Posted on 11/04/2003 3:02:52 AM PST by Schwaeky
I just came from Waffle House (three springs road location here in Bowling Green) along w/ a number of local GOP people who went to listen to "the other guy" at one of his 11th hour whistlestop campaign spiels along the road to Election Day. Was politely treated by most of the Chandler folks, as most of them are neighbors, friends, classmate, parishoners, and civic group members from the same area as the rest of us. However the Fletcher people with me had a few roadblocks. We were out there to quietly listen to Chandler (who was 20 min late, after his vehicle briefly pulled in to speak, left and then came back) and quietly display our support for the other guy. Anyway, while we were there standing outside with stickers on our shirts, stickers on our cars, and carrying signs, a gentleman (I use that word highly loosely, but more about him later) claiming to be security for the premises told us that we had to )remove our visible signs for Fletcher, from the property (when there were chandler signs planted in the ground, on trucks, and being carried by individuals), remove vehicles with Fletcher stickers from the parking lot, and said that it was a scheduled event and that there was to be no challengers present (not that we were challenging his right to speak there, we were there to listen ourselves!), and that we had to leave the property. Me and one other guy stood our ground, one being silent me though being polite but firm in my resolve to stand in there, but he said he was security for the premises and that Chandler had scheduled a "closed event" (never heard of that at a restaurant like the awful waffle before) for party faithful and that we were not authorized to be there. Well we all planned to eat anyway, and I pulled out of my pocket my lucky $2 bill and flashed it at chin-height and said, "this sir, is our authorization to be here," as we also intend to eat Got heckled by a number of Democrats for that comparing it to campaign $$ and other such stuff at the campaign level, and I thought afterward not the wisest course of action, but at the time I was going for shock and awe to make him realize that we were within our rights and within the law. He also threatened to call the law on us for being there, and another Dem (a local lawyer, not sure which one) said he was going to call the head of the state FOP (Martin Scott), who endorsed Chandler, to try to muscle us out--to which I told him--"do what you may, but I have you know that the state FOP chairman is friends with my father." The other guy got up in the face of myself and one of the other Fletcher supporters almost threatening our personage, but when he threatened one of Fletcher's house colleagues from Colorado, who came in to help the campaign, and when he did that I stepped in and informed the guy that he was confronting/threatening a congressmember (he threatened to call the cops on all of us) and to do so would risk trouble from the FBI (threatening a public official who was acting as a private citizen exercizing constitutional rights--a felony) and that he can threaten me all he wants, nothing you can't throw at me I can't take, but attacking the congressman (it was Tom Tancredo a conservative Republican house member--so not a RINO) he risked crossing the line by the words he chose. Most of the fifteen some-odd people put their signs up in their cars, but myself and one other supporter, a guy working for Congressman Lewis's office, stood our ground outside, answering questions from various reporters, talking to Democrat friends and responding to questions from some of the Chandler supporters--one asked about Fletcher's girlfriend--to which I said, "yeah he has a girlfriend, her name is Glenna" (Mrs. Fletcher). Basically we were all there to peacefully assemble and listen to Chandler and express our support for Fletcher and told the reporters that I found it disdainful that Democrats of all people would be attempting to stiffle the marketplace of ideas, and I felt that "it would be unlikely that even Ben Chandler himself would appreciate such stifling of interest in his campaign by his own supporters" But between the security guy (who later on was working on the line in the restaurnt preparing food) and the lawyer, I felt that they were just bulldogs, and I called the security guy to his face "a regular McClusky" (reference to the crooked cop in "The Godfather" that Michael whacked), and I think the guy knew what I meant when I then said "how much is the Chandler people paying you to push us away," a remark he ignored. anyway i felt it was a conflict of interest almost that he was trying to drive us away from his establishment under threat of law when he was carrying the security badge AND wearing a sticker for Chandler. Not 1000% sure, but I think he is some kind of managment for Awful Waffle because he was working on the line preparing food afterwards, but he also was making the other employees wear Chandler stickers (found that out too from a friend of mine that works there as a waitress who isn't even American, just over on a temporary guest worker/student visa here from Bulgaria--was wearing a sticker--slipped her a spare Fletcher sticker but she obviously couldn't put it on there)..
Final count--more than 50 democrats there, almost 20 Fletcher supporters, but the Fletcher people ended up probably spending more there b/c we took up residence on the lunchstand table and each spent at least $5.00. Most of the Dems just got coffee milk or oj--barely a buck or two.
just thought I would inform everyone, some interested, some probably couldn't give a crap less, about this awakening experience, and my further disapointment in a party that claims to live up to the ideals of the marketplace of ideas and free debate (claiming that Republicans don't to boot) and yet stifles it at every turn.
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