So, if these violent @ssholes are going to target Democrats at their offices

[EFerrari]

with threats and violence, what can we do that makes sense, won't make the situation worse and visibly offers solidarity?

Any ideas?

[WilliamPitt]

1. Did something happen?

[Ptah]

2. Rep. Giffords' Tucson office vandalized after health care vote

http://azstarnet.com/article_eb24e4fe-35dc-11df-ad88-001cc4c03286.html


The front door was smashed out at Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’
congressional office last night.

At 2:40 a.m., just a few hours after staff left the building after the
late-night vote, the alarm system went off, said spokesman C.J. Karamargin.
The panel to the front door and the glass panel alongside it were smashed out.
The perpetrator likely had to hop the gated fence to get access to the door,
since it’s not viewable from the parking lot.

Karamargin said it was unclear if the glass had been shot out with a kind of
pellet gun, if it had been kicked or smashed with an object. The door has been
covered with plywood.

Police had no more information when reached this morning.

[EFerrari]

4. And Louise Slaughter got death threats against her kids by phone

according to another story around here somewhere.

[Fleshdancer]

23. and a brick through her local office a few weeks ago

I heard her talk about it on the House floor Sunday night.

[napi21]

3. I suspect the FBI is hot on their trail already. One threat is

an alert, but more than one becomes a red alert to the B=FBI, especially since children were threatened. These people are angry but they're sure not smart! They'll be caught & i'd bet fairly soon.

[EFerrari]

5. I hope so and that may be right. But I was wondering if it would be useful

to think along the lines of people who go out to meet those nutcases from the Klan or the Westboro Baptist Church -- in a group and with supportive signs.

[Bluerthanblue]

128. I think that's a great idea.

:hi:

[kestrel91316]

24. Isn't the FBI still run and largely staffed by RWers and Bush appointees??

I have no faith whatsoever that they will do anything at all to protect liberals......

[EFerrari]

26. I don't either. n/t

[napi21]

89. All the agents I've met were dedicated to doing their job!

Maybe the top leaders are still Shrub appointees, but even they are intent on getting the job of the agency done and done right. I really haven't seen any partisanship with them.

[NJmaverick]

6. Declare their group a terrorist group and put any members on the no fly list

and the leaders on various terrorists watch lists.

[Iggo]

7. Couple of cowards broke a couple of windows.

We replace the windows and move on.

(I spel gud)

[EFerrari]

11. If that's all, fine. But if this escalates, imho we should have a plan.

A non-violent, rapid response plan to support Democrats in their districts. If we never have to use it, great. But if we do, we won't be flailing around watching out of control teabagging, knuckledraggers on teevee wishing we had a plan.

[MajorChode]

45. There's a bit more to it than that

You have elected GOPher representatives standing right on the steps of the Capitol blaming the virulence demonstrated by the tea baggers on the Democrats. You have Michele Bachmann using her official position to encourage lawlessness to her constituents and any other tea bagger who will listen, and you have a few other ELECTED GOPhers doing more or less the same thing. You also have a fringe mainstream media outlet that is actively promoting lawlessness and virulence. So until these things stop, you can replace a few windows if you like, but they will be broken again along with progressively bigger things like federal buildings and government officials.

[EFerrari]

53. LOL. Thanks, MajorChode.

:)

[Iggo]

91. At the time I typed it, my knowledge was that it was a couple of broken windows.

I didn't know about the pussy-ass anonymous death threats made to children.

[DevonRex]

8. That is a really good question.

And if I had had a wink of sleep last night I might be able to come up with something. As it is, I'll just have to see if anybody else has a good idea.

[RKP5637]

9. I have a related question, is when does Fox News, RW radio and the

like cross the line from commentary to inciting violent and un-American activities. While I certainly believe in free speech, these outfits are going way over the line IMO because of their ability to reach thousands of people with a loud microphone.

And when do they take responsibility for their actions. These people are being driven into a frenzy by outright lies and misinformation, the RW media takes no responsibility for spewing out the SH** they do... I know it's a slippery slope, but if something happens I certainly hope they are somehow called out. Particularly asses like Beck and similar.

[EFerrari]

14. Maybe I'm just paranoid today but I don't think they'll stop until they do

get their climax.

I'm not a fan of restricting speech. But there has to be a good, sensible response that we can put together -- like knowing ten other people in our own district that we can call to show up to that office and show quiet support, for starters.

Or, something along those lines. :shrug:

[NJmaverick]

10. Declare them a terrorist group and put all members on the no fly list

and the leaders on the terrorist watch groups.

[galileoreloaded]

87. Declare 25 or 50% of the country as terrorists? n/t

[sabrina 1]

98. Didn't Bush already declare that millions of Americans are

terrorists? Didn't Democrats vote to say it was legal to spy on us?

Last I heard 3 million Americans are on the 'no fly' list, but as far as I know, none of them are rightwingnuts.

Ted Kennedy was on it airc, and the award winning journalist who wrote Bush's brain, James Moore is apparently a suspected terrorist. Also a former leader of the Green Party ended up on the list.

You have to remember that the only terrorists in the U.S. are Quakers and Peace groups and REAL journalists. Oh, and Teachers Unions.

Rightwingnuts are PATRIOTS!

[MineralMan]

12. Every such office should have a high resolution security camera

covering the approach to the office. I can't imagine that's not a standard thing. It would be the very first thing I installed after renting the space.

It's not even that expensive.

[EFerrari]

15. But the security camera is not a public show of support.

It may do its job in a courtroom. But if a group of people go out to the venue in question to show their support, that sends a message.

[DevonRex]

19. That was my initial thought. I have concerns about it, though.

Some of those people really ARE violent, beyond just throwing a brick in a window in the middle of the night when nobody is around. If DUers stood guard, for instance, they might be in the line of fire of the more violent teabaggers.

Now, that wouldn't bother me for myself, given my previous training and occupation. But I would worry about other people.

[EFerrari]

20. Right. No one wants to make the situation more dangerous.

But sometimes having a few witnesses around tends to discourage cowards. Still thinking about the pros and cons.

[DevonRex]

27. You're absolutely right about that. It would discourage them.

And if they still commit these acts of vandalism we would be there to see it and record it. Nothing like a good video of it on the local evening news to expose those animals for what they are.

[EFerrari]

29. It wouldn't hurt, either, if our Democratic member knew

that we had their back.

Again, we might never, ever have to respond in this way. But, I'd rather have a plan than be sorry I didn't have one if anything happened at Nancy's office, for example. No matter my differences with her, I absolutely support her right to do her job without fear for herself, her staff or her family.

[eridani]

94. Important thought. I'm recalling the Witness for Peace activists

--in Central America in the 80s. They specifically asked for caucasian-looking witnesses to hang out with union leaders and other activists. It apparently made the death squads a lot less likely to take potshots at them.

[EFerrari]

97. You know, a similar idea was deployed recently in Honduras.

That's exactly the kind of thing that I'm trying to get at. :hi:

[MineralMan]

30. Unless you post a round-the-clock watch, that won't stop

terroristic vandalism. Catching the cretins who do such things is a far superior idea. Our support comes in our volunteerism and contributions. It's just a building. Let's catch the creeps.

[EFerrari]

32. It may be a matter of threat assessment.

That is, it will become clear who is being targeted. That narrows the field.

Then, it's a matter of pushing back against the threat of violence with a public show of support. Yes, the cops will catch the vandals and for god's sake, let's let them do their job.

But we will have made the point that violence or even threats of violence don't get a pass. That someone is paying attention. That there are civil limits people are willing to stand up for.

[MineralMan]

35. Given the dismal short term performance of people doing

active things, the longest such a thing would last is about a week. What happens after that. The security camera never tires. The security camera never gets complacent. The security camera always sees what actually happens.

It's find to stand vigil at your local candidate's office. I have no problem with that. The creeps will just wait until you leave, then do their vandalism. They don't care about your loyalty or dedication, nor will they come when you are there.

