DU picks on ED Schultz

[heartofthesiskiyou]

On the issue of protest and wondering why people aren't in the streets, he's right on the money.

While there have been token demos they are too, few, too nice, and too late. He's from the 60's and he knows what protesting is. In the 60's they didn't come running out there to get the story either. Today, (it's widely wined) people think 'hey we had a protest three months ago and the media didn't report it'. Hell protest to be effective has to be repeated until they can't be ignored. If the coverage was the point people thought was the problem them protest the coverers. Shut down NYT or ABC. Block them from getting to work. Refuse not to be heard. Make it impossible to not be covered.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1322081

A protest today is quite a silly event. They take 2-3 months to organize to "get the word out", 3000 people march up to X and the 17 willing to be arrested lay down in the street. The crowd moves out of the way to let the cops move in to arrest the willing to the tune of coombia (sp) or a few bars of give peace a chance. The deadline on the "permit" they signed ends at 4:00 o'clock so everybody leaves as soon as the cops megaphones start announcing it's time to go home. Then everybody runs home to turn on the tube to see if they got on TV. Nobody gets it. They only ones that came to protest were the 17 lonely souls. In our day we would have said, hell no those are our 17 and you ain't taking them period. Throw your gas. Do your thing. They gave up after a year or so swinging their clubs when the public started seeing it on TV. When we came, they got out of the way. Especially when the cops new if they got too far out of hand they were going to get their heads beat in. The cops don't "respect" a protest today cause they know we got no balls.

If our day we had a rule first. NO PERMITS. The constitution was explicit. The right to peaceably Assemble shall not be abridged. We always emphasized the period. The constitution doesn't say how many shitters you got, our how many hours your wish to speak. It just said PERIOD. We were all ready permitted as long as you had a navel. Sometimes we called our navel the permit another one of the thing god gave us along with those god given rights. Rainbows Gather every year with many 10's of thousands in a different state and refuse to sign a permit. Another thing. Never tell them where (route) of your march. They'll find out when we get there. We used to get the idea to hit this place or that place on Wed. and take the place on Sun. We could never plan a where three months away, we'd have done a dozen others in that much time. If we took three months planning 200-300K or more would be at that one.

This isn't the first time a fascist government attempted to take hold. We had too beat them back under Nixon. We set back there plans 25+ years. For the first time in world history, the people stood up too their government to stop an unpopular war. Many of those same players are back leading this takeover.

So I don't by into this Schultz hunt crap, cause I know he was there. He asks the right question, 'Why aren't people in the streets'? Unfortunately, you gotta want freedom. Sometimes freedoms has to be washed in the blood of patriots that thirst and love and willing to protect that freedom with the difficult things, the hardship, the commitment, and pain that washing entails.

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Agreed, I haerd the rant today

and he is RIGHT ON THE MONEY... the inconvenient truth is that people are too lazy, and too fat to care... that is the inconvenient truth

[LisaM]

2. In the 60's, you had kids from college campuses doing this.

Unfortunately, today, you would have to unglue them from their iPods and cell phones. I was not yet in college in the 60s, and I'm out of college now, but the college kids seem to care a lot less now than they did. Of course, if we throw a draft into the mix, that might change, but I don't think college kids today are the same as they were.

[The_Warmth]

3. Great post,

just great.

[Trish1168]

4. There've been huge protests, but the media doesn't cover it

And when they do, they misreprensent the numbers and act all dismissive (as if its a few outcasts). Big disadvantage to us is the media. The fascists figured this out from before, and have taken care of the problem. I assume it puzzles them that so many American's have turned against the war, despite media domination. The American people may be self centered and ignorant to a degree....but they are not stupid. People remember Vietnam, and don't want a repeat. They also sense the lies, and they understand imperialism.

The arrogance/hubris of these people is usually their undoing. If we escape this (meaning, they don't put us under martial law or supsend the constitution due to some event)...then we will be extremely fortunate, and we might be able to repair the system. But right now, its not looking good.

[katty]

5. my older sibs were on the front lines in college protesting-there

was no question or equivocation that it was something you 'must do' heart and soul.
If you get a hold of a program about the notorius Weathermen group (not just the Berkeley protests-even though that is a very good historical account)and what they went through, their dedication was admirable - they made alot of noise, a few went to jail for quite awhile and some had to go underground. They did Act Up and destroyed property (government). In the program some regret particular actions, but generally speaking they knew they couldn't just go to college, be quiet, graduate and put on suit and join in lockstep with the other suits-they had to DO SOMETHING. These are people who did not grow up with seat belts, bike helmets, knee pads, overly scheduled childhood activities, supervised play dates,tv's & computers & MTV in their bedrooms, they were 'encouraged to take risks' at a young age, travel after college learn about the world beyond America and cut loose from mommy & daddy throughout adulthood-afterall, for better or worse they were raised by a generation that lived through the Great Depression and participated in WWII-protecting human rights issues remain a very big deal that one has to fight for and protect.

