I have seen the Mnpls-St. Paul situation before.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

Back in 1968. It is happening because TPTB want a confrontation. They want a real riot to break out. They want destruction. They want flames. Then, they get to do what they want.

I certainly hope the cooler heads amongst the protesters prevail.

[oldtime dfl_er]

1. National Guard being called in

according to a friend in St. Paul. I think you're right.

[Muttocracy]

2. yes - check out the thread with Amy Goodman in the subject. nt

[wundermaus]

3. The Muzzling of the Independent News Media

"Democracy Now! member detained, Amy Goodman jumps fence to question cop.
by The Uptake
Saturday Aug 30th, 2008 7:51 PM

At least 7 activist spaces and private homes have been raided by police in Saint Paul/Minneapolis on the weekend before the Republican National Convention. Additional sites, including the Twin Cities indymedia collection building, have had code inspectors arrive to try to find a reason to close and evict the property. A newswire is being promptly maintained at this site, describing the latest incidents http://twincities.indymedia.org
A Democracy Now! journalist who was visiting at one of the raided houses, was detained and is currently reporting on the situation. A whole room full of I-Witness video journalists were detained. Over two dozen legal observers and attorneys were detained. In other words, the police aren't just arresting and detaining low-power young and poor individuals, but are going ahead and grabbing people with some status.


Independent web reporting sites have been doing a great job so far. One site which is receiving a lot of video and written reports is The Uptake. More than half of the raids have coverage here.

http://the-uptake.groups.theuptake.org/en/videogalleryView/id/647/
Sat. Aug 30, 2008. Saint Paul, MN Police Department raids a home at 591 Iglehart Avenue at gunpoint. The journalists include a contributing photojournalist with "Democracy Now", whose host Amy Goodman appears in this clip jumping a fence to question police officers.

This is part of a series of police actions on the eve of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul.

After several hours, all those detained were released. No arrests. No property was seized as result of the search warrant. The clip ends with an interview with homeowner Mike Whalen. At the start of the clip, a neighbor shouts to the media and onlookers that we could all come into her backyard to see the detained people held in the adjacent backyard.

Video by Chuck Tomlinson"