Justice For Andy Ngo

For John, BLUF:  AntiFa seems to hate freedom of the press and hate Reporters who do not adhere to their party line.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Judge rules three of Andy Ngo's Antifa attackers must pay him $100,000 each

From Hot Air, by Reporter John Sexton, 22 August 2023, 7:20 PM.

Here is the lede plus three:

A small amount of justice at last in this case.

Earlier this month Andy Ngo’s civil trial against members of Rose City Antifa went to trial. As I explained here, the trial only involved two defendants, John Hacker and Elizabeth Richter, because three other defendants had been found “in default,” meaning they were found liable (the judge would determine the amount of that liability after the trial). One additional defendant had settled the case with Ngo prior to the trial. The trial of the remaining two defendants resulted in the jury siding with the defense.

. . .

Ngo tried to have the verdict overturned given that Hacker had admitted the incident in the gym but the judge didn’t allow it.

Yesterday, the judge issued his decision on the remaining three people who’d been found in default prior to the trial. Each of them was ordered to pay Ngo $100,000.

I am glad to see justice finally given to Reporter Andy Ngo.  I ad been disappointed in the jury.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Change the Voting Age?

For John, BLUF:  We won't let an 18 year old buy a gun, but we let them vote.  Weird.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Ramaswamy proposes raising voting age to 25, unless people serve in military or pass a test

From ABC News, by Reporter Meg Kinnard, 9:04 PM EDT, 11 May 2023.

Here is the lede plus two:

Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy on Thursday voiced support for changing the overall U.S. voting age to 25, unless younger Americans fulfill at least six months of service in the military or as a first responder — or pass the same citizenship test administered to those seeking to become naturalized citizens.

Ramaswamy’s campaign announced the biotech entrepreneur and “anti-woke” activist’s push for a U.S. Constitutional amendment promoting “civic duty voting,” which he announced in a news release and detailed during a campaign event in Urbandale, Iowa.

Revising the Constitution is no simple task, requiring overwhelming support in Congress and in state legislatures.  Still, Ramaswamy said in his release that the “absence of national pride is a serious threat to the future of our country” and argued his proposal “can create a sense of shared purpose and responsibility amongst young Americans to become educated citizens.”

Law Professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds chimed in, noting he had proposed something similiar in USA Today.

I agree with Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Professor Reynolds.  Observing college canpus life from afar, I am not impressed with the capacity of college students to engage in spirited, yet civil, discussion.  Throw in AntiFa, to furthur erode civil discourse.  And what about those who never went to college.  How many of them are registered to vote and understand the issues?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Looking for Justice, Andy Ngo Version

For John, BLUF:  The conflict between Anftifa and a free press has been around for a couople of years.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Portland's Antifa 'Justice' Strikes Again

From PJ Media, by Reporter Victoria Taft, 16 NOVEMBER 2022, 9:17 AM.

Here is the lede plus two:

A Portland “anti-fascist” activist has been found not guilty of being a fascist by roughing up a journalist and stealing his phone because he didn’t like what the reporter said about his Antifa friends.  After the Portland judge let off the notorious Portland Antifa attacker, he delivered a lecture to the victim, reporter Andy Ngo.

There’s your justice, Portland.

Ngo sought justice in court for three-and-a-half years against John Hacker, one of a mob of activists that has made a point to follow, chase, hassle, and attack Ngo multiple times.

Is there justice to be found in Portland, Oregon?  Is that part of Oregon really part of America?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Progressives Hurting Democrats?

For John, BLUF:  The question is, is it true that Progressive Policies hurt Democratic Party Candidates?  I think that from the viewpoint of President Biden, who believes he represents "Truth, Justice and a Better Tomorrow," it is all good.  We may get a clue on 2 November, when Virginia votes for a new Governor.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Deutsch:  ‘The AOCs of the World or the Far-Left Are Suicide for the Democrats’

From Breitbaart, by Mr Trent Baker, 18 October 2021.

Here is the lede plus one:

MSNBC contributor Donny Deutsch on Monday issued a warning to members of the Democratic Party about the far-left wing of the party, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).

On “Morning Joe,” Deutsch said that the far-left wing is “suicide” for the Democratic Party.  He called on the party to “get some new faces” closer to the center because the socialists pulling the party to the left could spell “disaster.”

