” gss nd t chng my pnn bt gn cntrl. t lks w nd wll rmd nd rgnzd mlt t prtct rslvs frm th rvng bnds f TLW plc.”

Tht’s th pnt g t wth rspct t th ss. n fct, t’s th rsn gn wnrshp s n th cnstttn.

Snc ths pc prtstrs wld jst pn thmslvs t mr plc brtlty, sggst w frm “Fly-n Mlt” tht wll lglly ptrl th rs rnd sch gthrngs wth grps f rmd cvlns (LRG grps). Lcl plc wll ndrstnd tht thy wll nt nly hv hst f lwsts, bt mjr gnbttl n thr hnds f thy try t brznly brk lws bt pcfl (nd n ths cs) prvt ssmbly.

Ths s R cntry nd w nd t tk t bck. ftr wht th Rpblcns hv dn t t (nd t th rst f th wrld) vr th lst 8 yrs, nyn wh wll brk p pcfl prtstrs nds t b rgrdd s trtr nd dlt wth by whtvr mns r ncssry.

Police are not concerned or interested in constitutional rights. They’re interested in defining safety for the state, and enforcing it. The constitution is a hindrance against them, an the more they can get away with violating it, the easier it is for them to do their job without that annoying interference.

With large scale events like party conventions, police get to trot out new civil rights violations, and see what they can get judges to agree to. If they don’t get what they want’, it’s not like they get in any serious trouble. Lawsuits are paid for out of the city’s pockets.

The citizens of Minneapolis are funding police experiments in how many civil rights violations local judges will sign off on.

I admire Indiemedia and all the protestors in Minni and beyond.

But esp. given the history of violence embedded in the US police state and how a frontal attack serves to reinforce the opposition, ie, the police state, I’m wondering: isn’t it time for creative new strategies?

I hope the protests this week move beyond the traditional left model. As someone who remembers the ’92 flames in my hometown, the protests in LA for our convention, the our last decade of history (esp. when Hollyweird co-opted the “Indie” film movement), we need some humility and creativity.

My heart is will all those protesting in Minni and it’s sad how far down this country has gone.

I’m writing this from the I-Witness Video office in the Twin Cities. I was one of very few folks who made it out of the house before the raid yesterday.

THANK YOU to Xeni and the rest of the BB crew, and everyone who’s reading this and reposting this. Coverage of this raid by the mainstream press is buried right now – in part out of habit, in part because of the justifiable reason of Hurricane Gustav. However, as exposers of police misconduct, we NEED exposure of raids on us to remain effective; attacks on videographers during protests are distressingly common (see the I-Witness blog at http://iwitnessvideo.info for some of their stories).

Know that we are undeterred in our goal of recording evidence of police misconduct in the days ahead. You can keep up with news about us on our website (above); for up-to-the-minute news on RNC arrests, subscribe to http://twitter.com/coldsnaplegal.

I was a witness to some serious entrapment weirdness during the Reagan regime in St. Louis (a town not known for massive quantities of love or justice), so yeah, I do get it about fabrication of evidence.

Somehow (even now, maybe naively) I still do not believe that all cops are bad. Here’s hoping that law enforcement will get and stay connected to their humanity and conscience…

By quoting that I assume you don’t get it.

Intentions are not illegal: Illegal activity is illegal. (For the matter, is it illegal to possess a bucket of urine? Hell, is it illegal to throw a bucket of urine?)

In any event, what you appear to be advocating is arresting anyone who is contemplating breaking the law. If that’s the case, then anyone can be arrested anywhere, at any time.

And remember, these cops broke up many different groups. You would appear to also advocate, “Because someone else who also doesn’t like the republicans is contemplating breaking the law, then the police should be able to arrest me.”

Saint Paul is that city in Minnesota that’s indicated with a Star on the map…

That said, I still think the raids are pretty baseless and frightening. I haven’t yet heard a convincing reason for why the warrants were granted. If there’s a document somewhere that the anarchists had a caltrop dropping at 8:45, urine throwing at the corner of Kellogg and W 7th at 9:00, and a Bow and Arrow assault at 9:10 as they retreated to the ‘headquarters’, I can see that as justifiable cause for the warrant. More likely, it’s just the cooling down tactics of “hold a raid, get people shaken up, hold a few people without an actual arrest until Wednesday (after the convention has started), and then decide that there was really nothing wrong going on.”

Otherwise, I fear for the fact that nearly every person within the state of Minnesota could be arrested for “having materials that could be used to make molotov cocktails”, or worse.

Makes me wonder what would have happened if any of the protesters had carried a gun- would the whole warrant have been dropped because now we’re talking about REAL rights? Kind of don’t think that’d happen.

The list of items confiscated was comical. After the news outlets listed the 5 gallon buckets of urine and caltrops, they talked about “An army helmet”. Yes, one surplus army helmet. Thank goodness for the diligence of the squad.

Finally, I still get a laugh at the fact that the media keeps talking about the raids being carried out at the residences of “Anarchist leaders”.

It looks like the Twin Cities will probably dominate BB for the coming week. 50,000 protesters expected tomorrow. People here are rabidly angry at the status quo.

