‘Jesus, blah, blah!’ Watch this sassy little girl tell a street preacher to shut his piehole

[geardaddy]

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/11/jesus-blah-blah-watch-this-sassy-little-girl-tell-a-street-preacher-to-shut-his-piehole/

A young girl in Salem, Massachusetts, apparently had her fill of a street preacher who was attempting to warn passers-by of their impending doom on Halloween.

As the preacher loudly proclaimed that Jesus was the only hope of salvation, the young girl shouted back, “zip your lips!”

“Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!” the girl continued, as the preacher chastised everyone on the street for not turning away from sin.

“Stop talking, no one listens,” the girl added, following up shortly later with, “piehole should be quiet!”

The street preacher ignored the girl.

The encounter was filmed by Robert Goss-Kennedy, who uploaded the video to YouTube and LiveLeak.

More and video at link.

[riversedge]

1. umm. she is young-perhaps age 10. good for her.

[brooklynite]

2. I'm of mixed opinions...

...if she wants to engage the Preacher, who from what I see is fully within his First Amendment rights to speak,more power to her (think Speaker's Corner in London). But just interrupting someone and trying to shout them down because you disagree seems uncalled for.

[shraby]

4. She's fully within her rights to speak also. If she thinks he's fos, she has

the right to say so.

[geardaddy]

5. I am also of mixed opinions on this.

If the guy wants to exercise his right to free speech, he shouldn't expect to have everyone agree with him. Though it would be better if the girl pointed out the flaws in his argument.

[shenmue]

27. No, we don't owe all arguments equal respect

[demwing]

34. But we owe people equal respect

Wag your finger all you like

[shenmue]

35. No, we do not.

When I see an idiot yelling in the street, I do not owe them anything.

[demwing]

53. Yes we do

He wasn't being rude, or "yelling at people." There was no hate. The man was voicing his opinion in a sane, compassionate manner, and he deserves the same respect that anyone deserves when they respectfully exercise their right to speak freely.

I don't believe in the Christian doctrines of eternal suffering for the unsaved, but found myself sympathetic to the man, and annoyed by the girl, who was being a rude little brat.

[LAGC]

56. It was Halloween night for Pete's sake. He was scaring the kids out trick-or-treating.

Turning a fun-filled night into something unpleasant.

He deserved every "rude" interruption he got, same with the Westboro Baptist folks when they show up to harass grieving military families at a funeral.

Free speech does not entitle everyone else just shut up and be polite. It works both ways.

[demwing]

58. Really? Huh... I thought Halloween was Oct 31st

the video was dated October 29th.

[MADem]

62. It wasn't Halloween--had it been, Miss Blah would have been in costume.

It looks to me like an exercise in rudeness on both sides.

Town ordinances can fix that kind of shit--I'm in favor of prohibiting personal voice amplification devices on the streets, at least beyond a certain decibel range (thus, anyone dressing up as Darth Vader is still "good&quot without a permit and without paying the town a hefty, hefty fee.

[demwing]

67. Agreed on all points /nt

[cordelia]

93. Or wearing warmer clothes, I would think.

The high for Salem on October 31 was 53.

This event seems to have occurred (was staged, based on her actions) after sundown. The temperature would likely have fallen at least a little I would imagine.

Agree - rude behavior on both sides.

[joeglow3]

79. It was not Halloween

It is amazing the shitty behavior people will tolerate if they agree with the views of the rude person.

[LukeFL]

65. Agree. I am Christian and I don't imposed

My beliefs on anyone but I pray one day I won't be chastised by being one.

[RedCappedBandit]

76. I find his behavior pretty rude

using a loudspeaker at night to threaten everyone with eternal damnation? Yeah, that's rude.

[MADem]

107. Did he have or need a permit for that kind of demonstration? I don't know what the rules are in

Salem. If he needed a permit and got one, he's in the clear.

If you go to Speaker's Corner in London, you see and hear all kinds of flakes mouthing off. Some of them make this guy seem not all that odd. They find it charming, there.

Pre-internet but SSDD...

[Warren DeMontague]

44. If someone is standing on the street yelling at strangers, it is "disrespectful" to yell back?

[demwing]

54. He wasn't yelling, he was amplified.

If being on a mic constitutes yelling, then every one of Obama's political speeches made in a public place was just him "yelling at strangers."

We should protect speech, especially speech that we disagree with.

