The Denver Police Department ARE THE TERRORISTS!!!

[Subdivisions]

The DPD are beating and arresting peaceful demonstrators!

THE DPD IS THE CAUSE OF VIOLENCE IN DENVER DURING THE DNC, NOT THE PROTESTORS!!!

Police slam Code Pinker to the ground: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfISlq1gzK8

Police encircle peaceful march and begin spraying pepper: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoAVce-Rc2c

[EFerrari]

1. I hope those videos get a million views.

[EFerrari]

2. Link to Denver Post article, comments, poll:

http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_10301186?_requestid=3078694

[Luminous Animal]

3. K&R (n/t)

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ixion]

5. Law Enforcement in general, are the arms of the political overlords

and they are both terrorist institutions, IMO.

[Selatius]

16. The history of police forces originated in the original company "guards" of the 1800s.

They served the bosses originally, not the people. The Pinkertons were a great example. They worked for whomever could pay them, usually corporate barons. Back in those days, trying to protest or form labor unions was enough for the thugs to bring out the batons.

[Wednesdays]

50. Batons, nothing.

How about something far more lethal.

[katty]

87. yup-both of them

[Hugabear]

6. K&R, we need to expose these fascist assholes

We see far too much of this across the country.

Just wait until next week's Fascist Convention.

[barbtries]

11. was it 2000 or 2004 in NYC?

1600 arrests. for nothing.

no, more than that. i googled it:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-02-06-nyc-protesters_x.htm

and it was 2004.

i think it's a fair assumption that the police brutality and mass arrests are more likely next week, since there is so much more to protest at the republicans' convention.

anyone going to the twin cities, watch your back and keep your camera ready.

[Shoelace]

65. 2004, 1700 arrested, held way too long @ Republican convention

yes, in 2004, NYC, Madison Square Garden:


"Hundreds of protesters gathered — noisily but without incident — near Madison Square Garden as a huge wall of police stood between them and the site of the convention. As Bush began his acceptance speech inside at about 10 p.m., the crowds of protesters outside began to disperse. The week saw nearly 1,800 arrests in all, but only 26 on Thursday."

"At about 10:35 p.m., police led the estimated 5,000 protesters from Union Square, where they gathered for a candlelight vigil, to Madison Square Garden, about 20 blocks away." (20 blocks away????)



"More than 1,700 convention protesters have been arrested since last week — nearly 1,200 of them on Tuesday during a long-planned day of mass civil disobedience."

(video at this link)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5822306/

I wonder how the Republican convention is going to go? Also, what part of these demonstrators were from "Operation Chaos" - remember Limbaugh's plans for the Democratic convention. Anybody have any ideas about that?

[katty]

88. and in D.C.-their seat of power The White House & DHS

[Union Label]

7. Fuck those pigs

They deserve to get locked up at Gitmo on the Platte!

[High Plains]

8. All right, police apologists, where are you?

It takes one pretty macho PIG to knock a woman to the ground.

And then, a few moments later, they arrest her as she is talking to media?

Fuck you, Denver PD pigs.

[wvbygod]

9. What's up with the heavy editing of the pinker video?

It does not lend itself to careful study. Wonder what was cut out?

[EFerrari]

13. Probably the part where she tried to take on Denver's brave finest

with her deadly pink clothes.

[Hugabear]

14. Probably the part where that "pinker" viciously attacked the policeman

WTF, what's not to see there?

[originalpckelly]

22. That wasn't edited, and this video is from the Rocky Mountain News...

Why would they want to help out CodePink?

[avaistheone1]

10. I hope the protesters and activists sue the city's ass off.

Protesters have won in court before!

[Selatius]

12. That's disgusting. nt

[ljm2002]

15. Thank you for posting...

...if the so-called news media won't report this stuff, it is left to the people to do so.

Fortunately for all of us, we have the means to do so. And the cops and their (and our) overlords do not seem to grasp that reality yet.

[Subdivisions]

27. Good background segment from Democracy Now with Jeremy Scahill:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gI4l7nIIww

[Lydia Leftcoast]

17. Where have I seen this before?

Oh yes, Portland in 2003 or so. Darth Vader troops pepper spraying children and grandmothers.

[Pastiche423]

51. August 22, 2002

Whistle ass had come to Portland to campaign for Gordo. The youngest sprayed was a ten month old baby boy. I still have the front page of the Oregonian from that day.

[Kitty Herder]

18. K&R

[Froward69]

19. DPD is doing their jobs

they do not WANT to be there. but they have to. frankly I have no sympathy to those who wish to disrupt OUR Democratic convention.

now in the twin cities? I am all for the protesters getting out of hand.

