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Indybay Feature

Video of right wing 'Protest Warriors' fleeing Crawford pro-war rally

by Jeff Paterson (jeff [at] paterson.net)
4:30 minute video. Microsoft Windows Media Player required.

About two thousand people converged in Crawford for the “Cindy (Sheehan) Doesn’t Speak for Me” rally Saturday. However, in a odd turn of events, and despite repeated pleadings that “we are on your side, we are on the right,” the rally turned on conservative youth "Protest Warriors."
Copy the code below to embed this movie into a web page:
Crawford, Texas (August 28, 2005)

About two thousand people converged in Crawford yesterday for the “Cindy Doesn’t Speak for Me” rally. “Gold Bless America, God Bless the Troops, and God Bless President Bush” was the theme of the day. Favorite chants included, “Cindy Go Home!” and “What’s Our Exit Strategy? Victory!” Many of the speakers were AM radio talk show hosts from across the country.

The theme of most of their speeches was that Cindy Sheehan was prolonging the war by giving hope to the terrorists. “Iraqis love us… and we are winning.” “The media is currently on a anti-American rampage… Insurgents love the U.S. media.” Darrell Ankarls of 570 KLIF AM radio boomed from the stage that “Cindy’s stuff is making into the sandbox” and it is “getting our boys killed.” Cindy should “shut up” and “go home!”

I had heard that military recruiters were going to be on hand to sign up the youth who attended the rally. I did over hear two young women excitedly talking about having just “jumped in, and sign up.” However, it turned out that they were talking about having signed up for the University of Texas Young Republican Club. It was announced that a woman riding around the parameter of the rally on a beautiful horse was the mother of a teenager who was waiting to enter the military.

Free Republic and the their right-wing youth group of “ironic” Protest Warriors were repeatedly thanked for their support and participation in the rally. The Protest Warriors are young people who usually appear at anti-war related activities with slogans based on “right-wing irony,” such as “War Has Never Solved Anything (except for everything).” However, in a odd turn of events, and despite repeated pleadings that “we are on your side, we are on the right,” the rally turned on these kids. Shouting “Cindy Go Home!” a small mob gathered around the three or four Protest Warriors, attacked their oversized signs, and began stomping on the signs.

Visibly shaken, the Protest Warriors beat a retreat from the rally to the chants of “Get Out of Here Liars!” Over and over again, “We are on your side” were meet by “Liars!” One man clarified that even if they were trying to support the war, they were confusing people, and that “it is the devil who wanted to sew confusion.” It is safe to say that irony, or any opinions that hinted at “shades of gray” were not welcome in Bush Country.

Archive of photos and reports from Crawford, Texas:
http://www.notinourname.net/war/sheehan.htm
Add Your Comments

Comments (Hide Comments)
by kl
Jeez, kind of an eye-opener....you kind of forget how stupidly brutish, loutish, and ignorant the Right Wing is. Not the architects of this war....not the twerps in their ties and ivy-league glasses....no, they're amorally crafty and clever...and know exactly what .i.e. war....(and the real reason that they want it)....but the dumb-fucks brown-shirts who rally around them (but, of course, like the architects....even they're not dumb enough to fight in the war themselves....no, they plan to send YOU.
(or your children)
by main support base

the white trailer park trash set pretty well drunk on beer.
by Roland
A limitation on the amount of words the "war activists" can read must have been placed on them. During the planning strategy for their rally, the leaders reminded their benighted followers, "Remember, read only the words in BIG Letters. Ignore the fine print. After all, this is Texas."
by kl
I’ve been at anti-war rallies where those so-called "Protest Warriors" have been...and boy...they're the scum of the earth...(you'd think you were in Mussolini’s Rome back in the 30's...the neo-fascist look, that's for sure...).

....and what always interesting...is asking them how come they haven't "joined up" themselves...i.e. enlisted?

And then, of course, there’s a lot of hemming and hawing: a lot of “...err's”, “...you know’s”......and the like.....never a straight answer.

And, of course, never a commitment to enlist and put their asses on the line for what they support.

No, like most of the “pro-war” folk on this site, they're all for war as long, of course, as they don’t have to fight in it.
by LallyG
I notice you fail to mention the documented fact that after the mission of Protest Warrior was stated to those who were confused, one of them shook hands. Typical moonbat reporting, only telling part of the story.

