Free Republic

Obama Holds Nob Hill Fundraiser… Massive Tea Party Breaks Out – Complete With “NoBama” Finger Wags

Attention Seattle area Freepers and America lovers: Obama will land in Marine One on the Northwest University athletic fields in Kirkland, WA at 11 AM Friday Feb. 17. He will have lunch with Bill Gates and buddies at 12 PM at the Westin Hotel in Bellevue to extort money for his re-election. I think that he will fly way about 2:15 PM from Northwest U. campus, which means he will be returning before 2 PM. The university is getting no payment for the huge inconvenience of jamming our wireless, moving classes and parking. 55th street runs east west bordering the...

This Thursday, President Barack Obama will be visiting San Francisco for a fundraiser. This is a great opportunity for us to peacefully make our position known about his recent HHS Mandate. The President will be speaking at the Masonic Auditorium, 1111 California Street in San Francisco, Thursday, February 16, at 6PM. We will be gathering at 5:30 PM to show our opposition to his unconscionable violation of the First Amendment.

MONTGOMERY, Ala.—Hundreds packed the Alabama Statehouse courtyard on Tuesday to rally against the state's tough immigration law, with organizers saying they chose to send a message on Valentine's Day that lawmakers need to love and respect immigrants. People bused in from across the state to demand repeal of the law that aims to be tough on those in the country illegally. Protesters carried signs reading, "Gov. Bentley, don't you have a heart?" "No Juan Crow" and "Una Familia, Una Alabama" while chanting in Spanish and English "no more HB56" (the bill that became the law) and "one family, one Alabama."...

The United Auto Workers plans to take part in more non-violent protests in its fight against what it calls right-wing policies that have hurt the middle class. UAW president Bob King told a crowd of more than 500 at the 75th anniversary of union's first contract with General Motors that more direct action like such as the Flint sit-down strike of 1937 is needed today. “They’re trying to shred the social contract,” King said at the event held in Flint. “We don’t spend too much. This is still a rich country The problem is we’ve lost our moral compass,” said...

Occupy protesters, conservatives clash at CPAC conferenceBy Josh Lederman - 02/10/12 01:33 PM ET A brief altercation broke out between Occupy Wall Street protesters and conservative activists at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday. A group of Occupy protesters who infiltrated the hotel by registering and paying for the conference blocked a television screen where an overflow crowd was watching Mitt Romney address the convention, their mouths taped over to symbolize being silenced. There was a brief clash between the protesters and conference-goers, who booed and yelled while shoving them out of the way. Security was summoned to the...

Occupy D.C. Protester Charged With Assaulting Cop Released to Halfway HouseBy Benjamin R. Freed in News on February 9, 2012 2:30 PM The Occupy D.C. protester who allegedly hurled a bottle of Coca-Cola into the face of a U.S. Park Police officer at last weekend's massive clearing out of McPherson Square was released today to a halfway house pending his next court date. Appearing in D.C. Superior Court, Jeremiah D. DeSousa, who was arrested moments after the officer was struck, waived his right to a pretrial hearing and instead will appear at a felony status conference on February 28. DeSousa...

Calling for an "UP IN ARMS ACROSS AMERICA DAY" Peaceful PROTEST, ON Sunday, May 20, 2012 (also World Communication Day!) when and where all "fed-up with Obama and his Administration" Americans, who are against and "up in arms" over his Affordable Care Act, his Executive signings, his dismantling of the Constitution and his taking away our God given and Constitutional freedoms and rights, link arms across America (much like the Hands Across America event and publicity campaign during Ronald Reagan's Administration) and finally once and for all be seen and heard as the "majority" of the American "will and demand...

[Madison, Wisc...] A dozen doctors from Wisconsin and around the country contacted the Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing to express their disappointment in the doctors accused of writing fake sick notes to protesters on February 18, 2011 at the Capitol, according to documents obtained by the MacIver News Service. Some of the doctors expressed concern, others outrage, and some even filed formal complaints against the sick note doctors. In general, the doctors felt the incident reflected poorly on the entire medical profession. “If the above is true, then it is unprofessional and unethical,” wrote Dr. Ronald Long. “Certainly it...