[Hugabear]

20. Fuck off.

And I mean that sincerely.

For you to sit there and condone that cop brutally shoving that protester the way that he did speaks volumes.

[Froward69]

32. see #28

I do not condone what that cop did. as well as I do not condone thinking it is somehow a good idea getting in a cops face. or ignoring orders to get away. when a cop says get away, get the fuck away... simple.
agitating a cop to get broadcast does nothing for your cause.

[mrfrapp]

46. Question

You've just defined the police state.

Question: Why should you obey an order from the state if you are not breaking the law? And more to the point why should you be physically punished, without a trial no less, for not immediately obeying that unlawful order?

[magellan]

54. Are you actually saying that "agitating" a cop is deserving of a gun to the face?

REALLY?

I'm no longer astonished by what's happening to this country. You're a perfect example of why we're going down the shitter.

[Froward69]

56. your standing on the trax

"A train is coming" I shout... So you will stand there and argue its a free country??? you are not breaking the law?

stand any where you want, in front of a train, a cop anywhere.:eyes:

[magellan]

57. Not the same thing at all

That Codepink woman wasn't in any danger, except from the out of control cop.

[Froward69]

64. we will go round and round here

ok that cop is pissed off, armed, with a baton and authorized to use them. and she is ordered to "GET AWAY FROM THE VEHICLE"

Rocket science 101 = GET AWAY as fast as you can!!! even if you are not that close to the vehicle.
BTW she is saying the cop hit her repeatedly now... (the video shows otherwise.)

So this one incident has (some) people all riled up. yet the cops prepared for the worst, thwarted TWO plots against Obama and Kept this city from burning down. not to mention all the accolades from other protesters as to how the (majority) police were curious, polite and posed for pictures with everybody. (Jon Stewart said it best. "everyone here is suspiciously friendly")

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/aug/27/john-stewart-brings-the-satire-to-the-dnc/

now all the cops get off of duty tonight, and return to their own districts. They all (Every last one of them) have been on duty CONSTANTLY for 5 days now.
again I DO NOT condone what that cop did,(he is the exception as well as other isolated incidents) however overall they did their jobs well.

[The Doctor.]

69. So it's ok for cops to beat you just for not doing what they tell you...

regardless of how legal your actions are?

So a cop can follow you around all day, tell you what to do, and you'll do it, no matter what.

No, don't bother arguing, that's the logical extension of your 'reasoning'.

[G_j]

81. there has never been an acceptable reason to use violence on a nonviolent person

never

[Froward69]

89. arguing with the cop

is reserved for a court of law...

[The Doctor.]

90. And when the court 'upholds' that cop's blatantly illegal and unConstitutional actions?

Then what?

You're right... just fall in line like good little sheep.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
He makes me down to lie
Through pastures green He leadeth me the silent waters by.
With bright knives He releaseth my soul.
He maketh me to hang on hooks in high places.
He converteth me to lamb cutlets,
For lo, He hath great power, and great hunger.
When cometh the day we lowly ones,
Through quiet reflection, and great dedication
Master the art of karate,
Lo, we shall rise up,
And then we'll make the bugger's eyes water."

[High Plains]

21. Wow, nice hypocritical double standard!

Smash dissenters in Denver, cheer them on in St. Paul.

Taking partisanship to a new low.

[Froward69]

29. see #28

[EFerrari]

23. Nice post, Hitler. n/t

[Froward69]

30. see #28

[originalpckelly]

24. Listen, asshat, I've been at these protests...

and what I've seen scares the hell out of me. Even when there is absolutely no violence going on, and no expectation of it, the police are there in full riot gear carrying assault rifles. I kid you NOT!

It looks like we live in a police state.

[Froward69]

28. I live in this city...

Apparently the command to move away from the vehicle does not mean shit... Getting in a cops face Ignoring a command. when he is armed and pissed off. is a really stupid thing to do. I sure as shit stay the fuck out of a cops way, and obey their commands. cops here do not play around. if some neocon, nazi, dittohead, republican extremist, were setting fire to tent state. Or if they had not caught that merry band of meth riddled assassins before they took some pot shots at Obama. The cops sure as shit would not be broadcast as being brutal to those folks.

with cops having to be dressed in full riot gear on a 90 degree day. ass hole cops from every podunk half assed little town from four states here to protect this city I love. these things will happen. I despise the fact all those cops have to be there. I do not condone what that cop did. conversely if it weren't for the fact that every, I mean every body with an issue is pushing to the front of the crowd to get on tv.

another DUer said it best yesterday "the marchers went past the line of cops, and were annoyed as the cops didn't pay them much attention."

