Teabaggers getting nastier.

[The Romulan Republic]

And Sarah Palin has joined in:

http://www.endpoliticsasusual.com/2010/ ... un-sights/

Palin Targets Dems with Gun Sights
Posted by dpolitico on March 24, 2010 · Comments
Sarah Palin’s PAC has put together a map of 20 Democratic Congressman their supporters should “target” because those elected officials helped pass health care reform. In case you missed the significance of using a term like “target” Palin’s PAC has decided to make it painfully clear, by putting gun sights over the locations of those Democrats and turning those sights “red” to indicate the Democratic member of Congress is no longer a threat.
This linkage of violence to rhetoric, particularly the symbolism of guns, targets, and bloodshed is one I’m very familiar with. As one of Dr. Tiller’s attorneys, who was killed by a terrorist urged on by anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, we saw it every day from the abortion terrorists. It’s page one in their handbook: websites swathed in blood, the use of graphic pictures showing aborted fetuses, the glorifying of killers, urging people to “take a stand.” It’s a very effective fund raising tool and no small coincidence that Palin would turn to the use of violence to raise money.
So it comes as no surprise to me that a fringe group would use this sort of tactic. What does surprise me is the use of it by a prominently elected, Republican party member. We’re not talking about some West Virginia congressman from the regions of “he’s a terrorist.” We’re talking about a woman who was nominated to be Vice President.
The sheer recklessness of it astonishes me. And it astonishes me in this day and age that there aren’t more Republicans standing up to say this behavior is wrong. Where are the Bob Doles, the first President Bush, the Henry Kissingers who while they may have had draconian ideas never once endorsed or stood idly by as this kind of violence took hold. Instead, we have Sarah Palin taking a page right out of the abortion terrorist’s playbook. Instead, we have John Boehner (who might as well have been beating Pelosi with a cane) screaming “hell no” on the floor of the House. Instead, we have Michelle Bachmann screaming that she wants people “armed and dangerous.”
The GOP better watch out. For when their rhetoric finally reaches someone like Scott Roeder or Timothy McVeigh, that person won’t pick up on the sublties of the use of violent rhetoric versus the use of violence. That person will pick up a gun, just like Scott Roeder, and “target” the very people Sarah Palin has set her sights on. Shame on them. And shame on the rest of the Republican leaders for not denouncing this use of violence.

CNN also covered this earlier today, along with a lot of the other stuff in this thread. Anyone more familiar with US law want to comment on weather this is legally enough to land her in a cell?

[FSTargetDrone]

Boy, she's as subtle as a kick in the teeth.

And as soon as she hears some criticism, enough that her people think it's necessary to "apologize" for PR purposes you can bet that there will be some weakly-worded excuse that "it was a staffer (or someone else) who used poor judgment" in putting that graphic together. Assuming it gets that far.

She will suffer no real ill for this.

[ShadowDragon8685]

This country really is turning into a second-world shithole, isn't it?

No, I mean that seriously: we've had escalating levels of extremism from our ultranationalist right-wing movements, they've started to turn towards veiled threats and now we have actual evidence of attempted violence with the actual elected officials using the same visual and rhetoric exhortations that until-now radical lunatic-fringers used.

How long until someone is actually assassinated? What will be the aftermath? Will it wind up being someone relatively obscure from nowhereville, or will they actually get a member of the legislature or Executive branch?

These are seriously worrying questions. The fact that Caribou Barbie herself is making the incitements is... Disturbing in the extreme.

[Lonestar]

This country really is turning into a second-world shithole, isn't it?

Man you're an idiot.

Look, obviously the hammer should be brought down on these knuckleheads, hard, but we aren't "turning" anything. This is following a grand old American political tradition of whenever someone to the left(of the very conservatives) gets into political power the woo-woos come out of the woodwork. This was especially noticiable during the last Democrat president(I'm going to take a risk and assume you aren't old enough to remember that), and with the age of the internet it's especially visible now.

