[PAA-Discuss] "disruptors" - a proposal

[Bill Crosier]

Sounds as if anyone having an opinion not approved by Faux News but 
being anywhere near King W is defined as a disruptor.  Read on for my 
proposal.

I should qualify as a disruptor even more than the definitions below, 
because I even encourage people to do something even more disruptive 
to this administration than wearing a T-shirt -- I encourage them to 
vote.

I suggest that we start a movement, asking everyone to turn 
themselves in, if they've worn a political t-shirt, if they had a 
bumper sticker on their car, or if they made any public statement or 
sent an e-mail critical of the Bush/Cheney regime's policies.  Of 
course, such a movement would probably be defined as "disruptive", 
too.  Bring it on.

I'd be proud to turn myself in, and am eager to do it now.  Where and 
how do I do it?

Of course, I'm probably already on their list anyway.

I made a decision during the Vietnam war that I was going to speak up 
against it whenever I could, and I assumed I got entered into some 
FBI file somewhere (although I never checked).  I was a draft 
counselor and involved with student groups opposing that war, among 
other things.  None of this stopped me from getting a security 
clearance at a place I was working while I was a student, nor another 
clearance when working for a NASA contractor later.  (No, I never 
dealt with any classified info and never worked on any 
weapons-related systems.)  But even if it had kept me from getting a 
clearance or working where I did, I would have been proud to be on 
Nixon's enemies list.  The same goes for this administration, 
probably even more so.

This would be a terrific subject for a 1st amendment lawsuit.  Does 
anyone know if the people who have been thrown out of, or prevented 
from entering, tax-payer funded public appearances of Bush because of 
bumper stickers or T-shirts ever filed a lawsuit?

Those of you who want to join me in being a disruptor -- please let 
me know if you can help us pass out impeachment info flyers and/or 
sell impeach bumper stickers before the MLK parade starts Monday 
morning.  Put "MLK parade" somewhere in your e-mail to me if you can 
help.

