As discussed in an earlier post, a man attacked me today at the Capitol. We captured the assault on 2 different cameras, and I'm not editing the material together (at least not at this point). First, here's what Meade got on the Flip camera. He wasn't deliberately filming me, so some of this is unframed or off camera.
The man doing all the talking about politics and religion is not the attacker. Please note how friendly and nonconfrontational I am. I don't put my camera in anyone's face. I'm just recording a guy who's basically performing for the camera. He's yelling at a friend who is a Christian minister (and a commenter here, as "caplight"). You can see my son Chris on the right, in dark sunglasses, at 3:00. The attacker is the man with the "solidarity" armband, visible clearly at 3:38.
In the middle of the screen, at 3:38, in the red "fist" T-shirt and holding a heart-shaped balloon, is the man who pointed me out in the rotunda yesterday and who (apparently) participated in the comments yesterday under the pseudonym "Dirty Hippie." He talks to the attacker just before the attacker yells "You're socially retarded" and attacks me. The attack is at 3:58, off camera. Meade yells "hey" a few times and gets the incident framed. At 4:00, you see Chris detaching that man's hands from me. At 4:04, I yell "police" and the 2 men mock me, yelling "police!" in their girlie voice. At 7:12, the talkative guy tells the police what "transpired." He clearly states that the other man grabbed my camera (and portrays himself as the peacemaker).
The second camera was held by me. I'm processing that now. It gives you a first-hand view of the attack and my discussion with the police.
ADDED: Here's my video, with explanatory text appearing as subtitles.
August 12, 2011
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«Oldest ‹Older 401 – 553 of 553"Tell us what it is from your perspective."
Isn't it obvious? It's the Glorious Struggle of the Downtrodden Working Class - Working Class, dammit!! (that is, government employees) - against the Tophatted and be-Monacled Plutocrats (that is, the rest of the taxpayers of the state). Our resident goon-cheerleader-in-chief said so himself.
"stripped from teachers"...what a fucking howler. How about all the money "stripped from taxpayers" because the Teachers Unions are goonish kleptocracies who hold their own students hostage? Shithead.
"Jesus had causes, pretty clearly, but he almost completely stayed away from the topic of the government's role."
Jesus seems more concerned about how we respond to the people around us immediately, rather than the larger issues of capital-P Poverty. So we help the people we see around us who need help. This does not translate to statist programs to "help" the poor (especially when said programs don't actually provide help). Everything was relational for Christ. New Testament theology says little about government other than it being useful for keeping the peace.
Anyone (right or left) who thinks Jesus can be used as a kind of draft horse for their cause risks flirting with blasphemy. Jesus wasn't interested in governments, he was interested in people.
Chris thanks for your clarification. Sometimes in tense situations it is best to ask if one can continue to record the event before getting too close, and it is always best to defend yourself and your camera when attached, as was the case in this instant.
The nonstop talker is nuts. I was not surprised no one engaged him in conversation because he does not converse. He spouts. In Philly, people like him stand all day on subway platforms and "preach". No one engages or responds to these preachers because they are nuts and the regular subway commuters know that.
Not to worry Lincolntf, Wisconsin is well on its way to looking like whatever backwards ass bumfuck hick shithole you wallow in.
It was rude and uncalled for (and I'd of jacked the dude bullying Miss A--)--and the street preacher wasn't helping much-- but some people do react to camera's in their face. Something to remember AA.
(maybe take out some of the teacher-goons Lincoln the mormonic krimefighter--tho' you might need some of the macho men of Ahouse for backup.)
Two points:
The screen capture of the YouTube video shows what appears and almost certainly is the menace of "the talkative guy" as he is positioned on the perimeter as a lookout and first defense/offense.
See how he is essentially in the same pose and carries the same affect and purpose as LEO.
This adds strength to Mr. Graham's assertions.
Second: this talk of Jesus is not an attempt to "explain" but to shame and confuse Mr. Walker's supporters and undecideds alike.
Having lost the argument on how best or how now to fund public unions and their beneficiaries at the ballot box, the unions have taken to violence and intimidation - not exactly new plays in their playbook.
Expect the violence to increase, sadly, as impotence turns into rage and then fury.
The Rich are using you to fight their war on the middle class.
Will all you miliionaires- billionaires !!1!!!11!! / rich versus poor guys !!111!!1!1 please stop.
Do you not know how completely stupid you sound?
I note you've now shifted it to rRich vs. "middle class"
Is that because someone noticed that the poor who carry cell phones which cost gobs more than my net10 phone, and have large flat screen TVs may not be the ones you want to draw attention to?
You red solidarity fisted red tee shirt guys and code pink girls are so living in the 1930s.
It's over, dude.
Our "poor" are richer than the rest of the world and have the one big advantage most of the rest of the world (even Euro nations)-- they can MOVE UP.
The "class" thing is very fluid in the US, and is in fact never defined by the crazy marxist left.
More than $250K a year?? Geeze ... a couple both pick up an "assistant to the administrator" job posted on the .gov site and bingo! They are RICH!!
idiot.
Actually I an glad you are that stupid.
I stop monitoring for a day (I am on a road trip) and the shit hits the fan in Wisconsin again. I hope you are okay Ann. Definitely not acceptable.
They said if I voted for John McCain, gangs of thugs would start terrorizing citizens...
Actually those proud protesters look exactly like I thought they would. Unkempt, overgrown children babbling whatever half-remembered claptrap they've been listening to for years. You call Tea Partiers hillbillies? Take a look at your social peers. A bunch of fucking lowlifes who look like they just got rousted from the drunk tank. Clueless, classless and witless, them and you.
A suggestion: Add a "video" tag to each of your video documented exploits.
Strange stuff going on in Madison. Kudos to Chris. Mob "psychology" as others have pointed out can be dangerous. Please be careful Professor, Meade and Chris.
Best comments so far:
• David R. Graham 11:34 PM battlefield analogy and analysis.