Screaming "PIEHOLE SHOULD BE SHUT" is disrespectful. Not of his opinion, but of his right to speak freely.

[RedCappedBandit]

75. her argument is as well reasoned as his. nt

[joeglow3]

81. I bet you agree with her views

I also bet if Obama was using a microphone and someone behaved as this petulant little child did, you would not feel all warm inside.

[RedCappedBandit]

87. That comparison has no merit. nt

[joeglow3]

90. Of course not

It doesn't fit your narrative. You have demonstrated the same capacity for intellectual discussion that this child did.

As an aside, I do not care one bit about his views or what he was preaching. I just support people's right under the first amendment. I also recognize her right to compete with him under the first amendment. I also recognize the most 10 year olds don't have the mental capacity to form a reasoned argument beyond "piehole should be shut." What is sad is how many people here support her tactic merely because they disagree with her views. I would bet my life savings if it was a woman using a microphone talking about the old days of back alley abortions and someone did this, you would be singing a completely different tune.

[RedCappedBandit]

92. What exactly do you think my narrative is?

Jackass has the right to go on his loudspeaker and preach bullshit. Little girl has the right to yell "blah blah blah" at him. Neither of them is presenting any sort of coherent argument.. but then, one is a ten year old girl.

Comparing some lunatic bothering people on the street to the elected president of the United States giving a speech is blatantly disingenuous and, frankly, boring.

[joeglow3]

94. Why did you ignore my comparison in the previous post?

[RedCappedBandit]

95. Because it was as boring and meaningless as the comparison to Obama.

Why did you ignore my entire post?

If a woman was speaking out in favor of women's rights, her argument would have more merit than the idiot preaching his fairy tales. Thus, a child yelling "blah blah blah" at her would not be as well reasoned, which is the comment I made that you are replying to.

[joeglow3]

99. So, you support rude behavior if it shuts up people with views different than yours?

Like I said, petulant little child.

[RedCappedBandit]

100. She was a petulant little child.

That in no way has any bearing on what I said in the post you are replying to.

You seem to be hell-bent on constructing straw-man arguments, drawing conclusions from things I never said and ignoring what I've actually written.

I'll say it again: the little girl's "blah blah blah" is as-reasoned an argument as the preachers threats of eternal damnation.

[Jackpine Radical]

33. Tell it to Tweety.

Or McLaughlin. Or any talking head on Fux.

[Scootaloo]

78. He had a loudspeaker, I doubt his speech was in any danger.

They're both being assholes, but one of them has the excuse of being ten. That one doesn't have a loudspeaker and isn't forcing the entire block to hear her be annoying.

[Eleanors38]

82. Yes. I would have broken wind. Loudly.

[demwing]

117. Can you do that on demand?

because that's amazing! Immature, but amazing...

[Eleanors38]

122. Not safely. Only belching.

[Logical]

120. Some people deserve no respect. nt

[peace13]

3. Weird that she keeps looking to the side at the camera.

Seems rehearsed. That being said I didn't know freedom of speech included a microphone. That is truly annoying. In out town they show fetuses in jars on 4th of July. Too sad that young people have to see that.

[HockeyMom]

6. I was in Salem 2 weeks ago

and it was MOBBED with "unbelievers". As an ADULT, he would have heard the same from me; the same as I told them as a teenager in NYC back in the 60s on the streets. Leave me ALONE, and get out of my face. Kuddos for that little girl who hasn't even reached her teens.

[Marrah_G]

20. I just moved from there last year

Salem is a wonderful, progressive town with a very big population of Pagans. Those out of town preachers are jerks. They are offensive and aggressive.

[m-lekktor]

25. I live in CT and would vist Salem often when i had a friend

attending Salem State about 10 years ago! i like it there. I have people all over that area plus Southern NH.

[dilby]

7. Tried watching but did not see her say anything of value, does she happen to make a point worth

watching? Or am I expected to be bored with a child acting like a child winning an argument on a playground.

[elias49]

41. I don't think she takes "Debating 101" until 5th grade. nt

[qanda]

8. Who celebrates a child acting like that?

Terrible behavior!

[dilby]

9. Her parents obviously, and to think someday her generation will hold responsibility.

I keep telling myself, "we need to make the future better for the children" and then I see something like this and say, "why the fuck are we even trying."