[sendero]

6. Schultz...

.. can't get a break here. Most of the time, he's not "progressive enough". When he IS progressive enough to muse that people should be in the streets, then there is something wrong with that.

I don't agree with his every pronouncement. And his little "bake sale radio" rant did not go down easy. But I'm convinced that unlike most "progressive" talk shows, which are largely preaching to the choir (only progressives listen), Schultz attracts a wider audience, people who might actually see our point of view if they listen.

We need all the progressive radio we can get. Folks should cut Ed a break.

[katinmn]

7. I agree with that statement.

I've been annoyed with Ed a number of times, but when he gets it right he doesn't let go.

His is the only liberal voice many people have EVER been exposed to. Think about North and South Dakota. There are people in small towns there and in Minnesota that have never heard Ed or Air America. There are children still being brought up on Faux News and Rush Limpball. (Horrors!)

We need to support progressive radio that is reaching out to newer audiences, getting them thinking, and bringing them into the fold.

No one is ever going to appeal to everyone. And that's coming from a far lefty.

[gaspee]

8. The Draft is what got people in the streets

Which is why we won't have one. Nothing gets people into the streets like forced military service during wartime. Make that forced military service during a war of aggression. I truly believe if we were ever attacked, we couldn't grow enough cotton to make uniforms for all the volunteers. hell, if we were attacked *on our own soil* I would get my chubby 36 year old self down to the nearest recruiting station.

And the WTC doesn't constitute an attack. I'm talking invasion. The attack on the wtc was a criminal act, not an act of war. I'm all for tracking down the criminals and sending them to a dark hole of a supermax for the rest of their lives. I have a problem with an opportunistic war of oppression.


I was in high school during the Raygun years and I think the move toward conformity started then. It was the backlash of the 60's and 70's. It's pretty freaky how conformist our society has become. And I feel completely helpless to make a bit of difference in changing it.

When I was against this obscene war from the very beginning, and didn't just shut my yap and go along, I got hell from a good 3/4 of the people I would talk to about it. I'm sure many here experienced the same reaction.

And now we're caught in the spiral of a compulsive gambler... I gotta keep playing and win back some of my money, a compulsive gambler says. We can't pull out now, the hawks say, we're down too many soldiers (chips) to quit now!

[smoochpooch]

12. Agreed, the draft and the fact that

everyone in this country knew someone who went to Vietnam and didn't come back. Although Iraq hasn't gotten to that point yet, there are an awful lot of soldiers coming home with horrific and permanent injuries. If things don't change, that backlash may still occur.

[Jane Austin]

9. Don't vote for ANY Republican.

That was how he ended his rant.

"There isn't one Republican on the face of this country that I would vote for on the basis of what they have done with absolute power. They are all in it together. Every single one of them.

"I believe that. Don't give me that bipartisan talk and all that crap. We have seen in our generation what happens when there is absolute power."

And he was talking to any "righties" who might be listening in. Just don't vote for 'em.

[dweller]

11. that's classic Big Ed!

:kick: & R !

dp

[dave502d]

10. Been wondering that myself. n/t

[snowbear]

13. ~~~ Big Eddie ROCKS ~~~

And I say for any DU'er who doesn't happen to care for his style, I say.. Hey.. change the friggin channel!

There's one guy on Air America I can't tolerate.. but I no way I'm gonna drag my fello' DU'ers down by dissing a Democrat!! NO WAY!

for the post "heartofthesiskiyou"!

[meganmonkey]

14. We're demonstrating everyday in my town

for an hour, from 5-6pm, during rush hour when there are lots of cars going by and tons of foot traffic. We usually have somewhere between 8 and 30 people. There are a few people who are there almost every day, Mon-Fri, and several more who are there at least a couple times a week. We pull in people walking by to hold a sign with us for 10 minutes or more. But most of them don't come back.

Why not? I don't know.

Meanwhile, we'll keep doing what we are doing and hope that some other folks get off their lazy asses before we totally burn out.

:shrug: