Posted on 08/13/2017 10:08:46 AM PDT by Altura Ct.
I am not a writer but will do the best I can. I arrived about 10:30ish. Was actually surprised that I was able to find a parking space relatively close to Lee Park. In fact I thought that perhaps the turnout wouldn't be as big as I was anticipating because I didn't see much at first and I was only 5 blocks from ground zero but I was wrong. By the time I had walked one block toward the park the police presence was strong. Many in riot type gear. They had most streets and walkways blocked off funneling everyone into two or three entrances to ground zero. As I got closer to the park you could feel the tension. The Antifa presence was strong as was BLM. Didn't see many 'alt-righters' till I got to the park. (One note here - I think some people were there just to watch. It also wasn't always clear who was who.)
E Market St was the only way the police were allowing entrance to the park. The park is not huge. I'm guessing, but maybe 1.5 acres or so. It also is on a mound/hill so you have take steps up from Market St to get to it. There are two sets of steps up to the park from Market St. I was coming from the south. The northern entrance was for those protesting the removal of the statue and had been cordoned off as best they could. The southern entrance was for everyone else although most people in the park were statue removal protesters (alt-right). As I got to the park the crowds were already pretty thick. The northern entrance had some priest/religious figure locking arms with antifa and blocking the entrance. The rhetoric and name calling was heavy from both sides. By the time I got to the park it was maybe 10:45 with the event slated to start @ noon. It looked to me there were about 300-400 alt-righters up top at the park and maybe 1000 -1500 others on the street being a mixture of the left and right but mostly left. By noon I would say the total number of people on all sides had swelled to 4-5,000. I position myself at the southern entrance on top of a retaining wall alongside 3 or 4 reporters/photographers. There were plenty of BLM signs, African Flags & various left supporting banners/flags. Of course many signs spouting about hatred and Nazi's too. The right had many Confederate Flags, various state flags & US flags, A Few Don't Tread On Me and a couple I didn't recognize. I've seen some pictures that show a few Nazi Flags/armbands but I didn't see them. Not saying there weren't there but again I didn't see them.
About 11:10 or so a group of about 50-75 statue supporters were making their way down Market street toward the park from the South. As they approached the southern entrance to the park is when the first violence started. Bottles of water, balloons of paint and bags of urine were thrown at them from the crowd. When that happen the shoving started, fist were flying and people hitting each other with sticks. Of course the right stood up for themselves. Now I'm not saying some on the right wouldn't be violent anyway BUT I can say for a fact they didn't start it. Also the police did nothing to quell the violence. Once it started it went on for at least 30-40 minutes or more with crap flying every which way. Also within this 30 + minutes a second group of about the same size also made there way down the street and this just exacerbated the chaos.
In looking at the pictures I took I see there aren't really any during this timeframe. I also wish I had taken more overall but all I know is if you weren't looking up and paying attention you were liable to be hit. Crap was being thrown in all directions but in a general direction without care to where it landed. I myself stopped 6 bottles coming in my direction, one from hitting the photographer next to me in the head.
As we approached noon the violence and shouting was prevalent. At this point the police started making the announcement on a bullhorn that the alt-right was having what had been declared an illegal gathering and that they must disperse or be arrested. They did nothing to contain nor restrain the left only the right. The right, who had legally obtain a permit to be there. They complied which I not sure if I was in charge I would have done, but that is another story. After this, while things continued to be chaotic people became more spread out and violence started to dissipate. As a side note I didn't see the vehicle thing.
I've never been in the middle of something like this. I found it fascinating & unnerving at the same time. In a split second things can escalate.
You can say what you want about those that were present on the right. They were there to speak to the removal of that statue and history. The MSM and politicians are railing on about the hatred and violence from the 'white supremacist' yesterday? But the left was full of vitriol & had no problem with violence even though you'd never know it from the press. I am not saying those on the right were all boy scouts but they had a right to be there and to have their right protected to assemble. Had the left not been there I am relatively certain no violence would have happened.
Yes, in fact, my mind is open as I watch this situation, and I will consider any evidence that emerges from it.
But I also know that people who call themselves National Socialists and white nationalists claim to have been there. Actually were there, if one is to believe what they posted on Stormfront. Reading some of the posts here on FR, I noticed that there is some confusion about what a white nationalist is. It isn’t a nationalist who happenS to be white. It is someone who wants a nation only of whites. I say that is delusional, just as it is delusional for them to think that Donald Trump is the answer to their prayers. But that is what some of them have claimed.
I have no wish to cooperate with them. I have no common cause with them. And, for me, the reason goes beyond mere politics. There are people in my family, via marriage, whose lives were at stake in Nazi Germany and would have been exterminated if they hadn’t seen the writing on the wall and gotten out. Anyone who calls me a Nazi to my face will lose his teeth. I also know people, some of whom are in my family, who suffered under Communism. My take on Nazis and CommunistS in the U.S. is this: they can beat each other bloody every day for all I care. Maybe some day we will have that storm, mentioned in “Taxi Driver” that will wash all the scum off the streets.
Which, you might recall, was before Trump.
And, the teacher pointed out the kid was on anti-psychotic medications, too.
But the press is presenting the meme that ALL to the right of Joseph Stalin are Nazis -- any opposition to affirmative action, racial set-asides, trans-genderism, massive influx of Third Worlders, the works.
There's even a group who was photographed outside the Fox News studios championing North Korea in the name of anti-Fascism ("The Trump / Pence regime must go.")