I understood PW's signs the first time I ever set my eyes on them. And those PW's are great people. I've seen them in action at protests, and rather than debate, the libs will become violent and pushy.
by I've seen the "PW"'s, too
I talked with one for about 30 minutes--he identified as a 'libertarian'--ha. It took about 15 minutes to assist him in seeing the inherent fallicies in his shallow belief system. (A system reinforced by right-wing AM-whack job radio misinformation)
by ha, ha, it is to laugh
who exactly became "violent and pushy" here? the pro-war yahoos, that's who

yes, there was a handshake or two, but basically these "warriors" got run outa town with their tails between their legs. one or two more thoughtful people stopped to listen, but the majority in the jingoistic mob couldn't handle their complexity.

and maybe you get their signage, but apparently a significant portion of your allies-in-arms are too clueless, too threatened by everything that is not a blatant one-note validation of their political orientations and the American Jesus.

this video is a hoot and no wonder you can't stand how stoopid it makes your side look. idiotic Americans finally have their idiot President to speak for them

say, do the Protest Warriors know about this video? do you think they will link to it here? I know they must have seen the embarrassing AP stories about this little run-in...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050828/ap_on_re_us/peace_mom
by Encore, idiots! Encore!
I want 10,000 more of these knuckle-dragging imbeciles to show up in Crawford making total assholes of themselves, white costumes, burning crosses, skin-head bikers having shoot-outs with each other, the whole bit. Let the whole world see it on television.
by Will Marean (jhouserok [at] gmail.com)
Yeah, I got wind of this in Camp Cindi II Sunday night as I was filming some debates with two knowledgeable Texan men, Will aged 19 and Kyle, a conservative Democrat, who's 20. And the We Support Cindi Sheehan club. Will and Kyle returned early on Monday to learn more about your side's opinion as well as return to Camp Reality and chat with our side. They enjoyed the whole experience greatly. Frankly everyone I talked to at Camp Cindi I and II were quite shocked by their intelligence and open-mindedness. You should all realize that we can debate rationally and intelligently, as long as militant anarchists and other masked attack squads don't get in the middle of us. Hope you will view my videos of both sides peacefully debating their sides, when they are online.
by putting lipstick on a pig
Protest Coward conveniently forgets to mention getting run out of Camp Everwar in his happy-happy report of the day:

"Alright, for those of you who don't already know, and never really read my site, I am conservative, big shocker. Currently I am in Waco, TX. I flew in on Friday from Minnesota and took short road here from Dallas, which happened to be about 120 miles away even though it was only about an inch and a half on my map, but Everything is bigger here in Texas. I came in support of the group I am a member of, http://www.ProtestCoward.com."

blah blah omit blah omit stay the course blah blah you go fight the war I'll stay safe at home blah blah blah
by Spellchecker
Ok, I'm sorry. But I just have to paste this quote from jhouserok.blogspot.com's protest warrior [sic] blog:

"Also we were given the opportunity to partake in their dinner meal which started right as we were leaving, interestingly enough the whole event is professionally catered on the weekends by another leftie group; Drop Food Not Bombs, or something of the like."

Go FNB(tm)!

LOL
by thankfully
Protest Cowards rely on coppers to keep them safe:

"For all of you who don't know I belong to a group called Protest Warrior, from http://www.protestcowards.com. We regularly show up at antiwar protests to counter protest the hippies, and to support the troops. We also regularly get insults shouted at us and pushed and sometimes even punched. It's fun though for the most part, thankfully at this protest we had police all over the place."

okay, 'nuf said. they are plainly a cowardly joke
You reap what you sow, you sow seeds of confusion, you sew a dress. Journalistic standards and all that.
by daveman
...that the people you're insulting and demeaning are the very people you need to convince of the correctness of your positions if you are ever to regain power in America?

No?

