November 10, 2019

“Some liberals tried to come to my hometown and start some trouble. That ain’t happening. I did get arrested. I got charged. That’s all right. I’d do it again given the opportunity.”

Said Hoyt Hutchinson of Tuscaloosa, arrested for slashing the baby Trump balloon, which was on display near the stadium where President Trump attended a football game, WaPo reports. The charge is first degree criminal mischief.

ADDED: Flashback to July 2011! There was an attack on a balloon during the Wisconsin protests. Blogged here:
"The incident allegedly involved a citizen, a state worker and a balloon..."
Protesters have been releasing red heart balloons throughout the months of demonstrations...  The protester involved in Monday's incident told a Capitol police officer that the worker came at her with a knife. She did not appear to be injured, but was holding a blood-smeared paper bag and what looked like popped red heart balloon....
Blue Cheddar has some more detail:
Jenna says that she was standing with Leslie when Ron [Blair, the assistant facilities director,] approached “out of nowhere”... Jenna says Ron rushed at the balloon and popped it and then darted down a back stairway. In the course of the action Jenna says he did not say anything she could clearly hear, though he may have been mumbling.

103 comments:

David Begley said...

Demand a jury trial. Not guilty. Jury nullification.

Tyrone Slothrop said...

Sauce for the gander.

tim in vermont said...

So it wasn’t Planned Parenthood after all. That’s what I get for believing Twitter.

Ken B said...

I approve of charging him. Now do torn up signs on campus.

Rabel said...

https://www.gofundme.com/f/restitutions-for-baby-trump-stabber

Big Mike said...

"Some liberals tried to come to my hometown and start some trouble."

What do they say? Don't start nuthin' won't be nuthin'? Something like that.

Tom said...

He’d be free if it was a Trump fetus... it would just be an abortion

Fernandinande said...

Tag: Trump and pop balloons culture.

JAORE said...

Yep. Charge him, try him and (if convicted) punish him.

But do the same to Antifa and the pro choice toughies that destroy property.

traditionalguy said...

It's not like he tarred and feathered a real man and rode him out of town on a rail. It was just a stupid political toy mascot designed to convey fighting speech at the terrible Deplorables, and they fought back.

Yancey Ward said...

He should have done it with a bike lock.

Charlie Eklund said...

Three cheers for Mr. Hutchinson. May every person of taste and good sense do the same upon encountering this grotesquerie. I know I will.

Limited blogger said...

Trump and Melania got big cheers when the TV cameras showed them.

Can't wait for Trump to show up at Army @ Navy game.

Go Army, Beat Navy!!

J. Farmer said...

Rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

This is a great opportunity for Trump to publicly affirm 1A rights, and denounce politically motivated property crime.

gadfly said...

So if you had just purchased a new Cadillac Escalade only to have someone diliberately damage it beyond repair - would you not want the criminal charged and convicted? Keep in mind that your insurance company is not going to pick up the loss.

cubanbob said...

He needs a gofundme for his defense and for a victory dinner at Jim and Nicks. His lawyer can claim he was triggered by the balloon.

Heartless Aztec said...

Pop culture tag indeed.

Maillard Reactionary said...

I agree with the guy that maybe mumbled.

n.n said...

Planned puppet.

Wince said...

I, for one, like Baby Trump.

It's like Trump said about the wall: I should have said I was against it and the Democrats would have built it.

Trump supporters should parade with a baby Trump replete with a "Born to Raise Hell" tattoo.

All in fun and good cheer. That's the way to deflate the left!

Lucien said...

Trump must have been cheered at the LSU-‘Bama game, because I haven’t seen a dozen articles about his being booed.

tim in vermont said...

Sic semper moronus.

gilbar said...

a guy in Ames, Ia tore down a LGBTQYNC rainbow flag; and lit it on fire.
If he'd down that to an American flag; it would have been constitutionally protected speech
Since, instead of an American flag; he did it to a LGBTYNC rainbow flag...
He was charged with a HATE CRIME, and found imediately guilty; and is looking at
15 years, that's a mighty long time

so, remember;
if you put a Crucifix in a jar of piss... It's PROTECTED ART
if you draw a picture of Mohammad... It's your death sentence
if you steal, and burn an American Flag... It's Protected ART
if you steal, and burn a LGBTYNC flag... It's FIFTEEN YEARS (and that's a mighty long time)

donald said...

Some news reader in Atlanta said he was cheered by “some”. She’s Really fat too.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Yancey Ward said...
He should have done it with a bike lock.

11/10/19, 12:28 PM


Or a concrete milkshake.


