About 1,500
spoiled morons people "marched" in New York City yesterday, waving slick placards and generally making fools of themselves. Looking at photographs of the crowd, I'll venture to guess that most of the "protesters" grew up enjoying the fruits of the evil capitalism they now spit on. Is there some unwritten rule that every 50 years or so our country defecates a sub-class of selfish, ignorant faux-ragers?
The best way to counteract this expression of free speech is to point and laugh. I'll start!
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| Best first date evah! |
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| Look how authentic I am! Overalls! And Mom only paid $500 for 'em! |
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| College professor with the expensive satchel: if you run away you'll fail my class! Come...here...dammit... |
If pointing and laughing doesn't work, I have another suggestion. :D
ReplyDeleteIt seems I'm not the only one ridiculing the modern-day hippie wannabes. Via Legal Insurrection, check out this awesome post.
ReplyDeleteAFG suggested throwing dollar bills on the ground as an experiment in how many would stick to their "wealth is evil"meme.
ReplyDeleteI'd like the betting pool space for none, please.
Note exactly the "Days of Rage" eh?
ReplyDeleteimgw:"http://dontgelyet.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/11/05/68chicago.jpg"
Now I rather like the old style Chicago police tactics.
Nope, today we get ...
img:"http://wonkette.com/assets/resources/2008/02/obamasmoke.jpg" img:"http://humordistrict.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/dustin-diamond.jpg"
Bwahahahaha. (cue sound of 12 guage shotgun being raqcked)
I wonder what that chain around Miss Overalls neck is made from.
ReplyDeleteThen there's my hometown scenes, circa 1967 ...
ReplyDeleteimgw:"http://www.picaclicks.com/images/Cars/1967-detroit-riot.jpg"
imgw:"http://pictopia.com/perl/get_image?provider_id=220&size=550x550_mb&ptp_photo_id=546131"
imgw:"http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/07/08/nyregion/riot_span600.jpg"
Nothing like the 82nd Airborne Division to clean up da' streets. :D
Thing that amazes me today is that I went to work in the core city during all of that ... loaded 12 guage on my front seat, sandwiches in a bag next to it, since lunch places were open much.
Damnit! "were" = "weren't"
ReplyDeleteFrom lady red's excellent link:
ReplyDelete"...to the revolution but how?"
=))
These frickin' morons. I loved it when Jesse Waters interviewed one who trumpeted the evils of capitalism and how it must stop. Jesse asked him "what would you replace it with?" and he had no answer, just a blank look on his face, while the sound of crickets played in the background.
ReplyDeleteROFLMFAO!!!
I think afg's idea is excellent. I'm sure we would see a scramble for the loot with no regard for fellow morons.
Personally, I just wish everyone would ignore them.
Those pictures are something else, Aridog.
ReplyDeletelady red, I think you've got the story here - but it's not the whole story...
ReplyDeleteObviously a bunch of these people are the usual Socialist Workers World (Planet Che?) types... who organize these demonstrations and were itching to get their stilts-and-paper-mache on since the anti-war protests were called off on account of a skinny black dude with a 'D' after his name being the president).
But...
The ostensible aim of the protest is not "capitalism" but Wall St; not "wealth" but big banks and the corrupt bailouts.
These protests have been growing since the 17th. In early September I became aware of the plans and almost suggested that the Tea Party not ignore them, but join them.
The problem with laughing at these clowns too hard (risible as they are) is that the Tea Party might get the reputation as having sold out to traditional Republican establishment interests in Big Finance. It's already got that reputation in some circles; I think that should be countered.
Events are moving quickly. There will be some sort of disruption in Europe. Hundreds of billions of Euro are going to be handed out to big banks there any day now.
Here in the US, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley are in some perceived danger. Again. They might not survive a shock from Europe.
If Tim Geithner starts handing out hundreds of billions to the big banks - again - after said banks paid their playa's hundreds of billions of bonuses in the last couple years - again - then I humbly suggest that the "Occupy Wall St" movement could become very popular and very large indeed...
...and that those who defend the banks in the name of "capitalism and free enterprise" will receive the shrieking howls of derision that they deserve - regardless of the silliness of the signs and slogans of the original neo-hippy's who started the protest.
As a side note - regarding the police - it appears that the son John Hinderaker (Powerline) was pepper-sprayed in the mele. Powerline isn't exactly a pro-anarchy, fight-the-man-baby kind of publication but even he Hinderaker has some harsh words for the police here.
You make good points lewy. However, IMHO, the last thing conservatives/TPers need to do is make common cause with mindless anarchists. These yo-yos protest against anything and everything; the variety of their placard slogans is dizzying. They exist to destroy and create chaos, not to build and ensure peace.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'm extremely angry that my tax dollars are covering the losses of "too big to fail" banks and brokerage houses. Torches and pitchforks mad. Who knows, I may even engage in a bit of civil disobedience myself before this train wreck is over. But no matter what happens, I will NOT align with anarchists sporting Che shirts and calling for the collapse of the country I love. A pox on all their houses.
