Why Did Senator John Kerry Stand Idly By?

By Paul Craig Roberts here: http://counterpunch.com/roberts09192007.html



I think that pretty much sums it up. It's pretty sad when one of Reagan's guys gets it and a bunch of Dems (all over the net) don't.

He is right and you are wrong.

didn't side with Kerry during his investigations that uncovered the crimes of office of Reagan and Bush administrations - so you trust that Roberts is viewing Kerry clearly on this event?

Roberts missed the debates where Kerry pummeled Bush?
Roberts missed the Alito filibuster Kerry led?
Roberts missed that Kerry has submitted three withdrawal plans to the senate since Oct 2005? Even when his own party said please don't push this issue before 2006 elections?


Roberts missed alot when it comes to Kerry. I wonder why he is considered such a great judge of character here when he stood with Reagan and Bush1 against Kerry for years?

I mean I know the guys a combat veteran, but what did you really expect him to do? And btw, he answered the kids question.

The premise of the story is false, and it is no surprise that the freepers are so happy to push it. The only problem is to know what your agenda is!

Now, if you want to talk about things that actually are alarming, what about that:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/03/AR2007080302098.html

or the current debate on the senate floor about Habeas Corpus.

fuckwads that tell them.

though the cops saw it differently and reacted with more force than necessary.

However - this begs the question - why did ROBERTS sit idly by while Reagan and then Bush were blocking Kerry's investigations into IranContra, BCCI, illegal wars in Central America and CIA drugrunning?

Did he believe protecting the secrecy and privilege of Reagan and Bush administrations was more important to this nation than Kerry's work uncovering those crimes of office, exposing their corruption of government and his work protecting open government for the citizenry?

He could have been a whistleblower then and instead he now chooses to condemn the one lawmaker who was acting effectively and appropriately then and in this latest matter - is he still working with his old Reagan-Bush cronies to undermine and smear Kerry?

hand, which is about Kerry's reaction, and the validity of the points made in the Roberts article, not about Roberts behavior in the past. This is the same thing republicans do when asked about Bush's behavior and answer with accusations about Clinton's behavior.

the question - the MAN's scripted erratic behavior induced the reaction he wanted, and one of the officers went unnecessarily far - as did Meyers. For what? A performance - a scripted overthetop performance that NONE of the other students were in on and whose fear was as real as Meyer's hit with a taser.

So - where again was the avoidance of Roberts' claim against Kerry?

Where ARE Roberts' facts to make the claims he is making against Kerry?

And it IS relevant to know where Roberts loyalty to Reagan and Bush1 were to assess his perception of John Kerry, as Kerry was the one lawmaker who uncovered and exposed their biggest crimes of office.

"The Bush Republicans and their Democratic toadies have, in the name of “security,” made all of us powerless. While Senator John Kerry and his Democratic colleagues stand silently, the Bush administration has stolen our country from us and turned us into subjects."

Don't see how it's possible to argue with this. :shrug:

As he is a Republican shouldn't he ask as much of his party.

Kerry did.

Roberts didn't lead the Alito filibuster against the powermongers of his own party - Kerry did.

Roberts didn't craft the withdrawal timetable for Iraq - Kerry did.

Roberts doesn't have over 30 years of opposing GOP presidents, the DC powerstructure and the powerful Dems who sided with secrecy and privilege of those criminal presidents and their administrations - Kerry does.

What could he have done? I'm just curious what people think he should have done? Physically intervened? Started yelling at the cops? I just don't see what he could have done differently, but I'm honestly open to other perspectives. I have a problem with the cops using tasers, but I just don't see how John Kerry is responsible any more than other bystanders.

All he needed to say was "Leave him alone and I'll answer his questions"
Should then the cops not follow the wishes of a US senator when no crime was apparent?

Sorry.

to the three very good questions that the well-informed, disorderly guy asked? BTW: Lock the disorderly guy up!!! maybe six months in jail (even if it's his first misdemeanor... - throw the book at him)

But I would still like to know the answers to his questions...

The cops ignored the wishes of a US Senator - and it was their call if he should be ejected.

authority by saying, "That's okay -- let him stay. I'd like to answer his questions" in a loud and authoritative voice.