Host Joe Scarborough stated, “All I have heard over the past year — it’s been remarkable — is I am going to grip my teeth and vote for Joe Biden because Donald Trump is a fascist, and he is a threat to the American way of life.  But, if I had any excuse to vote against the Democrats, I would do it because they are so progressive and so wildly out of step with mainstream America.”

First off, it appears former Congressman Joe Scarborough doesn't understand fascism.  Understandable, because weither does the AntiFa movement, which is, aside from the "nationalism" part, very fascist.

Secondly, I would like to follow the dictate of Napoleon Bonaparte, who said:  "Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."  Alas, 2022 is not promised to the Republicans.  We need to garner what fortitude we have and go after the Democrafts  We need to follow a course that promises to unbind the economy and let the People return to normal.  Getting the economy back to a relatively normal, unguided by the hand of Government, will work magic on the Nation.

Hat tip to my Wife.

Regards  —  Cliff

Violence Against Politicians

For John, BLUF:  Is AntiFa a global organization, like Communism, or is it a bunch of individual organiations, each doing its own thing?  In other worse, does the AntiFa in Portland pretty much agree wiht the AntiFa in Germany?  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Far-Left Antifa Extremists Threaten to Kill 53 Populist German Politicians

Here is the sub-headline:

Antifa far-left extremists have called for the murder of 53 members of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD), publishing their home addresses on a well-known far-left web platform.

from Breitbaart, by Reporter Chris Tomlinson, 2 October 2021.

Here is the lede plus two:

The German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) confirmed the existence of the posts, which were made on Indymedia, the far-left web platform which has been used in the past to post credit for far-left attacks and other calls for violence against the AfD.

The BKA confirmed to German magazine Focus that several posts made on September 13th had called for violence against the populist party, with one saying: “Let’s kill the AfD pigs with explosives.”

A Google search cache seen by Breitbart London confirms the existence of the posts on Indymedia, but the articles have been either deleted or moved, as a message states “access denied” when attempting to view the page.

I know the Democrats lost the Congressional Baseball Game this year, a charity event, but this seems like a bit of an extreme reaction.

Mr James Hodgkinson, of Belleville, Illinois, the shooter on 14 June 2017, was a one off.♠  That said, it is the worst act of terrorism against Congress since the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party shot up Congress on 1 March 1954, wounding five CongressCritters.

Isn't it time for Progressives to come out and condemn this kind of AntiFa talk?  Killing Politicians is not necessarily a value free action.  Others will likely be hurt.  Are we so obsessed with the "right" that we see it as a free fire zone?  I hope not. Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  It is interesting to me that the vaunted Wikipedia does not hve an entry for Mr Hodgkinson, although they do mention him in their entry for the Congressional Baseball shooting itself.  Why?  I wonder.  Is it because Mr Hodgkinson was a "Bernie Bro"?  Is it because it flows counter to the theme that the problem is terrorism on the right?

A Hot Time in Portland

For John, BLUF:  Yes, mostly peaceful demonstrations.  It is the not mostly part that worries me.  While the demonstrators may feel they are cowing the people, but it could backfire and turn really ugly.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

'They're Trying to Kill Me.'  A Portland Antifa Death Squad Goes Head Hunting for Andy Ngo and Somebody Gets a Beatdown

From PJ Media, by Ms Victoria Taft, 31 May 2021, 11:42 PM ET.

Here is the lede plus four:

Ronald Reagan said in his farewell address, “don’t be afraid to see what you see.”  That’s good advice for what we’re “seeing” on the streets of Portland.

The communist antifa and Black Lives Matter, Inc. mobs have now elevated their war footing against western civilization and have begun deploying head hunting death squads it appears.  What else can you call it?

On Friday, May 28, the usual black masked mobs slithered “like water” – their favorite phrase for staying hidden and moving from cops – to hold another planned riot and torching in “grief-stricken” homage to the anniversary of their George Floyd riots.

Antifa called it an “anniversary event” and Portland Police begged the mob to be nice.

Local weekly newspaper, Willamette Week, reported that Ngo was on the antifa hit list because of his “willingness to post the mug shots and other personal information of arrested protesters [that] caused many of the people in Portland’s leftist movement to see him as something like an existential threat.”