Bill


At 10:26 AM -0600 1/14/06, Margaret wrote:
>Bush to criminalize protesters under Patriot Act as "disruptors"
>
>http://www.bushflash.com
>
>Bush wants to create the new criminal of "disruptor" who can be jailed
>for the crime of "disruptive behavior." A "little-noticed provision" in
>the latest version of the Patriot Act will empower Secret Service to
>charge protesters with a new crime of "disrupting major events
>including political conventions and the Olympics."
>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/12/AR2005121201448.html
>
>Secret Service would also be empowered to charge persons with
>"breaching security" and to charge for "entering a restricted area"
>which is "where the President or other person protected by the Secret
>Service is or will be temporarily visiting." In short, be sure to stay
>in those wired, fenced containments or free speech zones.
>
>Read More, here... Because the linked version contains more hyperlinks.
>http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/1/11/212726/954
>
>Bush to criminalize protesters under Patriot Act as "disruptors"
>by Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse
>
>Wed Jan 11, 2006 at 07:27:26 PM PDT
>
>Bush wants to create the new criminal of "disruptor" who can be jailed
>for the crime of "disruptive behavior." A "little-noticed provision" in
>the latest version of the Patriot Act will empower Secret Service to
>charge protesters with a new crime of "disrupting major events
>including political conventions and the Olympics." Secret Service would
>also be empowered to charge persons with "breaching security" and to
>charge for "entering a restricted area" which is "where the President
>or other person protected by the Secret Service is or will be
>temporarily visiting." In short, be sure to stay in those wired, fenced
>containments or free speech zones.
>
>Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse's diary :: ::
>Who is the "disruptor"? Bush Team history tells us the disruptor is an
>American citizen with the audacity to attend Bush events wearing a
>T-shirt that criticizes Bush; or a member of civil rights,
>environmental, anti-war or counter-recruiting groups who protest Bush
>policies; or a person who invades Bush's bubble by criticizing his
>policies.  A disruptor is also a person who interferes in someone
>else's activity, such as interrupting Bush when he is speaking at a
>press conference or during an interview.
>
>What are the parameters of the crime of "disruptive behavior"?  The
>dictionary defines "disruptive" as "characterized by unrest or disorder
>or insubordination."   The American Medical Association defines
>disruptive behavior as a "style of interaction" with people that
>interferes with patient care, and can include behavior such as "foul
>language; rude, loud or offensive comments; and intimidation of
>patients and family members."
>
>What are the rules of engagement for "disruptors"?   Some Bush Team
>history of their treatment of disruptors provide some clues on how this
>administration will treat disruptors in the future.
>
>(1)  People perceived as disruptors may be preemptively ejected from
>events before engaging in any disruptive conduct.
>
>In the beginning of this war against disruptors, Americans were ejected
>from taxpayer funded events where Bush was speaking. At first the
>events were campaign rallies during the election, and then the
>disruptor ejectment policy was expanded to include Bush's post election
>campaign-style events on public policy issues on his agenda, such as
>informing the public on medicare reform and the like. If people drove
>to the event in a car with a bumper sticker that criticized Bush's
>policies or wore T-shirts with similar criticism, they were disruptors
>who could be ejected from the taxpayer event even before they engaged
>in any disruptive behavior. White House press secretary McClellan
>defended such ejectments as a proper preemptive strike against persons
>who may disrupt an event: "If we think people are coming to the event
>to disrupt it, obviously, they're going to be asked to leave."
>
>(2) Bush Team may check its vast array of databanks to cull out those
>persons who it deems having "disruptor" potential and then blacklist
>those persons from events.
>
>The White House even has a list of persons it deems could be
>"disruptive" to an eventand then blacklists those persons from
>attending taxpayer funded events where Bush speaks. Sounds like Bush
>not only has the power to unilaterally designate people as "enemy
>combatants" in the global "war on terror," but to unilaterally
>designate Americans as "disruptive" in the domestic war against free
>speech.
>
>(3) The use of surveillance, monitoring and legal actions against
>disruptors.
>
>Bush's war against disruptors was then elevated to surveillance,
>monitoring, and legal actions against disruptor organizations. The FBI
>conducts political surveillance and obtains intelligence filed in its
>database on Bush administration critics , such as civil rights groups
>(e.g., ACLU), antiwar protest groups (e.g., United for Peace and
>Justice) and environmental groups (e.g., Greenpeace).
>
>This surveillance of American citizens exercising their constitutional
>rights has been done under the pretext of counterterrorism activities
>surrounding protests of the Iraq war and the Republican National
>Convention. The FBI maintains it does not have the intent to monitor
>political activities and that its surveillance and intelligence
>gathering is "intended to prevent disruptive and criminal activity at
>demonstrations, not to quell free speech."
>
>Surveillance of potential disruptors then graduated to legal actions as
>a preemptive strike against potential disruptive behavior at public
>events. In addition to monitoring and surveillance of legal groups and
>legal activities, the FBI issued subpoenas for members to appear before
>grand juries based on the FBI's "intent" to prevent "disruptive
>convention protests."  The Justice Dept. opened a criminal
>investigation and subpoenaed records of Internet messages posted by
>Bush`s critics.  And, the Justice Dept. even indicted Greenpeace for a
>protest that was so lame the federal judge threw out the case.
>
>So now the Patriot Act, which was argued before enactment as a measure
>to fight foreign terrorists, is being amended to make clear that it
>also applies to American citizens who have the audacity to disrupt
>President Bush wherever his bubble may travel. If this provision is
>enacted into law, then Bush will have a law upon which to expand the
>type of people who constitute disruptors and the type of activities
>that constitute disruptive activities. And, then throw them all in
>jail.
>Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse
>
>Tags: Patriot Act, domestic spying, civil liberties, George W. Bush,
>Recommended (all tags)

-- 
Bill Crosier
Progressive Action Alliance   http://paa-tx.org/ 
http://progressiveactionalliance.org/
paa at crosierbiomed.com     713-641-4941
Tell Bush: WE WANT THE TRUTH!    http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/