१७ एप्रिल, २०१०

A word with the lone protester.

On Thursday, in Madison, the Tea Party had broken up, and we were walking away when we saw one man, in another part of the Capitol Square, standing alone, holding up a sign. I would have walked on by, but Meade, wielding a small camera, approached him.

DSC09151

No one else was anywhere near him, but he staunchly held up his sign, which read: "911 Underground Demolition!" The "11" part of "911" was shaped like the World Trade Center Towers.

DSC09153

Meade said "hi" and read the sign out loud as he walked up. "So you believe it was..."

"I'm the only one," the man said. "911 Truth doesn't even know this stuff."

He handed Meade a paper that explained that the WTC was built with explosive nuclear devices underground. The man said he was thrown out of the Tea Party: "They literally told me to go away. They don't want me here."

I asked, "Were you trying to start a counter-demonstration over on this side?"

He said, "No, not at all. They just didn't want me over there. There were all these spies, like, pointing at me."

I said, "Who are the 'they'? Who didn't want you over there?"

He paused, giggled, then laughed and said, "The Illuminati."

३८ टिप्पण्या:

Expat(ish) म्हणाले...

I would have asked if I could take pictures of his bumper stickers. Probably would have been some cool stuff there.

-XC

JAL म्हणाले...

So.

Was he paranoid schizophrenic?

Or an infiltraitor?

अनामित म्हणाले...

That right there could be teased into a great short story.

As my whimsy leads me.. म्हणाले...

I second JAL's first suggestion.

Toy

WV: Wayane: What Wayne's wife calls down to the basement to get Wayne to leave his trains and help her move the refrigerator.

Capt. Schmoe म्हणाले...

Obama's health plan will get this poor man the medication he needs!

अनामित म्हणाले...

Capt -- Thank God Obamacare is forcing this man to buy things.

Meade म्हणाले...

Earlier, I had a long conversation with a guy from New York who described himself as a "radical liberal."

I'm a uniter, not a divider.

I'm Full of Soup म्हणाले...

I bought some cheesesteaks this afternoon and while I was waiting, I overheard this young guy, sitting in a booth with two college girls, saying the WTC towers were blown up by explosives. After I left, I felt guilty that I did not tell him he was a deluded crackpot while punching him in the mouth.

Oops - I guess I am one of those people Bill Clinton was talking about.

KCFleming म्हणाले...

Whar a moron.

Everyone knows the Illuminati are controlled by Mister Ed.

Chip Ahoy म्हणाले...

9❙❙
U N D ☆ E R ☆GRO☆UN☆D☆
⌁D⌁e⌁mo⌁l⌁it⌁i⌁on⌁⌁


Construction of the towers began in 1966. Johnson was president, Richard Helms directed the CIA, J. Edgar Hoover still ran the FBI. So you can easily see how this is possible even though the UN is a more likely target for this sort of thing. I bet this guy's a hoot at parties.

अनामित म्हणाले...

The best part about these people for me is the fact that, with these fictions, they are foisting controllers onto things that were totally out of control. There's great comfort in the notion that a secret cabal of people is actually conspiring to control this crazy world. Even if the cabal is evil.

The alternative is having to look into the chaotic abyss. This these feeble minds cannot fathom. The insecurity would be too overwhelming.

Synova म्हणाले...

I feel sort of sorry for the guy getting excluded... it's too bad that things are such that he couldn't have just been tolerated like a crazy relative.

Is this an example of the coarsening of debate? We can't even indulge someone who might be off his meds, all alone out there, because we all know that if we do that we'll be attacked and slandered for it?

If so it's sort of ironic that the more we try to force a civil debate the less compassionate it becomes. But I suppose that the important word in that sentence is "force."

We maybe should consider that in other areas where we're tempted to restrict speech in the interest of civility.

Anyway, I'm glad Meade went to say hello.

अनामित म्हणाले...

Synova -- It is a fact that the left gets to have its Michael Moores and its communists and socialists and its one-child-per-family advocates and so many other kooks. It is also a fact that the right must always police and purge itself of nutball conspiracy freaks and racists.

That's how it goes.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Best laugh I've had all day.

Alex म्हणाले...

I say the TP people should have a zero-tolerance policy towards anyone who's a crazy or possible infiltrator trying to pose as crazy. Either way keep the image up as responsible, smart citizens who are outraged at Obama.

Synova म्हणाले...

Sure, Alex. But I've yet to hear of a "zero tolerance policy" in real life that didn't descend into fascist misapplication.

Alex म्हणाले...

Synova - the stakes are way too high to have anything but a zero tolerance policy in these rallies. We need to send the message to the John Birchers, racists and other creeps that they are NOT welcome.

