Patriots Rally For America - Live Report

Dave Dilegge - Live From DC | 20 April 2002 | Mustang

[Mustang]

Received two cell calls from Dave. The stage is set. The flags are waving. The weather is great. They're ready to Roll! Around 0945 the crowd was 50+ including Kristinn, sauropod, Leadpenny, Angelwood, Exit 148, GoreWarVet, Dutchy, Congressman Billy Bob, Black Agnes, TaxMan, TGSL DeComa, WhoKnowsWhatEvil, FireBrand, Country Dummy, Stan Waite, Pro2aMom, 0351Dog. (please pardon any mispelled "names" or omissions. The cell connections were poor).

Around 1015 the crowd was continuing to grow, with some spill over from the Peacenik/anarchist nitwits. Dave reports that it was the port-o-potties that attracted them. But our fearless Freepers labelled the doors "Patriots" and Patriot Women". It seems to be turning them away.

More to follow. Mustang sends from Florida.

[JulieRNR21]

10PM news on CNN showed the infiltrating violent 'haters of America' trying to disturb the peaceful Patriots Rally. Unfortunately it was a short clip but I could see many American flags flying.

........

[rabidralph]

The 11 o'clock news on CBS affiliate WUSA-TV 9, in DC, led the newscast with the arrests of 25 anarchists for squatting and they gave the Patriots Rally about 1 minute with a sound bite from Kristinn saying that we have nothing against anybody as long as they don't crash planes into our buildings (paraphrase). They also showed a clip of Bob Dornan denouncing the parasites who've gathered across the street and who had infiltrated our rally. He was a very fiery speaker! Bump for Bob!

[smoothsailing]

You Sir, are a Patriot.

[JulieRNR21]

Thanks for giving such a detailed report of your experiences.

I often wear a tee shirt with Old Glory on the front and would probably have been just as shaken as that FL woman by hoards of unwashed hate filled creatures.

It is indeed a disgrace that she was treated like that especially in our nation's capital.

[TLBSHOW]

Great report from the front lines.

[Jim Robinson]

Beautiful shots. Great job, Everyone!

[ladyinred]

Do the morons realize at all that one of the things Bush and Cheney are calling for is for the Palies to be free and to have their own state? DUH!

[sauropod]

Hello Jeff. We need your help on the 7th also. Thx for being there

[Mustang]

Thanks for your post TLBSHOW. You're an Outstanding FReeper and Patriot!

To Chrissie "Snow Bunny" and "Billie", in the West and South West regions of our fantastic fruited plain...this Bump is for you!

Mustang sends with Best FReegards.

[3catsanadog]

Great pictures! Thank you. (Did the Tourist Guy show up at any of the rallies?)

[AGreatPer]

Just got back here in PA. Gotta say it was a great day and am exahusted. Yup, it was hairy for awhile guarding the street side. However, those Park Police with the big black outfits at my side were wonderful.

I'll say more tomorrow. just too tired now.

[Mustang]

Final Bump to the Left Coast.

I'm hitting the rack.

Mustang sends Best FReergards from Florida.

[VietVet]

"The leftists get in your face.... They want you to explode... If one of us had gotten physical, they would have called us the provocatours..."

This seems to have been literally been a planned strategy on their part, but they were poorly trained and disciplined to execute it. I infer that from the comment I received from a pimply-faced 16 year old high school student from Atlanta, Ga. who tried just that, and then paniced when he realized that their friends with the TV cameras weren't around to tape the confrontation.

The tactic could be turned against them too, as I used it to back one of them out of the crowd and off to the edge where the Park Police stepped in and told me, "we'll take care of this now, sir." He was furious at the realization that I had cut him out of the center of the crowd and herded him and his three buddies off to the fringes just by moving up close to him and keeping him backing away from me.

But this raises the question, who was teaching them to start trouble in this way, in the hopes of gaining media attention? And who paid to have 16 year-old kids brought in from Atlanta and California to try and start trouble?

[Cindy]

[KLT]

Oh I hate those Commie B*ST*RDS! They should all drop dead....What a bunch of misguided traitors!

[VietVet]

They don't really care that US policy is in favor of a free and independant Palestinian state. The organizers just threw the whole Israeli-Palestinian issue into the mulligan stew of causes they listed as sponsers for the purpose of increasing their numbers. Without the Arabs, they wouldn't have had half the turnout on the Elipse that they had.

[ladyinred]

Thanks for the great pictures and for representing us all in this rally for America!
Freepers are the among the greatest and most responsible citizens in this country of ours!
God Bless America, and God Bless FreeRepublic.com! The last place left for the truth in media!

[KLT]

Beautiful Pictures Dave....Glad Dutchy made it...God Bless!

[hhluce]

The left is as poorly funded as the right, at least for most of the people who get out and demonstrate. The great difference is that people on the right tend to be individualist, while people on the left tend to be collectivist. Collectivists tend to work well together, and to make large sacrifices for their chosen goals. Anarchists tend to pool their property, even to the point of donating half of their income (usually from minimum wage jobs) to the cause. On the other hand, individualists don't work well together. Organizing people on the right is like herding cats. Only when a fundamental liberty like the right to keep and bear arms is threatened will they react, and only enough so that the present threat is dealt with. Rarely do anti-gun politicians lose their jobs. Care to guess what happens to pols who are deemed racist or sexist? Look at Bob Packwood. QED.

[VietVet]

No, it is not a horse race, nor a head count. But the numbers we turn out does make a difference, for two reasons.

First, to get those numbers, we would have to reach out to other patriotic groups, such as veterans' organizations, local political groups, such as the Northern Virginia GOP, who was one of our co-sponsers, and so on. forming the working alliences with them in organizing and orchetrating these events would help us form the network of allies we need to be truly effective in having our point of view not only heard but considered when decisions are made at the local, state and national level.

Second, there is safety in numbers. That bunch of radicals waving Palestinia flags did not just happen to pass us as they started their march to the Capitol. They broke away, going in the opposite direction from the rest of the march to come over and harrass us, twice. If the Park Police had not been there, it is my opinion that they intended more than to just harrass us. If there had been 1000 of us, 2000 of us, they would not have dared.

Come on, guys, even with the Vietnam War winding down in 1970, at its most unpopular point, patriotic rallys on the Mall in DC were able to attact from 7500 to 30,000 people. I know; I was there. Why can't we do the same?