But, you will leave. In about a week, if such things happen in their usual way. Then the vandals will return with their badly-spelled messages and bricks, and you won't be there. The camera, however, doesn't care, and will record the incident so actual photos will go to the police.

I love idealistic activists, but practical solutions are still needed.

[EFerrari]

38. Not really, they need momentum just like any other group.

And, frankly, you can stuff your claims that I'm not practical. What I'm developing here is as practical as possible.

This isn't about stopping an act of violence. It's about stopping a violent trend.

[MineralMan]

39. I'm not really sure why you're angry with me, to tell you the truth.

A security camera is a good idea.

The reason I know about the short lives of efforts like you describe is because I've been an activist all my life. I cannot remember a single thing that enticed people to stay involved in a activist plan for very long. Even the Vietnam war protest movement had to keep attracting new people all the time, since people would drift in an drift out of specific activism. Even the leaders soon got bored with long-term projects and moved on to other things.

This situation is the same. Sure, you can maybe get half a dozen people to stand vigil for a week. But what happens after that? It's far better to come up with a concrete way to catch evil-doers than it is to think that some vigil that won't exist very long will have any effect.

The morons in the pickup truck with the brick-thrower will just drive by if you're there. They will not change their minds. They will wait until you are gone, and you will be gone soon. Then, they will return and throw their brick.

Thus has it always been with vandals and the like. They can wait longer to throw their brick than you will persist in your vigil. That I will guarantee.

Install the camera.

[EFerrari]

40. I'm not sure why you attribute anger to me.

But thanks for your input. ;)

[MineralMan]

42. Because you told me to "stuff" it.

But, never mind.

[EFerrari]

49. Yes, when you said this was idealistic and not practical. Let's start over.

I have no interest in idealism here. My interest is in push back that is concrete and visible when Democrats are targeted for violence just because they did their job.

You are very right about cameras. They serve a good purpose. But no camera ever gave an interview and no camera was ever counted as a supporter of Congressperson X.

Images matter. If the American public is taught that violence against members is the norm, we're losing. If on the other hand, the public sees other citizens standing with the rule of law, we can stem this trend.

This is very much about showing that our Democratic members have support. Law enforcement can take care of itself. But by showing up even in a quiet way, our bodies are a counter narrative to the one that is now being built against Democrats who voted for this bill.

And for the next bill. I don't think the hate mongers are going to shut up. Let's have a plan -- if for no other reason than not ever having to use it.

Other posters to this thread have forwarded good ideas. Use social networking sites to highlight and call out acts of violence or intimidation. Use your local outlets to point out how destructive these acts are in your community.

Find nine other people in your district. Make a phone tree. Make an agreement never to use violence. Ask those ten people to find one other person. These are simple safe measures that can make a visible difference when these out of control people decide to target your representative.

And I'd add, in the absence of a better plan, don't wait. Do it now. An ounce of prevention. The hatemongers have no brakes on them and they seem to be acting out more all the time. We don't have to just watch it happen.

[alfredo]

13. Light is the best disinfectant. Link hate speech by

Beck, Coulter, Rush, and other Repubs to those incidents.

Call them acts of terrorism.

[EFerrari]

17. That's a good idea. There's so much of it, though, and so much info

that people have to surf everyday, how would you showcase it?

[alfredo]

21. e-mails, letters to editors, have facts on your side.

google "define terrorism" Look for the legal definition of terrorism. Then go from there. It is the use of violence or the threat of violence for political or religious ends. How the legal world defines it, I don't know.

[EFerrari]

25. So, the idea is to have people in the district ring up their network

-- including local media outlets, their friends / groups and ? and respond immediately and loudly as possible? Is that right?

Because that sounds like an excellent idea that is manageable for most people.

ETA: I'm volunteering you, alfredo, to help me keep track of and process these good ideas. Tag! :hi:

[alfredo]

28. I'll do my best. My disability keeps me off the streets,

but I can still type and use the telephone.

[EFerrari]

31. Let's see how we do.

:loveya:

[alfredo]

56. I'm composing, in my head, a letter to the editor.

[EFerrari]

57. Andale!

[alfredo]

59. first draft

Members of a civil society accept the results of free and fair elections. Sure they may gripe and mourn their loss, but they don't resort to violence when things don't go their way. Losing a vote in congress is not tyranny, it is what happens in democratic societies.

Since the passage of the healthcare bill there have been acts of violence against the headquarters of congressional members who supported the bill. Threats have been made against Democratic members and their families. Racial slurs have been hurled, and congressmen spat on.

Such acts are not the acts of patriots, they are acts of those who have no faith in our democratic system. Remember, acts of violence or coercion for political or religious gain is the definition of terrorism.

If some lawmaker or talking head tells you there are "death panels" in a bill, do the research yourself. Challenge them by making them show you where they are in the bill. Question Authority even if they are "on your side."

If people claim your rights are being taken away, ask them what rights. If they have an answer, check their claims.

If you read a book that makes claims, go to the back and check the sources. Self references and opinion aren't proof.

Reject those who are trying to turn you against your fellow citizens and our form of government.

Nothing good comes from violence.

[EFerrari]

62. That's a great letter.

:yourock:

[alfredo]

78. Thank you

[DevonRex]

16. Okay, I have one. I'm assuming you mean "we" as in DU members.

What if we post articles on the vandalism and death threats on our FB and/or MS pages? It's really easy for the Pukes/teabaggers to ignore bad news about themselves. But we all have "friends" on our pages who are Republicans.

They certainly don't hesitate to broadcast every false claim about the Dems, do they? Our advantage is truth. It's about time they learned those hard truths about themselves. Who knows? Maybe a few will even be disgusted and decide they don't want to be associated with filth.

[EFerrari]

18. That's a really good idea. Don't let any one of these incidents go by

without calling it out. I don't do FB but know many here do.

Good idea, DevonRex. :thumbsup:

[OneGrassRoot]

22. Can someone gather the incidents thus far and post here?

That's a great idea. Thanks. :)

[EFerrari]

33. Here's one link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4316260&mesg_id=4316260

ETA another link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7997095

[ScreamingMeemie]

100. I am trying not to make my facebook page into anything but a place

to keep up with friends/family/acquaintances/RWers that I have to be nice to until they get political on their page. :) It's a great idea, but I've already extracted a promise from a few family members.

[NAO]

34. I am concerned that we may face mass violence.

on a scale the United States has not seen since the Civil War.

I am also concerned that if there really were widespread mass violence, that we might not be able to count on the Police and the Military to suppress the violence and protect our citizens and defend our government. Historically, in bloody right-wing coups, the instututions of state force have come down on the side of the rightists.

Wing-nuts are armed to the teeth; they've been hoarding bullets to the point of causing chronic shortages;

Tea-baggers and talk radio hosts like Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck etc are repeatedly using terms like:

"resistance",

"tyrannical power grab"

"sacrifice my life if necessary",

"death of the republic" etc.

I hope it's just all rhetoric; but there are a lot of people who are VERY angry, and who believe that this situation is about MUCH more than health care. They believe that this signals the end of "freedom" the end of their way of life for them and their children. And people tend to be willing to go to extremes of violence when they believe things of that nature are on the line.

[EFerrari]

36. Well, I'm not a fortune teller.

:)

I'm just trying to hammer out something small, local and manageable that pushes back against these acting out people and supports Democrats who may be targeted in an effective, safe way.

[NAO]

37. see my revised post above

I am concerned that we are not dealing with isolated incidents, but possibly mass sentiment.

[crazy_vanilla]

73. what did I hear about a coffee party?

They seem to be about reasonableness and civility but I haven't researched it in depth. Not sure which way they lean.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

41. The president could have a beer with the Vandals and Representative?

:shrug:

[EFerrari]

44. You don't really wish these people on Obama. I know you don't.

:)

[EFerrari]

43. And where, I wonder, are all the HCR bill supporters?

We're talking about defending Democrats on this thread who are being targetted for voting for that bill? Hello?