Yes it looks like a police state this week. come back next week or next month. you will rarely see any cops at all.

[EFerrari]

31. Code Pink has zero history of behaving provacatively with cops

and that woman was not blocking that vehicle.

There was no reason for her to be shoved to the ground when a voice command would have worked.

[Froward69]

33. Code pink is against all war

I respect that. however to think the cops are as pacifist as you, is not thinking clearly.

[EFerrari]

34. They don't need to be pacifists, they need to be professionals.

That video is going to be viewed by thousands of people. Not good for their force.



/oops

[Froward69]

39. they never are

In fact it would not surprise me if that cop is from Colo springs, Greeley, Salt lake or Cheyenne.

I agree it was brutal and not professional at all. that's why I do not think he was a regular DPD officer.

there are good cops and bad cops... cops like that get good cops shot.

[Hugabear]

41. Sure. Obey the police and you have nothing to worry about. Fuck off.

Pray tell, what could this young woman have done to warrant that brutal attack by the cop? Not obeying a fucking order? Wow. Amazing that you'll sit here and condone such vicious tactics.

[Froward69]

42. no i do not

condone that action. you on the other hand need to get a grip on the WHOLE situation.


for the thousands of demonstrators here, the hundreds of marches, neocon fanatics wanting to take a shot at Obama... this type incident is rare.
as most of the demonstrators here want that 15 minutes of fame and draw attention to their cause. attempting to provoke a cop is par for the course.

why are you not complaining about the cops beating the shit out of the meth head, would be Obama assassins?

read up on the subject...
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/aug/27/protest-through-downtown-ends-without-incident/

[XOKCowboy]

45. We've got 50000 extra people in town this week which include some world dignitaries...

I'm working at a venue where there is a heavy police/Secret Service presence because of the high profile of the speakers. They're just there doing what they're told (which is mostly traffic control) and they take their job seriously. They don't strike me as bloodthirsty authoritarians. The cops I've met on the street and on the mall downtown seem the same. Mostly trying to keep people from walking against the light and tying up traffic.

So we're just supposed to let people close down streets downtown at the protester's whim? Traffic downtown is a madhouse anyway with all the convention visitors and trucks/limos/taxis bringing food, drink, equipment, people in and out of venues and business' serving all of our visitors. The protesters from what I read had a permit to protest in city park and the video shows they had plenty of press coverage. Why is it a violation of their free speech to keep them from blocking Colfax, 15th St and all the intersecting streets? Why is that their right?

Let's not forget that Recreate 68 and other groups have vowed to do whatever it takes to get on TV and I guess that they got their wish. They went in to protest fascism (I guess that's what they're protesting. It's not very clear) then did what they could to provoke that kind of behavior.

[EFerrari]

73. That's sickening. The protestors are the same groups that always

show up: Code Pink, IVAW, World Can't Wait, the whole menu.

And as you can see for yourself, Alicia did nothing to provoke that attack and that fine officer from DPD has been pulled from interacting with demonstrators.

Tell you what. The next time a thug shoves you to the ground and throws you in jail for having a conversation in a public place, remember you were being "provocative" and just stfu.

[Pastiche423]

52. I am ECSTATIC that the temp was so high

It makes me smile knowing how hot it is for those thugs in riot gear!

[mike_c]

53. "I sure as shit stay the fuck out of a cops way...."

Otherwise known as cowering, boot-licking, appeasement, bending over, and a whole host of other terms. We have the right to assemble and demand redress. The jackbooted thugs that you are so frightened of have no power except that which we give them. If we cower in fear, the fascists win.

[Greyhound]

58. If it looks like a police state, it is a police state.

:wtf:

Mike Judge is a prophet.

[originalpckelly]

84. I live in this city too, asshat.

Maybe you should read my profile info before you act all high and mighty.

The cops in this city have been getting with lots of shit for years and years.

I remember when they raided the wrong house, and shot a poor old black guy, because they thought the pop can in his hand was a fucking gun. Police are people, just like you and I, and they can too be asshats.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

25. The police may be misbehaving, but those videos are not evidence of it.

The former has been carefully edited so that we don't see what happened immediately before the policeman pushes the woman, and while that's not proof that he didn't have a good reason too, it make me suspect that he did; the latter likewise has been chopped into bits so that it's by no means clear what is going on.

That's not, of course, evidence that the police *aren't* being too heavy handed, but the case that they are is not supported by either of these videos.