Remember when newspapers used to post mug shots?  Before the mob take over, antifa and BLM riots mug shots were de rigueur in the media.  Now, they’re an apparent invitation to beating any reporter including them in a story.  Reporters like Suzette Smith of Willamette Week and at least one reporter over at the alternative weekly The Mercury appear to be all-in with the mob.

Remember when "the Mob" used to mean the Mafia, the Costa Nostra?  That was the old days.  Now the mob is the collective of street thugs affiliated with ANTIFA and Black Lives Matter.  Neither of those groups seems to feel the current system of government is capable of dealing with America's problems and have elected to go outside the elective process and to go with intimidation.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Who Are the Police?

For John, BLUF:  For over a year now we have had groups carving out their own little territories, like CHAZ in Seattle.  This is not a good will to build a peaceful, happy, community.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Portland BLM/Antifa Draw Guns on Drivers to Enforce No-Go Zone in Broad Daylight

From J Media, by Reporter Victoria Taft, 7 May 2021, 9:36 AM ET.

Here is the lede plus one:

Portland’s revolutionaries from Black Lives Matter and antifa took over a busy street at noon on Wednesday and pulled guns on drivers who dared try to dart past the mob.  The groups were holding a rally for a gangland shooter who was killed by police in 2018.  That shooting was ruled justified (more below).

The chaotic scene included guns being drawn on white drivers by the multiracial BLM and antifa protesters and one driver drew his own weapon in reply.  Someone deployed pepper spray.

I don't think this is a good trend.  For a long time we have depended on the Police to police our streets.  Now, in some parts of the country, we are leaving it to private armies.  Are we turning into Mexico?

Some people think they are building a better America, but they are, in fact, destroying the fabric of our society and creating an alternative culture, and not a good one.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Class in America in Action

For John, BLUF:  There are signs that peaceful protests that turn into riots extractic a high cost from the People they are supposed to be helping.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Working-class people of color hate the riots the lefty elite keeps cheering

From The NY Post, by Professor Glenn H. Reynolds, 29 April 2021, 7:28pm.

Here is the lede plus one:

When Americans fight about race or culture, the fight is almost always really about social class.  And that shows up in today’s discussions about riots and policing.

The Daily Caller recently sent a video correspondent to Brooklyn Center, Minn., scene of many police-shooting-related riots, and to Washington, DC, home of America’s ruling class, and asked people in both places when and if rioting was justified.  The answers differed sharply.

Remember, this is The New York Post, which, during the last national election had to be clamped down by Twitter for blurting out the truth about Mr Hunter Biden's laptop computer.  Who knows what kind of wild things they might publish.

The opinion piece ends:

That’s why the cavalier attitude of so many Democrats toward riots makes sense.  Democrats are now the party of Wall Street, Silicon Valley and upscale suburbs.  The people who have to deal with consequences will have to go somewhere else politically.  And they will.

We could be seeing the continuation of a major change in who supports which political party.  Yes, the Democratic Party always had its elite components, such as Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt, but the Republican Party was identified as the Party of Business.  This has been shifting for some time.  Yes, the Democrats, in the 1960s, took the Civil Rights Plank from the Republican Platform and made it their own.  In doing so they seemed to sluff off other [all] working class people.  And, now, it has become a class divide.

When Pollsters and Commentators note that college educated voters go Democrat, they are noting, but not noticing the class divide.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Battle Lines Among Friends

For John, BLUF:  As talk of eliminating the filibuster shows, there are those who would "destroy the village in order to save it".  That seems foolish, unless the Democratic Party believes HR-1 would give them a permanent lock on elections.  That would be foolish.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

BATTLE LINES BEING DRAWN

From Powerline Blog, by Blogger John Hinderaker, 18 MARCH 2021.

Here is the lede plus one:

The conflict in which we are now engaged is stark.  The Left hates America and wants to destroy (or “fundamentally transform”) it.  The Democratic Party, having drunk the Critical Race Theory kool-aid, is now openly anti-American.  So those are the battle lines: on one side, those who love our country and want to preserve it.  On the other, those who hate our country and want to destroy it.

Unfortunately, our public education system is almost 100% in the hands of the haters, organized and mobilized by the teachers’ unions.  Our children are steadily being indoctrinated in anti-Americanism.  But here and there, a few politicians stick up for our country.

Two he mentions are Governor Ron DeSantis, of Florida, and Governor Kristi Noem, of South Dakota.  Both look good to me for 2024.

One thing that needs to be made clear, at the beginning, is the problem with extremism.  If we get to regarding the other side as being impervious to negotiation and compromise, not part of the Democratic process, then we have damaged the thing we value, our democracy.  They may be dirty, rotten, pinko communist blowhards (DRPCB), but they are our Brothers and Sisters.  The may hate our system of Government and our social standards, but they are working within them,♠  and so should we.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Except for ANTIFA, and their ilk.  They wish to go straight to revolution, in order to establish a Bolivarian like revolution, a la Venezuala.  They would be talking violence to establish and maintain such an arrangement.

Portland Evovling

For John, BLUF:  The Police "kettled" the protestors (read ANTIFA), which means placing a police cordon around a group of demonstrators.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Police detain more than 100 Portland protesters in apparent kettling

From Oregon Live, by Reporter Jayati Ramakrishnan, 13 March 2021, 12:11 AM.

Here is the lede plus three:

Portland police detained a crowd of over 100 protesters during a Friday night demonstration, stemming a march only minutes after it began.

The mass detainment was an apparent use of kettling, a police tactic of surrounding a crowd and containing people within a perimeter.  Police told the crowd they were detaining everyone within the boundary for the “investigation of a crime” but did not specify the nature of the alleged crime.

Demonstrators initially gathered in the Pearl District about 8:30 p.m. and started marching roughly a half-hour later.  Police threatened to arrest protesters minutes after the march started, saying those walking in the street were blocking traffic and would be subject to arrest, citation or crowd control munitions if they didn’t move.

Police announced about 9:20 p.m. they were setting up a perimeter around the group and detaining everyone.  Police said the detention was “temporary” and that they would remove demonstrators “one at a time.”

And here is the view from Breitbart:

Portland Police Bureau officers surrounded and temporarily detained about 100 Antifa protesters after they vandalized multiple businesses in the Pearl District.  Police identified and photographed all of the protesters, and some journalists, and placed 13 people under arrest.

Portland police report a group of people began marching in the street and blocking traffic at about 9 p.m. on Friday, according to a statement from police officials.  Officials advised the protesters to get out of the open roadway.  The group refused to comply and began marching down the roadway.

The Breitbart article makes it sound like the Portland Policer Bureau has decided to take back its City.  If you look at Reporter Michael Yon's post on the issue, 13 arrested.  There are reports of attacks on a Federal Court House.  Is the Department of Justice protecting our Federal Judges?

Meanwhile, Thursday, The Oregonian reported:

Mayor Ted Wheeler seeks $2 million to bring back uniformed police team to address spike in shootings

A funny thing about resources is they only go so far.  Protection of the People♠ is why folks pay taxes to their local government.  If the People can't enjoy their life, then the point of paying taxes is lost.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  There is the theory that the Police are there to protect the perps from a vengeful Citizenry.  I would not dismiss that too lightly.

Where Are We Now?

For John, BLUF:  Last Summer the Black Lives Matter marchers, and ANTIFA, were threatening the Nation, one block at a time.  This is from that period.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

BLM leader:  If change doesn’t happen, then ‘we will burn down this system’

From The New York Post, by Reporter Mark Moore, 25 June 2020, 9:19am.

Here is the lede plus two:

The president of Greater New York Black Lives Matter said that if the movement fails to achieve meaningful change during nationwide protests over George Floyd’s killing by Minneapolis police officers, it will “burn down this system.”

“If this country doesn’t give us what we want, then we will burn down this system and replace it.  All right?  And I could be speaking figuratively.  I could be speaking literally.  It’s a matter of interpretation,” Hawk Newsome said during an interview Wednesday evening on “The Story” with Martha MacCallum.

“Let’s be very real,” he told the Fox News host.  “Let’s observe the history of the 1960s, when black people were rioting.  We had the highest growth in wealth, in property ownership.  Think about the last few weeks since we started protesting.  There have been eight cops fired across the country.”

The question is, how will this Summer turn out.  The election of Democrat Joe Biden is no guarantee of peace in the streets.  Further, in some Cities Police forces have been reduced.