[MineralMan]

46. Some of us are right here in the thread, making suggestions

about how to catch these creeps. Hello, yourself.

[EFerrari]

51. Yes, your suggestion was that I was somehow "idealistic"

and not practical. Thank you.

[still_one]

47. Expose the thugs for what they are, along with the repukes that encourage this

[EFerrari]

50. How do you see that happening?

[still_one]

86. Have spokes people go on talk shows and news programs along with press conferences and

call them out by names

What they are advocating is violent overthrow of our government

The republicans did it for 8 years when bush was president, and are still doing it, misrepresenting and lying about the Democrats

It is time the Democrats do the same thing, only they won't be misrepresenting the facts

[sixmile]

48. How about the Teamsters?

Or laid off UAW guys?
No teabagging phony will be spitting on Congressmen or saying the N word or F word when the hard union guys are around.

[EFerrari]

52. Another good suggestion. If there are Teamsters or UAW guys (and gals)

in your district, know that and figure out a way to contact them. :thumbsup:

[951-Riverside]

54. You're being played like a fiddle.

:nopity:

[EFerrari]

55. No, I'm not. But thanks for your concern!

:hi:

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

114. By whom? -nt

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

123. Crickets. Sound of wind. Tumbleweeds roll by. -nt

[EFerrari]

58. And another link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7998410&mesg_id=7998410

[walldude]

60. I don't know E....

I understand the need to make them see that they are a minority and that we will not allow this. But to treat them like they are anything more than some crap that needs to be scraped off the bottom of our shoe worries me.
This is what I think our problem with the War On Terror is. We took some idiots in a cave who managed to sneak one in because our idiot in charge either let them in or just ignored them and managed to create a multi-billion dollar war against them. We gave them a legitimacy that they never deserved. We increased their recruiting and told them that what they were doing was working. They wanted to bankrupt us and they have come very close. I just don't want these fringe weirdo's to think they are part of something bigger. They are just small time crooks, and we need to treat them as such...

[EFerrari]

61. That's a really good point. Any attention they get may be too much

attention.

But, we can tweak the attention to mock them, too. For example, if I still had kids here, I could go over to Louise's office and do homework with them on her steps.

"And why are you here, Ma'am?"

"We just wanted a nice sunny place to work today. This looks like one."

Deflation is a big fat tool, too. :)

ETA: I guess for me the point is to have a response that is easy and fast and appropriate. At a minimum, you get to meet a few of your cool neighbors. :)

[walldude]

63. Mocking is good... Should be the way we treat all the wingnuts

including in the press. Why we have to be civil to people who don't know what the meaning of the word is is beyond me...

[EFerrari]

65. It makes us look good.

:rofl:

[walldude]

64. Mocking is good... Should be the way we treat all the wingnuts

including in the press. Why we have to be civil to people who don't know what the meaning of the word is is beyond me...

[laughingliberal]

67. I'm not sure what the right answer is

Responding with counter demonstrations of support might give them additional attention and media coverage. Might just be best to organize some rallies away from their venue showing support for your rep. Or even being out for a while in front of the office with signs thanking them for their work and courage.

I'm worried. I see us approaching a situation like we had after King's murder in Memphis. Both sides were out in force and it was bloody and violent. And, in that bastion of bigotry, the police were often on the side of the Birchers and Klansmen.

[EFerrari]

68. I know, but offering no resistance is not an option.

I say, we check in with other people in our districts and come up with a non-violent plan.

Dr. King was murdered because the inflammatory rhetoric was not challenged and because entities like the FBI were on the wrong side.

We have that experience, now. We can do better than that this time.

[laughingliberal]

74. It's hard. We still have LEO's in some conservative enclaves who would be on the wrong side

However, the idea of supporters being out there with supportive signs for several hours a day might make a show of support. That's all I can think of at this point to show support without inflaming further violence.

