Posted on 08/19/2013 10:01:19 AM PDT by Da Bilge Troll
A few of you sent me this video, published to Youtube today, of the weekend overpass protests, this one in St. Charles, Missouri. I’m still trying to figure out what laws these protesters broke. While I wasn’t there, it seems to me the protesters were standing on public ground, not in traffic, therefor not impeding traffic. Having organized and attended many protests myself — and having worked with local law enforcement to make sure regulations (even mindlessly unnecessary ones) are met, so long as a protester isn’t standing in traffic, there isn’t an issue. Am I missing something here? Don’t miss the take-down-by-force at the end.
I’m going to reach out to the Missouri Highway Patrol and St. Charles law enforcement for comment.
Don’t forget: the Missouri Highway Patrol was one of the agencies who listed protesters just like the ones in this video as “militia” and potential domestic terrorists on the April 2009 MIAC report.
Actually, he was incorrect on a couple points. I don't think the shirts had anything to do with it. He also said no one was on the other side of the overpass. This was also incorrect.
Gestapo at work.
Actually, the distraction was the traffic volume backing up from the next exit because of a festival in St. Charles at that time. There were accidents before we arrived and there were accidents after we left. Drivers are responsible - not people on a sidewalk above the road.
The participants are generally on narrow sidewalks, presenting a danger not only to passing cars ON the overpass but to the demonstrators thenselves who are milling about and jumping around with traffic literally inches away behind them.
I prefer the street corner freeps we used to have....they were effective and were never designed to be calamity-prone.
In case of anyone curious, I've participated in street freeps too numerous to list here....just ask any veteran freeper in our very active Florida chapters about our very effective freeps the past decade-plus.
Though I DID love the Obama masks shown in the photo up-thread!
Leni
If you would care to look at the video, you would notice that none of your objections apply in this case.
Creepy Ass Cracker
The Lafayette flag brigade hangs flags on an overpass over busy Hgy 24 and many people show up and wave flags in support every Sept. 11. Most of the traffic slows down and honks in support, and this is in liberal bay area!
The Lafayette flag brigade hangs flags on an overpass over busy Hgy 24 and many people show up and wave flags in support every Sept. 11. Most of the traffic slows down and honks in support, and this is in liberal bay area!
"3. Resolved that it is true as a general principle and is also expressly declared by one of the amendments to the constitution that ‘the powers not delegated to the US. by the constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively or to the people’: and that no power over the freedom of religion, freedom of speech, or freedom of the press being delegated to the US. by the constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, all lawful powers respecting the same did of right remain, & were reserved, to the states or the people: that thus was manifested their determination to retain to themselves the right of judging how far the licentiousness of speech and of the press may be abridged without lessening their useful freedom, and how far those abuses which cannot be separated from their use should be tolerated rather than the use be destroyed (emphasis added); …" --Thomas Jefferson, Kentucky Resolutions, 1798.
And regardless that the 14th Amendment now limits the extent to which states can abridge our constitutional rights, given that the protestors were distracting drivers, arguably the same idea as drivers being distracted by cell phones, the cops had a reasonable basis to stop the protest imo.
Regarding the miscellaneous charges like resisting arrest, the protesters were decent. I think that such charges are likely routine, CYA on the part of the cops. If a charge doesn't stick, oh well.
Finally, Obama isn't the problem with the country imo. The problem is Constitution-ignorant "patriots" who don't understand Congress's constitutionally limited powers as evidenced by the Constitution's Section 8 of Article I, Article V and the 10th Amendment. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the protestors had never heard of Section 8.
This particular take-down didn't do a thing for our side in regards to the purpose of the demonstration.....except to afford outrage and drama when the video is seen by a comparative few people.
Leni
This particular take-down didn't do a thing for our side in regards to the purpose of the demonstration.....except to afford outrage and drama when the video is seen by a comparative few people.
Leni
Our local Tea Party have done two overpass protests and were hassled by the La Crosse City attorney when we were clearly out of his jurisdiction.
The idiot did not realize we recorded his threats. We now have an attorney to keep us from being hassled for our first amendment rights on our second protest.
They are now attempting to change the statute to disallow our protests on the pedestrian overpass (we are in a deep blue section of Wisconsin).
http://www.wxow.com/story/23164439/2013/08/17/group-protests-president-obama-on-i-90-overpass
Now you know why I wasn't able to get to the video of the take-down. It's very burdensome to post ANYTHING today.
Leni
It wasn’t just a festival. It was the biggest event of the year in St. Charles and the 5th Street exit is always a mess on that week-end. Added to that was the fact that westbound 70 was restricted to two lanes due to construction. Announcements were being made all weekend to use either the Page Extension or the 370 bridge instead of the Blanchette Bridge to avoid the congestion.
It will be interesting to see what happens next weekend.
I gave a couple of them to the farmers in Klamath falls, Oregon at a protest over water being shut off to the valley.
LOL
I just called the St. Charles County Economic Development Center to ask them if they think their law enforcement efforts are going to make companies want to move to that area.
636-441-6880
BTW is anyone else having trouble posting?
“Dream Defenders” occupied the Florida capitol round the clock, incurring large overtime costs. They also had food brought to them by Capitol Police.
trouble posting indeed.
something is CLEARLY intercepting the data we are sending to FREEP CENTRAL.
your post was extreme sarcasm, correct? I mean I’ve seen some ridiculous posts here, but this takes the cake so I have to assume you were joking.
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