Shrubhater
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Sun May-29-05 11:44 AM
Original message |
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Edited on Sun May-29-05 11:50 AM by Shrubhater
There was one incident where there was a guy with two suitcases who was staring at capital hill for over an hour. Police tackled and arrested the guy and blew up one of the suitcases. There was no evidence that he had any explosives, yet they violently arrested him. Another time a small, harmless private plane flew over D.C., and caused mass panic. Even though he did nothing, they arrested the guy. Now most major tourist attractions in D.C. are closed to public access, when there's no threat. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THOSE D.C IDIOTS? (government officials)
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Warpy
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Sun May-29-05 11:50 AM
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1. They know they cheated their way into power |
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They know they don't belong where they are, they know they're attacking ordinary citizens with their policies that concentrate all wealth into very few hands while keeping wages low, taxes high, and ordinary people underinsured or uninsured for illness. They know they're totally illegitimate, they deserve to be overthrown and thrown into prison. Deep down, they're all expecting this very thing, especially when they wake up in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep.
That makes them defensive and downright paranoid. They're a junta who are in power against the will of the people.
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Stinky The Clown
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Sun May-29-05 12:11 PM
Response to Original message |
2. I don't take issue with your assumption of paranoia, but the two |
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incidents you cite were actions/events that needed to be dealt with.
A man acting weird, with two suitcases, doing nothing but standing by the Capitol **is** an issue worthy of a response.
Airspace over DC has been closed for years. A plane wandering in and not responding to radio calls **is** and issue worthy of a response.
We can discuss the actual responses for appropriateness, to be sure. But in the main, they were right. The press hype made them seem more than they were.
On the flip side, the paranoia in DC toward this sort of thing is palpable. Closing off Pennsylvania Avenue is outrageous. Black Chevy Suburbans with lights flashing, sirens wailing, blacked out windows, and drivers in suits with curly wires running to their ears is creepy - and today, ubiquitous. I am frequently in DC for business. Civilian office buildings and government buildings. Access is severely limited. "Showing papers" is the norm. I now carry my passport as if it were my driver's license.
I find it all tedious, tiring, often insulting .... and frankly, absurd.
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Shrubhater
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Sun May-29-05 12:25 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
3. They're both worthy of a response, but |
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Edited on Sun May-29-05 12:27 PM by Shrubhater
what if that Asian immigrant was just staring in admiration? What if the plane didn't have a radio? And you're right, the whole Pennsylvania avenue closing and unnecessary security measures and all the tourist closings are all just pure bull***t.
P.S. What does palpable mean?
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Stinky The Clown
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Sun May-29-05 01:02 PM
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4. Palpable .... 'you can feel it' |
Shrubhater
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Sun May-29-05 01:39 PM
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Stinky The Clown
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Sun May-29-05 02:28 PM
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I continue to think these two specific incidents needed responses. The issue is the proportionality of the response. I suspect the reponse to the guy with the suitcases may have a bit over the top ... but it also turned out he was sort of a loon ... wanting to see the prayzident. Blowing up his suitcaes may have seemed over the top ... but perhaps that is only in hindsight.
As to the response to the plane ... the first actions - sending interceptors - was probably appropriate. The aftermath seemed a bit excessive. But once again ... what if it had been bad guys?
My real bitch is with the media. They overplay this shit waaaaaay too much.
Probably because they can.
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Shrubhater
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Sun May-29-05 02:44 PM
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7. But if the plane didn't have a radio (I think), |
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how could he respond? He shouldn't have been arrested!
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Stinky The Clown
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Sun May-29-05 04:31 PM
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8. There are universally accepted ways to respond with no radio |
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I'm not a pilot, so I'm not sure, but things like hand signals and win waving are universal signals.
I agree he should not have been arrested. Nut when the story became clearer, it was obvious his ticket needed to be pulled. He was old and not at all current on the latest flight rules ... and obviously, the latest restrictions.
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