[bridgit]

66. ...solidarity? Solidarity is something that you can offer from afar...

without having to split a nail or get a bloody poke brushing broken glass off your skirt. If this is the state of activism, then I'm hoping that in time a tincture of: making-sense, solidarity, vigilance and defense comes forward and no we're not talking some Walking Tall rewrite - still - without the exertion placed inside vig/def activism, LW concerns for shattered Dem glass are too easily queued as random; too easily queued as the wet 180 paper bag that will neither support nor defend the weight of its own bottom to Randism's: make no deals/take no prisoner/negotiate nothing

Me? I don't care much for dumplings. But "violent @ssholes", sometimes like bullies, love it when they come across half baked dumplings, so squishy they squeeze them with spoons and poke them with their fingers, though if I were a dumpling I wouldn't care much for that either

So I'm hoping a form situational awareness and conflict resolution are developed in unison; along with a set of, all-be-them, escalatory nonlethal applications of remedy & right and the paper, law and common sense to hook it all up, that I'd like to see

Cause its one thing to whistle past the graveyard with no cares whatsoever for the parameter of it. Its quite another to draw the short twig on the first watch of the first graveyard shift which is a question we haven't yet asked or have we...

Who has a handful of twigs?

[deaniac21]

69. Very dramatic!

[EFerrari]

70. So, should we take you off of the Little Rock contact list? Yes?

[deaniac21]

111. Whatever you like. I fear no man.

[EFerrari]

112. Right. This thread isn't about fearing but about responding to thugs.

Thanks for the kick.

[deaniac21]

125. Yes, the sky is falling.

[EFerrari]

130. That must be terrible for you.

[bridgit]

76. Well now there you go, they want to take you off their 'list' already

:cry:

[conscious evolution]

71. Post NRA stickers on their doors

The vandals heads will explode before they can start their wind-up.

[EFerrari]

72. LOL!

I love that but our Congress critters might object.

[spanone]

75. national guard

[Odin2005]

77. I dunno. I do know that Rush and Beck need to be taken down.

[conscious evolution]

82. I wonder if we could petition

the International Criminal Court and ask that they be charged with crimes against the peace.Poisoning peoples minds with hate is considered to be a crime,after all.
Since our laws allow them to spread their hate maybe we can use international law to shut them down.

[akbacchus_BC]

92. Rush and Beck are spewing a lot of stuff that could be considered as hate speech,

have no idea how freedom of speech tolerates their utterances! They are bile and often racist!! Once the MSM allows this kind of speech, then Ms. Palin and her cohorts are winning, but I hope not!

What the President needs is a mouthpiece to target these assholes, but apart from VP Biden's statement which is mild in comparison to a GOP Senator saying 'you lie' to the President, I prefer VP Biden's utterance! F*ck is right, they did it!

This HCR bill is really historic, even though a bit not what everyone wanted, but it is progress in the right direction.

Kudos to President Obama, Madam Speaker Pelosi, their team and allow me to say that my respected, Hilary Clinton was also happy about the bill. Go Democrats, you are on the right path as far I can see.

Your friend from Canada

[Doctor_J]

79. We can do what we always do

wring our hands a little more vigorously

[EFerrari]

96. Some of us have this terrible habit

of actually doing things. In my case it's because I suck as a spectator. :)

[pitohui]

80. what's wrong w. arresting them? making terrorist threats is illegal, stalking is illegal

threatening a politician's children or anybody's children is the crime of making a terroristic threat (not sure i spelled it right), it's a felony in many states

arrest the people who commit crimes, don't say "it's ok because they're republicans"

sure, they'll yell and scream that it's their right to indulge in hate speech -- just look at ann coulter -- but you know what? it isn't their right, it's fucking illegal

and it needs to be prosecuted

NOW

we have tolerated hate speech in this country, including illegal hate speech, for far too long

we have legal remedies and i believe we should expect law enforcement to do its job and protect our people

[EFerrari]

85. Agreed. Law enforcment should do their job.

What I'm asking is, what is our job in all of this.