• Tacitus2 6:11 AM likening the protesters to re-enactors.
• Charlie 6:53 AM appreciates Graham, with a good instance of how to misunderstand what's *really* going on.
As a former re-enactor myself (Revolutionary and early 19th c.), I've been struck how much the warm-weather Madison protests have a re-enactment vibe to them. I'm not sure the protestors understand this yet, but it seems that, having lost the real fight, they feel the need to go through the motions for reasons of cultural solidarity, and soon history, a bit like Southern Civil War re-enactors.
My wife, being of a certain age and having grown up in Berkeley and gone to school in Paris, is a real connoisseuse of protest. She says Madison demonstrations are dreary, grim, amateur affairs, compared with the charmingly weird street-theatre sparkle in Berkeley, or the brilliance of a Parisian manif, where everyone knows their rôles as well as might in any corps de ballet or opera chorus. The demonstrators in Madison may have unions and other "professional" organization, but they're still pretty damned amateur by international and historical standards.
And, despite Mr. Motormouth and the cops doing their best at periphery management, this sort of amateur production is precisely where people can get hurt. I'd say better planning and camera work would do wonders to improve the effectiveness and safety of the Althouse Solidarity Bumming Brigade, whose presence is a healthy reminder there is another world just beyond the protesters' narrow perimeter.
Martin L. Shoemaker --
"Annnnnnd Instapundit has linked. Expect a bunch of new commenters, especially a bunch of liberals who assume Prof. Althouse is a conservative."
An easy one, but you were right on target.
I just got here so I haven't *even* made my way down 400+ friggin comments, but you can see already the pasty, passive-aggressive arguments. Pathetic people.
I sincerely hope you've made clones for editing and kept the origs pristine.
All animals flop around and snap blindly as they die horrid deaths. That's what we're finally seeing for the socialists.
Kinda heart-warming.
Keep it up, Althouse.
Not to worry Lincolntf, Wisconsin is well on its way to looking like whatever backwards ass bumfuck hick shithole you wallow in.
I take it you and Lincolnf are neighbors.
I doubt it DADvocate. My current city ia a bit larger, and worlds more diverse, than Madison. Not that people around here can't be idiots, but they tend not to do it in the public square to the disgust of the decent and the amusement of the bottom-feeders.
Someone should set up an exchange student program for kids from Wisconsin. Send them to a State where they'll have a chance to see how this country actually works for a semester.
Or, better yet, send them to Paris, where they can learn how to protest with some style and élan.
"Everyone likes to bring Jesus into their cause."
"In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be wrong." A. Lincoln
Patrick --
"Based on what garage mahal said...
It looks like he is in favor of women being assaulted. Right?"
No.
I realize the French are not popular, but it's well to remember they invented red tape, bureaucracy, and urban revolt.
Ann,
Were any arrests made or charges pressed?
This has been another episode of "Manufactured Drama"
You may remember these previous episodes:
"Someone has made chalk pictures on the Hegg statue and Meade is upset"
"Rep. Hulsey won't wave to Meade at the Planned Parenthood Rally"
"Don't they know how offensive the term tea-bagging is?!"
"Children chanting in the capital"
"Man with bumper-sticker inching out into traffic"
"The tragedy of tape residue"
I'm not sure on the title for this most recent episode.
How about "I want to stick my camera in people's faces and laugh sarcastically at them but they won't let me!" (stomping feet, Police!!)
Paco Wové (9:10am) mentioned "the Tophatted and be-Monocled Plutocrats" but forgot their Spats. That's the one absolutely sure sign of a Plutocrat: no spats, no billions. Were Althouse and company wearing spats, or were they deep undercover pretending to be normal non-Plutocrat humanoids?
Madison is a little unusual, in that the urban protestors are in favor of bureaucracy and taxes.
In France, it's true that the current society is the creature of 3 centuries of red tape, bureaucracy, and, of course, taxation. And red tape, bureaucracy and taxes have done not a bad job.
It's just when things get out of balance the French take to the streets in their well-practiced way. Looks like Wisconsinites are just starting to tread this particular time-worn path.
Jess wrote (4:47am):
"Not a single christian among you", but then wrote in the same comment "How do you think Jesus would feel about money stripped from Teachers and public servants given to corporations?" An actual Christian would not ask how Jesus "would feel" but how he does feel. Christians believe that Jesus is still alive and well (and always will be, being God and all), even if he no longer spends time on earth in human form. Asking how he "would feel" shows that you think of him as a long-dead (and never-resurrected) historical figure, which means that you are not a Christian. Nothing wrong with that, unless you are pretending to be one, in which case it shows you're a liar and a fraud - in Jess's case a foul-mouthed abusive one. Of course, spelling "christian" with a small c was a first small hint of his/her fraudulence. Unlike e. e. cummings, Jess capitalizes 'Liberal' and 'Socialist', but not 'christian'. That tells you what he is, and is not.
wv: exived - condition of a bee that has been cast out into the wilderness by bee Jesus for not following the bee Commandments.
Yes, Luke, we all have our lines to remember and steps to learn. Some are slower of study than others.
Amazing how the officer is documented advising an interested bystander to butt out and allow the assault to occur--or risk being ticketed, possible jail, bail, and inconvenience.
Very typical of many law "enforcement". VERY.
I watched both videos and couldn't see what I'd call an attack on the woman holding the camera. What appeared to be happening was a long harangue by an angry man. If I'd been there, I'd have stayed at a distance listening to him -- he was clearly wound up and unreliable.
If Ann Althouse is the blond woman holding the camera, she's deliberately putting herself in a position of getting a reaction from the angry nutcase -- which I frankly think is a stupid move. To then say something about calling the police just exacerbates the situation. Really, I have the impression that she was looking for a reaction to record and use against this man, even provoking him. Why? How did the police react?
Erik, exactly right.
That's the thing, Jesus was talking about us helping those around us. He puts, always, the responsibility into the hands of each person, never blaming others for what those others are or are not doing.
