Video of Sunday's Simon freep exposes liberals for who they really are

amazing.com (my web site) ^ | 08/28/2002 | David H Dennis

[daviddennis]

Last Sunday, there was a loud, noisy and cult-like protest of President Bush's breakfast appearance for Bill Simon. A small but dedicated band of freepers launched a counter-demonstration. I was there with my Canon XL1 3CCD camcorder to record the show. And we sure did get a show, friends!

Since I know many of you don't have QuickTime or don't want to download 11-odd megabytes, here's a quick summary:

• Establishing shots showing the protest

• Our brave activists in action:
  • Diotima welcomes me (and will no doubt wince over my spelling of her name)
  • RonDog agrees with me about the lack of direct Davis support;
  • DoughtyOne has a duet with a liberal (easily the funniest scene in the video; DoughtyOne, you're a star today!)

• I go among the liberals and are exposed to some sickeningly ugly attitudes

• We reassemble in Denny's and assess the results. Featuring great quotes from RonDog, Diotimia and AnnaZ, our group's lovely and talented actress.

I hope you'll enjoy the video, and I look forward to seeing your comments. If it gets slow from my site, feel free to mirror it elsewhere and post a link.

Enjoy!

D

PS If you can't play the video, see the technical notes below.

[daviddennis]

Technical notes: This video is in QuickTime. If you get a blank screen, you're probably set up to use Windows Media Player to play it. Download QuickTime from Apple's site - it works for Windows as well as the Mac - and the video will play fine.

Send me enough encouragement, and I'll do more of these at future events; they are great fun to do, but a lot of work as well.

[daviddennis]

Ping to those in the video and their friends!

D

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Viewed the download and enjoyed it. Out of curiousity, what do you think made that guy who was giving you his "fingerprint" so angry?

Keep up the good work!

[Notforprophet]

Amazing video! Great Job! I love the 'Four More Years' duet! LOL.

[DoughtyOne]

Thanks for your efforts David. You did a nice job on the video. There's some pretty sick people out there. Luckily we rarely come in contact with them.

Read those signs folks. Take a good look at what's going on in your nation. These are the allies who work behind the scenes to support Democrats. You and I may not like to think of it that way, but that is exactly what is going on.

[WSGilcrest]

Very well done. 4 stars!

Oh, have you seen the movies from the FReeper in Florida who just LOVES to get in the dims faces. Arrghh, can't remember his name right now, but I'll find it for you.

[AnnaZ]

Threads regarding the FReep here:

• Conversations With The Mob: An After-FReep Report
• DFU REPORT: My Morning Adventure with the Lunatics of Los Angeles - They Are Stupid and They Smell

 

NOTE: The two males seen in the "I go among the liberals and are exposed to some sickeningly ugly attitudes" segment are also the bright duo immortalized in the first listed report with this noted conversation:

 

(excerpt)

 

Later, two men are in an idling station wagon in the parking lot as we are on our way out. They were seen earlier in the viewfinder of daviddennis' XL-1 at breakfast as we watched the replay of them repeatedly giving the camera the finger.

 

                BlondeMale: Oh, it's "Luvya Dubya" girl.

 

                OtherMale: Are you a native of California?

 

                A FReeper: No, I'm a political refugee of the socialist democracy of Canada. I'm trying to save California from a

                    similar fate.

 

                HangFire: I'm half Native American... I go back I don't know how many generations. And leftist

                    liberal loser policies are destroying this State.

 

                OtherMale: You're a traitor to your own people. They used to worship the oil when it was in the ground, they

                    were thankful for it.

 

                A FReeper: What the heck are you talking about?

 

                BlondeMale: Yeah, and now you and Bush are pumping all that oil and spraying it in the air and causing all these

                    earthquakes.

 

                A FReeper: What?!

 

                HangFire: Uh huh. Well you just keep telling yourself that as you drive home in your car, okay?

 

They drive off, the BlondeMale repeatedly spitting through the passenger side window as they exit stage left.

 

They're FReepin' *stars* now!

 

;^)

 

[EggsAckley]

Um, ......maybe I'm having a blonde moment, but I can't figure out how to view the video. I've got the QuickTime page up, but all I see are movie previews, and junk like that. Is there a PHd button? ("push here dummy")

[ozzie]

What an outstanding job. Keep it up LA Freepers!!

[daviddennis]

You're not having a blonde moment, since now that I look at the page it IS a little confusing. Click on Download right below the tabbed list on the top of the page.

Or simply go here.

Hope you enjoy!

D

[BufordP]

Really enjoyed your video. You guys did a great job!

[daviddennis]

You know, I really wish I knew the answer to the question. Perhaps he goes into a homocidal rage over video cameras?

Or maybe he thinks only his side should have Canon XL1s? There was at least one other there, and it was lefty-owned.

Perhaps he knows what it feels like to have a microphone shoved into his face without warning, and he doesn't like the feeling.

