Wake Up America!

It's hard to believe this very scary bill was signed without much fanfare. Are we going to sit back and allow Barack Obama and his team of Chicago thugs to take away ALL our rights before we stand up to him?

As disgusted as I am with Mr. Obama... I'm twice as mad at the members of Congress who signed this piece of crappy legislation and plan to let my representatives know of my disapproval in no uncertain terms.

It's time to clean house in DC, folks. Unless Obama's successful in declaring martial law and taking away our right to vote before November, we must go to the polls and vote these suckers out.

(note the source: we're back on the same side now)

It's a felony now to protest within earshot of a politician who has secret service protection. You could spend a year in jail for holding a sign across the street from a hotel where an elected official is conducting a rally. This is the scariest thing I've seen in the last 3 years. Where's the outrage, folks?

 

The only outrage would come from the state-run media, and they're on his side.

 

Must be why I saw the story this morning on Fox News. Totally disgusting nobody else is interested.

 

Just how many politicians do you think get Secret Service protection?

 

I guess there's one way to find out, eh? Carry a protest sign to the next political rally you attend. If you're snatched up and sent to jail... that one's got SS protection.

 

You know..I've always wanted to be a kept woman..And the older I get, I realize it's going to be difficult to impossible to find someone willing to keep me..

I think I'll try a protest sign..

 

Who sponsored the bill?

Oh yeah, that would be congressman Rooney, of Florida, a republican.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=412311

 

That doesn't seem to be the case (the trick is to read the actual bill rather than the politicially motivated trash talking about it).

 

Might as well just get out 1st amendment and scribble it off with a sharpie marker.

what a disgrace.

 

Sorry to hear about your gas problem. Try not eating so much broccoli.

 

All Good Now!

 

Several people associated with OWS were complaining about this, see this thread:

http://www.politicalforum.com/curre...-occupy-h-r-347-makes-free-speech-felony.html

It was well reported on reddit, and the firestorm from the OWS people commenting was pretty impressive.

This affects both the tea party and ows demonstrators in a big way, and it should be challenged in court.

 

Oh, and to add, I'd read that it passed unanimously in the Senate and that only 3 members of the house voted against it. Notably, Ron Paul did vote against it.

Hows all that Tea Party Patriotism workin out there? Seems that the Tea Party really wasn't the answer either.

It comes down to the big money boys own our government, and the way taxes and lobbying work right now I don't see that changing.

 

Yes, I believe I mentioned that in the OP. It's time for a house-cleaning in DC. If they don't protect our freedoms, they all need to go.

 

Amazingly, the bill you cited, which was signed into law apparently, went through our democratic process and received overwhelmingly bipartisan support, according to your link.

Why blame a single person when so many, including those int eh party you favor, participated in it's passage? Especially considering the House is Republican controlled?

I fault the president for many things, but I have a hard time faulting him specifically for the actions of hundreds.

 

Guess I missed that. It bears repeating though so everyone keeps that fresh in their minds though, that no person in our Federal system stood up for the American Rights to protest.

I disagree with how you made it sound like it was only Obama and the Chicago guys who ramrodded this through. This was everyone in congress and Obama, the whole shebang should get a ton of angry hate mail, unless they make that a felony next.

 

Maybe you could enlighten us on how this bill is actually GOOD FOR US?

(not the politicians, mind you... WE THE PEOPLE)

 

He could've refused to sign it. He bears as much blame as anybody else.

Where's the outrage, TFM? Do you like watching your rights dribble away under this administration?

 

Here is the summary:

2/6/2012--Passed Senate amended. (This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the Senate on November 17, 2011. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to revise the prohibition against entering restricted federal buildings or grounds to impose criminal penalties on anyone who knowingly enters any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority. Defines "restricted buildings or grounds" as a posted, cordoned off, or otherwise restricted area of: (1) the White House or its grounds or the Vice President's official residence or its grounds, (2) a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the Secret Service is or will be temporarily visiting, or (3) a building or grounds so restricted due to a special event of national significance.

Now i know that freedoms are often slowly chipped away, not wiped out all at once. And i also know that statists love to pass multitudes of laws. But i do not see the alarm in this. You must have 'restricted buildings or grounds', which are defined as 'posted, cordoned off, or otherwise restricted area'.

Most law abiding citizens would not enter a cordoned off area to protest.

I am mostly surprised that there would not be a law that addresses this already in place.

Now, if there is something more sinister in the complete bill, then someone should alert us.

We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society." ~Hillary Clinton

Fanaticism consists in redoubling your efforts when you have forgotten your aim. ~George Santayana

"Never ascribe to malice that which can adequately be explained by incompetence." ~Napoleon Bonaparte

 

Indeed, as much as anyone else.

Yet your argument made some outrageous claim about "Barack Obama and his team of Chicago thugs".

Our rights?

The actual summary of the bill.

2/6/2012--Passed Senate amended. (This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the Senate on November 17, 2011. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to revise the prohibition against entering restricted federal buildings or grounds to impose criminal penalties on anyone who knowingly enters any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority. Defines "restricted buildings or grounds" as a posted, cordoned off, or otherwise restricted area of: (1) the White House or its grounds or the Vice President's official residence or its grounds, (2) a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the Secret Service is or will be temporarily visiting, or (3) a building or grounds so restricted due to a special event of national significance.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h112-347&tab=summary

You have a right to trespass? Show me where that is in the Constitution.

 

My guess, given the current trend, would be the right to think thoughts that haven't been officially approved by the State. They just lack sufficient enforcement technology.

.

 

But I have little doubt that if the control-freak portion of the current political landscape could somehow enforce "correct thinking", THEY WOULDN'T HESITATE!

 

I never said it was. I was just pointing out your misinterpretation of it (or echoing of someone else's misinterpretation, which is why I suggested reading it yourself before making statements about it).

In principal, I think this kind of law can benefit normal people as it aims to prevent a tiny minority of aggressive campaigners gaining a disproportionate impact on the democratic process by engaging in high-profile, low-content protests getting media attention by disrupting events. There is also a legitimate element of security issues involved - some of the people this is aimed at have no intention of limiting themselves to peaceful protest.

This kind of power can obviously be abused of course, and it is perfectly legitimate to carefully consider what is being proposed and intelligently assess the impacts it could have but that isn't what is happening here.

 

Although I see where your coming from, your anger seems at least partially misdirected. Unless Obama's 'team of thugs' now includes 532 members of congress. A 99.4% majority.

Fact is all these politicians are willing to sell us out, D or R. I think the message is lost with rhetoric like Chicago thugs etc...

 

I'm surprised to see a right winger disagreeing with this bill. I figured you guys would be all about it. In any case it doesn't matter because the government will keep doing what it's doing and people will vote in the same ********s year after year. We already have the PATRIOT Act, torture in Guantanamo, secret lists (no fly), I mean really no one cares about this stuff and the people who do are told they are crazy to the rest of society. Welcome to the '**** you're a loon' group.

Anyway after seeing TFMs post I was reminded that I had heard about this on NPR. As he points out this bill has already existed, the difference is that now you go to jail even if you didn't know the politician was there (ignorance of a politicians presence was apparently a defense). They say this is more of an anti OWS law to prevent people from camping in parks. I guess they're just going to send out an ass load of cops and have the mayor 'take a stroll through the park', arresting everyone around him. I'm sure you'd be cheering it on too, as would the other right wingers on this forum.