The trouble with that is individuals helping those around them doesn't really allow for power and control, so people who talk about helping others, but really want to control others, are much more interested in getting government involved.
But, if people followed this, each person helping those around them, then there would be no need for welfare. It's starting with the particular and moving into the general. Jesus cared about the particular poor person, the particular sick person and said that person needs particular help.
Government as Religion believes in the General, and isn't as concerned with the particular. So actual poor people, actual people, can and should be pushed around in order to help the Poor and the Needy.
"How did the police react?"
You sure you watched the videos?
Or read the post?
Or any of the comments?
These are leftist's leftists.
Remember, Nazis were first socialists and then nationalists. Brownshirts were Nazi enforcers.
Here they just don't have uniforms yet.
And for God's sake, be careful.
PW, what do you think is going on when the camera screen is suddenly obscured by fingers and jerked around? Both Althouse and son clearly explained what happened, the guy grabbed the camera and struck Althouse at least once (in the arm?) and then tussled with Chris over the camera. You know what you saw, but you can't even admit it to yourself. What a horrible way to go through life.
Madison is a little unusual, in that the urban protestors are in favor of bureaucracy and taxes.
Their protesting against the current government in our state. But because it's right wing government, they know what's best for you! DO NOT QUESTION AND SUBMIT.
Professor, on your arson incident. Maybe you should have consulted w/ some psych. or criminal justice profs. A young male firestarter is a big red flag, just like young males who abuse animals[Dahmer comes to mind]. The young arsonists have often been the victims of sexual abuse and after the firestarting many times go on to be the abuser instead of the victim.
The notion of keeping distance from Gray Shirt sounds great if you weren't there. When I would try to talk to someone else he would come over and begin telling that person in a loud rant what a horrible person I was. If I tried to walk to neutral or an empty spot on the sidewalk he would follow me. There was no retreating.
Well that's what agitators do. They agitate. And get agitated. And agitate other people.
Hey it's the nefarious Christian Minister from Kansas.
When the crazy guy was bathing you in spittle and getting a kung-fu grip on the camera did you say "I don't think we are in Kansas anymore."
Thanks for reminding me yet again why I moved my family away from Madison and back home to Tennessee. The community does not have the values that I want my daughter to grow up around.
Trooper
I live and work in Kansas. I'm from Phillly. I passed when they offered me the red shoes.
If we were back in Philly Gray Shirt would have been chest bumping me and Ann would never see her camera again.
I see that there's someone else posting as Jess.
Just to be clear, I shall henceforth sign all my posts as Wichita to distinguish us.
Cool caplight.
But I thought the Angels wanna wear your Red Shoes?
Oh and the Eagles suck.
Just sayn'
I am not an expert, and I could give a fig what Wisconsin law says about lawful defense of self or others.
I'd rather live with a verdict than regrets of not responding to an assault on my mother.
Because that is a law much older than the State of Wisconsin.
"jimspice said...
"...cuts on my wrist..."
Pictures please."
Really?
What a douchebag.
"Their protesting against the current government in our state."
Garage, you -- or at least your goon friends -- are all part of the government. The unelected, un-voted-on part. The elected part -- elected by the citizens of the state, unlike you and your goon friends -- is trying to reduce the lamprey-like grip that you and your goon friends have on the pocketbooks of the voters. I understand this causes you anguish -- nobody likes being forced off the teat -- but please stop trying to portray yourselves as Working Class Heroes Against The Man. It's just childish and deluded.
Wow, it's like Selma, Alabama all over again. You're so brave. So persecuted. Also antagonistic. Irresponsible. Whiney. False.
Oh and the Eagles suck.
That's like saying The Sky is blue. Or Milk contains Calcium. Or sugar is sweet. Or Roberto Clemente was awesome.
I've more perspective than you'll ever know, my small minded friend.
The thing about perspective is that it's always distorted, and when pushed to its limit, vanishes.
garage mahal said...
Wisconsin is well on its way to looking like whatever backwards ass bumfuck hick shithole you wallow in.
By having a better fiscal budget and creating jobs?
You have descended way, way past the point of parody.
One thing upsets me: why the blazes don't you want that clown arrested? I say make 'em pay for their violence!!
Typical garbage, justifying violence against women. Maybe garbage was the assaulter?
hey garbage - how many hi-tech companies do union workers start? Yeah, I thought so.
The only point I've been steadily trying to make is that Ms. Althouse showed up looking for a fight to prove a preconceived notion about the protestors.
"YOU MADE ME HIT YOU!!"
This whole scene is ridiculous. Really. On both sides. All of you need to get over yourselves.
The only point I've been steadily trying to make is that Ms. Althouse showed up looking for a fight to prove a preconceived notion about the protestors.
Really? There is no evidence Althouse "showed up for a fight". She was assaulted pure and simple. The leftist thugocracy in all it's spelndour.
This whole scene is ridiculous. Really. On both sides. All of you need to get over yourselves.
Why are you here? Get over yourself, asswipe.
The perp was wrong to attack you in any way, but as a grown woman with exceptional intelligence,you should know better.
If Ann Althouse is the blond woman holding the camera, she's deliberately putting herself in a position of getting a reaction from the angry nutcase -- which I frankly think is a stupid move. To then say something about calling the police just exacerbates the situation.
Women: don't wear short skirts. And if you're dumb enough to wear a short skirt and then get man-handled, by all means do NOT call the police.
The message I'm getting from lefties is "blame the conservative victim of assault". At this point my rage level of pegging 11/10.
London calling...the capitol police officer's response to Chris sounds a lot like the British cops reponse...arrest someone trying to defend someone.
Keep behaving like the union commie goons you are! You're making a great impression on those of us who live in right to work states!
Women: don't wear short skirts. And if you're dumb enough to wear a short skirt and then get man-handled, by all means do NOT call the police.
You noticed that too?