Why would you assume that people with the ability to constantly interrupt government workers mid-day, and with the ability to camp out in a park for months at a time, wouldn't have jobs? Occupy Albany got their much needed dose of media attention (video below) this morning when they interrupted budget talks in the capital. The attention-whoring featured the usual slapstick, including mic checks and the repetition of short phrases (because saying it twice makes it seem more intelligent), but the interview after the incident was where the real entertainment came through. When asked about the interruption and the tactics...

Occupy Charlotte protestors staying despite ordinance changeBy: Jennifer Moxley 2/01/12 5:58 PM CHARLOTTE – The tents have been removed from the city property but Occupy Charlotte protestors are not leaving the site. **SNIP** "They're [City Council] more worried about the way their lawn looks, the way the front of the city hall looks, than they are the injustices that have been done to the people of this country,” he said. Since October, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police have allocated about $447,000 worth of resources to the Occupy campsite, protests and marches. A police officer is still watching the site 24 hours a day....

300 arrested in daylong Occupy Oakland protestsBy TERRY COLLINS/Associated Press Posted: 01/29/2012 05:04:33 AM PST OAKLAND - Dozens of police maintained a late-night guard around City Hall following daylong protests that resulted in 300 arrests. Occupy Oakland demonstrators broke into the historic building and burned a U.S. flag, as officers earlier fired tear gas to disperse people throwing rocks and tearing down fencing at a convention center. Saturday's protests - the most turbulent since Oakland police forcefully dismantled an Occupy encampment in November - came just days after the group said it planned to use a vacant building as a...

Federal officials are not pursuing potential deportation of the 12 illegal immigrants arrested in Tuesday’s protest in downtown San Bernardino against federal immigration programs and policies. The protesters were arrested on suspicion of unlawful assembly and refusal to disperse after blocking traffic on streets in front of San Bernardino City Hall and a local office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE routinely screens jail inmates in San Bernardino County for immigration violations. The county’s collaboration with ICE was one of the reasons for the protest. In many cases, ICE places detainers on suspected illegal immigrants. They are then transferred...

America's public school teachers are seeing their generations-old tenure protections weakened as states seek flexibility to fire teachers who aren't performing. A few states have essentially nullified tenure protections altogether, according to an analysis being released Wednesday by the National Council on Teacher Quality. The changes are occurring as states replace virtually automatic "satisfactory" teacher evaluations with those linked to teacher performance and base teacher layoffs on performance instead of seniority. Politically powerful teachers unions are fighting back, arguing the changes lower morale, deny teachers due process, and unfairly target older teachers. Teachers in Wisconsin have historically been granted what...

It was a show of civil disobedience, and according to organizers of the event that was accomplished by holding multiple sit-ins that risked arrest and deportation.

Occupy movement gets help from musical friendsJanuary 24, 2012 NEW YORK, Jan 24 — Yoko Ono, Debbie Harry, Jackson Browne and Willie Nelson are among dozens of artists contributing to “Occupy This Album”, to raise money for the Occupy Wall Street movement against economic inequality, a publicity firm said yesterday. Workhouse public relations said the album would be released in the spring “as a celebration that provides a musical voice and ultimately through record sales, financial support to fortify the movement’s continuation”. The album is being put together by Occupy Wall Street solidarity group “Music for Occupy”. Other artists involved...

Has anyone noticed that rats and Occupy Protestors have some sort of linkage? I mean a spiritual bridge or karmic connection. Really. I didn't see it until I was exposed to some of the news stories; you know the ones I mean. “Rat population has ‘exploded’ around Occupy D.C. Camps” Washington Post 1-9-12. This link seems to have influenced DC so much that rats must now be relocated rather than killed; almost as if they were actual Occupy Protesters. Anyway that caused me to muse to my self – what are the similarities and differences between Rats and Occupy Protesters...