It it transparently obvious that this is being funded by Soros, and (likely enough) planned and carried out by Hillary's lieutenants, and Obama's: with help for the GOP-e swamp creatures in running interference.
Out here in SoCal you were risking your safety just going to a mere Trump rally. You were nuts if you put a bumper sticker on your car. You still are unless you intend on having your car keyed.
I had a birthday party today with many little five year olds running around. NONE OF THEM would have shown up if I had ever showed up at school with a MAGA sticker on the car or a hat. To live my life and not punish my children I can’t be who I am here.
I loved the rally I went to in OC. All these wonderful Trump supporters, all races, all out of the closet in there. It was wonderful. Then afterward the paid protesters came and threw rocks at us and trapped us in the parking garage and the police sat there on their horses but didn’t do crap.
Many thanks for this. It’s nice to get the perspective from someone who was actually there vs. the MSM.
Again, thanks. This is much appreciated.
I am just getting back to this thread after some hours and do not know if it’s been linked to yet...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3576909/posts
Witness: Charlottesville car crash was coordinated attack
YouTube ^
Posted on 8/13/2017, 7:12:49 PM by TigerClaws
Published on Aug 12, 2017
Man who caught the incident on video describes the events
His side windows were completely blacked out, a violation of Ohio law. Did he plan the attack prior to driving there?
The darkness of tint is measured by (VLT%) Visible Light Transmission percentage. In Ohio window tint law, this percentage refers to percentage of visible light allowed to pass through the combination of film and the factory tint of the window. Must allow more than a total of 70% light in. Transmission through glass.
The car in James Fields Jr’s Facebook photo is a charger with a red pinstripe around the hood. But the car used in the attack has two racing stripes in the front. Did he get his car painted recently? Different car?
1 posted on 8/13/2017, 7:12:49 PM by TigerClaws
Police should be made aware that Antifa considers them fascist.
Police should be made aware that BLM terrorists have repeatedly assassinated police officers.
Police in Charlottesville sided with their enemy because their crooked Democrat governor wanted them to.
You are definitely a troll.
“The alt-right is not racist.”
Who are you referring to?
It doesn’t matter. You’re a troll.
The KKK, neo nazis and white supremacy activists are black ops troops for subversive leftists and the deep state.
He’s a pc anti freeper anti trump troll
It’s his schtick
I’ve been here 15 years longer than you anti Trump boy
And I’m on the donator wall
Are you?
Don’t bother
Trolls don’t pay...we all know that.
Nothing tighter with their own cash than a libtard troll
Okay, I see what you are saying. It is a given that Soros is behind a lot of leftist activity. He has his nasty fingers in a lot of things. We have some of the finest politicians money can buy, and he has bought them. I can see how he would also attempt to infiltrate an organization, or even set up a front organization. So if he did either in this case, then he played the white nationalists, just as the WNs played the people who simply wants o keep Lee’s statue. What should have been a minor issue is blown up into a major one by the violence and the fatality. Blame the pro-southern culture people, call them all Nazis whether they are or not, and blame Trump for making the while thing possible with his rhetoric and dog-whistling.
Pretty murky business. It is probably too late tonight for mento get my head around it. And, considering how things are these days, there’s a pretty good chance the truth, whatever that might be, will never get out to the general public, who probably won’t pay attention to it anyway. I have seen what has been going out over the MSM and the social media, and none of it is true, as far as I can see. A friend of mine, who is a nice and well-intended person, even though she has become a leftist automaton nutjob, clearly believes what happened on Saturday means we’ll see the swatika flag hoisted over the land very soon.
“It doesnt matter.”
Yes. What you say doesn’t matter. Interesting you yourself say so.
Lol.
“Youre a troll.”
No.
Wrong again.
Stop stalking.
Would you have a source for that? I did a brief search and didn’t find anything . I would be interested in finding out more.
I don’t see you on there crybaby
Taunts will not work, troll-boi.
Of course. They sure do know how to manage their labels, that is for certain.
Oh, come on. You can't even name one whom you can prove is a "paid disinformation agent" from "a leftist outlet," much less establish that "many" are paid. You've just run into people with whom you disagree and it's just easier to make that claim than to compose a valid argument against their points. There are no doubt disinformation agents of all kinds here but so far proving they are paid and who paid them hasn't been done.
The gameplan is to create an incident, then try to discredit those who would contradict the leftist talking points using argument or eyewitness accounts.
More likely the "gameplan" of people you encounter here is to speculate on what happened and discuss it and its implications with others. Not exactly a consiracy, more like a hobby.
Signs that someone is a paid disinformant:
This should have read "Signs that Yashcheritsiy thinks someone might be a paid 'disinformant.'"
1) They try to characterise the entire rally, and movement by extension, as "Nazis," "white supremacists," "KKK," etc., despite this applying perhaps to only a small minority of participants.
They don't have to "try" to characterize it since the group that applied for the permit isn't keeping it a secret. It's reasonable to think the group that applied for the permit is in the majority. It's reasonable to assume the speakers represent the group's thinking- if they don't the group would send them packing. Klansman David Duke was there as a speaker. That said, there could certainly be some dullards among them who were just sincere people not wanting to see historic art destroyed or removed, who didn't catch on - until it was too late- just whose rally they attended. Maybe the advertisements were not clear and people fell for it.
Just bear in mind that David Duke's group opposed the war against Saddam Hussein and is sympathetic to the current regime in Iran. His writings were picked up by the Nation of Islam, who, odd as it may seem... he's got more in common with the DNC's Ellison than anything.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.