As I recall (and I really wonder what his account of this would be), I noticed his anti-Simon signs. Then I went over to him and asked him what he thought of Gray Davis, and whether Davis wasn't worse than Simon. I think it was his sidekick (the one who accused me of being Conterlpro, whatever that is) who said that both of them were s---, and that Simon was like s--- in ice cream. It must have been about then that I realized this was film-worthy and posed the question you see in the beginning of that sequence.

I'll tell you, the actual visceral experience of having those people shoving their fingers at me was pretty bad. I talked to another lefty (apparently a talk show host of some kind) who told me they were just expressing their opinions and enjoying their free speech rights. I guess he hasn't figured out yet that, from a public relations standpoint, what they did makes their side look stupid and brutal, hardly something I would want an "enlightened" bunch to feel. Certainly it was a great contrast to all those peace signs and the like.

Perhaps the most enduring aspect of watching this protest was the cultlike atmosphere. My video of "Stop the sanctions, stop the sanctions now" was meant to envoke that. Later in the day, they had more repetitious chanting as they crossed the street repeatedly for the TV cameras. If anyone wants to see some of that, let me know.

I think the cultlike atmosphere might explain a lot. You know what cults think of dissent within the ranks, don't you?

I did ask someone why they were against our fighting Iraq. They told me the Iraqi people deserved their rights to democracy and self-determination! I tried to point out that Iraq was a brutal dictatorship and wasn't going to spontaneously turn into a Democracy, but they weren't buying it. I'd love to know their theory on how Democracy will appear in Iraq since Hussein seems to have a pretty tight stranglehold on the place.

Oddly enough, I checked Democratic Underground and Smirking Chimp, and didn't find anything at all on the protest, even though Smirking Chimp appears to have been a major organizer. I wonder why.

Or maybe I do know. We protestors were outnumbered some 50:1 but at least we had fun. The Smirking Chimp crowd, for all the strained humour that appears on the site, seemed to lack any sense of humour or fun. It felt more like people were dutifully going through the motions, without any real passion.

Our side is not only the right side, it's the fun side. And I'm very proud of that.

D

[daviddennis]

EEK! I can't believe I mentioned you in the body of the message, and I forgot to ping you. Oops!

(I think I'm just afraid I'll spell your name wrong :-) ).

D

[BufordP]

DC Chapter ping!

[daviddennis]

After reading your report, I'm pretty sure you'll want to see my video. Hope you enjoy!

D

[diotima]

HEY I JUST WATCHED IT!!!! Yeah!

Great work. Gotta love the sophisticated refutation of the middle finger from the left.....

[diotima]

Watch the video, you will love it!

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Interesting analysis. These people sound badly deluded. I have a feeling that if you did a personal history of most of the protestors, you'd find a pretty sad and troubled group. Anyhow, bravo for your courage and initiative!

[Bob J]

Great work David! Let's put this into breaking...

[Grampa Dave]

Great Job!

You need to have one of our freepers with contacts with Sean Hannity to get a copy to Sean.

This would be great viewing on Fox some night.

The mainstream leftwing tv will never show the ugly reality of these scumbags in action. It is time that their reality ends up on Fox News.

[Yehuda]

Great FREEP!

[Frohickey]

Good work!!! I wish that I was there with you guys.

[chance33_98]

Well, just watched your video. It only confirms what I have known for a long time - liberals suffer from dementia and should be institutionalized. It confirms that if the rapture ever did happen so few people would go I doubt we would ever know it happened, and the liberals would chalk it all up to something totally unrelated. I may be far from perfect myself, but they are farther from it then me exponetially. No wonder Jesus is returning in war like fashion, if he just showed up they would probably stone him.

[RonDog]

Got your FReepmail, but I could not make the video play...

...QUICK TIME!

So, THAT is the answer!!!

[Bahbah]

I confess I had the same experience but was too embarrased to fess up even though I am dying to see the video. Thanks, Eggs.

[sam_paine]

Nice work. I'm glad everyone notices that the Anti-Bush demonstrators aren't intending to be benevolent debate partners. They truly hate dissent, but they don't believe they do.

One thing that has bothered me on FR in the last year or so has been the crackdown by JimRob on "disruptors" because this is a conservative forum, and "liberals and leftists" will not be tolerated. Not that I want FR daily to look like that street brawl....

But isn't it importnat for us to see the depths of the other side to motivate us, just like you guys did on the front lines on the street?

I think a single-minded, policed FR is just as dangerous as a ruthless DU. I hope I don't get banned for this post!!!

[isthisnickcool]

Great video. The out-of-work leftists are mean little pissants, eh?

This site has some great videos of these types of idiots.

[oc-flyfish]

Good job! We had a very similar experience at the Orange County rally. These people are freaks of nature?

I love the figure guy... what a moron!

[daviddennis]

Well, to some degree I think we have to trust the founder of this forum. As he has said many times, everyone here is free to start their own forum - it's not terribly difficult, or expensive, although costs tend to pile up if it gets extremely popular, as this has.