[Subdivisions]

26. Why are there police in riot gear blocking a peaceful march? n/t

[Froward69]

36. first not all of

those cops are Denver cops. most of them are from other jurisdictions who tried to be DPD but failed the screening test.
Second as per the love of this city the cops are trying to be prepared for any contingent.

If a bomb went off or a sniper took some pot shots
sure as shitting those cops would be in action.
granted it would seem to be a police state this week but it is not.

personally i am dying for some yazoo bbq ribs right now but going downtown is a mess, and I do not want to talk to any cop at any time. in fact those DPD officers that are my friends are not allowed to come to my house in uniform. they respect that and ask hows my crop of "grass" doing.

as they are on the job all week. doing the job we pay them for and on the ball...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3453643

see post 23.

[EFerrari]

38. On Amy's show yesterday, it was sherrifs that were shown

not to be wearing any ID, which is against the law.

The clip I saw with DPD was, sadly, a friendly exchange they had with Code Pink at a different venue. They wanted CP to leave but when Medea pointed out that it was a public space, they came to an agreement without incident.

You make a good point about the hazards of bringing in people from other forces to work crowd control. It's a problem waiting to happen in this kind of a situation.

[proud2BlibKansan]

68. Why do you keep saying the cops aren't from Denver?

Why does it make any difference? A brown shirted thug is still a thug regardless of which particular police force he belongs to. The brutality is no less brutal just because it is a Denver cop doing it.

[EFerrari]

72. And it turns out, he IS from DPD. Scott Stewart:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=175827&mesg_id=176585

[proud2BlibKansan]

76. And again, why does it matter where he is from

or who he works for?

Sorry that is just a diversion meant to make the Denver cops look less than the thugs they apparently are.

[EFerrari]

79. That's right, it is. n/t

[lonestarnot]

37. And being held in place for two hours? What's that? Guess you don't believe that either...

IMO they belong to the pug party there in Denver, and the coppers in full riot gear are there just to put on a show.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

35. You are a true Amerikkan.......... nt

[HEyHEY]

43. So, you're just Rove with a different set of political leanings?

[fascisthunter]

48. You Fascist... did ya watch the goddamn video????

[conspirator]

62. Yeah. The gestapo was also doing its job. I have no sympathy for armed forces nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

70. Wow how sad

that you believe it is okay to assault and arrest citizens as long as they are not disrupting Republicans.

That says more about you than about the topic of this thread.

[mmonk]

40. Women in pink represent such a large threat to batton wielding police,

didn't ya know?

[proud2BlibKansan]

44. An email I received this afternoon from a friend in Denver:

"Operation First Casualty" w/IVAW yesterday ~ very effective. www.ivaw.org. The police did work with us, and they cleared the way and kept other cops from becoming alarmed.

Did jail support the rest of the day for Wally & kids from Olympia. I sat in my car outside the jail (about 6 miles from downtown), waiting for people getting bailed out (some had a bail of $530 & some had bail of $720). Talked to at least 7 people from different groups (and none) who'd gotten out of jail and when I told them the charges, they all said, "Didn't happen!"

I saw the kids' bond papers (or whatever you call the paperwork you have to give to the jail to get them out), and some of the charges were:

Interference with Police Authority
Distruction of Private Property
Throwing Stones & Missiles
Loitering
Begging

BEGGING? My friend Richard says, "I don't know ~ does something have a sense of humor, or are they just that stupid?"

Charges were different for everybody, and people had multiple (like up to four) different charges. I can't fathom how they could keep track of who did exactly what. (Usually, in mass arrests, they just make up one or two charges for almost everybo dy, in my experience. Right?)

Maybe Loitering is when the police surround you and tell you to sit down and keep you there for a couple hours?

Alicia from Code Pink also got arrested in a separate incident. Rumor is the cops pushed her into the street and then arrested her for being in the street.

The Denver mayor said they were prepared, but it was "not a police state." Methinks he is wrong. There is a show of force here that is designed to intimidate people from dissent and discourage them from going to MN, and to make "civilians" think there are some scary protestors from whom they need to be protected...by the police.

[fascisthunter]

47. There's Your "Operation Chaos"

I bet they enjoy tarnishing the DNC's reputation.

[Shoelace]

66. my thoughts exactly but don't think that they "tarnished" anybody

though I'd bet they tried. Am bloody sure that the right wingers sent everybody and anybody they could pay to go there and be as disruptive as possible.

[bertman]

49. Many thanks to the Denver residents who tried to put this into perspective.

In '69 and '70, when I was demonstrating against the Vietnam war, I was continually amazed by how many people there were in the crowds who just wanted a confrontation with the cops. It was like it was their mission to piss off the cops. Meanwhile, the other 98% of us were trying to have a peaceful demonstration of our opposition to the war. Of course, the instigators always made it a point to get where they weren't supposed to be and get in the cops' faces.