It's interesting to watch people try to argue that Althouse should surrender her right to stand in the public square because some moonbat might not be able to tolerate her presence.
Sincerely - I'd like to see ONE person on the left condemn the person who hit her, instead of blaming her for the attack or ridiculing her for calling for the police, or suggesting that "people on the right do it too". Just ONE. Has there been one yet?
I'm capable of condemning unprovoked violence from my side without hesitation. Are they?
My gosh, 10 seconds of listening to that moron in the grey t-shirt "lecturing," and I want to stick hot pokers in my ears! What an offensive idiot. He's giving Jesus a bad name.
"Ann, why go into a crowd of protestors who know what your politics are, especially Meades and that you write a conservative blog, with a camera and a smirk like grin and expect that you won't antagonize unstable people at a left wing protest?"
People should have a high expectation of not being attacked in broad daylight in the state capitol.
"If you insist on covering the protests and reporting on them on your blog and soliciting the often times very nasty comments of your readers, just be aware that you put yourself and those who accompany you there at risk."
That's an awful nice camera you got there, it would be a shame if anything happened to it.
The message seems to be - "if you conservative blogstress come to OUR public space, we will assault and humiliate you".
The elected part -- elected by the citizens of the state, unlike you and your goon friends -- is trying to reduce the lamprey-like grip that you and your goon friends have on the pocketbooks of the voters.
That's funny, crushing unions was never mentioned once in the campaign from Gov 51.9%. If he did campaign on it he would have never won. It's not nearly as popular as you think it is outside winger circles. If you were right that the public is dying to kill unions they wouldnt have had to dump tens of millions into their own districts to protect them.
Garage, I'm just curious - should we refer to former President Clinton as President 40%?
Wichita
That's funny, crushing unions was never mentioned once in the campaign from Gov 51.9%. If he did campaign on it he would have never won. It's not nearly as popular as you think it is outside winger circles.
Yes, so unpopular that you now have control of the state legislature and the State Supreme Court.
Or not.
"If you insist on covering the protests and reporting on them on your blog and soliciting the often times very nasty comments of your readers, just be aware that you put yourself and those who accompany you there at risk."
That's an awful nice camera you got there, it would be a shame if anything happened to it.
Isn't that rather like:
"If I ticket you for DC - Disorderly Conduct -- you will have to go to jail..." by the cop to Chris and the Professor?
"...killing unions..." means asking that they pay a small portion towards their health care/pensions? And Wisconsinites wonder why so many of their kids grow up to be basement-dwelling pill heads.
"Wow. Madison is to Althouse as Queens was to Kitty Genovese."
Yep. Exactly the same thing. Well, except for the fact that FrANNzia is still alive and was never in danger of being beaten to death by thugs while an entire neighborhood watched and did nothing.
Other than that, it's exactly the same.
Lombardi Chick -- I think Madison Man -- who tends to be liberal rather than left -- has expressed appropraite concern.
The end of the second clip, with the policeman threatening to send Chris to JAIL, made my blood curl. It was really ... awful. I think he WANTED to haul him off. We are all doomed.
Yes, so unpopular that you now have control of the state legislature and the State Supreme Court.
They never ran on it. They could not run it. That's the whole fucking point. And they have less control than they had after last Tues, which now has a pro union majority in the senate. Granted that doesn't matter a whole lot at the moment, but what is done can be undone.
Didn't Wisconsin just pass a concealed Handgun law? One that recognizes the licenses issued by other states? You could get a Florida license in about 3 weeks. I can't say that would be a situation where you "fear for your life or the lives of others", but it could easily escaltate to that. And by the time the police saunter on down to where this was happending, the situation could be over.
Just sayin'.
PW @ 10:42
Do yourself a facvor and watch the video shot by the Professor (not the first one shot by Meade).
It is clear something happens to her camera hand.
Do you get out much?
People stand around holding up their little cameras about 8-12" from their faces taking pictures of everybody and everything all the time.
A public square is -- wait -- I want you to get it --
PUBLIC!
wv amick
How things run when Mick shows up.
"When seconds count, the police are just minutes away".
You know about 120 years ago, that public square doubled for public hangings. Just sayin'.
Legal Concealed Carry is the answer for the moonbeams of the north.
Let them wonder what's under your shirt. You have a right to self defense. Especially against crazed zealots that spout "peace" but always....like the hoodies In GB...resort to violence.
What the hell is in the water in Madison anyway?
That's funny, crushing unions was never mentioned once in the campaign
Um, no unions have been "crushed"
And you're still a moron.
They never ran on it. They could not run it. That's the whole fucking point.
Actually, Republicans won 53% of all votes cast in the recall elections.
And you're still stupid.
That's the point.
Those two are obviously special needs walmart greeter quality liberal security.
I appreciate what you do Althouse, and I am glad you and your family can keep a cool head.
As to jelly cop, when his mother is filming my cause, and I punch her in the face, I hope he can take his own advice and run away.
News to all fuck head cops, the day you tell me I cant defend my mother from some oxy cottin lookin drug addled scum bags, your little badge aint gonna help you, nor your pretty blue uniform, your going to get one in the face from me that your not going to forget. Dont worry, Ill put my own cuffs on and hop in the backseat while you collect yourself.
wv-hettos- One minute I was a stuffin chettos in muh gullet, the next minute someone started yellin police, so I was obliged to use my ham legs.
Lincolntf said...
"...killing unions..." means asking that they pay a small portion towards their health care/pensions?"
That is the nub of it right there. I mean seriously? All of this over that issue is kind of crazy don't ya think. The problem is they won't take their cause to the people in the next election because they would lose. They seem to have lost in these recalls as the "anti-union" forces have held serve. I am sure that this will be a big issue in the next election and we will see what we will see.
Even in ultra-liberal New York the unions are being forced to scale back their demands somewhat.
Enough is enough.
Still, 53% is what I'd call civilization barely hanging on to dear life. We're not even close to being out of the woods!