Go outside, take a deep breath, and get some fresh air and sun.

[wautd]

Teabaggers acting like facists? Colour me shocked.

[DudeGuyMan]

There's a real streak of unadulterated terror running through the more racist segments of white America, and this is how it manifests itself. It's been building for decades, probably since the civil rights movement, but a black man with a funny name getting to be President of the United States really kicked it into overdrive. The whole "Whites to be a minority within a generation!" thing you hear bandied around plays into it too.

These people are used to getting their way, but now suddenly they're not. The black guy got elected despite their protests, and now he's even getting to do stuff. That loss of power scares the living shit out of them. The ominous talk you hear from these sorts of people when nobody non-white is in the room makes it plain as day. There's a segment of white America that was convinced from the moment he ran that Obama was out to hand the country over to the darkies, and they'll see pretty much anything he does as part of that. The "Is healthcare reform stealth slavery reparations?" article Glenn Beck put online was a perfect example and unusually candid in it's attitude.

But relax, take heart. These people didn't suddenly spring into existence. They've been here since the beginning. Up until recent years they were unquestionably running the place. They were never going to go quietly, but what you're seeing now is the ruckus they make when they begin to sense that their power is on the wane.

[PhilosopherOfSorts]

This country really is turning into a second-world shithole, isn't it?

Man you're an idiot.

Look, obviously the hammer should be brought down on these knuckleheads, hard, but we aren't "turning" anything. This is following a grand old American political tradition of whenever someone to the left(of the very conservatives) gets into political power the woo-woos come out of the woodwork. This was especially noticiable during the last Democrat president(I'm going to take a risk and assume you aren't old enough to remember that), and with the age of the internet it's especially visible now.

Go outside, take a deep breath, and get some fresh air and sun.

Yeah, this type of shit goes clear back to the Whiskey Rebellion, which was largely caused by people who thought the American Revolution meant that they never had to pay taxes again. A misconception that endures to this day.

[Invictus ChiKen]

I mentioned this to a Republidrone. He said it was just public information and that a sliced tank is no big deal. Same guy that complained about the gay rights activist publishing addresses of high profile opponents of same sex marriage.

[gizmojumpjet]

Shots fired at Knoxville Bush-Cheney office; no one hurt
10/5/2004

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Gunshots shattered the plate-glass front doors of a local Bush-Cheney campaign headquarters Tuesday morning before volunteers reported to work.

"For someone to use that level of violence to try to make a political point, it is just a shock," said Chad Tindell, Knox County Republican chairman.

Police believe someone pulled up to the Kingston Pike Shopping Center storefront of Bush-Cheney Victory 2004, the state GOP's grass-roots support organization, between 6:45 and 7:15 a.m. ET and began firing.

No one was inside and no one was injured.

"We know there were at least two shots and possibly more," Knoxville police spokesman Darrell DeBusk said. Police were searching for bullet fragments and suspects.

Corey Johns, the local Bush-Cheney campaign coordinator, said the office had received no threats.

"You always have people stealing yard signs and things like that, and some people have done some pretty hateful things on both sides," he said. "But nothing of this magnitude."

Knox County Democratic chairman Jim Gray called the attack "despicable."

"I can't imagine what kind of thinking inspired it or maybe what amount of alcohol," Gray said. "My second thought is, maybe it was just someone who got tired of their darn Kerry signs being stolen."

A Bush-Cheney yard sign pierced by a bullet was salvaged from the broken glass on the floor and proudly hung on a campaign office wall.

"A .32 (caliber) maybe, if I would guess," state legislative candidate Stacey Campfield said, trying to gauge the bullet.

"Stuff like this galvanizes people," he said.

"I came down and saw the police and I thought, 'What a place to be,'" said Michele Statile, an excited first-day volunteer busy handing out buttons and brochures.

A bank robbery at a BB&T branch across the street about 11 a.m. heightened the activity. DeBusk said the robbery by a man on foot without a weapon was a coincidence.