It could be a very interesting Summer.  I wish President Biden and his Administration the very best of luck.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Whither Portland

For John, BLUF:  I get the need to fix homelessness, which requires jobs, housing and social mores, as well as mental health care.  This will require elected leadership, which, so far, appears to be absent.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Death Of A City:  The Portland Story?

From Forbes, by Senior Contributor Bill Coner ly, 28 January 2021, 07:30am EST.

Here is the lede plus three:

How long does it take for a city to die?  Downtowns across the country have emptied due to the pandemic, causing many stores and restaurants to close.  Suburbs are doing much better, in many cases hardly touched by the recession.  But in Portland, Oregon, continued violence and vandalism have combined with high housing costs, homelessness and poor community leadership to raise the question:  how long before this city dies?

Portland has been doing well for years, and current problems are not certain to end the city’s life.

But without significant change, decline is certain. In many other cities, leaders stepped up to the challenge and saved their cities. That will probably happen in Portland, but there are few signs of change at this point.

Cities can die. Death can be sudden, as with Pompei, or gradual, as with the Mayan city of Tikal and the Jordanian city of Petra.  The United States abounds with ghost towns in the mining country as well as communities left behind by economic change.  Down the road from Portland are a number of mill towns that have emptied out.

The Marxists trying to impose their view of how society should operate are not bringing about useful change, but are making life miserable for those they come in contact with.

We, as Americans, need to unite and work together for a better society, one based on reality and an understanding of economics and social interaction.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Hypocrisy

For John, BLUF:  Andy Ngo knows rioting, having followed ANTIFA this last year.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Rage at Capitol assault makes excuses for summer riots all the more disgraceful

From The New York Post, by Reporter Andy Ngo, 8 January 2021.

Here is the lede plus three:

Wednesday’s mob assault on Capitol Hill was shocking and brazen:  Hundreds of MAGA-hat-wearing rioters broke into the seat of American democracy.  They stormed the halls, looting property and assaulting law enforcers, all in service of an absurd political demand:  reversing the outcome of an election.

Now where had I witnessed such scenes before?  The answer:  in blue-governed cities in my native Pacific Northwest throughout last summer and into the fall and winter.

The right-wing political violence was met with universal rebuke from politicians of both parties and the media.  But many of those who are loudest in condemning the Capitol Hill riot went radio-silent when rioters destroyed and looted in the name of Black Lives Matter.

Last May, thousands of rioters in Minneapolis brought the city to its knees after the police-involved death of George Floyd.  Over three days, rioters burned down a police station, looted hundreds of businesses and burned entire neighborhoods to the ground.  Mass street violence also broke out in Washington, DC, New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle and dozens of other cities; at least two dozen died in the course of the riots.

Yes, the folks breaking into the Capitol and those doing damage (or stealing laptops) did wrong.  Those people should be prosecuted, unlike what we did with last year's rioters.

On the other hand, the net of guilt needs to not be thrown too wide.  That would be hypocrisy, especially on the part of Democrats, who managed to excuse a lot of what happened last year.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Happening on the Streets

For John, BLUF:  It is time to be careful out on the streets, and to avoid going to places that are a little dodgy.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Prominent Black Conservative Bevelyn Beatty Stabbed in the Back… Multiple Proud Boys Stabbed in DC (VIDEO)

From The Gateway Pundit, by Reporter Cassandra Fairbanks, 4 November 2020.

Here is the lede plus three:

Pro-Trump activist Bevelyn Beatty and multiple Proud Boys were stabbed in DC while attempting to help another person who was being assaulted.

Proud Boys founder Enrique Tarrio tells Gateway Pundit that he was slashed in the stomach, Beatty was stabbed in the back, and multiple other members of the men’s social group were stabbed and are now hospitalized with serious wounds.

A law enforcement confirmed to TGP that the group was walking down the street, away from the protests, when they saw an older man being stabbed and intervened.

Tarrio tells TGP that the injuries are “very serious, but not life threatening.” He says they were walking to their cars when they saw a man getting stabbed and “got involved.” He says the attackers were Black Lives Matter supporters.

We are ignoring much of the violence that is ongoing in our communities.