Blogger gadfly said...
So if you had just purchased a new Cadillac Escalade only to have someone diliberately damage it beyond repair - would you not want the criminal charged and convicted? Keep in mind that your insurance company is not going to pick up the loss.


The thing about analogies is that one thing is supposed to be like the other.

Francisco D said...

Rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic

You seem depressed.

Ken B said...

I think Trumpkins should embrace baby Trump. Call him one bad motherfucker.

Bill Peschel said...

If a MAGA cap is hate speech, so is the Baby Trump balloon.

Personally, I despise hate speech and hate crime laws. It assumes that the police are mind readers, and also prioritizes intersectionality points over the actual crime.

Mary Beth said...

Protesters have been releasing red heart balloons throughout the months of demonstrations

I would love to see a poll of how many of them consider themselves to be environmentalists.

Dude1394 said...

Just donated to his gofundme. Patriots need support.

Beasts of England said...

Give ‘em Hell, Hoyt!!

gilbar said...

Just when you thought, you Couldn't Love Nikki Haley any more than you already do...
Nikki Haley blasted former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, recalling a private conversation where they defended resisting President Trump,"
[I]nstead of saying that to me, they should've been saying that to the president, not asking me to join them on their sidebar plan,

Drago said...

"The Poor Man's Lefty LLR C****" gadfly: "So if you had just purchased a new Cadillac Escalade only to have someone diliberately damage it beyond repair - would you not want the criminal charged and convicted?"

Number of gadfly posts complaining about lefties and antifa escaping punishment for physical assault and destruction of property remains at ZERO.

1 set of rules dummy. 1 set of rules for everyone.

If you dont like it perhaps you should ask your lefty teammates to back off.

But of course, you won't because "reasons".

YoungHegelian said...

"Hoyt Hutchinson"

Now, that is a real Alabama name!

rhhardin said...

Balloon rape.

Beasts of England said...

Trump and Melania got a half-minute ovation, Lucien - complete with cheers of ‘U-S-A’. Of course, CBS didn’t show that, but rather a couple second clip of them watching the game...

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Thou shall not burst the leftwing bubble. Impeach her - she's a Russian asset!

Jess said...

If he does it again tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after that, we can call him Jane Fonda

William said...

Just hit him with $20 on his go fund me page. Felt great.

Amazing that this is a FELONY! When the other side rioted on inauguration day in D.C., none of them got charged with a felony.

Can't there be at least some semblance of equal justice under the law? I'm so tired of it being one way that it hurts.

tim in vermont said...

Gadfly is sad... :(

holdfast said...

I guess it should be ritually denounced, blah, blah, blah.

But I'll start to actually care when AntiFa gets arrested for their myriad of violent assaults on actual people, including of course Andy Ngo (the gay Asian white supremacist).

Just an old country lawyer said...

Damn that ugly balloon. It's time for the "Sum' bitch needed killing" defense. Demand a jury trial. No need to voir dire, just take the first twelve on the panel and we'll be all done by lunchtime.

BUMBLE BEE said...

Great 2020 campaign ad.... Nugent takes it out with a flaming arrow! Workin Hard - Playin Hard.

Skeptical Voter said...

Good Old Boys are not an endangered species in Alabama. OTOH liberals might be.

FullMoon said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
J. Farmer said...

@Francisco D:

You seem depressed.

I thought that was well established. As I've made abundantly clear before, I don't see how one can be both conservative and optimistic. I've been bearish on the US for quite a while. If you see reasons to be bullish, by all means share them.

MadTownGuy said...


gadfly said...

"So if you had just purchased a new Cadillac Escalade only to have someone diliberately damage it beyond repair - would you not want the criminal charged and convicted? Keep in mind that your insurance company is not going to pick up the loss."

It is covered under the vandalism peril as part of comprehensive coverage. Most auto policies require a police report to be filed. Damage that is intended or expected by the insured is excluded. Do try to keep up.

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

No need to voir dire, just take the first twelve on the panel and we'll be all done by lunchtime.

In a college town?

FullMoon said...

Falcons-(1/7) Trumped the Saints (7/1)

26 to 9

walter said...

Dunno..maybe an apt analogy if the Escalade had a political bumper sticker like the one that seemingly triggered Chloe Wright:

"On June 30, a man contacted police in Barnstable, Mass., to report a hit-and-run. According to a police report cited by the Cape Cod Times, the man told responding officers he was stopped for a red light when Wright, the driver of the car behind him, started honking.

The man told police that Wright trailed his car as he drove off and continued honking. At the next red light, he said she also started yelling.