Jo Catlett was the first campaign volunteer scheduled to work Tuesday. She arrived around 9 a.m. to find the doors broken and police already there.

"We have never had any problem," she said. "I don't know why someone would do that, but we are not afraid or scared. We are upset that somebody would do that."

Knox County and East Tennessee have been Republican strongholds since the Civil War.

Tindell said Bush-Cheney supporters lined up two-deep to get campaign material after the shooting. The office has given away 16,000 signs and 25,000 stickers since it opened four weeks ago.

Police promised to step up patrols both for the local Bush-Cheney office and Kerry-Edwards office until the election four weeks away. DeBusk said officers were interviewing employees in the shopping center for clues and checking security cameras for video of the shooter.

"You often hear during campaigns, whether it is presidential or local, of signs being stolen or vandalized, but this morning's shooting takes that to a new level," DeBusk said.

Protestors Ransack Bush/Cheney Headquarters In Orlando
2 People Receive Minor Injuries During Protest
October 5, 2004

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A group of protestors stormed and then ransacked a Bush-Cheney headquarters building in Orlando, Fla., Tuesday, according to Local 6 News.

Video
Protestors Storm, Ransack Bush-Cheney Headquarters In Orlando

Local 6 News reported that several people from the group of 100 Orlando protestors face possible assault charges after the group forced their way inside the Republican headquarters office.

While in the building, some of the protestors drew horns and a mustache on a poster of President George W. Bush and poured piles of letters in the office, according to the report.

"We told them to leave, they broke the law," Republican headquarters volunteer Mike Broom said.

Two protestors received minor injuries when the crowd stormed the building, including a Republican volunteer.

One of the protestors said she wanted to send a message.

"We want to send a clear message to Bush, we want him to take his hands off our overtime pay," protestor Esmeralda Heuilar said.

Local 6 News learned that most of the protestors were from the AFL-CIO and were taking part in one of 20 other coordinated protests around the country.

A spokesperson with the AFL-CIO told Local 6 News that the Orlando protest did not go as planned.

A protest similar to Orlando's demonstration was held at a Bush-Cheney office in Miami at the same approximate time, Local 6 News reported.

Three arrested in GOP headquarters vandalism
11/6/2004

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An apparent mob of vandals attacked the North Carolina Republican Party headquarters, causing minor smoke damage, breaking windows and leaving vulgar messages, police said.

Three people were arrested.

In addition to the damage, the vandals left a burned effigy depicting President Bush and Sen. John Kerry, police said.

A police officer reported Friday night that about 100 people wearing masks and gloves were walking down a street near the headquarters, police Capt. D.S. Overman said.

Officers investigating that report found a second group "vandalizing and damaging" the GOP headquarters, said police Maj. D.R. Lane.

The vandalism was a "planned and orchestrated event," police spokesman Jim Sughrue said.

"This is not a political statement," Sughrue said. "A political statement is what we made Tuesday. This is a crime."

The officers found several spent fireworks, poster boards with slogans and spray-painted expletives on the walls. At least two windows were broken and police said it appeared that the vandals tried to put incendiary devices inside the building.

"The people who did this are sick," said Kevin Howell, communications director for the state Republican Party. "People don't understand that debate and elections are part of the process. This isn't how you act."

Scott Falmlen, executive director of the North Carolina Democratic Party, also denounced those responsible for the incident.

The three people arrested were charged with malicious damage to property using an incendiary device, a felony, Lane said. They remained in custody Saturday afternoon in lieu of $50,000 bail each, a jail spokeswoman said.