[Arkana]

81. Stand outside your Rep's office with a shotgun and a death glare?

[malaise]

83. Whatever else you do

do not be afraid. Stand up to the bullies - they'll soon be in prison

[EFerrari]

84. I just want a look at their undies in retreat.

lol

[malaise]

90. LOL

Lawrence about to deal with the queen of reload. She's really gone too far this time.

[rucky]

88. Let law enforcement handle it?

The question in my mind is how selective are they going to be about enforcing this kind of stuff?

[EFerrari]

95. Yeah, let them handle the law enforcement part.

But giving visible, peaceful support to members who are being threatened could make them feel a little better and it could dampen the @ssholish impunity a little bit.

As far as selectivity, I notice a big deal was made about arresting 5 people at the anti-war protest but very little was made of the @ssholes who assaulted those Congress critters. :shrug:

[akbacchus_BC]

93. Hello there, any idea when Rush leaving the US. I'd pay for that

asshole taxi drive to the airport! On second thoughts, the effer should drive himself, but my offer still stands but the poor people of Costa Rica, I hope they don't want that loser!

[Turborama]

99. Revoke their citizenship & send to Gitmo/Bagram prior to a military tribunal?

The irony would be sweet!

8 U.S.C. § 1481 : US Code - Section 1481: Loss of nationality by native-born or naturalized citizen; voluntary action; burden of proof; presumptions

=snip=

(7) committing any act of treason against, or attempting by
force to overthrow, or bearing arms against, the United States,
violating or conspiring to violate any of the provisions of
section 2383 of title 18, or willfully performing any act in
violation of section 2385 of title 18, or violating section 2384
of title 18 by engaging in a conspiracy to overthrow, put down,
or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to
levy war against them, if and when he is convicted thereof by a
court martial or by a court of competent jurisdiction.
http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/8/12/III/III/1481

[EFerrari]

101. We always dump our trash on other people.

:)

[Turborama]

103. LOL, true, I'm trying to think of another country they might enjoy living in more

Any ideas?

Maybe allow Alaska to secede and send them all there? If they hate contemporary America so much, stripping them of their citizenship and dumping them there could be a win win for all concerned.

[EFerrari]

105. Oh, no, not Alaska! Alaska is beautiful!

What about the Vatican? I hear there will be job openings there soon. :)

[upi402]

102. It's domestic terrorism

It's concerted and sustained and has political ends. It uses violence or destruction of property to intimidate.
Homeland Security better act or Obama needs to clean house there.

[EFerrari]

104. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think it's enough for LEOs to handle this.

I think as a people, we need to visibly and peaceably and clearly reject it.

[Hannah Bell]

106. How Ordinary Citizens of Northern Idaho Defeated the Aryan Nations

http://preview.niot.org/action-hub/local-lessons/democracy-counter-hate-groups

[Hannah Bell]

107. dupe

[EFerrari]

108. Vandals hit at least 5 Democratic Offices Nationwide

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4317047&mesg_id=4317047

[eShirl]

109. catch them in the act on video

[gleaner]

110. We should do what we should have done all along ..

If they disrupt a gathering like a town hall meeting to the point where it cannot continue they should be arrested. That is more than free speech, it is disorderly conduct and it is illegal.

If they make threats against administration officials who are protected by the Secret Service, they should be dealt with like anyone else who makes threats. They should be questioned, arrested when appropriate and confined to a mental hospital or a jail, whichever the law allows.

If they try to attack physically, or spit on a federal employee in the course of their duties it becomes a federal crime and they can be charged under federal law with battery or assault. I was a federal employee and I worked for an agency where this did come up, and they were arrested and jailed after trial. Prison helps put things in perspective if you are out of control and proud of it.

If the person they are stalking, attacking or harassing is not a federal employee then they should be arrested under the appropriate anti stalking laws. Most states have enacted them. There are also laws against making terroristic threats against another person is most states. Use them.