I ran a computer bulletin board system many years ago, and one of my guiding principles was a desire never to censor discussions. The result of that was that most of the system became a gigantic flamewar, and many of my most interesting participants left. I tried a whole bunch of solutions to this problem, but none of them worked out all that well.

You may have to have the experience of running an online forum to know how difficult it is. I know that if I ran Free Republic, I would probably offer a somewhat less controlled environment. At the same time, there is a huge constituency of people who love things as JimRob has them, and I don't think second-guessing him would be very productive.

I don't think hostility to other groups or opinions is exclusive to liberalism; I'm sure there are plenty of conservatives who do likewise. But I think they would do so with a lot more class and style than these folks did. Letting in a lot of people who would try and destroy this system is no answer to the problems that we face.

Hope that helps. In any event, I'm glad you enjoyed my video!

D

[Jim Robinson]

Thanks for the great post and video. Yup. That's what we're up against. Great FReep! Thank you all very much!

[daviddennis]

Wish I'd been able to make it; I think that was Friday afternoon, and I'm in LA. I would like to get down there and meet you guys sometime soon, though.

D

[oc-flyfish]

Yup, let me know the next time you are down and we can try to hookup with the rest of the crew down here.

RonDog is an honorary member of the OC Chapter as he was with us at our Freeps during the November elections. His ties are legendary!

[CyberCowboy777]

Bump for later

[Jim Robinson]

God help us if these people ever get total control over the U.S. government. They already have California in a death grip and we're spiralling down the tubes.

[hellinahandcart]

OtherMale: You're a traitor to your own people. They used to worship the oil when it was in the ground, they were thankful for it.
A FReeper: What the heck are you talking about?
BlondeMale: Yeah, and now you and Bush are pumping all that oil and spraying it in the air and causing all these earthquakes.

What were these guys smoking?

If the oil was in the ground, why were the Indians thankful for it?

Pumping oil is what causes earthquakes? What did we do to cause them before we discovered a use for petroleum?

"Spraying it in the air"?? Has Blonde Male seen "Giant" too many times or something?

I am so full of questions...:D

[hellinahandcart]

I promise to watch the video TOMORROW, but my computer says it will take 27:20 minutes to download and I don't have time today. The little I was able to watch looked great. Good job.

[mountaineer]

The video's taking forever to load, for some reason, but I'm enjoying every minute of it. Fingerprint Guy is so illustrative of the stunted mentality of these people. I hope all freepers are aware of anti-freedom protests in their areas. These nitwits must be counterprotested, with the good humor and intelligence exhibited by you folks in L.A.

[facedown]

OUTSTANDING!!! Some of those folks looked like they were going to get a bit aggressive with you - @*&^%$)ing snots.

[Joe Brower]

Good job, guys. Part of me wishes I had been there, part of me is glad that I wasn't. If I had that blond dingleberry pushing his finger in my face like that, I would have removed it and handed it to him.

[maica]

Great video. What a ragtag bunch protesting our President.

[occam's chainsaw]

bump for later (home) viewing...

[KateUTWS]

Geez......Bin Laden Fan Club....that says it all.

[Bigg Red]

Thanks for the ping.

[Bigg Red]

Way to go!

[TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!]

Go Here: To Watch The Video

BUMP!!!

[Feiny]

Can't wait to see it....I will have to view at home since my boss is here today.

[daviddennis]

Next time, add the Saddam Hussein fan club. One of them said that he thought we should not fight Hussein, but instead respect the natives' right to local control and democracy!

"But Saddam Hussein is a brutal dictator!" I remember saying, astonished by the sheer wrong-headedness of this viewpoint. He then talked more about us not having standing to intervene, democracy coming from below, and so on and on.

He eventually segued into commenting about Gore being the real victor of our presidential election, etc, etc.

At that point, I shut off the camera. Too boring to use, I fear.

If you ever find yourself confronted by a video camera, speak in one sentence sound bites. It's nothing personal. Video has to move fast; it's the nature of the beast. Three minutes can feel like three hours if you're not careful.

I'll bet that nobody here felt my three minutes were anything like three hours. Unless, that is, you have a modem connection.

If so, um, sorry :-(.

D

[surely_you_jest]

Just watched your video. Thanks for shooting and posting it. The guy with the finger is a poster child for the inarticulate left. But I am being abundantly redundant.

Nice work.

[daviddennis]

I'm afraid so. If you didn't notice, I just asked them nicely who they wanted to have win the election for governor. After due reflection, I think that may have been the problem. Politeness kills these people. So remember, whenever you see one, make sure to be as nice as humanly possible. I think that to see the "other side" as anything other than demons rocks their worldview so severely they have to attack. And yes, I did feel physically threatened.

If someone told me that I would have the guts to stand up to that threatening a crowd, I would have said "No way".

But I wanted to get great video, and - judging by the comments today - I did.

D

[mhking]

bump for me to watch when I get home...