Man arrested in GOP vandalism

Edited on Fri Dec-22-06 10:28 AM by Algorem
Man arrested in GOP vandalism

Police have arrested a man they think is responsible for repeatedly smashing windows at the Ohio Republican Party's state headquarters. Kenneth D. Thomas, 58, who lives at the downtown YMCA, was arrested and charged with criminal damaging after police saw him throw a rock through a second-story window at the GOP building Tuesday night. He is charged only in that incident, but police say they think he's responsible for 10 acts of vandalism. They will also talk with federal authorities because Thomas reportedly told officers that he thinks somebody should shoot President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney so that Democrats can take over. "He stated that Republicans are like cancer," said Sgt. Chantay Boxill.

Windows broken again in Columbus at HQ of Ohio GOP

Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Ted Wendling
Plain Dealer Bureau

Columbus - ...

A report on Friday's attack describes the suspect as white and between the ages of 20 and 30. It says he was wearing a white baseball cap, white tennis shoes, dark pants and a down jacket.

On Thanksgiving, however, police identified another suspect, describing him as white, 50, with graying brown hair and a beard.

"He is a known protester that has been seen damaging one of the windows this month," the report says...

"It's no coincidence this stuff happens every two years right before Election Day," fatuous gasbag Bennet said then. "Democrats love to complain about negative ads and gutter politics, but they turn a blind eye while their own activists engage in illegal and, at times, violent campaign tactics."...

It's amazing what throws the GOP into a whining hissy fit. They excuse much worse from their own, but this guy's a violent criminal because he busts windows at their blessed HQ.

If the allegations are true, this Kenneth D. Thomas is a criminal vandal and should pay for his crimes.

Unfortunately, his crimes are going to become the crimes of the Democratic party and any left activists the rw noise machine can name.

[Crossroads Inc.]

Yes Gizmo, there ARE violant wackos on the Left as well, But I couldn't help but notice that the Dates on your reports are about a month apart apiece.

I wonder if you able to show Left wing wacks even approaching one half the frequancy of voiolance as the right?

[Darth Wong]

Is that really the worst Gizmo can find? How does that compare to the recent attempted murder? Mind you, we're being pretty charitable by not including the Oklahoma City bombing, which was committed by the same demographic.

[Bakustra]

If the allegations are true, this Kenneth D. Thomas is a criminal vandal and should pay for his crimes.

Unfortunately, his crimes are going to become the crimes of the Democratic party and any left activists the rw noise machine can name.

So what exactly do you take exception with in this statement? Though your post is little else than an ad hominem tu quoque, this does not seem to fit at all, unless you're trying to castigate people for claiming that leaders of the Tea Party movement are somewhat culpable in this wave of events. However, if you are doing so, then your post is incomplete, since you would need prominent members of a national left-wing movement stirring up hostility and violence towards right-wingers, all the way back in 2004.

Now, for reference, DemocraticUnderground is not a prominent, national left-wing movement any more than Stormfront is. I want something of similar scope to the Tea Party movement.

[gizmojumpjet]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

[Darth Wong]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

OK, I can see that your cognitive abilities are not up to the task, so allow me to explain with an analogy: if I throw a brick at your face, I'm trying to seriously injure or perhaps even kill you. On the other hand, if I throw a brick at an empty store window early in the morning before anyone arrives, it's just vandalism. Do you understand now, or do you need further tutoring?

[Crossroads Inc.]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

I am not going to argue on "Intentions" Or that while cutting gas lines is a DIRECT Attempt, firing bullets randomly into a window may not be... I will simply state that if you are trying to make the argument "Well the Left is just as mean and nasty and Bad as the right" I would ask for evidence of the type of total and pervasive calls for violence we see in the right. Every aspect of it all the way from kooks at the bottom to prominent figures at the top are making calls for violence. And perhaps more damming, No One seems to be admonishing them for doing it. The fact the NO single person in all the Republican party is going "Gee, Plain putting Cross hairs on Polticians she doesn't like MIGHT not be a good idea" Is as daming as anything else.

Show me high ranking Democrats calling for violance, show me a total lack of condemnation on the Left of violence during the Bush years, and I will recend my comments.