People should talk to friends, co workers and family members (when you can get them to listen) about the futility of acting like violent overgrown two year olds who eventually are going to have their lives ripped to shreds by an increasingly frustrated and intolerant public. These people are in the minority. The media should remember that and stop reporting ad nauseam and with such a great emphasis on their every word. When they choose to ignore this, contact the media representative each and every time you disapprove. If they hear from enough people, they will tone it down. These people do not pay their own way. We do. If we also talk to the sponsors it does have an effect.

People should ridicule them as they do on the Comedy Show. Person to person. Friend to friend. Stranger to stranger in the super market line. Restore a sense of proportion to this country and let these dirtballs fade into the oblivion they came from.

[EFerrari]

113. Maybe one of us should start a column somewhere

"This Week in Right Wing Hate Speech and Thuggery".

[Political Bitch]

117. Hmmm, I'll be starting a journal soon...

Soon as I can actually start my own threads, anyway. B-) I was wondering what I'd keep myself occupied with...maybe this would be a good subject (or at least a good weekly blurb). Rethugs suck. I'm so tired of crazy bullshit instead of honest and reasonable discourse. Something HAS to be done. :mad:

[EFerrari]

118. Welcome to DU.

:)

[Political Bitch]

120. Thanks! First one of those I've gotten.

I've been around DU for a really long time, but had to let it go because I had no internet (and NO access to any real news- thought I was gonna go nuts!). When I came back, my old email was gone forever, and along with it, my DU membership. Sad. But I really like my new moniker, so I guess it all works out in the end! LOL :smoke:

Due to past threats to my children's safety, I won't tell you who I used to be, either. :silly:

[gleaner]

122. Well here's your second one ..

Welcome back to DU, mystery poster. Good to see you. ;)

[Political Bitch]

124. Why, thank you!

I seem to remember a few good coversations with folks around here. I'm afraid, though, of what's happening right now. We have to do something to stop all this madness. Maybe my voice will make a difference. Here's to hope...:toast:

[gleaner]

127. You're welcome ....

The more voices, the better. Here's to trying.:toast:

[gleaner]

121. It would be a good topic ,,

for a blog. I'm sure many people on the internet post and contribute. The hate mail would be stunning though. My husband and I had a peace blog during the Bush years and I had to block the hate mail at the server. This was after we had put a statement on the blog that we would not be posting mail from people with conservative views or hate speak. I told them they had the same access to server space as I did and if they wanted to comment, they could buy their own space and pay for it themselves. Sometimes I would answer the emails but it became apparent very quickly that it only made it worse, so I blocked it with my moderation function and we wrote what about what we thought was more important. Stopping the wars, illegal actions against the population here, and the sub standard treatment of the US Military by the Bush administration and how to help the soldiers in spite of Bush's pet contractors and war profiteers.

We had to stop because I got too sick with MS to continue and my husband couldn't run it alone. By then there were a lot of people doing the same kind of blogging, so we were scarcely missed.

But these extremists are ripe for a blog which discusses their actions and goals. Someone who is young and energetic and resilient would be doing a very good thing by starting one.

[chrisa]

115. What's funny is the fact that the Right Wing loudmouths

are indirectly trying to start a violent resistance movement, by giving veiled marching orders through ambiguous statements. For example, "America is under attack by Liberal elitists. Remember in the American Revolution, how the colonists fought against tyranny?"

They're jumping around in that grey area of "I didn't personally tell them to commit that violent act!" happily.

[Fire1]

116. Here's an idea. Write, call and e-mail Dem congressmen and

women and demand that SOMEBODY get the DOJ to do it's job and ENFORCE THE DAMN SMITH ACT!

[Pryderi]

119. Help send money on behalf of teabag organizations. Offer to volunteer for their campaigns. You can

phone bank even if you're outside their district or state.

[omega minimo]

126. Isn't this the sort of thing the Department of Homeland Security was invented for?

[EFerrari]

131. They've got their hands full arresting vegans and peace grannies.

[omega minimo]

132. kitchen radicals and peace porch sitters = domestic terrorists?

[barbiegeek]

129. SEND TARGETED DEMS $$$$$$ FOR PROTECTION

Send them a donation to use of security for the families!!