Quote Originally Posted by Fengzi
The big difference between the U.S. and somewhere like China and North Korea is that when issues of illegal assembly come up it is more often in regards to the "where and when" that the "what".

Should we have the right to assemble and protest? Of course. No doubt about it. But what if that assembly takes place on private property? Do the prostesters' rights outweigh those of the property owners? What if the protest takes place on a major thoroughfare in a large city? Do the protesters have the right to tie up traffic, disrupting the business in the area, preventing emergency vehicles from passing through?

I hate Bush as much as any logical sane person but come on people, we need to use commen sense. The next time you want to bitch, and say we live in a police state, because some protester is forcibly removed from some pro-Bush function think about this: What if some Bush supporter decided to protest your opinion on your front lawn? How long before you forcibly removed them? Does that make you a Nazi too
Hey, Fengzi, I understand your point and largely agree... But mrdevious raises a good point. I live in the Boston area (yes, a bastion of progressive, liberal, some might say, "godless secular humanism" ) and a couple of years ago there was another national election looming and a year under our belt in Iraq. Anyway, the convergent forces of a democratic primary and the growing opposition to the dip shit in the white house made the soil ripe for civil disobedience. Consequently, local law enforcement officials urged local news broadcasters to inform viewers that acts of civil disobedience would not be tolerated, which they did.

My point is there seems to be a sense of helplessness regarding the "WHAT" and not so much the where and when. I only need to look at the conspiracy threads to assess that much (they ooze with apathy and victimization). I'd actually be relieved and more optimistic about the future to see some physical protests from anyone under the age of 50 in the U.S., and I don't care if they do it on my front lawn... hell, I'll even throw in the chips, dip and free bail for the first one hauled off to jail.

Of course all deals are off if a group of Neo Cons decide to protest on my lawnâ?¦ :thumbsup: