I love the city of Portland, Maine. And I have some general comments.
Back when life was normal, I've visited Portland and its surrounding areas maybe 6 or 7 times, and I've had some of the best experiences of my life there. As a visitor, my view is that part of the country had a certain positive vibe that I can't put into words. You DU Down Easters can probably feel what I am talking about here. I've often thought about moving there...there's something about the Old Port area that captivates me.
At that bottom of this post, I'll post a very recent Reddit video where ICE is blocking the road, and simply harassing the good people of Portland who are merely going about their business. Of particular note, you will see a squatty little fucker shaking what I presume to be a can of some kind of gas, in a threatening manner.
The video depicts events which are mild compared to what is currently happening in Minneapolis, but for some reason, it infuriates me just as much as the horrific Minneapolis events. It is making me think about how all of this is going to play out.
Some random thoughts:
An actual madman is at the top of all of this violence and intimidation.
The madman, in his mind, has to keep escalating. He has no choice in his own mind. And this violence and intimidation will continue to get worse, and it will break this country.
It will break this country because there is no recourse to this intimidation and violence.
It will come to everyone they can reach. Regardless of skin color or heritage.
When things get so bad like this, they have to be PHYSICALLY stopped. But they won't be physically stopped because people are not stupid. People understand that the first ICE agent that is retaliated against and hurt or even killed, will set off a chain of events that will blow up this country, and perhaps the world. Because these events are controlled by a madman who is supported by other madmen and madwomen in power. It is also supported by too large of a minority of people in this country.
I often try to imagine what I would do if ICE was putting a knee on the neck of my spouse. I have a fierce temper when it comes to protecting me and mine. Would I retaliate? I honestly have no idea. Would I be the one person who set off a chain of events that initiated the physical and literal blowing up of America? I honestly don't know what I would do. And this thought is probably what is going through the minds of the people it affects. We have no idea how to handle this, so we protest, we blow whistles, we yell and scream, we cry, we curse.
But that is not going to stop this. And I am not smart enough to know what will indeed stop this.
Trump is licking his chops for this thing to kick off in mass chaos. And pretty much everyone realizes that. The stress this causes is brutal, and I don't have any answers. because it has gone way too fucking far.
As I often post: Without enforcement against wrong doing, laws don't matter. Courts don't matter, politicians don't matter. This isn't politics anymore. It's survival. It's riding the wave of horror and praying that something breaks in the direction of good.
i had a conversation with my wife last night: The next Democratic president has to be someone with brass balls or steel ovaries, who is willing to put the fucking wood to each and every one of these traitors. No forgiveness, no quarter. PUNISHMENT. Because if that doesn't happen, this kind of thing will happen over and over again.
If this can happen in Portland Maine, or Minneapolis, Minnesota, it can and will happen on your very own street.
Reddit video of Portland activities:
https://www.reddit.com/r/PublicFreakout/comments/1qjywt6/ice_agents_in_portland_maine/
= new reply since forum marked as read
Downeast Maine very beautiful. ICE Out. 