They can take their side of the street, and I'll take mine.
It's already got that reputation in some circles; I think that should be countered.
ReplyDeleteThe Tea Party will always have that reputation. That's what the Obama administration says. That's what the MSM says. Short of folding its tent and going home, there is nothing the Tea Party can do to change that perception of it held by the left. There is nothing the Tea Party can do to get the left to like it. The Tea Party should not waste any time worrying about it. Just look at John McCain. He was one of those "reasonable Republicans who was willing to be non-partisan." That was until he was the Republican nominee for President, at which time the MSM, et al, was all over him like flies on a dung heap.
The ostensible aim of the protest is not "capitalism" but Wall St; not "wealth" but big banks and the corrupt bailouts.
They are not protesting capitalism? And what part of "Capitalism does not work" did I misunderstand?
The Tea Party does not think that Geithner should be the Treasury Secretary. The Tea Party does not think the government should be handing out government bailout money to banks , auto makers, solar energy companies, to anyone.
But Tea Party members actually work for a living. They provide for themselves and their families. Why should they should just go out and protest with a bunch of spoiled brats who know that someone else will pay to feed them no matter what they do? The Tea Party members will get involved politically.
Tea Party members will go to precinct caucuses (caucii?). They will get involved on the district level. They will get involved on the county level. They will get involved on the state level They will get involved on the national level. They will be sure that the MSM does not cram another Rino down its throat. They will do everything they can to be sure a real conservative gets the nomination. Joining in a theatrical temper tantrums orchestrated by well-paid union rabble-rousers does nothing to address the issues before us.
I heard on the news a few minutes ago that Greece is planning to lay off 30,000 public employees by the end of the year. Yes, events are definitely moving quickly.
ReplyDeleteOne word. Dominoes.
Will those 30,000 will be out of work, or will they merely be out of a pay-check?
ReplyDeleteI can't help but wonder if these handouts, besides giving money to friends of Obama's (part of which will come back to Obama as campaign contributions), are designed to get leftist so angry that they take to the streets and riot, a la Greece. Get the masses so angry that they riot, and Obama would just HAVE to send out the troops. The governor of North Carolina has already floated the balloon of postponing Congressional elections until the "government fixes" the economy. This President has already shown a propensity towards ignoring the law and doing things by edict. Do we really want to give him a weapon to use against us?
ReplyDeleteMatt, lr,
ReplyDeleteI do see the problem with joining the protest. I get that.
I will say that I don't think all the protesters are anarchists or Bolsheviks - heck maybe most aren't. I don't know - I'm wary of judging a protest by a collection of signs... the LaRouche idiots infest Tea Party protests. I'm suggesting that we don't exactly know where some of these protesters make their political home.
I have some friends in NYC, I'll try to get a sense of things on the ground.
Iady red you are right the dominoes might be falling - and if Son of TARP part deux comes to the US, then hundreds of thousands might be in the streets, and not just in NYC. The protests are already spreading.
It's tricky to avoid the perception of "endorsement" when you make common cause with someone - agreed. Maybe your They can take their side of the street, and I'll take mine tactic can work. I don't know.
But on the other side of the dilema, you don't want a condemnation of the protesters to be perceived as an endorsement of the big banks - especially if they get yet another bailout.
I think it's good to point out the silliness of (some of) the protesters... but I'm keeping an open mind about the rest of them... because even if the number of sane people there today is zero, the average Joe who is fed up with the banks could soon be out in the streets en mass - these things have a way of cascading very quickly.
And Matt, while I agree that the Tea Partiers work for a living, I'd point out that many who were working this time last year are now out of a job. Hundreds of thousands of Tea Partiers did show up for Glenn Beck at the Mall last year - the public show-of-strength thing was good, but is not an end in itself, which is why people went home. They may need to come out again.
Lewy, you know so much about economics and I feel grateful to read your thoughts and opinions. I really respect you.
ReplyDeleteBut after reading lady red and Matt's #12 & #13 I was saying "Bravo! Bravo!"
I guess my main question is, do they really think they are making some kind of change by staging these rallies? On Wednesday I was on the road and for several hours I listened to the guy who put these protests together. This was on the Michael Medved show. I did honestly try to see his point but...he didn't have one. Michael kept asking him but his answers were always nebulous. I don't know, maybe you had to be there. I am thankful, THANKFUL, we live in a country in which we can protest. No, these people aren't all morons and I shouldn't have said that. But some are morons, others are anarchists, eco-warriors, wanne-be hippies wishing for a cause - ANY CAUSE - they can get on board with, bored students, communists, and I'm sure a few people who are disgusted by the antics of Wall Street.
