As usual, out of town riot tourists using Black Bloc tactics start trouble after normal protesters have their say and are peaceful.

Black Bloc tactics need to be stomped. Not by cops, but by the rest of those present whose legitimate protest gets obscured and buried by a handful of professional activists.

In before "No True Scotsman" arguments that 100% of those using Black Bloc are police undercover agent provocateurs

Was walking around downtown yesterday and saw the protesters and riot police everywhere. The protesters were angry, loud and very aggressive towards teh police. I did not see the police doing anything but standing and directing traffic.

I did see HUGE amounts of riot police. They were in caravans of suv's and vans, as well as in off-duty CTA buses. There is something very surreal and ominous about a bunch of black suited men putting on riot gear.

Still, the fault for this stuff goes to the people that initiated the violence first. In this instance it appears it was the protesters.

I still don't like American's beating other American's with billy clubs....

MBK: RichieLaw: I did see HUGE amounts of riot police. They were in caravans of suv's and vans, as well as in off-duty CTA buses. There is something very surreal and ominous about a bunch of black suited men putting on riot gear.

I think the reason for this was they thought a lot more protesters were going to march. The organizers applied for a permit for 50k people, and by best estimates, 4k people were there. That is why the huge amount of riot police, they were expecting at least 10x the amount of people.

Was it necessary? No, not for 4,000 people, many of which went home without any incident or before these incidents happened. But I guess it is better to be over prepared than under prepared?

Yeah, it was crazy, but seeing the protesters marching it kind of made sense. I mean, I'm as liberal as they come and a supporter of the Occupy Movements; however, I am not a supporter of violence. These people were openly taunting and throwing things at police officers. It could have went bad very quickly.

Weaver95: RichieLaw:

I still don't like American's beating other American's with billy clubs....

its early in the season yet. it'll get worse as the summer of discontent heats up.

Hopefully not.

There's assholes on both sides

Zoidberg 2012!

Time to go find this guy?

Yesterday I spent an afternoon at a Redmond coffee shop run by hippie libs. They were welcoming the rebirth of the sun with a raucous drum circle and delicious lattes. One guy had a didgeridoo.

It was such a far cry from the violence playing out on my television set this morning, that I can hardly believe the peaceful people I was with were in any way connected to the antagonistic protestors in Chicago.

I'm not ready to take the plunge to the hippie lib side here. My own beliefs fall far into the conservative camp. But these hippie libs were definitely providing a good witness for their side.

The protestors in Chicago are not doing that.

Kum ba ya, my Lord. Kum ba ya.

Did they arrest any other terrorist home-brewers?

Link

Someone explain to me how America is not a fascist state, please.

unlikely: 've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

SCA groups have been investigated before for exactly that reason.

IMHO, SCA would eat them for breakfast. They have more practice and better armor. Average cop is probably in better shape than the average SCAdian stick-jock, though.

clyph: unlikely: 've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

SCA groups have been investigated before for exactly that reason.

IMHO, SCA would eat them for breakfast. They have more practice and better armor. Average cop is probably in better shape than the average SCAdian stick-jock, though.

Cops have shotguns loaded with slugs back in their buses. All's the SCA could fire back are arrows made out of golf tubes and tennis balls.

KangTheMad: Apparently millions of live have been lost in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to one of the hippies.

//if you count natural deaths over the past however many years as well. . .maybe.
You mean natural deaths like suicide bombs and drone strikes right?

I think the cops showed a lot of restraint compared to their past history. Use to be it only took one to push the entire cop force's button and they reacted on everything in sight.

After looking at pics of the new and improved riot gear these f-ing cops are wearing now. I have a really simple solution for protestors

Schedule your protests in the hottest f-ing moths in your area. I would love to see these cops having to wear all that stupid shiat in 90+ degree heat and 90+ humidity in August. Those f-ers will be dropping like flies and the protestors don't even have to engage them.

maybe just move around a lot so they can't sit down

Mishno: clyph: unlikely: 've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

SCA groups have been investigated before for exactly that reason.

IMHO, SCA would eat them for breakfast. They have more practice and better armor. Average cop is probably in better shape than the average SCAdian stick-jock, though.

Cops have shotguns loaded with slugs back in their buses. All's the SCA could fire back are arrows made out of golf tubes and tennis balls.

All it would take is one cop with a bullhorn to call a "HOLD!" and it would be all over...

clyph: unlikely: 've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

SCA groups have been investigated before for exactly that reason.

IMHO, SCA would eat them for breakfast. They have more practice and better armor. Average cop is probably in better shape than the average SCAdian stick-jock, though.

Not in Chicago.

unlikely: I've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

[www.pennsicindependent.com image 640x424]

Give me a few dozen pikemen in full gear and proper formation and watch me make bacon.

illegal.tender: Someone explain to me how America is not a fascist state, please.

Please explain how it is.
One function of the police is to keep the ppublic order. Protests ARE allowed, until they threaten the safety or property of the public.
Perhaps your definition of fascist is that athorities should just stand aside, get beat on, allow vandalism of private property and assault of others.
Basically, anyone or organization that won't let you do whatever you feel like doing is fascist?

ShawnDoc: unlikely: I've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

SCA? That looks like LARPers with their foam weapons.

Nope. That's SCA. You can tell by the Marshal's insignia and weapon construction (rattan, with edge markers).

So this is not a repeat from 1968?

Weaver95: Coelacanth: unlikely: I've always wondered what would happen if you got a bunch of those SCA guys pissed off enough to go up against a bunch of riot cops.

[www.pennsicindependent.com image 640x424]

Give me a few dozen pikemen in full gear and proper formation and watch me make bacon.

and have a wall of tower shields in front of the pikemen and watch the cops fall down, go boom.

Naw. Pikemen should be wearing heavy steel-toed boots. Any idiot who gets too close to them gets a shattered knee cap and a limp for the rest of his life.

Simple pike manual Link

Although to be fair, the Egyptians won their freedom with shields PDF

The Police did a good job. They were well organized and very good about not starting anything. They issued an order to disperse at least three times and the crowd did not disperse. So they set up their walls of riot police and would periodically start to herd the protesters out of the area. If the protesters pushed back the police would remove the individual and arrest them. And they were as gentle as possible about it, too. I actually saw a police officer giving water to one individual they arrested! The problem was with those few assholes out there who decided to attack the police. When that happened the police met force with greater force. Like I said, they did a good job.

These people are protesting the war in Afghanistan at a NATO summit hosted by Obama.

But let's keep focused people, this is an anti-NATO protest.

RichieLaw: I still don't like American's beating other American's with billy clubs....

I do, but only if those people got violent with the police. Then it is hilarious as all hell watching some asshole get beat down. If it is a case of a cop just being violent against people who did not deserve it then I agree with you. Otherwise, swing for the fence, boys! Swing for the fence.

Oak: Not in Chicago.

Yah, in Chicago. The SCA runs to the stout.

Generation_D: derp . . . . .

In before "No True Scotsman" arguments that 100% of those using Black Bloc are police undercover agent provocateurs

In before the badge-sucking propagandists . . . . ah, crap.

Salamay

All I see is a bunch of spoiled white kids attacking a working class black man.

/racists

Weaver95: And standard SCA shields will largely be immune to taser hits and rubber bullets. not saying you won't get banged up and/or bruised...but the impact won't affect you as badly as it would if you weren't armed and armored.

Don't you love it when 'outdated' technology trumps newfangled toys ;)

Has anybody figured out if tower shields covered with aluminum foil will foil those microwave cannon yet?

This is by far my favorite Chicago NATO picture so far. The look on that soldier's face made my day.