[m-lekktor]

24. the locals of Salem get tired of all the fundy loons who decend on their town every

halloween screeching on their bullhorns telling the localsthey are gonna burn in hell for celebrating halloween. I suspect the majority of locals side and sympathize with the little girl and see the bullhorn guy as being the rude asshole. I find your post sticking up for this fundie bigot and chastising the little girl bizarre.

[joeglow3]

50. Where did he stick up for the fundie?

[jberryhill]

52. in what way were her parents involved here?

It seems that the videographer who shot and posted this video of a minor, for the world to form opinions of her, is not a parent of hers.

[Le Taz Hot]

12. Bullshit!

She has just as much right to verbalize her opinion as anyone else does. If I was her grandma I'd be standing there with a big-assed smile on my face saying, "Yep, that's my grandbaby!" May I remind you that well-behaved women rarely make history.

[Orsino]

85. Hope she said something more substantial than "shut up." n/t

[Le Taz Hot]

98. She could have added, ". . .and sit down!"

but you have to be Chris Chrisy's age to have learned the full sentence.

[phil89]

13. Preaching that nonsense is the truly terrible behavior.

I guess we should "respect" being told we're going to hell if we don't believe as the religious people tell us?

[Bluenorthwest]

14. Adults don't understand how fucking scary street and other preachers can be for kids.

What's sad is that adults don't object like they would if someone said a 'bad word' in front of their kids. The are fine to let them hear threats and rage and condemnation of the people around them. Just don't say fuck. You can say 'you will burn in hell fire' but you can't say fuck. That's America.

[nomorenomore08]

30. +1

[beam me up scottie]

47. +2

[geardaddy]

48. Excellent point!

[prayin4rain]

88. Agreed, it's ridiculous. n/t

[Niko]

15. As opposed to a fully grown man raving about imaginary men in the sky? (nm)

[Marrah_G]

18. Anyone who lives there and deals with these bussed in assholes every October is cheering

I would have been proud if that was my child. Those preachers are coming into a very Pagan town, during a holy time for us and they are offensive and aggressive. So good for her for speaking up.

[m-lekktor]

26. people who don't like fundy bigots screeching on bullhorns

telling the locals they are going to burn in hell for celebrating halloween. Salem is inundated with these assholes every October.

[MADem]

39. They need to buy some airhorns, then.

That particular encounter looked faked to me.

[NCTraveler]

72. I'm with you.

She clearly keeps looking over wondering if she should keep going. I really wish people wouldn't use their children as their pawns. Unbelievable disrespectful. She made absolutely no point. Why are people cheering a young girl clearly being taught that we have no freedom of speech. She is trying to shut him up, not debate him. Very poor parenting.

[Logical]

121. LOL, are you serious? Strong women in the making must upset you. nt

[Runningdawg]

10. Pie Hole?

Now there is a term that I am sure is in every 10 year olds vocabulary. It's obvious she was coached and playing for the camera. It's too bad she wasn't coached better. She has the spirit, lets hope she grows a brain to think for herself to go along with it.

[Marrah_G]

19. It's not an uncommon saying here

[MADem]

40. I have never heard it used in the Commonwealth. Down south, all the time.

I've heard shaddup-a-yu-face (in the North End) plenty of times, but that piehole thing is not part of my lexicon here.

[Marrah_G]

43. I have... maybe its a family thing?

[MADem]

46. If you have heard it, then you know your experience. First time I heard it was down south

and that's the only place I've ever heard it! It was pronounced "PAH hole" too!

[Dorian Gray]

61. Brought up in NJ

and live in NYC now, and I use it all the time. Never lived in the south, though I did have one friend who went to Ole Miss. (She didn't teach me pie hole, though!)

I think it just depends on family and friends.

[MADem]

63. Could be--or maybe she is a transplant (or maybe the person writing the script was). nt

[shenmue]

28. Calling a little child brainless

Way to take the moral high ground!

[Le Taz Hot]

11. Ah, a woman who knows her own opinion and not afraid to express it.

<sniff> Does this old loud-mouth broad's heart good. You go, honey, and don't EVER let anyone try to shut you up.

[rhett o rick]

16. I agree with you. Teach young ladies to not be afraid to speak out, especially against

flim-flam.

[Le Taz Hot]

21. I can't tell you how many times I was told to

shut up and "be a good girl" when I was growing up. It explains my sig line.