I’d modify your statement to read “cops CLAIM TO HAVE found:”
And – even if true – buckets of urine and caltrops (pointy things to puncture tires) warrant full SWAT assaults on several sites and restriction of first amendment rights?

One of the sites (Iglehart) where several journalists were staying was surrounded for hours because they hadn’t bothered to get a warrant, so the people were detained at the site until they could get a warrant together. They eventually got a warrant but for the wrong address, the adjoining duplex unit – so they came in, went through the undivided attic, and searched the journalists.
(per http://the-uptake.groups.theuptake.org/en/videogalleryView/id/641/)

I’m tempted to go spend the week in the Twin Cities standing up for my country.

Feeling safer yet?

If Food Not Bombs sent law enforcement into a tizzy for having a few buckets of recyclable greywater on hand (anyone incapable of telling the difference between pee and sinkwater, or lying about it, should be placed on a city sanitation crew), I can only imagine what’s going to go through the minds of the cops who have to open those vermiculture bins and find… earthworms! and organic tea leaves! or organic coffee grounds! and gnats.

I feel forewarned if not exactly safer that I’ve read about the warrantless raids (thanks boingboing!), and that heads-up about avoiding those vegan potlucks. (sigh) Now, if you’ll pardon me, I’ve got to start that bag of lentils soaking…

We do need to organize and get out in the streets. We need to make our voices heard (especially when the mainstream media has shown itself to be the pacifier of the people, enablers of cover-up, telling people what they want to hear instead of the ugly truth) but above all, we need to keep our cool and use our intelligence and creativity instead of flying off the handle and reaching for a weapon. When you stoop to their level, you become more fodder for the machine. The Hindus have a great saying: You cannot hate anyone into loving. If we want compassion, we must give compassion. We must use our anger as a motivator for action, but it must be non-violent action or we’ve already lost the struggle.

Let me put in a good word for Food Not Bombs. I know some of those people in Cambridge, MA and they do good things.

this is fundamental and the fact that the whole MSM treated the DNC convention as a “story” with the feud, warring clans, Kennedy then clinton reunion w/ built up to the climax, I mean, sh-t, aren’t there some substantive issues facing our country?

My only question is: is the American project that reached its primal moment in the mid-19th century, inexorably beyond repair? Talia’s (#14) idea of dividing up the country, whether in jest or not, does raise the question of: how far gone is the American project? I mean we’re 20th (or something close) in the world in digital infrastructure; our prison systems nation-wide are imploding; our MSM is clearly beyond repair and under-going the disruption-implosion process; many of the top private universities even have “free speech zone” and if not, spit out patents and inventions befitting any corporation….

So university/education system corrupted; MSM beyond repair; civil protest under bigbrother/high security surveillance; habeas corpus ruptured and a never-ending war.

Who wants to move abroad with me?

Is this legal? Is it constitutional? Not rhetorical questions, I’m really curious, under what legal basis can any arm of the government confine someone to a space without a warrant or witnessing some illegal activity? And, with a property search warrant, is there a legal basis for handcuffing individuals at the site?

Maybe I’m just being naive here, but this stinks like last week’s tuna casserole to me.

Not a gun control debate.

kthxbai

Yup, “X-Box gaming systems” are included in the warrant for 2301 23rd Avenue South in Minneapolis(PDF). Ditto for raids at other addresses.

“Media in any form” and data on hard drives are also included, but I don’t see a specific mention of Xbox games.

“Hollowed out puppets” are also included.

You’re joking, right? http://www.boingboing.net/2008/08/26/ethan-persoffs-cover.html

It looks like the Twin Cities will probably dominate BB for the coming week.

But not the news. The BBC reckons that Gustav has ruined the convention and killed McCain’s biggest publicity event of the campaign. It looks like they actually considered canceling the convention.

Th nly gd cp s dd cp.

s fr th prsn wh thnks cvl dsbdnc wrks, ths s nt frckn’ Ghnd’s nd. s mny thrs hv pntd t, f t ws th Grmns n nd, Ghnd wld hv bn dd n wk n. Th sm hlds tr fr th S, whr cps WLL kll y fr n rsn t ll.

s fr ths wh thnk “hm dfns” s th nswr, wrng gn. Y cn’t fght n nsrgncy t hm.

Th nswr s frm n rq-lvl nsrgncy nd blw th bstrds p n dly bss wth cr bmbs nd Ds whl nvr xpsng yrslf t dtctn.

Bt dn’t nly blw p cps – thy’r jst th thgs wh r hrd t d ths crp. Blw p th pltcns nd rch crprt bstrds wh rn th shw.

nd dn’t d t lk th stpd Plstnns. Thy blw p bss fll f cvlns nstd f blwng p th Znst fntcs rnnng srl. Th rgnl dfntn f trrrsm frm th Ppl’s Wll n Rss mphszd blwng p th rlrs, nt cvlns.

Y cn’t wn nlss y kll yr nms – nd y hv t knw wh nd whr yr nms r t d tht. Blwng p rndm ppl s nthng t th prps.

Cps r cwrds. Kll ngh f thm, thy’ll frk nd qt thr jbs n drvs. t tk 600 f th mrns t tk dwn th sx ppl n th SL – nd ths clwns wr ncmptnt lsrs.