Synova म्हणाले...

Alex, I know that you like to think of yourself as provocative but you're wrong.

Zero tolerance removes all opportunity for judgment and common sense, it's the opposite of responsibility, which is why it always goes so wrong. In truth, the stakes are way too high to get stupid.

Because there is no cure for stupid.

There is a lot of landscape between zero tolerance and doing nothing at all. Expression should always be tolerated past of a point of discomfort. The alternative is to start favoring comfort too highly.

Life should be messy. We go wrong when we try to hard to tidy up.

reader_iam म्हणाले...

What's it all about, Alfie?
Is it just for the moment we live?
What's it all about when you sort it out, Alfie?
Are we meant to take more than we give
or are we meant to be kind?
And if only fools are kind, Alfie,
then I guess it's wise to be cruel.
And if life belongs only to the strong, Alfie,
what will you lend on an old golden rule?
As sure as I believe there's a heaven above, Alfie,
I know there's something much more,
something even non-believers can believe in.
I believe in love, Alfie.
Without true love we just exist, Alfie.
Until you find the love you've
missed you're nothing, Alfie.
When you walk let your heart lead the way
and you'll find love any day, Alfie, Alfie.

reader_iam म्हणाले...

Alternatively, it's all about the documentary, including documenting those alternatives.

reader_iam म्हणाले...

Including that guy, staunch, sign and all.

Revenant म्हणाले...

After I left, I felt guilty that I did not tell him he was a deluded crackpot while punching him in the mouth.

Spit on them. You're less likely to get arrested and it really communicates the proper level of contempt. :)

rhhardin म्हणाले...

The towers were built over radio row.

It's not impossible that something surplus that Leeds' was offering for sale finally blew up.

"Used ROMs. Many useful patterns." - Polypaks

Unknown म्हणाले...

"The Lone Protester."

Hi-yo, Paranoia!! Oy vey!!

Synova said...

I feel sort of sorry for the guy getting excluded... it's too bad that things are such that he couldn't have just been tolerated like a crazy relative.

Is this an example of the coarsening of debate? We can't even indulge someone who might be off his meds, all alone out there, because we all know that if we do that we'll be attacked and slandered for it?


You have a good heart.

Opus One Media म्हणाले...

like moths to a flame.

Deb म्हणाले...

Zero tolerance removes all opportunity for judgment and common sense

All you have to do is look at zero tolerance weapons policy cases in public schools, where elementary school kids are suspended for having a Tweety-bird key chain at school (September 29, 2000) to find the truth in this statement.

Triangle Man म्हणाले...

Alex has successfully demonstrated why Althouse is derided by liberals. It's too important to tolerate dissent or different perspectives.

Triangle Man म्हणाले...

...not that Althouse's thoughts are delusional like the 9|| guy.


PS. I think I had another near brush with the Meadehouses this week. I came out of Wholefoods and found a silver TT parked next to me.

William म्हणाले...

Just from the picture, the young man appears presentable and polite. Everyone is entitled to a few cranky beliefs....My own cranky belief is that my future happiness is little dependent upon what the government does.

Meade म्हणाले...

Tman, did it have a bumper sticker? "You dinga this car door, I breaka that organic whole wheat pasta ona your head"

Fred4Pres म्हणाले...

Meade, did you get his name. I need it for the next meeting of the Illuminat...I mean Rotary.

Meade म्हणाले...

Ha ha. No, Fred. He already seemed plenty nervous as it was. I didn't want to be the one to cause him to jump completely out of his skin.

अनामित म्हणाले...

Infiltrator.

I hope.

Actually many college kids are indeed Truthers, because their loony professors have convinced them of such nonsense.

Triangle Man म्हणाले...

Fred, he's already in the database and the GPS telemetry is solid. Been watching him since he ordered the Anarchist's Cookbook back in 9th grade.


Meade, it had a different bumper sticker: "I bleed caffeine and tannins." Must have been someone else.

Meade म्हणाले...

Wait. That was our car!

Meade म्हणाले...

Next time, howzabout a howdy? Just please don't look in my cart and count all the boxes of wine, okay?

Triangle Man म्हणाले...

If I ever actually see you instead of the car you can bet I will say hello. So far it has been two Silvio sightings and zero Meadehouse.

Methadras म्हणाले...

More people believe in alien abductions than they do the Illuminati. More people know what alien abduction is vs. people who have ever heard of the Illuminati. Therefore one can surmise is that the Illuminati are doing a piss poor job of promoting 'The Conspiracy'.

wv = sects = HAHA!!