[rhett o rick]

49. So how do we draft Sen Warren? nm

[Le Taz Hot]

55. Oops!

I forgot I had changed my sig line to Warren. I changed it back to what it was. To answer your question, just keep after her is my guess. After reading her book, she responded to people begging her to run for the Senate, I don't see why she can't be drafted to run for president.

[CanSocDem]

69. Did anybody tell you not to be rude? n/t

[Le Taz Hot]

73. What's rude about what she's doing?

Assbite has a MICROPHONE, screaming at unsuspecting pedestrians, THAT'S rude. This is a little girl reacting to HIS rudeness. There is absolutely nothing wrong in what she did. We need to stop trying to silence young people and let them speak and we DEFINITELY need to quit teaching our young women that they have no right to have a voice because it's "rude."

[CanSocDem]

80. I think you're overstating it.

He wasn't "screaming at unsuspecting pedestrians". While I don't agree with his message I think it has been previously stated that the tradition of street corner preachers is akin to democracy. In most cases, I acknowledge and exercise my freedom to avoid them.

While I agree that young people should be given 'a voice' I can hardly find anything redeeming in this young girls behaviour. WTH does a child of that age know about 'spiritual' beliefs, not to mention the maturity of accepting that other people have other beliefs.

I am mildly haunted by a personal memory of a couple of years back when I was at a left-wingers garden party and was accosted by a well meaning young girl of almost exactly the same age. A couple of us smokers had retreated to a corner of the garden and were lighting up when this girl showed up to spout all the latest anti-smoking catch-phrases. I told her to "buzz off..."



.

[Le Taz Hot]

96. Of course he was screaming at unsuspecting pedestrians.

There's no other way of interpreting it. People walking by, minding their own business, and this guy with a bullhorn is screaming. The people who are exposed to his screaming do not expect to be aurally accosted while they walk down the street minding their own business which means they're unsuspecting pedestrians.

It doesn't matter what she knows or doesn't know at this point. She is entitled to her opinion and she is entitled to express that opinion. She responded to the speaker in the manner to which she was addressed. If they guy doesn't want someone yelling at him maybe he shouldn't stand on street corners verbally assaulting passersby.

Finally, I couldn't help but find amusement in your anecdote. You think the young lady was "rude" because she spoke out yet you see no irony in the fact that you were also rude by telling that young, well-meaning if not misguided minor to "buzz off." I used to be a smoker and I can remember being confronted with the same situation. I was honest with her and said, "Yes, you're right. It is bad for me and I really need to quit." The fact was that she was absolutely right and I had no problem with her honesty.

[joeglow3]

83. He was coherently sharing his views in the public square. "Piehole be shut" is not intelligent

It is the sign of someone without the mental capacity to respond intellectually, so they just shout to win. Obviously I give the girl a break, since she was young. However, she clearly has parents who take glee in this unintelligent exercise of this girl. I will bet when she is 18, this is also how she will respond to arguments and her parents will probably be just as proud then.

[Le Taz Hot]

97. I don't happen to be of the

Last edited Fri Nov 7, 2014, 04:09 PM - Edit history (1)

"children should be seen and not heard" mindset. I believe children should be able to have opinions and they should be able to express those opinions. You claim he was "coherently sharing his views in the public square," well, guess what? So was she. As far as I know, there's no age limit for First Amendment rights.

[joeglow3]

101. Yes. She was coherently communicating

She communicated: "I cannot intellectually tell you why I oppose this guys views, but someone told me to oppose them. Thus, in order to appease those who told me I should oppose him, I will respond in the only manner I know how - like a three year old."

I never said she shouldn't be heard. I am saying we should call out ignorant, petulant behavior when we see it.

[Le Taz Hot]

105. " . . . we should call out ignorant, petulant behavior when we see it."

Pretty much what she did.

[Odin2005]

17. I like this kid!

Right-Wing loonies should all be shamed just like this.

[B2G]

22. So she's being encouraged to shout people down

That she disagrees with.

How very impressive.

[shenmue]

29. As the preacher is doing

When did disturbing the peace become okay?

[nomorenomore08]

31. Exactly. He started the whole thing. No sympathy. n/t

[joeglow3]

84. Look at the history of this country and soapbox speeches

I don't agree with all that is said, but that freedom is one of the greatest things about this country. The fact that you would look to shut that down for those you don't agree with is sad.

[shenmue]

86. Not that I care what you think.

[joeglow3]

89. I see you and the girl go to the same school of intellectual discussion

I am not shocked you think her performance is so great.

