Artist tests line between provocative, provocateur - Verbal threat on Bush lands him in jail

SF Chronicle ^ | 5/26/03 | Joe Garofoli

[I_Love_My_Husband]

Barry Schwartz was sickened by what he took to be the softball coverage of the fall of Baghdad. So the 44-year-old artist turned off CNN and went out to do an errand, determined to provoke deeper reflection along his way.

[I_Love_My_Husband]

Liberalism IS a mental disease.

[Behind Liberal Lines]

A few years ago, a middle class white guy (as the "artist" puts it) called into the Howard Stern show and, as a joke, started talking about killing then VP candidate Lieberman.

Stern kept exhorting the guy to renunicate the joke but the guy, giggling, wouldn't.

The same day he was in Secret Service custody.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Another unhinged liberal nutball hiding behind "art".

[martin_fierro]

Making death threats against a Clintoon will get you ... dead.

[martin_fierro]

Hell, the mere possibility of testifying against a Clintoon will get you dead.

[Reaganesque]

Instead, he painfully learned the answer to a question that has become increasingly vexing to everyone from educators and law enforcement officials to guys working in furniture stores and artists: Where's the line between free speech and making a terroristic threat?

Did he? His comments at the end of the article seem to indicate he did not. Perhaps he should have learned that there is a fine line between being "provocative" and being a "jerk".

[Tijeras_Slim]

[bballbob]

I wonder how large a grant this "artist" will receive from the National Endowmnent for the Arts next year? Hopefully, our tax dollars will support this kind of "artistry." sarcasm/off.

[I_Love_My_Husband]

I don't recall during the Democrat years our side making so many death threats, do you? It seems that their side gets so angry they make death threats or try to carry them out (ie, against Ronald Reagan).

It seems to be acceptable to Liberals. They think they're so RIGHT and get out of control when they don't win. Think of how Gore acted!

[martin_fierro]

During the height of the Clintoon impeachment, some loony Santa Cruz leftie travelled all the way to Pittsburgh, PA in an apparent attempt to shoot Richard Mellon Scaife. This nut actually made it as far as a restroom on the same floor of Scaife's building.

Then he committed suicide. Duh.

[JOE6PAK]

A "pro-administration furniture store"?

SHOW ME THE WAY TO THIS PLACE! I would rather spend MY money in this store.

[crazykatz]

That, because liberals have tiny little brains and act like spoiled brats.

[Jimmy Valentine's brother]

Threatening the life of the President of the United States is not free speech. The Secret Service takes any and all such threats very seriously.

I must remind you that the Secret Service detained a women and her husband in the Chicago area after the Black Hawk Down fiasco. X42 had made an supposedly impromptu stop at a fair and was working the crowd. The women who had a booth told x42 that he had killed those boys in a loud voice. x42 moved on but stopped to talk to the Secret Service. Within moments she was being hauled off. Her husband dared to asked what was going on and he joined his wife at the local station.

[A_perfect_lady]

Last month, two Oakland High School sophomores got a visit from the Secret Service after their teacher heard them make comments about "getting" Bush.

They were probably talking about something else entirely. ;^)

Jokes aside, this guy is a brat. Just an aging brat enganged in one long series of attention-getting tantrums. I know exactly what he needs to straighten him out, but I won't say.

[Pravious]

I agree.

Also, notice the clever bias in the reporting;

"Couple that with the highly charged emotions flowing the day this incident happened. While many Americans, like the pro-administration furniture store employees, were celebrating the U.S. victory in Iraq, for others, like Schwartz, the day inspired more soul-searching about U.S. actions overseas. "

What this REALLY says is: "while people who are simply reacting on emotion - you know, those pro-administration dittoheads, are out their doing their dopey celebration thing, our hero - the artist, is doing some serious soul-searching and, of course, coming up with the correct conclusion that the U.S. is evil, as we all would realize if we simply thought about it more..."

I think also about the woman who was taken in for telling Clinton he sucked.

[I_Love_My_Husband]

The only furniture store I know of is Ikea in Emeryville!

Do ya think....? Gee...wouldn't THAT be cool? Maybe other people know...

[MizSterious]

I do recall someone saying Clinton should be punished as a traitor, and mentioning that the sentence for that was often death--and the fella, whoever he was, found either FBI or SS on his front porch within the day. He wasn't jailed, but it sounded like a most uncomfortable meeting.

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

His daring is reflected in his signature medium: He creates sound and lightscapes with high-voltage wires, often plucking electrified piano strings while standing in nonconductive liquid.

Isn't THAT special!?!?!?

[I_Love_My_Husband]

You can be sure he gets NEA money for his *art*.

[The_Pickle]

Last month, two Oakland High School sophomores got a visit from the Secret Service after their teacher heard them make comments about "getting" Bush.

I dont know about ya'll but when I hear 2 teenage boys talking about "getting bush" the last thing that would come to my mind is a threat to the current President. :)