Watched the videos twice and read all of the comments.
Professor I'm glad you're ok and I'm sure you were shaken at the time. Kudos to your son. I would have pressed charges but that's me, not you.
I'll have to take Caplight's word for it that the sleeveless guy was in control because he seems "pressured" in the videos. The assailant was clearly antsy throughout.
There were several other videographers, some wearing the "fist" shirt. It would be interesting to see their videos.
I agree with you Professor that's its disappointing that no one in the crowd (other than your own family) responded in any manner (let alone protectively) Likewise the responses of the resident liberals on this blog (with the exception of RV) have be uniformly disappointing (putting it mildly). Garage, I don't know why (maybe it was because of Trooper's friendly banter), but I thought better of you. You have exposed an ugly side.
Finally, the overweight policeman was disheartening. While I can understand his words and inactions in self-serving terms (i.e. "tired of Saturday duty listening to off key singers") or more sinister words ("in sympathy with the protesters and not-so-subtly threatening the 'enemy'"), I'll stick with disheartening.
I got 10 bucks saying the downs lookin guy in the red shirt is garage mahal.
I actually I lied I dont have ten bucks, just some pocket change... and hope.....
Actually, Republicans won 53% of all votes cast in the recall elections.
Wow Jay, that's pretty impressive. 53% in their own districts, and losing two along the way? Wonder how well Walker will fare next year.
"Wow Jay, that's pretty impressive. 53% in their own districts, and losing two along the way? Wonder how well Walker will fare next year."
You guys keep on assualting 60 year old woman and im sure things will go your way.
(Althouse does not look 60 fwiw)
Garage does make a good point. Wisconsin is a blue state and it's hard as fuck to go against the union mentality. Walker is a courageous fuck. What a fucker.
"When Lenny and Squiggy Attack!"
@Allen,
"what is the objective when you video-tape these people? Your reporting and video-taping these protests seems like such a waste of time."
I for one appreciate being able to see some of what goes on down there without having to go there myself. But I think it strange to yell Police!, consider it an "attack on Althouse.."..tell the police you have it recorded..but then tell the police to drop it. Maybe Ann's tough enough to get over that thug's unpunished behavior. The next person might not have as good an outcome.
""what is the objective when you video-tape these people? Your reporting and video-taping these protests seems like such a waste of time.""
If Its on tv as far as im concerned its bullshit one way or the other. The only tv I watch is the military channel occasionaly.
The service people like althouse provide helps me keep my finger on the pulse of the world.
THE LEAST YOU FUCKS CAN DO IS NOT BEAT HER UP!
DONT....MAKE....ME....COME....TO.....MADISON......
I rarely comment here, but just wanted to say I support you fully, Professor. Trying to be a normal person and participate in a calm, rational way in today's political climate is like being the only sober person at a kegger. These union goons no doubt reminisce about the days when they could take up lead pipes and nail boards to feel powerful. Throw the book at him. You might make them think twice about harassment in the future.
Phil 3:14 said...
Likewise the responses of the resident liberals on this blog (with the exception of RV) have be uniformly disappointing (putting it mildly). Garage, I don't know why (maybe it was because of Trooper's friendly banter), but I thought better of you. You have exposed an ugly side."
Garage is at bottom a good and decent family man. If he were there I am sure he would have intervened to help the blogger lady. Sometimes we take on a role in the internets and invest in the snarky personality that we portray on these threads. The real garage is different than the character he plays here at Althouse.
Here he is Gomer Pyle. In real life he is Jim Nabors.
Wow Jay, that's pretty impressive. 53%
Isn't that what democracy looks like?
Why are you so upset when a candidate wins the majority of the votes?
Are you equally upset that our present President only received 52.9% of the vote?
Prof. Althouse,
First, I am sorry you were attacked. I fear such assaults and incivility will soon be the norm in our country. Please be careful as you and your husband continue to enter the arena where others do not play by the rules, or follow the laws. I say this because while the actual attack in and of itself is alarming, what I found MOST disturbing was the last 1/4 of your video where the cop was talking to you and your son.
First, I gathered from the cop chastising your son that it is now somehow illegal to come to somebody's aid when being attacked? What if you were being beaten bloody, stabbed, or raped? The threat for incarceration to your son would be the same? Is this the norm in Madison? Is it some city law to stay out of it when someone is being attacked? Wait for the cops?
Second, the officer seemed rather consumed by the fact your Madison native son who was there with his Madison residing parents was not actually a Madison resident. I wonder if the officer pondered the municipal citizenship of the crowds that have been gathering in Madison for these last few months, and this day in particular. How about the guy that attacked you? A Madison resident?
Also, I have growing doubts the degree by which we might be able to trust law enforcement in this country when the possible "Euro-style" unrest comes here. In the last month Ohio had a cop that indicated he was not a fan of the state's CC gun law (a video was out a few weeks ago).
Third, I have to laugh at the left invoking "Jesus" in this manner. I also ponder there is quite possibly a lightening bolt with that guy's name on it for, as I see it, taking The Lord's name in vain...
Please forgive me if some or all of my comment has already been discussed in comments. I can't get through the many hundreds of them posted.
Be careful, Prof., and keep up the good work in documenting these events.
Maggie
Im not saying that you had it coming Prof. Althouse. But you provoke these people endlessly on your blogg and then you go out to provoke them on their protests, just to gather more material for your provocations on this blogg. Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?
When will most people realize that these organizers/activists are thugs waiting impatiently to lead a mob...or are 48% of Wisconsin voters that radicalized that to them this is the new "democracy"?
A vote for Democrats is not a vote for America values and the middle class; it is a vote against American values and for the mob.
" ella binsburg said...
Im not saying that you had it coming Prof. Althouse. But you provoke these people endlessly on your blogg and then you go out to provoke them on their protests, just to gather more material for your provocations on this blogg. Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?"
Filming a public demonstration is not provoking.
