot.[/quote]

Pro-Bush protesters got the recount in Florida halted.

http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/blfloridagopmob.htm

Remember when Geaorge W. Bush said that making policy based on the popular opinion of the people of the United States would be like making policies 'based on a focus group'.

And it is true, pro-Bush protestors were bused in to protest the recount in Florida.

They weren't just pro-Bush protesters, they were Tom Delay's staff.

[quote name='PittsburghAfterDark']I saw several signs relating to an erosion of freedom of speech or civil rights. Did it not dawn on these people that 50+city, state and federal government agencies allocated over $50 million dollars to protect 250,000+ Americans that would be able to safely and hopefully peacefully assemble and address their political grievances in a public forum? Isn't that ENSURING your civil rights and freedom of speech? Did you not see the massive dumptrucks filled with sand at intersections with 7th avenue that were established as mobile barriers against a car comb attack? Or how about the dozens of uniformed personnel with automatic weapons? Did it not occur to these MENSA rejects that police states don't allocate funds and resources to be denounced on worldwide television?

I'm glad the major protest went off without violence. I hope the rest of the week is as uneventful.[/quote]

The protestors were peaceful, but contrary to what you said about them being protected, many were beaten by police and federal agents.

Even legal observers and independent journalists were attacked and arrested.

[quote name='bmulligan']It seems to me that there are better avenues to use for protesting. Perhaps a grass roots organization that buys advertising on a local network or radio station. Billboards, fliers, or even letters to the editor. Just about every sign carrying, slogan shouting protestor achives nothing but tooting his own horn for selfish pleasure and nothing more.[/quote]

More accurate to say IMO that there are multiple avenues of protesting and each has its place and effectiveness. Certainly mass protests in the streets are a good way to get attention as anything so big as 100,000+ is sure to be mentioned in the paper the next day, probably on the front page.