So for those who are serious about it, get involved and get some laws changed. Don't tie up traffic in NYC and try as hard as possible to get your mug on the nightly news or youtube.
flo, thanks - and I don't much disagree here with your opinions or Matt's or LR's, actually.
ReplyDeleteAnd my points, such as they are, are just political guesses as to what a good set of tactics will be. Nothing more.
Bloomberg just ran this piece: Protests going prime time.
This story supports both your point and my point:
- the protesters are (largely) crazies looking for attention
- the protesters are gaining some mainstream sympathy and attention.
What I'm afraid of is that the financial crisis could be heating up again real soon. TARP II will cause people to go @p3sh!t. Tea Party doesn't want to be wrong footed here.
Let me just point out a tactic I thought was pretty good: when James Hoffa uttered his famous "Let's take the sons of bitches out" line about a month ago, Sarah Palin wrote this in response. She didn't ridicule union people or rally conservatives against them, she spoke directly and respectfully to them.
If the current "Occupy Wall St" organizers and participants are largely asshats (and I have to admit, that is pretty much what it looks like), I'm just saying that could change.
When people in their hundreds of thousands get pissed off enough to march, some folks in the Tea Party leadership should be ready to speak directly and respectfully to them (even if their inclinations are Democrat and progressive). Because otherwise we cede the field to the asshats.
What I'm afraid of is that the financial crisis could be heating up again real soon. TARP II will cause people to go @p3sh!t. Tea Party doesn't want to be wrong footed here.
ReplyDeleteIsn't one of the reason the left hates the Tea Party because they adamantly opposed TARP the first time? Now all of a sudden people will hate the Tea Party because it is seen as supporting it?
Sarah Palin wrote this in response. She didn't ridicule union people or rally conservatives against them, she spoke directly and respectfully to them.
And the left is now madly in love with Sarah Palin.
I am not saying that Palin did not do the right thing. Perhaps a game of "good cop, bad cop" is needed. But I don't think the Tea Party should get its knickers in a knot worrying about how the left feels about them. Short of f**king off and dying, there is nothing the Tea Party can do that will make the left like them any more than they do now. To a certain extent some of the people on the left have always lived in a protective PC bubble and do not even know how most people feel about issues. Maybe it's time for conservatives to stand up and make themselves heard.
An anti-bank-bailout has always been a part of the underlying reason for the TEA Party, expressed as a desire for no more taxes to pay for it, or the other 'wonderful' things our ever-more-socialist/fascist (despite decades of battle between the two, they are essentially the same).
ReplyDeleteThat said, I really do not want the TEA Party to be seen in the streets with faux anarchists, either, and when or if Van Jones and his "80%+ who agree with us" take to the streets for the 'American Autumn'* I don't want us to be anywhere near them, unless seperated by barricades as a counter-demonstration. Even though that will almost certainly lead Jones' inner-city thugs to attack, especially if they see their opponents as middle-aged women, (who of course, are the most dangerous of those TEA Party terrorist types) and thus easily cowed by such violence.
As I've said before, I really do believe there will be blood, and very possibly, Obama will institute martial law, and at least attempt to put off elections until things 'calm down'. But no worries, all those who feared that being done by Bush, will be cheering it now, so it's OK, right?
*Apparently Jones is not intelligent enough to get the connotation of autumn as the end of the actual summer growing season and the beginning of a long, cold winter.
I think everyone who has commented has valid points. Lewy's analysis is discomfortingly apt. "Wall Street" has served no one well in the past couple decades except itself.
ReplyDeleteThat said, from the look of the protesters, I get severe deja vu ... I went to college with their grand parents, or even their parents in some of the older person cases. They - are - full - of - shit. P.e.r.i.o.d
I have no sympathy for mob actions facing uniformed police, none. I've been through some of those, as alluded to earlier. However beaten down they get, fine by me. When you go against your uniformed police you go against your neighbors, and one day you will find those same police more military and no longer representative of civilization as you knew it. I've seen it.
That their "cause" today rings a bell with normal people is pure coincidence. Be hard to dislike Wall Street's antics more than I do ... trading in security fictions and quasi Ponzi schemes is irritating. It can bring us down. It has already brought us low.
These protesters, however, have no solutions, not even a clue of what one might be, except some mystical ill defined fascist state that would shock even Orwell ... himself a Democratic socialist in his day. They are all about tearing down, but they've never built a thing, let alone paid for a home in my estimation.
If you even tried to confer with them they'd stare back at you like deer in headlights, wallowing in their ignorance of how a world works where everything isn't provided for you as some nebulous "right." I doubt any have awaken one morning to realize they have not one dime to their names, nor is there any rescue forthcoming from government, but must still survive and move on. I have.
What bothers me most now, at my age, is that I perceive this as failure, on my part as well as that of the do-gooder-know-nothings.
I have no solution either. The KISS principle seems beyond recovery. Somehow we must regain control of our governance, until then, we are lambs awaiting slaughter.