Simple as that

The questions the guy was asking were all pretty shallow and uninteresting.

And the other "shallow questions " was why he conceded the race before the votes were counted. Something I would like to know. And if that is a shallow question then you live in a 2 dimensional world.

And do not have the time now to down load a video.

Kerry did not signal that he wanted him out - Kerry said he would answer the question.

or read the Weekly World News.

That's where that bullshit belongs.

Even at a public gathering, one should be some what responsible for his/her actions and behavior. I mean lets face it--the person's behavior was just a little bit out of hand, with him raising his voice and displaying his demeanor. Someone paid for that event inside that place, and even out in public, it is possible to start a ruckus with one's overall behavior. Another example of this would be in a movie theater--you have the right to free speech too, but it is what you do with that free speech that can either make you or break you.

Secondly, in my opinion, I believe the suspension of those police officers is warranted. If any use of a taser was performed, then it should have been done before the handcuffs were put on him. :shrug:

instead of letting the cops have all the fun?

Get real-- now we got our spinners taking their cues from rightwing spinners. Don't fall for the bullshit.

He towered over the first two police, then went hysterical and physically resisted, moving into rows where other people were sitting as he fought them. Kerry was probably also concerned about the safety of the cops and audience members.

accept no responsibility for anyone who can't get it without one.

I was agreeing with you... you know, like chiming in... jeesh.

He rides bike marathons and everything. So he may be "old" but he's hardly feeble.

Other than that I agree with you in principle - the kid was being violent and the cops are specifically tasked to handle violent potential threats to public safety. They were doing their jobs, and it would've been completely inappropriate for him to interfere.

:oops:

need I say more?

Geez.

Soon to be branded as another "unpostable" site on the DU Ideological Purity '08 Tour.

Don't you all realize what a laughingstock you are becoming?

Opinions are there to be DISCUSSED - not censored.

Sure, yeah, discuss it... if it deserves it.

But this?

Pff.

Read it for about a week, then get back to me.

Do not discount sources of information because one particular author may not pass some type of purity test.

As much as many here wish it to be otherwise, solutions can come from multiple sources, and often political rose-colored glasses need to come off before a correct reading of a given situation can be made.

Rose-colored glasses, sadly, are getting to be standard equipment around here these days.

I used to read it more regularly... then I read more than a few pieces which made me question them.

I don't write off anything that comes from them... but the fact that there have been more than a few questionable pieces put out by them makes me view them with far less confidence than an outlet like TPM or Raw Story. Put that history together with a reaganite writing the virulent stuff in question... and hey presto: it becomes ignorable BS IMO.

You might consider not assuming you know everything about everyone. :hi:

When the shit rises, one tends to think at times that everyone near it stinks.

Sometimes they don't. :)

P.S. Watch for Counterpuch to be PNG around these parts really soon.

When it does, run like hell.

Hang in there...

:hug:

BHN

They barely like Kucinich. As such, they slant their news to fit their ideology, and are therefore annoying at the least.

Or else he got EXACTLY what he WANTED. I'm all for protests, but if you're going to do it and break the law in the process, expect the consequences and be ready to take it all.

Bake

He's an attention whore with a long history of disruption and heckling, and the support he's found on DU is pathetic.

Some people around here just aren't happy unless they've got something to bitch about.

Bake

:sarcasm:

The defense of this incident by university cops and Kerry here on DU is disheartening. How many of you want to be tasered the next time you protest for peace or want to picket Bush for his unconstitutional acts?

In Iowa, we are talking about giving campus cops guns. This proves campus cops don't have the judgment to NOT use a Taser, let alone a gun to deal with a student who asks in impolite question. If John Kerry can't deal with an impolite question from a disagreeable college student, how the hell could he have lead our country? This incident shows bad judgment and poor decision making by ALL of the officials.

If you are old enough to remember Vietnam, this is the very crap that students had to deal with while they were being honest with Johnson, Humphrey, Nixon, Agnew and all of the other important official old white men. Its too bad John Kerry has turned into one of them.

