CURRENT EVENTS July 6 - July 13

[ZZLPHeels]

Ohhhh, tell me more about George Soros, please.

This isn’t a MAGA, Q Anon conspiracy. It is well documented and not even debatable. Denying the obvious simply because it is inconvenient for your cause is ironically peak MAGA behavior.

 

[heelinhell]

How does one become a professional rioter? What's the pay plan? Benefits package?

Perhaps you don't know that Antifa is hiring employees currently.

Your pay depends upon the number of riots you attend and how many hours you riot at each protest. The hourly rate is $15/hour with a $50 dollar bonus for each window you break, each Molotov cocktail you toss, and each police officer you maim.

The benefits package includes catastrophic health insurance if you are hospitalized as a result of being beaten with batons, blinded by pepper spray, or wounded by real or rubber bullets.

There is no retirement plan and no dental or vision insurance offered for routine care. Of course, there is no paid sick leave or paid vacation

I read last year's Antifa annual report and the listed expenditures for employee pay and benefits was $2,687.

The Antifa budget was $5000 which included employee costs, and promo flyers announcing the upcoming riots. George Soros funded $10,000 which left Antifa with a $7000 surplus.

 

[ZZLPHeels]

Perhaps you don't know that Antifa is hiring employees currently.

Your pay depends upon the number of riots you attend and how many hours you riot at each protest. The hourly rate is $15/hour with a $50 dollar bonus for each window you break, each Molotov cocktail you toss, and each police officer you maim.

The benefits package includes catastrophic health insurance if you are hospitalized as a result of being beaten with batons, blinded by pepper spray, or wounded by real or rubber bullets.

There is no retirement plan and no dental or vision insurance offered for routine care. Of course, there is no paid sick leave or paid vacation

I read last year's Antifa annual report and the listed expenditures for employee pay and benefits was $2,687.

The Antifa budget was $5000 which included employee costs, and promo flyers announcing the upcoming protests. George Soros funded $10,000 which left Antifa with a $7000 surplus.

Link?

 

[Huh?]

During the American Revolution and the debate over the U.S. Constitution, several Founding Fathers used pseudonyms to protest or advocate their positions.
Some prominent examples include:

• Samuel Adams:
  Used a multitude of pseudonyms, including Candidus, Vindex, Populus, and A Son of Liberty, to write articles in the Boston Gazette advocating for colonial rights and criticizing British policies.
• Benjamin Franklin: Employed pseudonyms like Silence Dogood, Richard Saunders, and Polly Baker to publish articles and pamphlets on various social and political issues, sometimes to avoid repercussions for controversial views, according to Bucknell University.
• Thomas Paine: Published his influential pamphlet "Common Sense," which argued for American independence, anonymously.
• John Dickinson: Authored the "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania" using the pseudonym "A Farmer" to oppose the Townshend Acts.
• Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay: Wrote the Federalist Papers under the collective pseudonym "Publius" to advocate for the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

These are just a few examples, as the use of pseudonyms was a common practice during this era to engage in political debate, express unpopular opinions without facing direct retaliation, and focus attention on the arguments themselves rather than the authors' personalities.

 

[StrangePackage]

ETA for this story to reach the Pardon/Commutation thread?

 

[Huh?]

This isn’t a MAGA, Q Anon conspiracy. It is well documented and not even debatable. Denying the obvious simply because it is inconvenient for your cause is ironically peak MAGA behavior.

It's not a conspiracy so much as a logical fallacy. The fact that some rioters wear masks doesn't mean all protesters in masks are rioters. Just as the fact that some murders are committed with guns doesn't mean all gun owners are murderers.

 

[ZZLPHeels]

Please document.

Document what?

 

[ZZLPHeels]

It's not a conspiracy so much as a logical fallacy. The fact that some rioters wear masks doesn't mean all protesters in masks are rioters. Just as the fact that some murders are committed with guns doesn't mean all gun owners are murderers.

When did I say all? Just because some drunk drivers get some safely each night doesn't mean that we should legalize drunk driving. There is a documented history, across the country, of criminal groups concealing their identities and committing crimes in protests and riots. It is completely lawful to ban wearing masks to protests. No one is infringing upon anyone's rights by doing so. As I stated earlier, if I were in a protest I would welcome actions taken to remove bad actors from my event.

 

[Huh?]

Your drunk driving analogy is yet another departure from logic. No one is advocating the legalization of rioting. Next you'll be banning the wearing of black.

What is the government's purpose in banning masks, if not to punish legally permissible activity? Going back to our founding fathers, our country has a long history of anonymous protest, and we are better off for it.

 

[BlooVooDoo]

The autocratic conversion of the US continues.

Skateboards and Livestreams: DHS Tells Police That Common Protest Activities Are ‘Violent Tactics’

DHS is urging law enforcement to treat even skateboarding and livestreaming as signs of violent intent during a protest, turning everyday behavior into a pretext for police action.

www.wired.com

The Department of Homeland Security is urging local police to consider a wide range of protest activity as violent tactics, including mundane acts like riding a bike or livestreaming a police encounter, WIRED has learned.

Threat bulletins issued during last month’s “No Kings” protests warn that the US government’s aggressive immigration raids are almost certain to accelerate domestic unrest, with DHS saying there’s a “high likeliness” more Americans will soon turn against the agency, which could trigger confrontations near federal sites.



Blaming intense media coverage and backlash to the US military deployment in Los Angeles, DHS expects the demonstrations to “continue and grow across the nation” as protesters focused on other issues shift to immigration, following a broad “embracement of anti-ICE messaging.”


The bulletins—first obtained by the national security nonprofit Property of the People through public records requests—warn that officers could face assaults with fireworks and improvised weapons: paint-filled fire extinguishers, smoke grenades, and projectiles like bottles and rocks.