Occupy protests at Supreme Court, 12 arrestedBy: Aubrey Whelan | 01/20/12 5:08 PM Examiner Staff Writer Supreme Court Police arrested a dozen Occupy protesters Friday afternoon after they destroyed a police barrier, pushed past a police line and sprinted up the steps of the high court – all in violation of federal law. **SNIP** The protest was organized by the advocacy group Move to Amend, which advocates for a Constitutional amendment that would strike down the Citizens United decision. After a short rally across the street, protesters moved to the Supreme Court building, where police had set up metal barricades....

Occupy 'will never die': Protesters in WashingtonPublished on Jan 14, 2012 WASHINGTON (AFP) - Protesters with the 'Occupy' movement in the US capitol said on Friday the authorities' efforts to evict them would fail, after the city mayor called for their removal. 'They are trying to annoy us, to get our spirits down but I really think it's not working,' said Sam Mellot from Virginia who has been camping at McPherson Square, a few blocks from the White House, one of two downtown sites being used for an encampment by 'Occupy Washington' and 'Occupy DC' demonstrators. 'Evict us, we'll multiply...

WASHINGTON -- Tensions between the rich and poor are increasing and at their most intense level in nearly a quarter-century, a new survey shows. Americans now see more social conflict over wealth inequality than over the hot-button topics of immigration, race relations and age. The survey released Wednesday by the Pew Research Center highlights U.S. perceptions of the economic divide, an issue that has moved to the forefront in the 2012 presidential campaign amid stubbornly high unemployment, increasing poverty and protests by the Occupy movement.

The labor union of Hyundai Motor has threatened to suspend all engine output in the company's biggest production base from Tuesday, saying an employee set himself on fire to protest the company's alleged "suppression" of unionized workers. The incident indicates labor issues remain a potential vulnerability for the strongly performing South Korean carmaker, although it avoided strikes for a third year in a row last year. The worker and union member with the surname Shin was found in flames at a Hyundai engine plant in the southeastern city of Ulsan at around noon on Sunday, and is currently in critical...

Detention provisions of defense bill spark New York ‘Occupy’ protestBy Jeremy Herb - 01/04/12 02:46 PM ET Occupy Wall Street protesters in New York City stormed Grand Central Station during rush hour Tuesday evening, rallying against the Defense Authorization Act. The protesters were objecting to provisions in the bill, which President Obama signed into law on Saturday, that civil liberties groups say allow the United States to detain American citizens indefinitely in military custody. “There’s an amendment in there that basically makes our country a place where any citizen can be detained indefinitely without a trial and without due process,”...

A routine visit to an MK on Wednesday afternoon turned into a trip to the police station for Ro'i Ridar, chairman of the action committee for the Binyamin Regional Council. Ridar arrived at the Knesset Wednesday for a meeting with MK Uri Ariel, and was arrested by Knesset security, on charges of encouraging a “price tag” activity. Ridar's “crime,” he says, was the chartering of a bus for students at Merkaz Harav Yeshiva in Jerusalem to participate in protests agains the demolishing of Ramat Gilad several weeks ago. Police had issued an arrest warrant for Ridar, and alerted the Knesset...

'Occupy Congress' seeks permit for Jan. 17 protestBy: Aubrey Whelan | 01/04/12 12:18 PM Occupy Congress, a national group partnering with Occupy DC for a major protest this month, is slowly moving forward in its efforts to aquire a permit for the protest. The group has scheduled a meeting Thursday with the National Parks Service to discuss getting a permit that would allow up to 10,000 people to protest outside the Capitol on Jan. 17. Participant Mario Lozada said protesters are trying to avoid the mass arrests that Occupy DC endured in early December during a week of similar protests...

About 20 people gathered this morning outside the security entrance to President Barack Obama’s vacation compound in Kailua to condemn U.S. wars, occupations, and torture. The gathering was organized by a local faction of World Can’t Wait, a national activist group against alleged crimes by the U.S. government. Protestors held up signs for a variety of issues, from supporting Wikileaks to ending U.S. support for Israel. Some motorists honked in support, while a few showed their opposition with hand gestures or shouting out the window. Police officers in aloha shirts with the Civil Affairs Division monitored the two-hour protest, which...