[joeglow3]

91. What if it was a woman discussing the days of back alley abortions?

Would it be cute and funny if the same childish tactics were used to shut her up?

[Puzzledtraveller]

32. yup, and it's lauded here.

[Marrah_G]

45. She is encouraged to speak out loudly at a bigot who has come to her town with a bullhorn

[hrmjustin]

23. my sympathy is with the kid.

Street preachers annoy me.

[840high]

36. A most rude child. Maybe

this was a set-up.

[LittleBlue]

37. Just comes across as rude

I want my kids to be articulate, not shouting at someone in the street to shut their "pie holes". This thread would be different if religion hadn't been involved.

Which is aside from the fact that arguing with religious doomsayers is a waste of time.

[marions ghost]

70. I'm with that

teach the kid to have self-control about things she doesn't like to see. A spontaneous "oh shut up" wouldn't bother me, but her harangue is as bad as his. It does seem staged, tho funny. OK I laughed. Still it's a performance piece on her part. Not much compassion for the religiously insane there. And I do feel sorry for him.

I can understand the town not liking it. But on the other hand soapbox acts have a long tradition in America.

Actually I think his act fits very well with Halloween--the devil's gonna gitcha.

[CanSocDem]

71. yep. (eom)

[Live and Learn]

104. Yep, 'brat' came to my mind. nt

[Kaleva]

115. +1

[MADem]

38. Looks fake to me--like a production of some sort.

Beautifully framed; perfectly lit; and the sound work is first rate--even though the "street preacher" (really? We have those in MA? Who knew?) has an amplification device, we have no trouble hearing the young girl.

It looks like some very professional work to me. Both players look like actors reading lines.

And 'pie hole?' Who in MA says PIE HOLE....shaddup, shut yer trap, shut yer mouth, stop flappin yer gums...but pie hole? Come on.

I am skeptical.

[The empressof all]

42. Yes that's my take as well (nt)

[jberryhill]

51. Seems like a setup

So this guy has been filming them for years for a long-running art project? Are there other videos in this project?

Lots of questions here. Did he obtain parental consent to make a video of this girl and post it to.the world? Before or after the video?

[ProdigalJunkMail]

57. right there with ya...

the whole thing looks contrived.

sP

[eShirl]

59. There's no way a 10 year old would have heard "pie hole" before.

***********************************************************************

"Shut your pie hole" has been found in 84 phrases from 79 titles
http://www.subzin.com/s/Shut+your+pie+hole

Avatar (2009)
01:31:32 Shut your pie hole!

Power Rangers Samurai :: I've Got a Spell on Blue (2011)
00:13:46 - SHUT YOUR PIE HOLE!

Supernatural :: Mother's Little Helper (2014)
00:26:08 Shut your pie hole, Crowley.

etc, etc

[MADem]

60. Certainly she might have heard it, it's just not part of the everyday New England vernacular.

"Pie hole" is a country/southern term. Shut yer yap I'd believe. Zip it, loud mouth, too.

I think the script is wanting. There are better ways to make a point than having a ten year old scream at a noxious person with a headset who looks like a teenager, himself, not an adult.

This doesn't resonate with me at all. I'd rather see a selectman's meeting where they vote to prohibit voice ampification devices by individuals on the streets of Salem, myself--now that would be some Must-See TV.

[HockeyMom]

102. If he got in my face, and wouldn't get out of it, 2 weeks ago in Salem

He would have heard far more than "piehole" from me. A 10 year old doesn't have a mind of their own? ROFL They are just clones of their adult parents? Do you have children? I can tell you as a Senior today, I did tell preachers on NYC streets back in the 50s where they could go. Actually, as a teen in Catholic School, I told the priests the same thing in the 60s. My language might have been more politically correct, but the message was still the same.

As an ADULT, I no longer have the same constraints.

[MADem]

106. The idiot was standing there mouthing off. From the video, it appears the child

confronted him, not the other way around.

I'm in the Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right POV, here. That kid would probably have rolled her eyes and kept walking if she hadn't been either prepped or given lines.

The shot is too artfully framed and the sound--given the difference between the amplification and the child's voice--too good that this was a film of opportunity, IMO.

I don't believe this is real. YMMV.

[HockeyMom]

108. Sorry, but my parenst never had to prep me

in Catholic school. I had my own MIND, and fought with the priests for as long as I can remember. Again, my language might not have been "piehole", but it was just as effective.