If you do not defend the First Amendment for college students now, who will defend it when they come for you?

Never has, never will. I can't set up a few dozen amps and flail randomly on a guitar outside a school. I can't walk into a town-hall meeting, push aside a councilman, and hold an impromptu filibuster about how much I love deep-dish pizza. I can't walk into Congress with a bullhorn and shriek for hours.

Simply adding a pseudopolitical flavor to disruption does not make it suddenly Constitutional or heroic.

You're just another "concerned citizen" trying to spin this by lying about it - Kerry DID address the kid - called repeatedly for people to calm down - but wasn't fucking stupid enough to think that he knew better than the cops on the scene dealing with an obviously violent and disruptive potential threat. I see nothing that he should have done differently.

Thanks for your "concern" though.

before commenting?

Kerry allowed the guy to ask the questions - and started to answer and the guy wouldn't let him speak. Kerry is well known for taking tough questions - he did it in 2004 and still does - and he's great at it.

He has a right to speak - he doesn't have the right to take over a platform that is not his. Could a random drunk get up in the middle of the stage at a Broadway show?

Your subject line was p--ing me off!! This young man was holding a book by Author Greg Palast, and asking questions contained in the book; Kerry had been answering his questions.
However,just by reading these anti-Kerry threads, I now know how to make a mountain out of a mole hill! }(

"Hey, you! Get your damn hands off him!"

I'm sure then that the local law enforcers would have backed off immediately bowing their heads in shame saying, "Yes, sir Senator!"

Then Kerry could stand on the stage with hands on hips while the music swelled in the background.

Hooray!

"Unhand that man!"

Some of us have more of a sense of reality I guess.
The first time he broke free and headed TOWARD the stage (albeit backwards) was when it crossed a line to legal action, IMO, after several viewings.

You can barely hear him saying let him talk. Should he have waded into the middle of the frey and started knocking police around. This question shows the twisted mind of some people.

Again this kind of bashing of our party, FOR NO REASON, shows again that those people just don't get it.....

and John Kerry agrees with me (even if he did not stop it happening at the time).

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2007/09/students-rally-.html

it couldnt be a simple manipulation of what actually occured now could it?

Take your idiotic republican smear slime garbage somewhere else.

That's precisely the kind of shit FoxNoise dishes out to their listeners. Well your typical Fox fan may dumb enough to buy it, but don't try to peddle it here.

Only goes to prove that if you go far enough to the left or right on the political spectrum, you eventually meet the other side.

many eye witness account and John Kerry's statement. This guy, did not deserve to be tasered, but he was disruptive. There were 700 people there per their school paper. 669 of them likely preferred to hear Kerry. He wanted to hijack the platform - not ask questions and get answers. He wouldn't let Kerry answer.

electronically delivered into the device implanted in his brain during inititation.

...What would you have him do -- interfere with an arrest? He did not arrest the guy nor did he ask for him to be arrested. But once the cops decided they needed to do that, it was not his place to intervene. Nor do I see how he could have done so. So what is your suggestion: what should he have done, apart from trying to calm everyone verbally, which he did?

Let's see: he could have gone down there and physically tried to stop them. Yeah, that's a good idea. Or, he could have stood at the microphone and berated them. Yep, another good idea. Or... what? He spoke up against the arrest later, he had no way of knowing they were going to or had tasered the guy.

I am so sick of the Kerry bashing here. Christ, he's not even running for President this time. Give it a rest.

unadulterated grade A bullshit.

Fuck you and fuck everyone else whose first instinct is to blame John Kerry for this.

Thanks for being a voice of reason.

welcome to republican Underground

he objected to what he saw happening but don't let the facts get in your way.

It's not like he's commander and chief of the campus police. I can't quite see him diving off the stage into the fray.

The most he was able to do was try to tell the cops he wanted to answer the question. It didn't help much. And he was focussed on keeping the crowd calm.

I wonder if Roberts has seen his statement, or the full video, or heard what this guy is like normally.

The cops are a part of it.

Actually, everyone on this site is involved as well.

Except for you.

You have discovered our plot. Now you must die.

Heh. Heh. Heh.