Hat tip to Michael Yon.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Short Range Future

For John, BLUF:  Reporter Michael Yon brings a fresh set of eyes to the problems in Portland.  As General David Petraeus once asked:  "Tell me how this ends."  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Dispatch 15:  Return to America:  Ebbs and Flows

From Michael's Dispatches, by Reporter Michael Yon, 5 October 2020.

Here are three key paragraphs on Portland:

Ebbs and Flows: Media reports about Portland fighting abating.  The authors of those articles often attach unstudied analysis in the form of wishful thinking.  Not to be confused with positive thinking.

I do not sense the Portland fighting will suddenly abate and vanish.  My current feel is that ANTIFA/BLM in Portland has eroded its support base.  BUT, the Antifa terrorists still are energetic, highly emotional, and their moods will be affected by, yet transcend, 2020 elections.

My sense is this will go on no matter the results of the elections.  Potential terrorists without a cause have been assigned a cause.  Local government here is amazingly weak-minded, feeble-minded, creating a vacuum that terrorists have filled.

The Media, the Fourth Estate, seems to be ignoring the long term issues of what is happening in Portland.  The danger is that it will not wind down as winter comes.  The additional danger is that it will spread to other parts of the nation.  I think we are playing with fire here and we don't realize it.

Regards  —  Cliff

Portland, the Future

For John, BLUF:  Aside from Andy Ngo, no one seeemed to have been reporting on the underside of protests (and associated rioting, looting and burning) in Portland and other locations.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Dispatch 13:  Portland Peril:  Mayorial Election:  ANTIFA and KKK are terror organizations

From Michael's Dispatches, by Reporter Michael Yon, 30 September 2020.

Here is the lede plus three:

I've been talking with various law enforcement here in Portland.  Morale very low.  Chance they will walk off after next Mayorial election in November?  I do not know, but that number is significantly higher than zero.

Current Mayor, Ted Wheeler, is weak and indecisive.  Too weak to clean up this town.

Challenger, Sarah Iannarone, overtly sympathizes with the terror group euphemistically known as ANTIFA.  I was at their BLM/ANTIFA protest Saturday night where they called for mass arson and genocide against white people, demanding, "White people!  We got your attention now!?"  (Answer:  Yes.)

During my Monday interview with John Batchelor and Gordon Chang, we talked offline about John's experiences from the 1960s counterculture.  John cautioned that he knows people who were arrested and it "ruined their lives."  John said this numerous times:  "Ruined their lives."

Mr Michael Yon is a former Special Forces soldier and a free lance reporter from Afghnistan to Iraq and beyond.  He is well qualified to talk about terrorism and insurgency.

I wonder if lives will, indeed, be ruined in these days of no consequences for those arrested.  It doesn't appear that way these days, but memories are long and records can be squirreled away in many places.

I recommend folks follow Michael for a while to see what he uncovers and intuits about the situation.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

"No Police, No Peace"

For John, BLUF:  Freelance Reporter Michael Yon is back in the United States and prowling around the Portland area.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Michael Yon Online Magazine

Here is the sub-headline:

Dispatch 12: Return to America: Portland -- No Police, No Peace

This will be a blog worth following for a while.  Michael Yon know insurgency.

Regards  —  Cliff

Hiding Until Time

For John, BLUF:  To foment change it is often good to be a chameleon until it is time.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Quite a powerful phantom, Antifa.

From The Althouse Blog, 10 June 2020.

Here is the Tweet:

Megan McArdle
Antifa is a bogeyman, little more than a figment of overheated right-wing imaginations. Also, they just declared an autonomous zone covering several blocks in Seattle, and are planning to expand their territory.
1,364 8:48 PM - Jun 10, 2020

I don't expect to hear much about the Seattle Commune, as it goes counter to the narrative.

For sure, we will not hear much about Antifa until it is ready to make its move, which Ma be never.

Hat tip to Ann Althouse.

Regards  —  Cliff

Antifa Protests Those Protesting the Government Lockdown (Germany)

For John, BLUF:  And I had thought that the dreaded Antifa was found mostly around US college campuses.  I was wrong.  Here it is in Germany.  However, I doubt it exists in Russia or Mainland China or North Korea.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Antifa protests against ending the lockdown in Germany

From The Post Millennial, by Reporter Collin Jones, 25 May 2020.