The man said he stepped into the road to inspect the back of his own vehicle for any problems, at which point Wright began yelling specifically about a campaign bumper sticker for Trump that he had positioned above a spare tire on his car’s rear window.

"She said, ‘You voted for Trump?’" the man reportedly wrote in a statement. "I said yes. She called me a racist and several other names."

The man began recording the incident, and Wright rolled her car in his direction. He said he retreated toward the opening of his driver’s side door just as Wright drove at him and struck the door with her car. CBS Boston reported that she came inches from hitting the man.

Wright then sped off down the street, according to the man’s statement to police as cited in the police report.

The man’s girlfriend, seated in the passenger seat throughout the incident, reportedly confirmed the man’s account of events. The man’s recording of the altercation shows Wright's gray Honda Civic collide with the open driver’s-side door."

Anonymous said...

Giant helium balloons, oversized papier-mâché puppets, and enormous, creepy, banana-republic murals on public buildings, like the one of the autistic climate change girl now going up in San Francisco. I don’t think the Left’s tactics work any more.

n.n said...

That balloon clearly represents a hate crime targeting Fetal-Americans, Orange-Americans, and normalizes age discrimination etc.

n.n said...

The baby balloon was cancelled. #BanAsssaultScalpels

Howard said...

Is this you peoples Ft Sumpter?

Big Mike said...

Can't there be at least some semblance of equal justice under the law? I'm so tired of it being one way that it hurts.

@William, over on another thread steve uhr was hoping to wake up some day next year and find the rule of law reestablished. So even he is with you and I on this.

Polyzen said...

Farmer gave me my first actual lol today

Yancey Ward said...

If Trump does adopt the balloon of Baby Trump, make it like Baby Face Fenster. Those of may age and older will get the allusion immediately.

Kevin said...

If you see reasons to be bullish, by all means share them.

People who are actually depressed become incapable of finding the good in things.

They require medication so their brains can begin to entertain alternate thoughts.

Kevin said...

The attacker should have dressed in black and worn a mask.

The media would then be thoroughly confused whether to support them as Antifa or reject them for attacking the anti-Trump balloon.

Francisco D said...

I've been bearish on the US for quite a while. If you see reasons to be bullish, by all means share them.

It's all about managing expectations. As psychologists, we have run across enough people to understand the ignorance and stupidity of the American public. That's why they are so easily manipulated by the DNC/MSM/Academic Left. I have had to lower my expectations for people every five years or so. It angers me, but I don't feel hopeless.

The Kavanaugh hearings were a recent turning point. The Left has no regard for honesty, fairness, personal dignity, rule of law and all the other attributes they publicly embrace. They are so blatant because the Media and the sheep out there don't care or understand. Thus, it a battle for hearts and minds.

For that battle, I would rather be angry than depressed.

J. Farmer said...

Farmer gave me my first actual lol today

I do what I can.

Michael said...

Howard
Sumter. Not Sumpter. You people as so very smart.

FullMoon said...

"As I've made abundantly clear before, I don't see how one can be both conservative and optimistic. "

Not the best time to start a family?

rcocean said...

Good for him. We need more balloon popping in the USA.

Ken B said...

Overheard
Man: How's it going Farmer?
J.Farmer: About avarege. Worse than last year, better than next year.

Birkel said...

An understanding of property rights is necessary to a civil society.
Socialists cannot, therefore, be civil.
Communists, similarly.

Birkel said...

J Farmer is a patsy.

J. Farmer said...

Not the best time to start a family?

Admittedly, that kept me away from it for quite a while. But there really is no "best time," and it is possible to be pessimistic about one's nation while still remaining optimistic about one's own life. And I am not getting any younger. Luckily, there are other countries in the world who aren't actively trying to turn themselves into the third world.

J. Farmer said...

J Farmer is a patsy.

About as thoughtful a response as I've come to expect from you, Birks. Thanks. Hugs and kisses.

Man: How's it going Farmer?
J.Farmer: About avarege. Worse than last year, better than next year.


And yet, oddly enough, when I ask people here what are the long-term trends that cause them to be optimistic about the nation's future, I get...crickets.

J. Farmer said...

People who are actually depressed become incapable of finding the good in things.

They require medication so their brains can begin to entertain alternate thoughts.


Don't make the mistake of pathologizing the normal range of human emotions. Most people who experience depression (pretty much the entire human race) recover from it without the aid of pharmaceuticals or even therapy.

Ken B said...

Farmer
Well you are right about Birkel. “Free markets” he says, whilst supporting a guy who imposes tariffs and strong arms companies.