You ridicule yourselves, because you are ridiculous. If you dont like it.... Stop acting fucking ridiculous.
Its like a bunch of kids throwing a tantrum in the grocery store because the parent has no money to buy them candy anymore.
DONT LOOK AT ME~!!!!! LOOK AT ME!!!!! BUT DONT LOOK AT ME!!!! LOOK AT ME!!!!!!!!!!
@Ella
"Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor,"
Nice jump there. Seems all this blew up when public sector unions had their incestuous gravy train threatened. I suppose they are poor in a sense...and disabled as well: Tone deaf
The grabby young fister probably had no idea who Ann was.
Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?
Why, yes, Ella, actually I have that very expectation. Because I accept the fact that I have to listen to complete fools like you spout off constantly about "fighting for the poor," when it's clear that you know nothing about actual poverty or how it has been alleviated historically. I expect similar tolerance of my views from the likes of you.
That, you see, is the essence of a truly "liberal" society, as opposed to the dictatorship of the idiotariat that the Wisconsin demonstrating class seems to favor.
Ella is the kind of broad, much like the sistahs at yesterday's wankfest, who joins all sorts of "Stop Violence Against Women" campaigns but turns her back when she sees Althouse getting thug-rushed. Stupid or Evil?
" ella binsburg said...
Im not saying that you had it coming Prof. Althouse. But you provoke these people endlessly on your blogg and then you go out to provoke them on their protests, just to gather more material for your provocations on this blogg. Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?"
--------------------
1. I'm sorry but "she made me do it!" is not a defense. What, do you stand in front of a mirror and practice the DeNiro "Taxi Driver" line, "You talkin' to me?"
2. It's called "free speech", and it isn't limited exclusively to the paid for and imported crowds/mobs in Madison, or anywhere else in this country, for that matter.
3. Prof. Althouse is 'smearing and ridiculing' people? By filming and reporting on them in their own actions and words?
4. How's that? "fight for the poor?" Really? When outsiders and unions spent millions in this circus sideshow the last few months in Madison, and in recall elections, with millions more to come in a recall on Gov. Walker? How about using those 'easy cool' millions to help the vaunted poor you people claim to be championing, huh? How about private school tuition for inner city kids in Madison/WI? How about college scholarships for Madison/WI students? How about backpacks and school supplies, school clothing and shoes? How about millions to food banks all across WI? How about buying low income families health insurance for a year or more? A car so they can get a job and go to work? You people blast the rich and corporations, but you throw around millions upon millions as if it were so much used toilet paper.
"The poor"? Unions aren't poor. Honestly, stop pretending to represent somebody you aren't.
poor ella, she really stepped into a known pile of shit and kept smearing. Yuck.
Lincolntf asked of Ella Binsburg, "Stupid or Evil?"
I say evil, because I think her stupidity (certainly her ignorance) is willful. I doubt that she rarely ventures outside the leftist echo chamber, where she can get her historically illiterate and logically defective views reinforced daily. I expect that her rough welcome to Althouse has already driven her back to the security of Daily Kos, etc.
As much as we enjoy bashing the resident Althouse liberals, they deserve credit for joining the fray.
Bad cop! No donut!
Typical: insults and smears. Exactly what I was talking about.
But I dont expect anything better from people who think that it would not result in more poverty and even poorer working conditions if American workers were completely at the mercy of their employers.
And Maggie I dislike the millions spend in the political process as much as you do, but if you dont support tough campaign finance reform, you basicly just ask one side to give up their rights without a fight.
You dishonest scrunt, pay attention, we' re talking about small contributions being made to million dollar benefit plans, not the "poor". Who exactly do you think you're deceiving? Idiot.
Ella:
Everything you write is a lie.
And you don't expect pushback?
ella: You do realize that even with no collective bargaining, the public sector in Wisconsin has civil service protections far beyond what private sector employees have. FDR understood the difference between private and public sector unionization and what problems that would lead to. The main thing they share these days is extraction of wages to donate to Dems. That's the true national component at the heart of these protests and the reason why out of state money and unionistas are here.
Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?
Psst. Ella, sorry to have to be the one to tell you this: The unions are not “the poor.” Any one of them probably have a higher income than you.
But I dont expect anything better from people who think that it would not result in more poverty and even poorer working conditions if American workers were completely at the mercy of their employers.
Hey Ella, are you familiar at all with the US automobile industry? Do you know what's happened to jobs in the unionized "Big Three" over time, as compared to the mostly nonunion US operations of foreign auto manufacturers? Do you have a clue about how union rigidity over work rules has crippled productivity in that industry?
If you knew anything at all about unions, you'd know that they operate through exclusion. High pay for themselves, at the expense of those people who would be able to find good jobs at wages lower than the union-enforced levels enjoyed by the lucky few.
Private-sector unions have practically disappeared, representing less than 7% of employees, in large part because they destroy their industries in the long run. They have survived in the public sector primarily through their ability to win concessions in "negotiations" with the very politicians to whom they make huge campaign contributions.
Unions do nothing whatsoever for "the poor," except to do what they can to deny them access to entry-level jobs.
Ella;
When you start a comment with:
Im not saying that you had it coming Prof. Althouse. But...
What you're really saying is:
You had it coming Prof. Althouse.
Did you seriously believe that you can smear and ridicule people, who fight for the poor, without any consequences whatsoever?
First of all, Ann posts videos of things that the protesters are doing. That is in no way a "smear," and you should take that back. Ridiculing is done by her commenters, sure, but there's this thing called the First Amendment you should familiarize yourself with.
In this country, ridiculing others is a right we all share and one I thought those of your political stripe particularly appreciated - given the extreme degree of ridiculing your side does of the governer and his allies.
Please look at what you have written. Reflect upon how it is an abject betrayal of what your side professes to believe.
You people asking why Prof. Althouse didn't have the guy arrested seem to forget: under her law prof exterior, she's still a self-proclaimed hippie chick. Hippies may want the police to keep the peace, but they don't have people arrested for little stuff. Hippies believe in talking with people to work things out. Peace, love, and understanding, ya know?