Learn that children, preteens and especially teens, are not clones of their parents My parents NEVER put me up to anything I ever said to street preachers, or the nuns and priests in my school. It was my own brain, and I used it. This was 50 years ago. I can imagine children today are even more attuned.

[MADem]

109. Don't be sorry, that's your experience. To my eye this video looks phony.

The lines the child is speaking sound rehearsed. She keeps shooting sidelong glances at the camera. She's not doing a very good job of being in the moment, either.

Blah, blah, blah isn't a very cogent argument.

Plenty of kids ARE clones of their parents. I live not far from a Stepford family that would make a great subject for a documentary. They exist.

You can speak for yourself as I can speak for myself. You can't speak for others.

Unless you are this kid, and clearly you are not, you can't really speak for her any more than I can. You can opine as to your view of her conduct and that is your opinion, as mine is mine.

[HockeyMom]

110. I was in Salem the week before Halloween

Were you? It was almost like Times Square on New Year's Eve. Oh, yeah, there were many, many familes there with young kids dressed up as witches, goblins, etc. Do you really thing that THESE parents wanted to be CONDEMNED by some preacher telling them they were bad parents, not "Christian", and were going to HELL for exposing their children to this? That sounds to like Freepers saying any parents who doesn't teach their kids CHRISTIANITY should have their kids taken away for Child Abuse.

We tried to go to Seance in Salem. Sorry, all booked. My Adult Daughter wanted a Past Life Reading. We not only had a very difficult time even getting into these shops, let alone get any kind of readings last minute. Oh, so many, ANTI CHRISTIANS?

Ever condsider that this little girl, might have WICCAN parents? Do they have the right to teach their child their own religion? If she is a native to Salem area, that is very, very possible.

[MADem]

111. I am a bit old for that shit, but I've done it in the past.

Anecdotes don't fly, here. That's their high season, you know--it's a nightmare to do anything (pun intended). If you want to see shows or seances or engage in programs, you need rezzies and tickets way ahead of time. You can buy them on the internet, but without them, you aren't getting in and they sell out fast. You can't stumble down there on the day and expect a path to clear.


My perception of that video exchange is that there were two assholes going at it. One had an external amplification system and a headphone microphone, the other either had a voice that was freakishly clear, or she was wearing a small body mike. She didn't look like her remarks were extemporaneous, she looked either coached or coerced, and he looked like a droning fool. And if her parents were WICCAN (scare caps), does that give her MORE RIGHTS (scare caps) than the asshole she was drowning out? Answer--NO. It does not.

Here's how you get over that shit--you keep walking. You don't give those idiots any oxygen. He's probably thrilled as hell that he's a YOUTUBE sensation--maybe the 700 Club will call!!!!

And last time I checked, Halloween was supposed to be SPOOOOOOKY and SCAAAARY--parents should treat those idiots like the ghosts and goblins yelling BOO! at passers-by. If someone yelling about "condemnation" is going to scare a kid that much, well, KEEP THAT KID AT HOME, they are too young for the event--because even though you might not like it, those dire condemners, that's part of the scene, there, too and have just as much right to go and act like an idiot as anyone dressed up in a costume does. I hardly think some jerk babbling on would be any scarier than some of those nasty-ass rotted flesh zombie costumes and other "terrifying" outfits stumbling in and out of drinking establishments as the night plods on.

Just not buying your arguments, sorry. It's up to parents to use good judgment in where they take their children on Halloween. If they can't handle the rather "adult" and aggressive atmosphere that is Salem pretty much after seven PM, if some lame little toad droning about the Bible is going to give them nightmares, parents need to eschew the downtown and take little Petunia and Fauntleroy to the sleep-over party at the gymnasium, or something.

Also, if Salem really disliked those street screecher preachers, they'd find a way to corral them into free speech zones. It's not like the town council can't pass an ordinance. Thing is, and you're probably not seeing it because you don't like it, they ADD to the atmosphere of general lunacy and drama. What's better in a Haunted House than some asshole telling you that you are going to hell?

It is not the job of society--in a state where we take our free speech fairly seriously--to censor even idiots in case they might frighten the children. In fact, "think of the children" is about the lamest excuse ever, in this instance. If the children are frightened of someone as lame as that jerk that the bossy child was screaming back at, take them trick or treating around the block and then tuck them into bed. He could say the same thing--that the costumed revelers were "frightening" his children. That and a couple of bucks would get him a cuppa coffee.