Prepare to lose election after election, then.
by critic
hahahhahahhahhaaaaaaahahhahahahha!
thats great, they should be greatfull they didint fall under a hail of boot stomps like at j20.

slimey fascist cowards, the irony of able bodied riech wing youth promoting wars they refuse to fight in is lost on them.

their allies are aparently blinded by hate and a lack of critical thinking ability, the protest warriors inadvertantly proved my point. i cant wait to rub this new embarassment in their faces as well as the heel of my boot.

p.s. please dont tell me these fools who show up to provoke people into violence so they can shout about "hypocritical hippys" dont deserve an ass whuping now and again, they are fine with violence so long as its done by armys to third world countrys and carried out by other young men aparently braver than themselves.

run brownshirt bitches run!!!
up the class warriors!
by not necessarily
they are the very people that YOU need, and hence your apologia for their abhorent behavior

these knuckledraggers are beyond convincing if they can't even handle the "irony" of the protest warriors. elections have been and can be won without them.

besides we don't have to insult and demean them -- they do it quite well to themselves

all anyone here did was document their idiocy.

and now it's out there *forever* for the world to see
by Peter
Not much of a libertarian if he believes in unprovoked war funded by our tax dollars, violating the sovereignity of a far-off contry, etc.
by brigg
>You realize, don't you that the people you're insulting and demeaning are the very people you need to convince of the correctness of your positions if you are ever to regain power in America?

In order to "regain power" they once had to have it to begin with, which they haven't. We're talking anarchists and the far left kooks here. These idiots have trouble dressing themsleves, much less doing anything constructive. How many years has this supposed utopia on Earth been a part of their little dreamworld? And it's not here, it's not even close, and it will never be close. A lifetime of disappointment is all they have of which to look forward.

by the guise of realism
Under the false guise of 'realism' or (falsely) thrown under the umbrella of 'common sense'--right wingers remain immobilized re: change due to fear. Thus, when it comes to conservative/right wingers, most of the (what was coinsidered) radical/progressive changes ever to take place (from within or without) in systems of power have been without their help--and in fact, they usually can be counted on to create barriers to change (unless that change is whack job policy creation that benefits the few) i.e. for a recent list, see: tax cuts, iraq war, environmental policy, ect.
by tyson
great story. thanks for capturing that footage and sharing it.
Awesomely stupid people at that "anti-protest protest". Kind of shows the limited mental ability of the folks that cry for more war.
by True,the PW's I've talked to were..challenged
That's putting it nicely. After some discussion, and having to quiet folks down who were (understandably) frustrated at their intentional antagonism based on ignorance, I have several talks with them and usually have them tongue-tied within minutes. They really have no understanding/anlaysis of the systems that they are endorsing or protesting. Most of their words are simply shallow rhetoric (regurgitated Limbaugh-esque propaganda diatribe) and when really wuestioned, most of them (I'm sure there are exceptions to this rule) don't really understand the issues.
by Gene
I'm a conservative, but I'm glad that you were there to capture this video. It was painfull to watch, but a good lesson in what NOT to do.

Yes there are morons on both sides, and in this case there was no good reason for the PW guys to be there... the counter protest was laready bigger than the real protest and emotions were flairing (and beer flowing) so little things like sarcasm or irony are not likely to be noticed.

by Yes indeedy
"there was no good reason for the PW guys to be there"

Especially since they're zionist political operatives with ZERO patriotic feeling for any country other than Israel. The rednecks' *conscious* reason for wanting to kick their asses may have been really stupid, but the impulse itself was completely appropriate. Wuddaya wanna bet these dazzling urbanites were openly rude to the bumpkins (a liability for urban bigots who form dishonest alliances with the very people they loathe), and that this is what really caused the fracas, much more than the signs?
by you got that right
Like when we let the pResident act like he's caesar.

See:

by we are slipping

http://www.champress.net/english/?page=show_det&id=1751


This won't be the American century - RUPERT CORNWELL
Whatever happened to the new American century? On the eve of 2000, I remember (with some embarrassment) writing with absolute conviction how the future would belong to the United States.
I based that assertion on the status of the United States as the only country with a truly global reach. It spent more on the military than the next dozen countries combined. Its economy accounted for more than a quarter of global output. Its budget was in surplus, American technology ruled the world. Not since ancient Rome had a single state been so dominant.
After a pretty wretched 2005, how different everything appears.
Yes, the U.S. economy is still the largest. But the gap is shrinking. Last year China overtook Italy to become the world's sixth-largest economy, and in 2006 should surpass Britain and France. By 2035, it should have caught up with the United States.
The United States remains far and away the greatest military power on Earth. But Iraq has brutally revealed the limits of American "hard power."
The 2003 invasion will go down in the textbooks for the brilliance of its execution. But despite spending $5 billion a month, and 140,000 troops on the ground, the United States can not ensure stability or security in Iraq.
Instead, Iraq has stretched the United States' all-volunteer military close to the breaking point. Washington intends to cut that force by a third this year. In truth, it has no choice.
Yes, the Pentagon can send unmanned drones to kill al-Qaida operatives on the furthest frontiers of Yemen and Pakistan. But the major U.S. military operations against Iran, three times larger than Iraq, or even little Syria -- that seemed all too likely after the triumphant march on Baghdad -- are now virtually inconceivable. So much for U.S. "hard power" that was supposed to impose a Pax Americana on the world, stretching into the 21st century as far as the eye could see.
What of its "soft power" -- the innate appeal of the United States as projected by its ever-growing economy, its culture and the unstoppable advance of the English language?
Soft power was supposed to be the U.S. long-term trump card. Now it looks more like the six of clubs than the ace of spades. In economic terms, not only China, but also India and the countries of the Asian rim are snapping at the United States' heels. After its post-Cold War eclipse, Russia is re-emerging as an energy superpower.
The U.S. social model, with its increasing conservatism and the "winner-take-all" ethos of the Republicans who dominate national politics, has become less attractive. Even U.S. popular culture has lost some magnetism. Anti-Americanism grips much of the globe, and Hollywood and the rest of the U.S. entertainment industry no longer sweep all before them.
Americans furiously resist any suggestion they are imperialists. They did not shake off British rule, they say, to build an empire of their own. Americans see their country as an international good cop that keeps the world safe for the advance of liberal democracy and global capitalism. But that role has many ingredients of empire: armed forces around the world, a currency accepted on every continent, and the ability to bend many other countries to its will.
But six years into this imagined second American century, the weaknesses of this approach are all too apparent. The two world wars of the 20th century are supposed to have replaced a British empire with a U.S. empire. But there are two crucial distinctions.
The British, for better or worse, made a huge long-term commitment to their subject nations. Entire civil service careers were spent in the colonies. Officials immersed themselves in local languages and culture.
The U.S. approach is utterly different, as Iraq has proved miserably.
The ideal U.S. war now is a massive strike to achieve the immediate military objective, followed by quick withdrawal. No cultural immersion, no direct long-term involvement, and perish the thought of "nation-building."
In Iraq of course, there was no alternative to nation-building. But the United States must go about that task with few people who truly know the country, and only a handful of fluent Arabic speakers -- hardly the way to make friends and influence people.
The second difference is economic. Pax Britannica was built not only on the Royal Navy but also on Britain's position as the world's biggest creditor nation. The United States, however, is the world's biggest debtor, needing to attract $2 billion a day of foreign investment to cover its huge external deficit.
The global reserve role of the dollar means the United States can print its currency to pay those foreign debts. But ultimately its financial stability relies on the assumption that the central banks of China and other Asian countries will keep buying U.S. stocks and government securities.
That assumption is probably correct. The United States and its citizens with their overused credit cards are the world's consumers of last resort. A serious run on the dollar would devastate the economies not only of the United States but China, as well.
There you have it: a country living beyond its means, heavily reliant on an overstretched military, which flinches from imposing tax sacrifices to get its accounts in order. History has not been kind to great nations that get themselves into this position.
Back in 2000, I was of course naive in my belief that U.S. power was boundless and almost timeless. The equally dangerous temptation now is to write off the United States prematurely.
History is shaped not only by events but by individual humans. It is impossible to imagine the United States' reputation would have sunk so far and so fast, had Bill Clinton or Al Gore had been president. The next president, or presidents, will be able to regain some lost ground.
But on the eve of 2006, I offer this assertion. This will not be the American century. In all probability, the zenith of American power has passed.

by I posted this just for you
georgeassfuck.jpgpmqhnv.jpg
BWAHAHAHAHAHA! Here's your precious ruler, fuckwad
by Rummy
You actually allow such filth [the Bush.bin Laden photo] on your site.

We are at a war for our survival. That you are so stupid to not understand that is your problem. Please keep your ignorance to yourself.

If you haven't noticed, Iran has stated it will wipe Israel off the planet. You people don't deserve to be Americans. You really don't.

Rummy
by towing the party line
Try some critical thinking and an education, instead of simple regurgitated talking points of AM-looney right radio shows....
by DJEB
Oh sweet irony.
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