Here is the lede plus four:

Police deployed water cannons on Saturday in an effort to break up an antifa demonstration that was disrupting an anti-lockdown rally in Hamburg, Germany.

The authorities were called to action after 120 antifa counter-protesters, dressed in black hoodies, consistently ignored requests to steer clear of the "Vigil for the Basic Law" rally against the lockdown measures.

The initial lockdown protest featured those who insisted that the government reopen the economy.  This group was given the go-ahead to move forward with their event after the organizers agreed to keep the limit of attendees below 750 as opposed to the thousands who would usually be allowed to show up if not for social distancing measures installed due to the pandemic.

The protestors who were permitted to be out were obeying social distancing protocols, and asking that the government make testing more available as opposed to keeping everyone quarantined.

But it did not take long before antifa counter-protesters took to the streets to ironically side of the government against those who simply want to get back to work.

Signs saying "Vigil for the Basic Law" mean Vigil for the Constitution, since the German "Basic Law" is what we would call the Constitution.

My Wife's comment to me:  "They just want the Government to fail."  That makes sense, so the Antifa crowd can capitalize on the ensuing chaos to install their own Fascist system.  Individual freedom take the hindmost.

If we keep in mind the Antifa crowd hates those who think for themselves, those who do not conform to Antifa current thinking, it is at least capable of being binned.  Otherwise they make no sense.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Crushing Dissent at UMass Amherst

For John, BLUF:  While I have my doubts about academic freedom over the years, it has always been a conceit of the academics that academic freedom existed.  Maybe it does, somewhere.  As for UMass Amherst, it is doubtful.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Criminalizing Dissent

The funny thing is it is the student who is being attacked for dissent, dissent against the current political orthodoxy of the faculty.

From The American Thinker, by Lawyers Karen D. Hurvitz and Ilya I. Feoktistov, 16 February 2020.

Here is the lede plus one:

Louis Shenker, a 21-year-old junior at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, just wanted his MAGA hat back from the graduate student who ripped it off his head on campus.  He wore the hat to a December 6, 2018 protest organized by the university’s graduate student union against Trump and local police.  Video shows that when Louis, who is 5’6’’ and 140 pounds, arrived wearing the MAGA hat and holding a large sign, he was immediately surrounded by a hostile mob of older grad students cursing at him and calling him a white supremacist.  A woman lunged from the mob and snatched Louis’s MAGA hat.  Careful not to get caught on camera hitting Louis with their hands, they instead mobbed him like a colony of enraged penguins, using their bodies to push him from all sides, occasionally pecking at his head with their cardboard signs, and chanting in unison:  “THE PEOPLE, UNITED, WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED.”

“Get the f**k out of here, you shouldn’t be in an anti-racist march!” screamed the hat thief.  A soft-spoken professor in the crowd warned Louis:  “It’s actually dangerous for you to come by yourself like that.”  As the protesters began to march and Louis tried to keep up while pleading for his hat, many of them, including several graduate student union members dressed in United Auto Workers gear, elbowed Louis into walls, lampposts, and other obstacles.  “You act like a Nazi, you’re going to get treated like a Nazi,” a female protester yelled at the Jewish grandson of Holocaust victims.  Louis left without his hat.

A month later, Louis was horrified to recognize the woman who stole his MAGA hat as Beth Peller, a 36-year-old grad student who would be teaching his mandatory freshman writing class.  Louis could not change his schedule, so he shaved his head and mustache, prayed that she would not recognize him, and wrote the essays she assigned with the correct leftist opinions she all but demanded.  Beth regaled her students with war stories about her time organizing violent anarchist movements, but never recognized the seemingly complaisant student as her victim from the protest.  Louis got an A.

And on it goes, until the University made it impossible for him to take his finals and he was, effectively, expelled from the University.♠  At least he has lawyers and the basic Rights of Englishmen still apply.

Shouldn't UMass Amherst be working on changing its name, as it changed its mascot due to being embarrassed by the past actions of Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, KB, after whom the whole shoot'ed match is named.

As a Massachusetts Resident, and as an American, I am embarrassed by UMass Amherst.  What is the head of the UMass System, President Marty Meehan, doing here?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠ On the other hand, it may be lucky for him.  He could end up going to a serious university.