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Environmentalist group protests Bank of America


monsoon

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As I said earlier, the best way to stamp out the message of the protesters is to make the protesters themselves the issue which is taking place here. Comparisons to abortion clinic bombings by religious zealots and claims of putting hundreds of people in danger are other examples of this because there are many who simply don't want the issue brought up.
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I think support here would be more muted if Charlotte as a city was more conducive to public protest. As it stands, it is VERY rare to see a protest here on the scale of what you see in other large cities. The general social standard here is to mock or belittle protesters as "wackos", because they are willing to stand up publicly for what they believe in. This is not a sign of an enlightened society and to be honest it makes me a little ashamed of my hometown when I realize that, in an hour of serious need, Charlotte would not be a city to stand up for what's right in the face of authority.

Say what you will about this group, but they effectively got a dialogue started about a serious, under-the-rug environmental issue. If they had put someone other than themselves in actual, imminent danger it would be a different story; but it's not like they were fighting against the responders or doing anything to prevent a swift and safe "rescue". If the best argument against them is that they tied up a block of traffic and committed misdemeanor trespassing, frankly that's not a very strong appeal and I think the means are justified in this case.

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i couldn't agree more. everyone i've talked to this week knows about the protest and enjoyed talking about it.

i have made my stance on all this pretty clear in previous posts, but the more i read about the plight and the more polarizing comments i read here from those who disagree with this protest - makes me support these protesters more. mainly b/c i'm scared as hell of the rhetoric that is so adamently against this. metro, is right about the state of protesting in this country now a days... there's a free "speech zone" down the street, around the corner, in the alley - behind a dumpster.

however, the reasons for all this censorship and public apathy/vitriol can be attributed to many things - including the protesters themselves. i understand that but in the big picture censoring protests - is heading down a bad road - an "unamerican" road. not too mention - this is why we see "illegal" protesting.

i just finished reading "Animal Farm" by george orwell. i hadn't read it since 8th grade - and i would highly recommend the book - if you haven't read it.

beware of becoming sheep. (btw, i am just as scared of that as i am anarchy)

on a side note:

one of the four protesters arrested was from asheville. i know someone here had inquired about where they were from.

also, the photos that MC posted are portraits of a damnable act - IMO. we have got to evolve how we get and use energy - cause the way we do it now is f'cked up. and if your sitting back, feeling content, waiting for the good people @ your local energy dept to push this evolution along - then your dreaming.

ok, i think I'M ready to protest. :)

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Me thinks you missed the point - your kid starving, not a charity case, I bet you go steal some bread.

And ... nothing is Black and White, just ask GW and the justice dept.

Real tyranny - like revoking/ignoring habeas corpus? Pressuring telecoms to hand over records of private citizens? What tyranny would you protest?

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Ahh but it is up to the courts to decide if the protest was illegal or not. If you are indeed one who believes in "the system" then surely you are willing to believe in "innocent until proven guilty" which is the basis for our system in the first place. From your posts it sounds as if you have already put them to trial, found them guilty and condemned them for crimes against the people but I am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt in that you don't really believe that. We established the courts in the first place to give people the right to plead their case instead of being subjected to mob mentality of public stonings and so forth, which can be worse than any peaceful protest.

I don't believe the protest was illegal. Possibly they can be charged with trespassing on private property but since nobody was hurt and that wasn't even their intent, I willing to wait for the courts to decide the appropriate judgment for their actions, that is if they decide a crime was actually committed.

You can bet that Duke Power and Bank Of America, and for that matter the Charlotte establishment including the Observer just wish this would disappear from the news as quickly as possible.

