Blogtown, PDX

Friday, March 30, 2007

Media Mayor sticks it to Bill O’Reilly over anarchists

Posted by Matt Davis on Fri, Mar 30 at 4:05 PM

Man, that Bill O’Reilly has a lot to answer for. Mayor Potter’s office has received over 200 complaints from around the country, complaining that he allows effigies of G.I’s to be burned in this city. For example:

Will there be apologies from your office over their behavior? I understand that freedom of speech is a great thing, and I support it 100%, but the burning in effegy of a US Soldier, and the interesting (and sometimes improperly spelled) signs were just a bit too much, don’t you think? I’d think twice about visiting or relocating to your city if this is the sort of thing I can look forward to.

(…from a Senior Master Sergeant in the US Airforce). There are two more after the jump, and at least 200 more in the mayor’s inbox. Potter’s response?

A small segment of the media has not done a particularly good job on reporting what happened here in Portland…Unfortunately, a few media personalities have focused on the actions of a small handful of people - perhaps 10-15 young people - whose actions took place at the end of the afternoon after the demonstration had ended. They burned an American flag and an effigy that has been described as of a military person or the president. Their actions are protected as free speech under Oregon’s Constitution, as well as the U.S. Supreme Court. Portland police have monitored the protests closely, and made a number of arrests.

The intent of this tiny band of anarchists was to provoke a strong response and generate attention for themselves. They succeeded in getting a small group of radio and TV commentators to focus on them - although, interestingly, not in the Portland area. The Mayor has asked that people focus on the real issues facing our country, and not the actions of a tiny minority or the small media circus that feeds off them.

That’s telling ‘em.

I am sure you are aware of the protesters in your town who choose to desecrate our Flag, profane our fighting troops and demonstrate their freedoms that our troops put their lives on the line for each and every day of our lives. I am so ashamed of these vile people. They don't represent the America I grew up in, I truly hope that these people don't represent the values of the city of Portland. I hope the leaders of Portland are attempting to do something to distance itself from these idiots.

And...

Sir, seeing how you allowed a bunch of ill informed anarchists to burn a "soldier" in effigy and have made no effort to publicly condemn this unspeakable atrocity. I am exercising my "free speech" rights by never visiting your city for any event whatsoever. As well, I will pass the video along to as many people as I know who will in turn, follow my lead. Any purchases made via the internet personal or professional that involves Portland in any way will be immediately dismissed and a substitute found, regardless of the additional cost. This is beyond belief. You can disagree with the war as I do, but you can bet it is not the soldiers fault. These people should be arrested.

Permalink

Comments

I am exercising my "free speech" rights by never visiting your city for any event whatsoever.

Arguably, that's invoking one's right to peacably assemble, but it's certainly not invoking one's free speech rights.

Posted by b!X | March 30, 2007 4:23 PM

I'm sorry, that should have read as follows: "People are idiots."

Posted by b!X | March 30, 2007 4:24 PM

I am glad that this guy doesnt want to come to Portland. The asshats who did this are probably from California and we need to get them out as soon as possible.

Posted by nunya | March 30, 2007 5:03 PM

I agree with the above poster. Alot of this stuff has started to happen since our huge influx of south of the border immigrants and I am not talking about the mexicans

Posted by tomS | March 30, 2007 5:04 PM

I am of mexican heritage and I can say that the only thing I hate more than a racist is a californian

Posted by angel | March 30, 2007 5:06 PM

I'm from california and the only reason i left cali was becuase of all the crime and traffic and high home prices. Hmmm I guess you guys have that now hahaha eat a dick Oregon

Posted by john | March 30, 2007 5:08 PM

yawn. the sun comes up in the morning, and there is still stone-cold morons amongst us, what's new?

i wonder what these idiots would say if we asked them if timothy mcveigh (who was undoubtedly a radical rightist), eric rudolph (same thing) or the westboro baptist church (which protests soldier's funerals under the guise that america is being punished for accepting homosexuality) represents them and their mostly conservative views, or if instead they're just isolated, singular cases of extremism that had nothing to do with any larger popular belief?

i think they'd probably be a lot faster to deny them any belonging to conservative ideology as a whole than they would to see these anarchists as singular cases of stupidity and selfish, politically absent attention-seeking.

Posted by lyle | March 30, 2007 5:11 PM

"The only thing we hate more than racists is spics."
--Strangers With Candy

Posted by martin | March 30, 2007 5:13 PM

yay for tom potter seeing the big picture! thanks for reporting on this.

i dunno how we ended up yelling at californians when the jerks here are bill o'reilly and a few kids with too much time and too little brain.

Posted by bp | March 30, 2007 5:36 PM

yay for tom potter seeing the big picture

Yeah makes for a nice distraction from the fact that he's a nimrod.

Posted by b!X | March 30, 2007 5:47 PM

Nimrod? Poor Tom.

I guess this gives creedence to the "even a broken clock is right twice a day" device, eh?

WTG Tom.

Posted by carla | March 30, 2007 6:00 PM

This makes me want to burn an effigy and post it on youtube just so more assholes against free expression will not come to Oregon and pollute it. This is a victory.

Posted by xxx | March 30, 2007 10:30 PM

"I understand that freedom of speech is a great thing, and I support it 100%, but the burning in effegy of a US Soldier, and the interesting (and sometimes improperly spelled) signs were just a bit too much, don’t you think?"

Seriously, 100%, except for this one thing here.

And the signs, I'm all for free speech except for when they have signs.

Posted by Ritchie | March 31, 2007 1:23 AM

Burning a soldier in effigy is stupid and mindlessly trying to stir shit.

It's better to burn Bill O'Reilly or Michelle Malkin in effigy. Those two are worthless human beings trying to bail the Titanic with a paper cup by emphasizing this stupid story.

Posted by Aaron V. | March 31, 2007 11:27 AM

Burning a soldier in effigy is stupid and mindlessly trying to stir shit.

It's better to burn Bill O'Reilly or Michelle Malkin in effigy. Those two are worthless human beings tryint to defend the incompetent and crooked Bush administration by emphasizing this stupid story. It's like trying to bail the Titanic with a paper cup.

Posted by Aaron V. | March 31, 2007 11:28 AM

Um- Toms, angel, and martin, WHAT THE FUCK does this whole thing have to do with immigrants, Mexicans, or Spics..

Oh yeah, a large portion of soldiers (dead or alive) are Latinos and immigrants, that's right.

Posted by Cock n' Roll | March 31, 2007 6:38 PM

Cock n' Roll, what they were trying to say is that Californians are horrible, horrible people and the people burning the soldier in effigy were most likely from CA.
Okay kids, when are we going to grow up and stop blaming everything horrible in OR on people from California? I am willing to bet cash the protesters in the movie are kids from OR.

Posted by dls | April 1, 2007 2:02 PM

Idiots, I know who some of these kids are, and they are pure Oregonians, so STFU and GBTW

Posted by Erin | April 2, 2007 9:37 AM

Those "anarchists" douchebags are probably right-wing plants. Put there to make the good people of Portland look bad. Smart protesters would burn the likes of O'Riely, Coulter, Bush,Rove etc., not the underprivileged suckers who signed up to serve their country.

Posted by threebs | April 2, 2007 10:03 AM

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