Breastfeeding mothers staged a "nurse-in" Wednesday at Target stores nationwide to show solidarity with a Texas woman who said she was ridiculed for breastfeeding her baby at a Houston store. Michelle Hickman organized a Facebook campaign to call for the "nurse-in," which took place in several US cities including Houston, Knoxville, Tenn., and Decatur, Ill. About 50 nursing mothers showed up to protest at the Webster, Texas, Target store where Hickman said she was harassed last month, MyFOXhouston reported.

Occupy Facebook: Social Network for Protesters in the Works17 minutes ago by Zoe Fox Occupy Wall Street activists are developing a social network called The Global Square for the generation of protesters. “We don’t want to trust Facebook with private messages among activists,” developer Ed Knutson told Wired. Knutson is helping build the network, which will unite members of Occupy movements across the globe. As more of the physical encampments are evicted across the U.S., digital meeting places will be of increased importance, explains a November RoarMag blog post. “In addition to the local squares, we now need a global...

Occupy protesters sue over free speech, forceBy ERIKA NIEDOWSKI | AP – Thu, Dec 22, 2011 Most major Occupy encampments have been dispersed, but they live on in a flurry of lawsuits in which protesters are asserting their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly and challenging authorities' mass arrests and use of force to break up tent cities. Lawyers representing protesters have filed lawsuits — or are planning them — in state and federal courts from coast to coast, challenging eviction orders and what they call heavy-handed police tactics and the banning of demonstrators from public properties. Some say...

A ban on Christmas decorations this year at the Staten Island ferry terminal in a bid to avoid lawsuits sparked an unusual protest Friday. Self-proclaimed activist and Staten Island resident Scott LoBaido found a loophole in the rule imposed at the transit hub by the Department of Transportation and dressed up as a seven-foot Christmas tree, sparking smiles and cheers, myFOXny.com reported.

NC city mulls rules change for Occupy protestersDec 20, 9:00 AM EST WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) -- City council members in Winston-Salem have postponed a vote on an ordinance that would have temporarily declared city hall is no longer public property. **SNIP** Some council members said they were uncomfortable voting on the changes without advance notice or a public hearing. The council will take up the matter next month.

Topless protest group claims Belarusian police abducted, beat, humiliated membersBy Associated Press, Published: December 20 MINSK, Belarus — A Ukrainian organization of topless women activists says three of its members were abducted by security officers during a protest against Belarus authoritarian president, beaten, humiliated and left naked in a forest. The group, called Femen, is widely known in Ukraine and neighboring countries for its demonstrations in which women bare their breasts to draw attention to an array of causes. A statement on Femen’s website Tuesday says the three were seized by agents of the Belarusian KGB at Minsk’s train station...

Seth Godin, the homeliest man since Henry Waxman, presents never-ending and hyper intelligent insights into what works and what doesn’t. Waxman has yet been spotted saying anything intelligent, which demonstrates that the traits of diminished physical beauty and smarts are not linked. One recent Godin missive accurately dissected the difference between failure and mistakes, where failures are experiments that produced undesirable results, and mistakes are repeating failed experiments and expecting something new to happen. Thomas Edison relished in failure, noting that “I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.” Edison was, however, bright enough to...

Occupy Pittsburgh marches, briefly occupies TargetBy Mackenzie Carpenter, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Saturday, December 10, 2011 Nearly 100 supporters of Occupy Pittsburgh entered a Target store in East Liberty Saturday afternoon to protest the company's policy of of hiring part-time instead of full-time workers, staying about 10 minutes before dispersing. Police were on the scene but there were no arrests. The "flash mob" materialized after a rally at the Kingsley Center on East Liberty Boulevard earlier in the day, where speakers inveighed against corporate influence on government. The march and protests come as BNY Mellon says it has asked Occupy Pittsburgh protesters...