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You took the words right out of my mouth. The funny thing is, these protesters and others (for other causes) are fighting to improve life for everyone, even the people who condemn them for protesting. America simply would not be where it is today without protests, and that ranges from the previous examples of the Boston Tea Party to the labor unions to the civil rights marches to Cindy Sheehan and her anti-war crusade. Protest is a strength of the US, not a weakness and not something to deride. Legal and illegal protests of all kinds have formed America into what it is today, and I'm proud of the people with the strength of character to stand up.
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Exactly. I'm not taking the bait (your description of the last 5 yrs.' developments as "revocation" of HC or "pressuring" telecoms to do something that is completely within their rights without any such pressuring), but I'm glad someone did. That's the sort of BS that is hardly tyranny.
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Regarding protests in general I take part in the weekly vigils at East&Scott as part of Code Pink Charlotte. I respect The Gathering of Eagles right to be on the opposite corner and oppose us. We hold our signs and focus on waving to passing cars. They spend their time ranting and raving, cursing, and screaming insults at us. Basically acting like total trash .Which is what they also did during Cindy Sheehan's visit. Their antics make war supporters with logical and valid beliefs look bad. I am not speaking of Code Pink' as a national organization,I don't approve of all of their confrontational tactics but the local chapters do their own thing. Our group here is civil and respectful as opposed to our stupid and ignorant acting opposition. There is no comparison to what we do weekly and the RAN action. We always follow the law and a cop is present every Wednesday to monitor both sides.

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Happy to please ;)

Do you really not see these actions as troubling? But you are troubled by some fairly benign protesting? Your difficult commute and a crowded parking deck vs. three years of a human life in a filthy prison w/o being charged and no prospect for ... anything? Priorities?

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No, I'm "troubled" by both. I'm troubled by the decisions made after weighing difficult decisions by those prosecuting the WoT, and (believe it or not) those trouble me more than the inconveniences from yesterday (or whenever it was). I think most poeple are familiar only with diluted and useless talking and bullet points from "wingers" (both left and right). Being familiar with the nuances and factors that led to the executive branch's decision-making, after studying those decisions (made in connection with the WoT) in depth, I actually agree with them.
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And I know several hundred Paramedics and happen to be one myself. You're missing the point. Because of this protest, people's lives were put at risk and other citizens of this county were also put at risk due to a decreased ability to respond because units were tied up.
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Those are usually off duty personnel that are working on their own time with the exception of maybe the Fire Marshall/Investigators who have to monitor crowd size and fire codes. What we're talking about here was not pre-planned (on the part of responders) and took on-duty units out of service. I have no problem with the argument against strip mining or whatever, my problem is with the carelessness and lack of concern for others that this took on, resulting in a waste of resources and endangerment to others.

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And I know several hundred Paramedics and happen to be one myself. You're missing the point. Because of this protest, people's lives were put at risk and other citizens of this county were also put at risk due to a decreased ability to respond because units were tied up.
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Those are usually off duty personnel that are working on their own time with the exception of maybe the Fire Marshall/Investigators who have to monitor crowd size and fire codes. What we're talking about here was not pre-planned (on the part of responders) and took on-duty units out of service. I have no problem with the argument against strip mining or whatever, my problem is with the carelessness and lack of concern for others that this took on, resulting in a waste of resources and endangerment to others.
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After reading about all this, I have to side with the protesters. Especially after seeing this photo that monsoon posted:

bofa_cms_banner3.jpg

That alone was probably worth the risk of spending time in jail (which I doubt will happen in this case). If it hasn't found its way all over the internet yet, I'm sure it will. I don't support destruction of personal property or violence toward others to support a cause (like the WTO protests in Seattle or abortion clinic harassment/bombing), but trespassing? I think it's great that they are trying to inform the public to at least "investigate" the claims they are making. Bank of America is moving into our area in Michigan, and it just might affect my decision to seek out their services or not.

For those who criticize the protesters, I sincerely hope you or someone you love is never on the receiving end of criticism for standing up for what you believe in. It's a horrible place to be, but it's well worth it and it's our obligation as citizens to do so. Sometimes fighting for what you believe does not always fit in a nice package.

Thanks for starting this thread monsoon!

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That alone was probably worth the risk of spending time in jail (which I doubt will happen in this case). If it hasn't found its way all over the internet yet, I'm sure it will. I don't support destruction of personal property or violence toward others to support a cause (like the WTO protests in Seattle or abortion clinic harassment/bombing), but trespassing? I think it's great that they are trying to inform the public to at least "investigate" the claims they are making. Bank of America is moving into our area in Michigan, and it just might affect my decision to seek out their services or not.

For those who criticize the protesters, I sincerely hope you or someone you love is never on the receiving end of criticism for standing up for what you believe in. It's a horrible place to be, but it's well worth it and it's our obligation as citizens to do so. Sometimes fighting for what you believe does not always fit in a nice package.

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