As an alternative to protesting at the rePub's convention, how about this?

I am on a local "Dean" email list, and one of our members came up with a great idea, that I thought I would share with all of you. Here is what she posted:

I want to throw out a fledgling idea I've been having regarding what we all envision as a bitter and divisive fight for the presidency this summer.

As you may know, 500,000 to 1,000,000 protesters are expected to show up in New York for the Republican National Convention this summer. Most of us are old enough to remember violent, even deadly summer riots. This country does not need this now. It is destructive, expensive and counterproductive.

I propose that as a group that is now used to putting words into
actions and making a difference, we call upon John Kerry to call upon the full breadth of his supporters to stay home and allow the Republicans to have the peaceful convention to which they are entitled. Instead we should organize nationally during that weekend to do real community service like cleaning up neighborhoods or having food drives. We should make sure we get a lot of positive media attention. We should also make it very clear that this idea came from the Dean camp. This way we can use our time, money and energy positively and the Bushies will not be able to use us as fodder for
negative campaign ads.



Does anyone have any thought on this?



Amy W-----

Now I just thought that was an outstanding idea, and it works regardless of the candidate you support. We have people working on organizing this in the Hartford area, is this an idea that others out there might be willing to get behind and organize in their own communities?

road, which is something of which the wrong wing is totally incapable...

would still be raging.

I think the 2000 election showed that the "high road" doesn't work when dealing with the Rove machine. If anything, I suspect that winning a second term is very important to the shrub, as Mike Malloy points out, so that he can prove that his is bigger than Daddy's. It's going to be an ugly race, and probably down in the mud all the way.

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

and India was freed from British colonial rule.

What we really need is another Gandhi or King, Jr., who can inspire the best in all of us, and assure us that a lot can be accomplished without smashing windows and setting cars on fire. People are going to be polarized this year, and I'd rather be on the side of real compassion than vandalism.

My screen name is just a joke, BTW. Anarchy is stupid.

And I am not going to waste my time bashing your argument any more than to say that the Vietnam War, went on for another 7 years after the violence at the '68 convention.

I think that a coordinated effort across the country showing partisan democrats in the community, doing the things that need to be done, but aren't getting done, and helping to make our communities nicer, safer etc, says a lot more to the average joe on the street than a ten second blurb on the evening news about how we tried to disrupt the Republican's convention. And if it is done right and with enough support nationwide, the 10 second blurb on the news will be about Democrats engaged in their community trying to make a difference.

They're New Yorkers who hate what Bush allowed to happen to their city. They'll be doing community service by protesting.

I remember the "violent, even deadly summer riots". They were prompted by such things as the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. The events at the Democratic Convention in 1968 were more like a police riot--although bad TV, they weren't as massively destructive. I don't believe the NYPD is overly fond of Bush; they'll enforce the law but comport themselves professionally.

Let's hope the organizers plan for peaceful, meaningful demonstrations. They also need to be on the lookout for agitators sent from the other side.

The NYPD is more pro Bush than you think.

Additionally, you should hear the contempt that they hold for all protesters.

Do you believe all the NYPD would be be so unprofessional? Is this a warning?

How many police died on September 11th?

I'm not worried about the NYPD making things worse.

EXCEPT: a) in the case of planted provacateurs amongst the protestors who escalate violence to a point where the NYPD must respond in kind

b) The Secret Service has coordination and oversight of all security agencies involved, since this has been deemd a "National Security Event". I fear the NYPD being put into shitty positions they might not have been in had they been primary planner.

They are completely professional in their conduct. But suppose you are a cop, and you are responsible for crowd control at an event, say commemorating the start of the KKK. You will strive to do your best to do your job, but you will already have a bias toward the KKKers and yolur tolerance for BS from them will be low, and your tolerance for BS from the people protesting the KKKers will be high. Those biases exist because the officers are human, and it is impossible to separate yourself from those feelings completely.

My brother was 4 blocks away from the towers when they fell, and two of his buddies who were with them that day, went in and didn't come out. This has made him even more stridently pro Bush. He is a very uncomplicated guy and tends to see things in shades of black and white. Most cops see things in the same fashion.

Cause I won't be in New York ...

Most of us are old enough to remember violent, even deadly summer riots. This country does not need this now. It is destructive, expensive and counterproductive.

Mnay of us are old enough to remember that riots were more often than not instigated by FBI-type plants in the crowd.

That may or may not happen this summer. Bush is throwing a lot of bad press the way of the intelligence services, so who knows? Either way, anyone who plans to be there should hook up with a group that can prepare them in the way of non-violent resistance beforehand.

Doing community services is a wonderful idea, not only for that weekend but for any time of the year. But although I wouldn't advise anyone to bring the kiddies, I hope there is a good showing from the anti-Bush groups. I think those who want to protest and can get to NYC to do that should do it.

Really, we can do both, can't we?

or vehicle-overturning. Not unless it's done by undercover provocateurs; and the protestors are getting more and more savvy at exposing them.

But we ARE gonna make certain that the GOP is not welcome in NYC, and we're gonna tell them in no uncertain terms to GO HOME and not spit on our 9/11 anguish.


:kick:

We should make every effort to have 2,000,000 protesting

to guests I do not trust.

ESPECIALLY when I hear murmurs of pretzel-boy accepting nomination from ground zero.

Somebody has to stand guard.

Who's Streets? Our Streets.

convention, 1 million supporters at the DNC convention and 1 million more Kerry meet-up wherever at the same time of the rnc convention!

KerryStock '04! Let's steal their convention bounce right from under them! The OBLtober Surprise be damned!!

I'll see what's going on, but I plan to let the Erbooblickins know they're not really welcome here.