Most of the time the police were very businesslike. But when the asswipes started provoking them they got very tense and wouldn't take any shit from anybody. I never saw anybody get brutalized but I've seen the videos and photos a thousand times, so I know it did happen.

I really feel that our police forces in America have become interwoven with Homeland Security and are now part of the domestic spying apparatus in a way that most of us don't experience on a regular basis. But given the number of folks in Denver for the Convention and the fact that groups like Recreate 68 are trying to start shit, plus there are probably a bunch of Limbaugh robots who are trying to start trouble, I am surprised by how little police overreaction there has been.

Also, I'd like to add that some of the rhetoric in this thread has been very insulting and would only happen in a situation where the person hurling the epithets was not face-to-face with the other person. So, please try to keep it under control, assholes. You know who you are.

[progressoid]

55. Y'all realize that the Democratic Party has coordinated with the DPD right?

I guarantee that Dr. Dean, the DNC, the Obama Campaign, the Secret Service and other groups have all been in close contact with the DPD to avoid any disruptions. You don't just come into town with dozens of dignitaries, the next president of the United States, and thousands of people without coordinating with the local authorities to keep things orderly.

Nobody wants our show of UNITY to be interrupted by Limbaugh drones or PUMAs. Or worse yet, the possibility of the unthinkable happening.

So many here decry the police as fascists, pigs etc. Yes, some cops are bullies and overstepped their bounds. But imagine the alternative; if they hadn't kept a buffer around the Pepsi Center and some lunatic made it inside and...well, I don't even want to type it. If something horrible were to happen, those very same police would be blamed for not doing their job.

And even though the protesters were peaceful, I also guarantee that nobody, NOBODY, within the party hierarchy wanted to see a Code Pink person show up to disrupt the proceedings. Nobody. You can't show party unity with somebody screaming at Nancy Pelosi about the war on national TV.

[Hippo_Tron]

59. The cop was out of line, but to be frank I find codepink annoying as hell

I was in DC this summer and they frequently attended and acted disrespectfully at hearings held by Conyers, Leahy, and other Democrats that basically agree with their positions. The police wouldn't throw them out, of course, because the last thing you want to do is give them attention by making a scene.

But alas we live in a free country and you have a right to be annoying as hell without getting a police baton shoved in your face.

[proud2BlibKansan]

67. What are you talking about?

They get thrown out - and arrested - all the time.

[Hippo_Tron]

71. Yes I've seen that happen on TV a few times

But from my experiences on the hill the police have now decided it's better not to throw them out because that would make a scene and give them attention.

[proud2BlibKansan]

75. Well some of them are my friends

and I know for a fact they have been repeatedly arrested and many are banned from coming to the hearings. Conyers even banned the color pink at his judiciary hearings. It's not just for TV. I will be sure to tell them though that the capitol cops have decided not to arrest them. LOL

[New Dawn]

60. Exactly and it was the same way at the 2004 RNC and DNC protests

It was and is a crackdown on dissent.

Read this about the 2004 RNC for more info: http://www.2600.com/rnc2004/

[silverojo]

61. Was there any doubt this would happen?

They always send the Gestapo after peaceful demonstrators. :mad:

[Kire]

63. self delete

nt

[EFerrari]

74. Update for apologists: denied access to attorneys, forced to march in leg shackles

Protesters denied access to attorneys, forced to march in leg shackles, ACLU charges

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Protesters_denied_access_to_attorneys_forced_0828.html

There's your fine Denver PD for you. Congratulations.

[proud2BlibKansan]

77. I have received far too many calls and emails from friends in Denver

needing bail money.

This has been just beyond repulsive. Denver residents should be ashamed.

[EFerrari]

78. This is going to be SOP from here on out

because too many people don't know where their own interests lie.

[Subdivisions]

80. Wow. I came onto DU just now to post this new info only to see

that you are just moments ahead of me!

Here is a link to the ACLU's PDF document:

http://rawstory.com/images/other/aclu82708.pdf

I'm currently formatting the PDF for posting the entire text of the document here.

[EFerrari]

82. Thanks, Texas Explorer. I read it in alyce douglas's thread.

TG for DU or we would NEVER even know. :grr:

[redqueen]

83. They're just doing their jobs! You know... implementing fascism... that's their job!

[EFerrari]

85. I guess people have to be on fire themselves before they smell the smoke. n/t

[redqueen]

86. What galls me is that this isn't new... at all.

How long will it take for people to wake the hell up?