[DrewsDad]

Great Job Folks. All it takes is a few dedicated people to make a difference.

[DrewsDad]

Proud to stand with you. Hopefully I got everyone's screenname correct.

[CounterCounterCulture]

Thanks Austin-area Freepers!

[Bahbah]

Great job. Thanks, Texans.

[Ms. AntiFeminazi]

Good job!

[stratman1969]

Great job Austin FReepers from a transplanted native Austinite!!!

[bluesagewoman]

WOW! Loved the last paragraph. You've done a great job.

[anymouse]

Good going Austin FReepers. Hope you all early-voted.

The irony is that all those loney leftists probably didn't bother vote. They would rather rant and complain, than participate in the democracy that they claim to want.

[Jen]

Fantastic job! Y'all look great and how exciting to get some media coverage - especially positive.

AntiLeft - GREAT quote and sign.

Whipitgood - I found the thread before you pinged me since I was looking out for it. I love your sign too. Way to go!!

[Jen]

Great FReport and pix. Thanks!!!

[tarawa]

Thanks for the great report and pics. I really wish I had been out there, but I'm averaging about 75 hours a week at work.....

[lucky7]

Great job and thanks for your great effort.

[CardCarryingMember.VastRightWC]

"THANK GOD FOR GEORGE W. BUSH"

Great job, Texans! By the way, if you really want to stir up their wrath, always have a few signs that say something nice about GWB. Because what all these "peace protests" boil down to in the end is simply a pure, unadulterated, pathological hatred of Dubya and the GOP. The war is simply an excuse they use to express their hatred. If war vs. peace was REALLY the issue they cared about, they would have been protesting Clintoon's many military adventures. It's just an excuse, a moral figleaf if you will, that they use to cover up the vicious hatred they have. And they're doing a poor job of covering it up!

[whipitgood]

Drew's Dad, You did a wonderful job with the report! And it was great to FReep with you! All you other FReepers are awesome too. I was a little wiped out from all the excitement of the rally (moo-in is more appropriate) so it has taken me until now to rest up.

[DrewsDad]

Article from The Daily Texan

Mike Kane/Daily Texan Staff A trumpeter with Bands Not Bombs, center, strikes up a tune while a protester, left, sings along during the main march of the Showdown in Texas protest Saturday. Protesters gathered to voice their opposition to several Bush administration policies, mass media coverage of world events and other issues.

Protesters rally against Bush's policies

By Lomi Kriel (Daily Texan Staff)

May 05, 2003

Protesters from all ends of the political spectrum joined forces Saturday to show their resistance to President Bush's policies at home and abroad.

The rally, sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee, a pacifist Quaker group, chose Texas as its home base for a national peace campaign called Made in Texas. Organizers said they chose Texas because of its connection to Bush, its military base involvement and death penalty record.

Austin Police estimated that between 800 and 1,000 people converged for Showdown in Texas, while organizers estimated a crowd of 5,000. An estimated 300 police officers were also present, Sgt. John Hetzelberg said.

"The aim of the event was to begin to model a sustainable peace movement that includes domestic issues, and to bring together diverse constituencies," said Patrice Mallard, coordinator of the Made in Texas campaign.

"We want to show that we don't like the way our tax dollars are spent on war and destruction."

Mallard said although the war is over, militarism is not. She stressed the importance of redirecting the conversation and focus of the movement away from the war to domestic issues and to building and sustaining a diverse peace movement.

The day's events started with marches to the Capitol and culminated in a mass rally at noon, with diverse speakers ranging from Will Harrell, the American Civil Liberties Union Texas executive director, and Richard Troxell, national chairman of the Universal Living Wage.

The Austin Peoples' Legal Collective, a new group that sprang up after arrests made during rallies in February, was also present to give advice to protesters.

"We want to make sure that people's rights to express themselves are not trampled on," said Adam Seehaver, a member of the group.

Seehaver described the group as acting as a liaison between the public and lawyers.

After numerous speakers, music and dancing, protesters marched down Congress Avenue to Sixth Street, looping around downtown and marching back to the Capitol. Protesters were redirected out of the intersection at Congress Avenue and 11th Street and back onto the sidewalk by a line of police officers on motorcycles.

As emotions escalated, police arrested two men. Gary Mowbray, 30, was arrested on a criminal mischief charge for allegedly throwing a paint ball at the offices of KTBC Fox 7 News and at the Starbucks on Congress. David Aponte, 22, was arrested for interfering with a police animal.

Protesters from FreeRepublic.com, a self-described conservative group, were also present to show their opposition to the protests, as well as some other students.

"If you live in America, you should be for your country," said Shayla Griffith, an ACC student.

Crowds dispersed around 4 p.m. with some protesters joining a caravan to Crawford, where they planned to protest Bush's meeting with Australian Prime Minister John Howard.

[DrewsDad]

Ming Ping

[MeekOneGOP]

Way to go, FReepers !

Counterprotest of Leftist Showdown in Austin Texas:
OPERATION INFINITE FREEP

Excerpt:

After a bit, WOSG came over with his LIBERATE IRAQ and FREE CUBA sign. We had more discussions with Green Party members, Liberatarian Party Members, Palestinian supporters, even a couple of French defenders, one of which wagged her finger at me telling me that all Europeans hated America. I showed her my sign, "SOCIALIST SPECIAL, PILGRAMMAGE TO PARIS, $399, DELTA IS READY WHEN YOU ARE".