[Darth Wong]

"Rescind", not "recend". Also, "damning", not "daming". I'll assume that "righ ranking" and "violance" were just careless typing, but what the fuck is up with the seemingly random capitalization?

[loomer]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

Let's look at total death counts.

Your sources for liberal violence = zero.

The Oklohoma City Bombing = 168.

Which is the bigger number?

[Darth Wong]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

Let's look at total death counts.

Your sources for liberal violence = zero.

The Oklohoma City Bombing = 168.

Which is the bigger number?

Don't forget abortion-related threats and violence.

[Edi]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

To add to what has already been said, are you at all fucking aware of what propane gas can do if a tank is punctured? Depending on the size of the tank, if it goes bada-boom, it can kill a lot of people and cause a lot of property damage in the vicinity. The tank itself is going to turn into shrapnel when the gas goes off, so yeah, it's a tad bit fucking more serious than firing bullets at the door of an office in the middle of the night when nobody is present.

[gizmojumpjet]

So the Tea Party movement is responsible not just for terrorist attacks that occurred ~15 years before it came into being, but all abortion related murders and violence as well?

Shit, since a lot of them are probably 2nd amendment advocates, let's go ahead and hold them responsible for all gun violence that occurs or has occurred anywhere ever while we're at it. That makes about as much sense.

[loomer]

Considering that there wasn't any unified leftist resistance movement in 2004, then we will hold the Right to the same standard of conspiracy and violent behaviour that you have just demonstrated. Seriously, you're opening a great big can of worms.

[Edi]

So the Tea Party movement is responsible not just for terrorist attacks that occurred ~15 years before it came into being, but all abortion related murders and violence as well?

Shit, since a lot of them are probably 2nd amendment advocates, let's go ahead and hold them responsible for all gun violence that occurs or has occurred anywhere ever while we're at it. That makes about as much sense.

You really are a stupid motherfucker, aren't you? How old are you? 17? 18? Still in your diapers?

I was following news actively (including American news) at the time of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and that and other similar smaller scale acts of violence and incitement to violence against abortion providers were coming precisely from the exact same fucking demographic that the Tea Party movement members are made of.

Maybe for a dimwit like you there is some kind of semantic difference, but the actual factual history of events makes drawing equivalency marks between the Tea Party and Tim McVeigh and his ilk quite justified. If assholes like you don't like that, tough shit. Maybe you should do a better job of rooting out your own nest first then.

[Gil Hamilton]

So a cut gas line counts as attempted murder but firing bullets into an office isn't?

Yes. A gas line, if attempted to be used while severed can result in a sizable explosion should the propane tank go up, and would certainly kill the user. That's not merely a prank, there is no way to take that but attempted murder. In the case of the bullets hitting that Bush-Cheney office, they aren't even sure what exactly happened, because no one was around for it. All they know is that sometime earlier that morning before anyone was there bullets hit that office. It's even possible that the gunfire was unrelated to the office. However, there is NO chance that the Tea Party publishing explicit instructions on how to get to the houses of FAMILY members of politicians they don't like and someone attempting to modify a propane grill into a firebomb is a coincidence.

This dodges the point, that currently what you are making a tu quoquo fallacy. You aren't addressing the OP or any content in this thread, that is, the increased level of violence exhibited by Teabaggers and that now their has been a clear murder attempt tied to them, by posting stories irrelevant to the topic. How about you respond on topic to those events, rather than trying to derail the thread with your irrelevant bullshit, huhn? Or maybe you have absolutely no response to this or excuse for the behavior of the Teabaggers, but think that if you post articles that put the supposed other side on the defensive, you can still argue without actually arguing about the topic at hand?

[Shroom Man 777]

You never saw the opposite side of the political spectrum call for this kind of shit when the Bush junta was in power.

[wautd]

The current teabaggers remind me of the nazi brownshirts during the 20's and 30's. With the main difference that Big Business waited to screw the Sturmabteilung over only after they seized power.