I confess I am a lot less optimistic about America now than when I moved there in 1998. Less optimistic about Canada too alas. But at least in Canada I know you can wear blackface, and stuff your crotch, and strong arm the solicitor general, and physically assault your opponents, and get still re-elected, which gives me some hope.

alanc709 said...

"J. Farmer said...
@Francisco D:

You seem depressed.

I thought that was well established. As I've made abundantly clear before, I don't see how one can be both conservative and optimistic. I've been bearish on the US for quite a while. If you see reasons to be bullish, by all means share them."

You are far from conservative, maybe that's why you're depressed.

Drago said...

Howard: "Is this you peoples Ft Sumpter?"

LOLOL

No comment needed.

Michael K said...

Keep in mind that your insurance company is not going to pick up the loss.

Why? Did you put a "fuck Trump" bumper sticker on it ?

You are so silly.

Jim at said...

I don't see how one can be both conservative and optimistic.

Because I'm not a leftist?
That's reason enough for me.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

Oh, the Yumanity!!

Francisco D said...

People who are actually depressed become incapable of finding the good in things. They require medication so their brains can begin to entertain alternate thoughts.

To paraphrase Clint Eastwood, "Some men need to know their limitations.

When it comes to understanding how brains, biochemistry and personality work, your limitations are clear, Kevin. Stick to something that you have some knowledge and understanding. I am sure you have much to offer.

I appreciate the opportunity to learn different ideas and perspectives from people here with different education, training and life experiences. This is a blog where intelligent people can converse. Some comments are not edifying, but they are clever and enjoyable in their own way.

We have some lefty trolls who pee in the soup, but J. Farmer is not one of them, not by a long shot. Why not just respectfully disagree? Try to convince him you have a superior understanding. It is up to the audience to decide.

J. Farmer said...

@alanc709:

You are far from conservative, maybe that's why you're depressed.

Perhaps you'd care to identity for me what it is I believe or advocate that makes me "far from conservative?"

@Ken B:

But at least in Canada I know you can wear blackface, and stuff your crotch, and strong arm the solicitor general, and physically assault your opponents, and get still re-elected, which gives me some hope.

You forgot to qualify that sentence with, "so long as you support globalization and open borders."

rcocean said...

He should have posed as a Trump hater. Y'see he was so ENRAGED at the sight of Donald the Balloon, he slashed it. "i couldn't stand that symbol of Hate" - should have been his defense.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

@ Farmer
Don't make the mistake of pathologizing the normal range of human emotions. Most people who experience depression (pretty much the entire human race) recover from it without the aid of pharmaceuticals or even therapy.

Exactly.
I've been saying this for years. Feeling happy is nice, but expecting to feel happy all the time is not normal. Depression is part of life. Deal. (and stop running for medication.)

tim in vermont said...

Baby Trump has been de-platformed.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

4:23 -
Excellent post, Fransisco D

JMW Turner said...

Well, J.Farmer, I was about to go off on the "about time the right, Trumpist or conservative Republican responds in kind to nearly three years of yada,yada...however, your reaction to the state of what is happening in politics and the culture in general has inspired me to respond. When I metaphorically stare into the abyss of where we seem to be heading, I stop short of dragging myself down into that inferno. There are plenty of people who have endured worse; the families of the Mexican cartel massacre, for example. Difficult to pity myself in that context. I have plenty of terrible things in my life: deaths of a spouse and oldest child, business failure, loss of house, etc. However, I will never quit. Why? Ego? Stubbornness? No, I won't stop being optimistic about the future because of my surviving daughter, granddaughter, nieces, nephew, and the other worthy generations. We have to keep on pushing, not for ourselves, but the next generations. "Don't stop thinking about tomorrow". Where have I heard that before?

Ken B said...

Farmer
“You forgot to qualify that sentence with, "so long as you support globalization and open borders."”

That's the hilarious thing. We don’t have open borders. We have a points system. Trump gets yelled at for wanting to make your immigration system ... more like Canada's.

Birkel said...

Ken B,
You would rather worry about international business markets than domestic freedoms?

How shortsighted.

Birkel said...

Ken B:

Or, to put it another way, you think rules determined between national governments represent freedom?

Are you really that stupid?

robother said...

This was no ordinary Trump balloon, this was the Cadillac Escalade of Trump balloons!

Rob in Seattle said...

Twenty five bucks on the way.

Unknown said...

Sounds like a delicate snowflake.

Gospace said...