US protesters 'occupy' lawmakers' Washington officesAFP – 25 minutes ago Around 1,000 demonstrators assembled at US lawmakers' offices on Thursday as part of a "Take Back the Capitol," action targeting corporate America's influence in Washington's corridors of power. Protesters -- many of them labor-union activists who support the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York in September -- aimed to highlight that 13.3 million people are unemployed in the United States, and urge lawmakers to shun cuts to unemployment benefits and focus on job creation. "You have the moral imperative to support those who are slipping," rabbi Erica...

Please Help Catholic students collect 100,000 Save Our Catholic Colleges protest petitions http://petitions.tfpstudentaction.org/disband-pro-homosexual-clubs-on-catholic-campuses.html?utm_source=sm&utm_medium=email&utm_content=SAE0100&utm_campaign=MainNewsletter Why are pro-homosexual clubs allowed to promote anti-Catholic behavior on Catholic campuses? After examining the official web sites of 244 Catholic universities and colleges in America, TFP Student Action found that 107 – or 43% – recognize student clubs that favor the homosexual agenda. Many of these clubs promote same-sex “marriage,” open homosexuality in the military, and push for the mainstreaming of unnatural vice.

Occupy San Jose joined forces with Latino advocacy group Voluntarios de la Comunidad on Sunday for a joint rally at City Hall and a march to Plaza de Cesar Chavez. San Jose's small but committed Occupy movement is increasingly finding common ground with predominantly Latino organizations on issues like predatory lending, the foreclosure crisis and rising social inequality. Jose Sandoval, the head of Voluntarios de la Comunidad, is a grass-roots champion who advocated statewide for the right of illegal immigrants to apply for driver's licenses. On Sunday, a group of about 30 people marched from Story and King roads in...

19 arrested as Occupy Portland protesters clash with policeby Associated Press & KGW Staff Updated today at 12:35 PM PORTLAND -- Nineteen Occupy Portland demonstrators were arrested in a clash with police Saturday night after the protesters set up tents in the downtown Park Blocks in defiance of city rules. **SNIP** The Occupy Portland website then declared, "We have a park!" It said "the kitchen is open" and invited the public to bring love, tents, sleeping bags and snacks.

For the fifth year TFP Student Action volunteers went to Fort Benning, Georgia. The purpose of the trip was twofold: To rally support for our troops and oppose the leftist SOA Watch protest called “Occupy Fort Benning.” Rally for the Troops On Friday morning, November 18, we kicked off our first rally for the troops on Broadway, downtown Columbus. With a banner inscribed with “God bless our troops!” and signs encouraging passing cars to “Honk for our brave troops,” we received numerous and positive responses. The shouts of joy, thumbs up and waves were constant; the honks from trucks deafening....

City moves to evict Occupy Boston protestersNovember 30, 2011 BOSTON—The city of Boston is taking steps to evict Occupy Boston protesters living in an encampment in a city park. The city filed a 200-page document in court arguing that while the protesters have the right to free speech, they have no right to live on public property. Mayor Thomas Menino, who has previously expressed support for the Occupy movement, tells WCVB-TV that he wants to have the legal tools to have dozens of tents in Dewey Square Park removed.

Young Occupiers: Colleges sold you outBy J.D. Mullane Updated: 11:40 am, Tue Nov 29, 2011 Q: What does a liberal arts major say to a business major five years after graduation? A: "Would you like fries with that?" -- Joke told on American college campuses, circa 1985 A generation of college-educated young people, unemployed and saddled with tuition loan debt, are learning the worthlessness of their four-year degrees. Many are disillusioned. It's understandable. If you spent four years maintaining a 4.0 GPA by reading and critiquing high-minded literature such as Faulkner's "The Sound and the Fury," or pulling all-nighters writing...

CUNY Board Approves Tuition Hike As Three Protesters Are ArrestedBy: NY1 News Updated 11/28/2011 11:49 PM The board of trustees of the City University of New York voted Monday evening to approve a $300-per-year tuition increase, over the objections of protesters who tried to interrupt the proceedings. Three protesters were arrested during demonstrations at Baruch College. The hike will raise the cost of CUNY tuition by $300 per year over the course of five years, representing a total increase of 30 percent by the year 2016. The trustees approved the hike by a vote of 15-1. The increases had already...