WOSG wandered down to join the others at the south gate. I was getting tire of holding 2 of my signs and my back was killing me after 2 hours of doing this. Just then, someone in a suit walked by and patted my on the back saying, "Keep up the good work". I noticed he was wearing a badge saying State Representative, but I couldn't read his name.

Please let me know if you want ON or OFF my Texas ping list!. . .don't be shy.
No, you don't HAVE to be a Texan to get on this list!

[WOSG]

I was there too in Austin for the protest. I brought a sign that said "FREE Cuba , North Korea, Syria, Iran, ..."

I was with DrewsDad 1/2 the time and down near the entrance and few other counterprotesters the other 1/2 the time. A guy named Brad had a flag from another guy (freeper?) who also had the "First Iraq, then France, then Hollywood, then Hippies" Now THAT one really got the lefties' dander up.

Around 2:30 the lefties started their march - they dwindled to under 1000 by that time, and DrewsDad, me and Brad held our ground at the front entrance of the capital while they file past. One dimbulb had a "what's next? Iran? Syria?" sign, and I was chanting "free cuba" and "syria's next"! :-)

Got some discussions with anarchists.
Trying to turn them into right-wing libertarians. Also meeting some lefties from protests past.

It was worth it.

One more thing: Brian from the YCT group at UT came by - he said they would have folks there but too many were taking finals. I said they should have one person come with a sign saying "We'd be here too but we have a life!"

It was in the end quite interesting that the crowd turnout was not that good at all, they really had no issues to whine about - "unfree Iraq"? Palestine? I kept saying if palestine deserved freedom so did Cuba, Syria and North Korea. One ONE MEATHEAD actually defended Cuba. I managed to talk to over a dozen protesters, almost all of them young and they seemed to still be open-minded. The older ones just give you dirty looks! One old leftist got angry at DrewsDad insulting the Socialiast Workers Party and ANSWER, so we know where he is coming from. No matter. If this was the best they could do, it was not much. We are winning!

[WOSG]

David/DrewsDad, personal thanks for holding down the fort and being there. It made all the difference to me to have a familiar face. And I am sorry I missed the other freepers - I waited till the last minute to make my sign, and came on scene at around 12:30pm Saturday ... I must say that "Free Cuba" was an inspired choice, as it gave me many opportunities to tell startled lefties that the organizers included Castro-coddlers and Castro was an evil socialist dictator.

[MeekOneGOP]

Here's the buzz on 1979 walkout

Lawmakers involved in 'Killer Bees' protest offer advice on tactics

05/13/2003

By GEORGE KUEMPEL / The Dallas Morning News

AUSTIN – The House Democrats who have taken flight to avoid a vote on congressional redistricting got moral support Monday – and a bit of advice – from the "Killer Bees" whose similar protest paralyzed the Senate two decades ago.

"I do want to express my thanks for their courage," said U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Austin, one of 12 Democrats who hid for almost five days in 1979 in a successful ploy to block passage of a disputed elections bill.

Former Sen. Bill Patman, now retired in Austin, offered hints for avoiding troopers, who have been dispatched to round them up and bring them back.

"They should pick some secure locations and scatter. I don't think you can find a place where 53 people can be holed up and not have it pretty apparent," he said.

FILE / DMN

Sen. Carlos Truan showed off his "Killer Bees" T-shirt in 1979.

The walkout by the group called the Killer Bees and failed law enforcement efforts to find them – even though most were holed up in one of their secretaries' garage apartment not far from the Capitol – shut down the Senate.

They were unhappy with a bill backed by Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby, the Senate presiding officer, that would have created two primary elections, helping former Gov. John Connally's GOP presidential bid.

Mr. Hobby named the group, saying the senators were about as useful as killer bees. But they returned after he withdrew the bill and vowed not to retaliate.

Mr. Doggett wished the new House defectors well. The decision to bolt, he said, is gut-wrenching and fraught with political danger.

"Each of them is taking a risk," he said. "But when you see things twisted and distorted ... it calls for extraordinary action."

Mr. Doggett also predicted they will be vindicated at the polls. "When people have a chance to fairly evaluate their conduct they will see it was well-justified," he said.

Also Online

	Democrats disappear from House
	Majority of AWOL lawmakers in Oklahoma
	Here's the buzz on 1979 walkout
	Video: Shelley Kofler reports
	Texas Talkback: How does the walkout change your opinion of the Democrats or the Republicans they oppose? |

Former Sen. Ron Clower, who was among those hiding in the garage apartment near his Austin home, said the tactic of preventing a quorum should seldom be used.

"If the situation is serious enough, it's a legitimate legislative ploy," said Mr. Clower, now a Fort Worth lawyer.

Though the move might have contributed to his 1980 re-election defeat, Mr. Clower said he is proud of what he and his colleagues did.

"It wasn't particularly happy being in the room with all those people all that time – it was a very small room – but for what we accomplished, it was worth it," he said.

Former Sen. A.R. "Babe" Schwartz, now an Austin lobbyist, said the defections aren't a surprise. He said Republicans have been too aggressive in pushing their agenda after winning control of the Texas House for the first time in more than 100 years.

"This was foreseeable. A Republican majority set out to do what they thought needed to be done in Texas in all those years when they were in the minority. The problem was that there should have been some consideration given to not doing it all at one time," he said.

Mr. Parker said he doesn't know how the rebellion will play out but he expects hard feelings. "There's probably going to be more bitterness over it than it was when we were there, because I think it's more partisan," he said.

Staff writer Matt Stiles contributed to this report.

Email gkuempel@dallasnews.com

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Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dallas/tsw/stories/051303dntexbees.f27f.html