At the same time, the guidance urges officers to consider a range of nonviolent behavior and common protest gear—like masks, flashlights, and cameras—as potential precursors to violence, telling officers to prepare “from the point of view of an adversary.”


Protesters on bicycles, skateboards, or even “on foot” are framed as potential “scouts” conducting reconnaissance or searching for “items to be used as weapons.” Livestreaming is listed alongside “doxxing” as a “tactic” for “threatening” police. Online posters are cast as ideological recruiters—or as participants in “surveillance sharing.”

One list of “violent tactics” shared by the Los Angeles–based Joint Regional Intelligence Center—part of a post-9/11 fusion network—includes both protesters’ attempts to avoid identification and efforts to identify police. The memo also alleges that face recognition, normally a tool of law enforcement, was used against officers.

Vera Eidelman, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, says the government has no business treating constitutionally protected activities—like observing or documenting police—as threats.


DHS did not respond to a request for comment.

Maybe the protestors should dress in camouflage or black, carry ARs, wear masks and plate carriers so they blend in with “patriots” rather than present a threat to law enforcement.

 

[ZZLPHeels]

Your drunk driving analogy is yet another departure from logic. No one is advocating the legalization of rioting. Next you'll be banning the wearing of black.

What is the government's purpose in banning masks, if not to punish legally permissible activity? Going back to our founding fathers, our country has a long history of anonymous protest, and we are better off for it.

The government's purpose in banning masks is to discourage illegal behavior and to more easily identify and arrest those who engage in such behavior. It is a shame that masked agitators have ruined the ability of non-violent protesters to anonymously protest in many situations, but it is what it is.

 

[finesse]

The government's purpose in banning masks is to discourage illegal behavior and to more easily identify and arrest those who engage in such behavior. It is a shame that masked agitators have ruined the ability of non-violent protesters to anonymously protest in many situations, but it is what it is.

It's a shame that a free society stoops to collective punishment instead of acting on the presumption of innocence that every citizen is entitled to.

 

[ZZLPHeels]

It's a shame that a free society stoops to collective punishment instead of acting on the presumption of innocence that every citizen is entitled to.

Sometimes concessions have to be made for the greater good. If something as small as a ban on masks during protests can protect businesses from being damaged and people from being injured, then the ban serves its purpose.

 

[farce©]

Black bloc - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

https://www.counterextremism.com/supremacy/black-bloc

Behind the Black Bloc

www.fdd.org

Of course, the mask wearing is not limited to one side. The Proud Boys and other far-right groups are also known for wearing face covering to conceal their identities.

Nothing in your link supports your assertion. "Professional" indicates they are doing their rioting for pay. Who is paying them? There is nothing in your link about how such an "organization" is financed. In fact, your link specifically states "Black bloc does not have a formal membership or organizational structure" and "Black bloc has no formal membership or recruitment process."

So I would say you have failed to provide any evidence of "professional agitators/rioters."

 

[ZZLPHeels]

Nothing in your link supports your assertion. "Professional" indicates they are doing their rioting for pay. Who is paying them? There is nothing in your link about how such an "organization" is financed. In fact, your link specifically states "Black bloc does not have a formal membership or organizational structure" and "Black bloc has no formal membership or recruitment process."

So I would say you have failed to provide any evidence of "professional agitators/rioters."

Black bloc and similar organizations (i.e. antifa) make money on settlements from lawsuits that result from their very intentional escalation of protests into violent acts. It isn’t a coincidence when the people being arrested during riots have no ties at all to the area where they are apprehended.

Not having a formal recruitment or leadership structure does not mean these people are not professional. They don’t just appear out of thin air. They are well trained and very clever.

 

[nycfan]

 

[altmin]

Fuck that. If you can imprison me at a black site, without ever stating your name, agency, or the charge then I say every single mass action should look like this:

I grew up almost entirely with kids of cops and firefighters, most of which became cops and firefighters. For all the first responder do gooder vibes, the majority really are just boot heelers. They should have concern if the public is aligning against their authoritarian fascist behavior.

Far as I can tell, law enforcement officer wearing a mask might just be a kidnapper wearing a mask. Someone is eventually going to "stand their ground" sand it is going to end badly.

 

[farce©]

Not having a formal recruitment or leadership structure does not mean these people are not professional. They don’t just appear out of thin air. They are well trained and very clever.

How does an "organization" with no leadership or recruitment structure ensure their participants are "well-trained?" I do not doubt there are random assholes who attempt to escalate protests into confrontations with the goal of creating lawsuits, but calling them "professionals" is beyond the pale. You are equating them to left-wing Proud Boys who most assuredly have a defined leadership infrastructure and who trains regularly. That is straight-up bullshit.

Can you steer me toward any evidence of "professional rioters" filing lawsuits resulting in substantial settlements?

 

[ZZLPHeels]

How does an "organization" with no leadership or recruitment structure ensure their participants are "well-trained?" I do not doubt there are random assholes who attempt to escalate protests into confrontations with the goal of creating lawsuits, but calling them "professionals" is beyond the pale. You are equating them to left-wing Proud Boys who most assuredly have a defined leadership infrastructure and who trains regularly. That is straight-up bullshit.

They absolutely have a leadership structure and even have trainers that go to locations to instruct others in how to carry out their desired actions. The leadership structure is not public due to their criminal nature and their loyalty is to a philosophy rather than a person. Do you think it is simply a strange coincidence when people arrested for rioting have no ties to the area where they were arrested?

 

[He's Not Here]

The government's purpose in banning masks is to discourage illegal behavior and to more easily identify and arrest those who engage in such behavior. It is a shame that masked agitators have ruined the ability of non-violent protesters to anonymously protest in many situations, but it is what it is.

Why do laws banning masks make exceptions for KKK marches?