Sorry--no sale. I am just not buying this attitude you are shopping that only "some views" are allowed. This is America where we afford the right of speech to all sides. Tolerance is a real thing here. Even when the people mouthing off don't float our boats.

[HockeyMom]

112. They have their right to free speech

and everyone else also have the right to either ignore them, laugh, or ridicule them. They have their views and rights to free speech, but nobody else must be a captive, compliant audience to them. Their rights to their religious views END, when somebody else's begins;Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Wiccan, whatever.

If I go to Salem Halloween time, I am not there to hear about evangelical Christianity. If someone is preaching at me there, or anywhere else, it is my right to tell them to get lost and out of my face. Arrest me for that? I have as much right to my views as they do.

[MADem]

116. No one is chained to a streetlamp and forced to listen to them. Keep moving.

What's with this "captive, compliant" stuff? You can, indeed, laugh, ignore, ridicule, etc. You get too abusive, though, and let it get physical, and you'll be the one who ends up behind bars and the fundy nut will have a story about how those awfully intolerant people in the Bay State treated him. Like I said, best solution is to ignore them--don't give them the thrill they seek. They want to get a rise out of you--you can oblige them if you'd like but you're just giving them what they want.

No one really cares what you're there for--evangelical Christianity is part of the scene, it's on the street with all the costumed crazies. So's people in horned costumes touting devil worshiping, goofy haunted houses, seances, and Witches' Balls (the dances at the Hawthorne Hotel, I mean).

You're not in charge of the venue, you don't get to pick and choose who is "allowed" to be there. If the good citizens of Salem didn't want people from all walks of life at their annual street party, they'd send the police along to arrest them. They don't do that, because those Gloom and Doomers are part of the scenery--they're an element of the evening's entertainment. The way they carp at people is part of the show. You can't exclude them, so best bet is to pass them by.

See? They're there for the "delight and frustration of the locals and tourists."

http://vimeo.com/107352364

And they didn't seem to spoil any of these guys' fun:

Salem is a college town, too--after a certain hour, the little kids need to go home and let the young adults run a little wild.

[HockeyMom]

124. We were there the night of the Masquerade Ball

at the Hawthorne. That is probably why it was so much more crowded than our previous visit there. We did not see any street preachesr on our day there. They probably would have had no place to preach it was so crowded. lol We did get to meet Christian Dey, though, outside his store and take a picture with him.

Who drew the biggest crowd that day? Actually, it was street performers doing acrobatics. Nothing wrong with that. Fun for the whole family and very non-religious also.

I like Salem and will definitely come back again, although certainly NOT on a day where there is a major Ball going on at the Hawthorne.

[ileus]

64. We'll celebrate just about anything here...

[pecwae]

66. Yep.

Doesn't matter what as long it fits certain narratives. Embarrassing as hell sometimes.

[MADem]

68. Adults don't let kids be kids....

Whatever happened to "Pay no attention to that crazy ass, sweetheart--let's go get some ice cream and get that wig for your costume and a new trick or treat bag?"

Here's another kid yelling at the bidding of adults:

I feel sorry for the stupid idiot. He'd probably rather be at Easter dinner, with some x-box afterwards....

[UglyGreed]

74. I did not like

this video, seems like a lot of hate coming from that little girl. I don't go to church and when I was a child I could not understand what was said since it was in parent's native tongue. So I learned about Jesus from old movies on TV, he was and still is my hero. Who else stuck up for the poor, sick and even prostitutes?? He may of not have been the son of God, but he was cool IMO. His "followers" are a whole another story.

[RKP5637]

77. Another bullshit preacher trying to distort minds by preaching his conditioned delusions. n/t

[demwing]

118. The contrast between your post and your signature line is hilarious /nt

[RKP5637]

119. Yes, it is! I think I might change it!

[B2G]

103. So the street preacher is disturbing the peace

but OWS protesters weren't.

Amazing some of the things I read here.

[Zorra]

113. Too funny! Blahblahblahblahblah

[ecstatic]

114. Two wrongs don't make a right

Speaking out is a great thing. Being RUDE and obnoxious isn't. If this video is real, her parents should re-evaluate their child rearing strategy. Her behavior is not only inappropriate, but it could be dangerous if she "shouts down" the wrong person.

[maced666]

123. ugh. Thankful she's not my kid.

What a brat.