It's naive, of course, but that's the hippie way.
Look at ella binsburg, who spells blog "blogg" and uses the word "basicly". She is real stupid, but she is illiterate.
Chris has clearly lived down here in Texas too long -- if the event in the video happened here in Houston, it would have been perfectly permissible to draw one's concealed handgun, point, fire, and holster back up before the lifeless body of the scumbag who assaulted his mother had stopped twitching on the sidewalk.
ella binsburg said...
And Maggie I dislike the millions spend in the political process as much as you do, but if you dont support tough campaign finance reform, you basicly just ask one side to give up their rights without a fight.
We have 'campaign finance reform' ... your side has George Soros and free campaign PR with the MSM. But that doesn't address the millions shamelessly dumped into this fiasco in WI. There was an election. The democrats lost. Get over it. Give the money back to the little guys in the unions that don't get to fly around on jets and visit the White House countless times.
"if American workers were completely at the mercy of their employers."
Okay, this deserves pushback. I think unions have a great role. I think they were a tremendous force for good in the furthering of human society. I think they gave a voice to those who were historically voiceless.
But this comment I'm quoting is, now, absurd. We see things like what happened in the Atlanta schools, and happens elsewhere. The unions are not the workers in alignment against the management anymore. The unions are union bosses in collusion with management working to secure their power through political control.
The teachers are not empowered here. The school administrators and superintendents and state public union bosses are more than willing to sacrifice the livelihood of countless beginning teachers or other service workers for the sake of continued perks for those in higher ranks. They will sacrifice education, class size, and the teachers themselves so that those who have power can gain more power.
You are not talking about people who are interested in helping the poor. You are talking about people who are using the poor to further their own power, abusing their roles, making a mockery of genuine human struggle.
You, Ella, hate the poor. You, Ella, are arguing on the behalf of the oppressors who steal and rob and sacrifice the really needy for their own security.
Management realized it was a losing battle to fight unions, so they co-opted them, giving union bosses cozy perks and making political power through union leadership the thirty pieces of silver for which they sell out the cause. No, not all the protesters are pernicious oppressors, but they are tools in the service of those who use talk about real needs to make the poor even poor, the uneducated even less educated, and the oppressed stay in oppression.
You're in bed with the oppressors, selling yourself out and trying to convince that it's true love. It's a sham, and I hope you're merely lacking discernment about it rather than part of the continued, active undermining of actual teachers and other professions by professional bureaucrats who seek to benefit nothing and no one beyond themselves.
That's why there's so much rage. It's not about the poor, it's about ego and preservation of oppressor power structures which up to recently have tried to sing songs in the guise of angels of light.
It's a guise, and increasingly not convincing.
No.
Texas law:
A person is justified in using deadly force … when and to the degree he reasonable believes that deadly force is immediately necessary to protect himself against the other's use or attempted use of unlawful deadly force …
Grabbing at a camera and causing a brief scuffle doesn’t count as “unlawful deadly force.” Ms. Althouse could not have shot the attacker without incurring a penalty. Or in the case of Ms. Althouse’s son or any other bystander, if they had shot the attacker, because that is justified only in order to prevent “serious injury or death.”
There are severe penalties for accidentally killing or injuring any bystander under any circumstances, even if the act of self defense or defense of others is otherwise justified.
And common sense should dictate that firing a pistol in a crowd is stupid.
Now, if the attack had been away from the crowd and the attacker had wielded a potentially deadly weapon then I would of course have given him a few rounds. Nothing like getting shot to dissuade the recalcitrant.
http://tinyurl.com/3me6sw4
Being "stripped of the right" to fund and vote in your own management is not a desirable change. You'd be blowing the vuvuzela too...loud enough to wake FDR. Wait..not that loud. Of course, as opposed to a card check system, we still have secret ballot and don't know how many (mandatory) members voted "against their own interests"..that being defined differently by different people.
What in the hell was that cop saying? That it was wrong for Chris to intercede on his Mother's behalf? Contact the Madison Police and complain!
https://www.cityofmadison.com/police/forms/feedback.cfm
"Contact the Madison Police and complain!"
Calm down. None of those officers were from the Madison Police Department.
"What in the hell was that cop saying? That it was wrong for Chris to intercede on his Mother's behalf? Contact the Madison Police and complain!"
Chill. The cop was told by talky man that Chris was getting physical with angry man. The cop didn't do anything wrong. He was trying his best to calm the situation and figure out what happened.
He came into a situation that was confusing. He told Chris (young male) that backing off was the better policy.
Standard keeping the peace stuff.
All this nonsense has got to be annoying for the police.
Ties to the community my dimpled fanny! So if you're from out of town and you try to protect your own mother from being assaulted, you aren't covered by the same laws as the guy who lives down the street?
This whole episode saddens me, but doesn't surprise me at all. Some people slip into mob mentality when they're in a big group of like-minded people, like they can get away with any sort of discourtesy, abandon all rules of polite public discourse, and engage in illegal behavior and they'll suffer no consequences.
Sadly, the difference between this assault, and the assaults in the streets of London is only in scale.
"The sing-a-long as they like to call it reminds me of revival services..." - caplight
Aaarrgghh!!! Pelagians!!!
Not only didn't this guy know his theology, he is the king of logical fallacies. I would have loved to have been there just to give Apostle with Biceps an intellectual beatdown. Seriously.
Ann, I love the video you capture, but I'm really concerned about your safety. Chris won't always be around, and Meade has camera in hand. Get yourself a camera with zoom and a good mike.
Otherwise, you need 4-5 more people around you when you do this. Some of these people are bat-shit crazy. Seriously, if you want to do this on a weekend, I'm only 45 minutes away; I'll make the drive. You should have my email.
Plus I'm not afraid of a night in jail; don't be so willing to put up with crap like this. We need to draw a line in the sand somewhere...