UC Students Protest Soaring Tution As Regents Meet By PhoneNovember 28, 2011 9:48 AM SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS/AP) – University of California students are protesting at four campuses where board members met by teleconference after worries about violence led to the cancellation of a previous meeting. Board members, university administrators and the public were attending Monday’s meeting at locations on the San Francisco-Mission Bay, Los Angeles, Davis, and Merced campuses. During the public comment period, students spoke out against recent police crackdowns on Occupy camps on the Davis and Berkeley campuses.

The assorted "Occupations" may be drawing to a close as even liberal mayors have lost patience with the occupation of public space and the budget drain created by aging radicals, wannabe hippies and random homeless people, hucksters, scammers and professional activists, but it isn't over because it never really began. To the left protest is an identity, which is also why the Occupations never seemed to have much of a coherent message. The purpose of their protests is to protest, the romance of the protest is all the justification that it really needs. Creating permanent protest encampments turned protests from...

Police burn protest tents to clear Cairo's TahrirBy MAGGIE MICHAEL and SARAH EL DEEB Associated Press Updated: Nov 20, 2011 4:19 PM EST CAIRO (AP) - Egyptian soldiers and police set fire to protest tents in Cairo's Tahrir Square and fired tear gas and rubber bullets in a major assault Sunday to drive out thousands demanding that the military rulers quickly transfer power to a civilian government. At least 11 protesters were killed and hundreds were injured. It was the second day of clashes marking a sharp escalation of tensions on Egypt's streets a week before the first elections since...

DA: 3 Occupy Denver activists charged with feloniesNovember 17, 2011 | By the CNN Wire Staff Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said Thursday that three Occupy Denver activists have been charged with felonies -- including inciting a riot and second-degree assault on an officer. **SNIP** The district attorney's office announced Thursday that a 28-year-old man has been charged with two felony counts of inciting a riot and one misdemeanor count of obstruction for allegedly blocking a police car and and telling others to riot. He has two other cases pending from two different dates in October -- unlawful conduct on...

UBS takes action to evict Occupy protestersRichard Partington 18 Nov 2011 Investment bank UBS has said it is taking “appropriate action” to handle the Occupy London protesters that have taken over one of its empty buildings. Sources close to the bank said it had begun looking at legal avenues to regain control of the complex, located at the corner of Sun Street and Crown Place in the London borough of Hackney. A spokesman for UBS, said: “We are aware of the situation and are taking appropriate action.” Lawyers said the bank would be looking at ways to evict the protesters....

Occupy Wall Street protesters should 'buy bar of soap and head home,' Rep. Michael Grimm saysBy Judy L. Randall - Staten Island Advance Updated: Thursday, November 17, 2011, 2:18 PM STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Rep. Michael Grimm today blasted Occupy Wall Street protesters as "lowlifes," telling them to "buy a bar of soap," clean up and ship out. That includes Occupiers threatening to "overrun" the Staten Island Ferry and subways, whom he called a "mob." Said Grimm: "It has been two months and now it's time for the OWS protesters to pack up their tents, buy a bar of soap...

Police help bloody protester @ occupy wall street

'We want to build a slum city' say Occupy Bristol protestersThursday, November 17, 2011 Bristol Evening Post WOODEN shacks have sprung up on College Green, where anti-capitalist protesters say they want to create a "slum city". Some shacks already have proper front doors, four walls and even makeshift wardrobes. Campaigners have told the Evening Post they eventually want to replace all tents with shacks and even hope that some will become three storeys high. Occupy Bristol, the UK's biggest tent protest outside London, began 34 days ago when around 200 people turned out to raise concerns about corporate greed and...

Democrats see minefield in Occupy protestsBy The Associated Press • Wednesday, November 16, 2011 **SNIP** So far, Democrats have tried to have it both ways - embracing the movement's economic concerns while steering clear of its rougher edges. "I think people feel separated from their government," President Barack Obama told ABC News. "They feel that their institutions are not looking out for them." The president has said his jobs plan, which would boost taxes on high earners, is a way to address some of the protesters' concerns. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has gone a step further, posting a petition,...