Just to make sure everyone gets it correct since someone above got it wrong. It's:

Go NAVY!! Beat Army!

It echoes really well if loudly yelled in the Beat Navy Tunnel at USMA. No guarantee of your safety if you do that. I have.

Mr. Forward said...

I was at the state capitol visiting Mrs. Forward when Assistant Facility Director Ron Blair darted the balloon then popped down the steps. He wasn’t mumbling. I clearly heard “Epstein didn’t kill himself.” At the time I didn’t know what it meant.

tim in vermont said...

Funny how liberals seem offended by this have zero problem with shouting down speakers on campus or violence against Trump supporters. Trying to remove a duly elected president over bullshit is going to anger people. It’s not like this was planned from on high. But it is funny, sorry, it is.

Liberals: “Live by your own rules!”
Conservatives: “Um no, we’re tired of that with you guys. You live by *your* own rules."

Jack Klompus said...

Howard: "Is this you peoples Ft Sumpter?"

You and gadfly should make a baby together.

Matt Sablan said...

Being willing to suffer the legal repercussions makes this civil disobedience.

Big Mike said...

Kurt Schlichter has an excellent observation about the balloon: Democrats found a baby they don’t want cut to pieces.

Big Mike said...

Says something about Democrats that they’re too dumb to bring a patch kit.

J. Farmer said...

@Ken B:

That's the hilarious thing. We don’t have open borders. We have a points system. Trump gets yelled at for wanting to make your immigration system ... more like Canada's.

See Candice Malcolm's Losing True North: Justin Trudeau’s Assault on Canadian Citizenship

@JMW Turner:

No, I won't stop being optimistic about the future because of my surviving daughter, granddaughter, nieces, nephew, and the other worthy generations. We have to keep on pushing, not for ourselves, but the next generations.

Please explain two things to me: (1) what is the source of your optimism beyond mere wishful thinking? (2) what does this "keep on pushing" you refer to entail?

@Matt Sablan:

Being willing to suffer the legal repercussions makes this civil disobedience.

No, it doesn't. Refusing to abide by certain government rules as a form of peaceful protest is civil disobedience. Destroying somebody else's property because you don't like the message it conveys is churlish, childish nonsense.

Nichevo said...


Michael said...
Howard
Sumter. Not Sumpter. You people as so very smart.

Doc, do you need to be OK Boomer'd? I've explained before, this is Garbage Howie's shtik. His act. His troll act.

Being, so he says, a former Marine, he loves to play the inveterate piss-taking jarhead. But also, having apparently been in one or more mutually exclusive but science-related careers for 35 years (how long was he a Marine again?), he also likes to play the intellectual when it suits him.

How to reconcile? Easy. It's the Jon Stewart formula: clown nose on, clown nose off.

When he is posting as Garbage Howie, his posts are nasty, content-free and pointless, and above all, written badly, with errors in spelling, grammar and/or punctuation. This is the tell.

When he is posting as respectable man-about-town, he writes clean. Never mind anything with opinions such as the direction in which heat travels, look at his praise of AA's photos. Reads just like it was written by a human.

The one thing you can't do with a Marine is let him get to you. He wants to play the bully, the correct response is "What do you want on your tombstone?" He wants to come it the homo, the only answer is "Let's get a room! Just remember, I'm the top. Plus I snore. But don't worry, after I'm done, I'll head down the hall to your sister's room."

Regarded appropriately, the Howies can be fun, but I think ours overdoses it. Anyway, if he angers you in any way, you're doing it wrong.

On target, Howard?

JMW Turner said...

J.Farmer; dunno, willful obstinateness? Reading my scribbles in the cold light of morning is somewhat embarrassing. Emotional diarrhea. I swear I wasn't drunk or high. The take out: life often sucks, but if we give up the bastards win.

JMW Turner said...

(Anticipating retort) you know, *those* bastards. sarc/

Michael K said...

Regarded appropriately, the Howies can be fun, but I think ours overdoses it. Anyway, if he angers you in any way, you're doing it wrong.

On target, Howard?


I am assuming, possibly incorrectly, that this is directed to me.

Howard is a Massachusetts leftist. I don't think there are any "Liberals" there any more. He seems to like trolling the rest of us. I don't mind but sometimes respond to really stupid examples.

I think there is zero chance he was a Marine. I kmow Marines. Lots of them.

Nichevo said...

Yes, Mike, talking to you. He may be a Marine or may be not. Put him through a catechism if it please you. But pretty happy that my clown nose on clown nose off theory fits him. Wondering which of his civilian careers he wants to defend, extraction industry or green technology.