I agree, I think Professor Althouse is important enough to warrant a security detail.
Besides, afterwords we could grab a bite at "Burritos as Big as Your Head", and wash it down with a Hopalicious from Ale Asylum (my favorite APA; hopped 11 times with Cascade hops... yum!).
Whaaa,
Just more evidence that you rw teabaggers can use editing programs on your laptops. Big deal I wish he would have knocked your ignorant ass out. You reap what you sow, says the good book.
Police officer (on a son defending his mother from assault): "It's not his place to do it. It's his place to call the police."
When seconds count, the police are minutes away.
This attitude is why the police ad firefighters should not be unionized. They select which sides they will defend and protect, and then bring the weight and power of the state to bear on those who defend themselves. And by their actions and words, they select to defend the unions, not the taxpayers.
That's what we get when the administration imposes (or permits) political considerations. It's clear that the PD, like the Capitol Police, has been fully corrupted by political bias. No surprise in the People's Republic of Madison.
This is the reason that God gave us concealed weapon permits.
Assault? Are you kidding me? Don't be such a crybaby. Don't you think the police have more pressing worries - like real assault, rape, murder etc? I've seen more physical confrontation at Best Buy when a new Wii game goes on sale.
hey Mary - where were you when the left was complaining about the so-called Tea Party head stompers?
"For those of you criticizing Althouse...to me she's saying that if she pressed charges against the guy, her son would have been arrested too since they were borh involved in the scuffle."
Oh good grief. Compare to Seattle: when the Westlake self-defense shooting occured, they interviewed the shooter on the spot, determined it was clearly self-defense, and let him go.
And an interesting if unintentional point of contact between that event and the current one: the assailant in the Westlake shooting got his start in crime by attempted arson against his mother's daycare center.
nealatkins,
Read the fine print: similar to many states, WI only recognizes out-of-state permits for non-residents. If you're a resident, you need to have the WI permit. (Which aren't being issued yet, the law hasn't completely gone into effect yet.)
Assaulted!
You call that an assault? You little ninny. Someone please this shrewish her lollipop back.
Conservative are notorious in fostering a culture of victimhood.
I don't understand any of this:
1. Why would a policeman threaten to arrest a man for stopping an assault against his mother? How could it have been Chris's legal obligation to let his mother continue to be assaulted?
1a. Aren't there Good Samaritan laws where if you don't help someone being assaulted you can be arrested? I have no idea if such laws are in the books in Wisconsin, but the very fact that such laws exist elsewhere in the United States forces me to ask: how could it be the case that going to anyone's assistance is a crime?
2. Professor Althouse, why in the world did you not want that man arrested? You know he's going to assault some other woman at some point, and the next woman may not have two guys around to defend her.
2a. Why didn't anyone place that guy under citizen's arrest? I know as much about Wisconsin's citizen's arrest clauses as I do about its Good Samaritan laws (or lack thereof). But if someone is assaulted wouldn't that be the time to say, "That's it, I'm placing you under citizen's arrest"?
Wow! I am starting to realize why you get the bad press you do. And that guy who recorded the building and grounds maintenance workers removing stickers at the Capitol was your husband, eh? The annoying sod who was pestering the guys trying to do their jobs, asking infuriatingly clueless and stupid questions? Do you subject your law students to these crappy videos? I would want my tuition money back. This stuff reminds me of those other lawsuit trollers doing their open-carry demonstration at the Culver's. And to think you are a law professor. No wonder lawyers are held in such ill repute; you are certainly not after improving your collective status. Some folks are just shameless, I guess.
Aaaaaaand here come the leftists and their famous compassion, complete with a reference to "the good book", right after "I wish he would have knocked your ignorant ass out."
I know this will shock some of you, but many of you aren't good people at all. Has anyone ever told you that? You all suck.
Really...is this any way to treat a fellow Obama voter?
garage mahal said...
Wow Jay, that's pretty impressive. 53% in their own districts, and losing two along the way? Wonder how well Walker will fare next year.
Um, one of the districts was not Republican.
You left that part out.
One of the incumbents had an affair, moved out, and still won 49% of the vote.
You left that part out too.
The Captiol Police are a complete joke. They sympathize with the protesters so the protesters can get away with just about anything. Even if they do get a ticket or in the rare cases arrested, the Dane County court system will not take it seriously. Pathetic.
I think it's nice we come near the end of this thread with another "You! A Law Professor!" sighting.
Why is this an assault but the hands-on-throat of Justice Bradley is not?
madisonhack said...
"Why is this an assault but the hands-on-throat of Justice Bradley is not?"
The answer should be obvious, Jeremy. Prosser's action was in self-defense. The Solidarity Sing-a-Long member has no similar argument.
That is just pathetic -- that these two guys act the way they do. That people come out into public to protest and then can't handle when they encounter folks who peaceably disagree. Absolutely pathetic.
And that cop is asinine. Yeah, he is right that you -- a person who disagrees with these protesters -- is being somewhat provocative by your very presence. But all parties have a right to vocally protest and argue. And that cop is not protecting those rights. I'd be more upset with the cop than the idiot who grabbed your camera. If the police stand aside when that crap happens they are taking a side, and that is indefensible.
Hard to see what assault actually happened. But is there no law against deafening someone with a vuvuzela? It's just a proxy for screaming in someone's ear.
Yet...according to Fife, your responsibility to move away.
Just more reminder of why I don't go there. Watching that video, I'm ashamed to say I would probably be very un-Jesus like in my dealings with these folk.
There's a whole state at stake. let them spew on the lawn of the capitol. Just give the reps you value the support they need so they remember who they really work for.
Ann, consider these for your cams in windy situations: http://www.thewindcutter.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=159
Hmmm...there's another "walter" now.
I guess that our side does not have the right to speak, does not have the right to a spot on the public sidewalk and does not have the right to defend ourselves from physical attack. I think I've got it clear now.
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