You have commented 338 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Home Front
The Wackos Have Landed,
2003-11-14
A few articles from the upcoming rumble in Miami. I only linked to one:
’Pagan witch’ casts her spell
A spark of anti-corporate activism was lit Thursday night. By a witch. In the back yard of a church. Starhawk, a pagan witch and author from Mendocino, Calif., conjured up some spiritualist theory to convince about 80 listeners they should join thousands of others in protest against the Free Trade Area of the Americas meeting next week in Miami. Clad in a billowing blue shirt, wild gray hair framing her face, Starhawk exhorted her audience by the light of a bonfire behind the Unitarian Universalist Church on Northwest 21st Avenue. Her spellbound fans surrounded her in a circle lit by tiki torches. There were infants and retirees, sandaled paganists in robes of blue or black, women with tattoos and flowing skirts. They punctuated her words with applause or hoots, or clanging tambourines, bells or drums.
Starhawk, who declined to reveal her given name, railed against the FTAA, which is meeting in downtown Miami next Wednesday through Friday. The summit involves ministers from 34 nations, excluding Cuba, who seek to create a hemisphere-wide free trade area. Some 20,000 protesters, ranging from union workers, environmentalists, and advocates for the poor, are expected to march through Miami in opposition to the proposed trade agreement. Police are also prepared for smaller groups of black-clad anarchists to cause disruptions and property destruction.

Schools Practice Lockdowns, Prepare For Worst
There are 15 Miami-Dade County public schools within the "target zone" of the Free Trade Area of the Americas conference. School officials say that they are prepared for any problems that might arise from their proximity to the conference. Many of the schools within the zone have been practicing "code red lockdowns" since September in preparation for the FTAA. In a lockdown drill, gates are locked; doors are locked; security double-checks all doors as they make their rounds; and students stay in their rooms until all is clear.
Some schools are preparing in other ways, from keeping extra snacks on hand to securing air vents with duct tape. The tape keeps outside air that could contain tear gas from entering the school by recirculating the air that’s already inside. Teachers have been reminded to take an overnight bag with a change of clothes. All next week no students will be allowed outside during the school day. All physical education classes and any classes normally held in portable classrooms are canceled for the week. Classes in most schools will go on inside the buildings as normally scheduled, but for those parents who plan to keep their children home, school officials say the absence will be excused.

Miami Ready for Free Trade Protesters
Thousands of protesters are expected to take to the streets of Miami to protest trade talks next week, and while many of them say they will demonstrate peacefully, police are preparing for extremist groups bent on wreaking havoc. More than 40 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies have spent months training for the possibility of trouble at the Free Trade Area of Americas meeting that starts Sunday and runs through next Friday. Police have assigned thousands of officers to response teams, staged mock protest encounters, readied fire trucks that could double as water cannons, and plan to construct a security fence around the hotel where the talks will be conducted. Also, the city adopted an ordinance that bans protesters from carrying guns and lumber, among other things.

Miami law boosts police powers to arrest protesters
City officials made it easier Thursday for police to arrest protesters as downtown Miami steeled itself for massive demonstrations next week at the Free Trade Area of the Americas summit. Miami City commissioners unanimously approved a controversial law that gives police sweeping authority to arrest protesters, who predict the measure will allow authorities to trample on their free speech rights. Police Chief John Timoney pushed for the measure, saying it was needed to protect his officers and the public. The newly passed law limits what people can carry during parades or large public gatherings -- including rifles, knives, slingshots, brass knuckles, rocks, golf balls, knives, water balloons, glass bottles and thick sticks. Commissioners did write in exceptions to the stick provision, allowing for the puppets and stilts favored by some of the anti-globalization demonstrators. But, technically, the puppets are in violation unless fully assembled.

Downtown Miami braces for trade talks, protesters
The downtown area will bustle with police, protesters, and trade officials at next week’s free trade talks. But missing will be many of the business people, lawyers and students who usually fill the streets. Downtown businesses are bracing for thousands of protesters expected for the Free Trade Area of the Americas meeting where trade ministers from 34 nations, except Cuba, will debate creating the largest free trade area in the Western Hemisphere. Some law firms will relocate or allow employees to work from home. Cruise lines will move their ships north to Port Everglades. Most courts will be closed or curtail operations. Police will close a number of downtown streets and restrict access to parts of downtown near the meeting. Some business owners say they’re not taking any chances.
"I put all my life into this store and I don’t want anybody to destroy it overnight," said Avi Cohen, owner of Seaman’s Sound Inc., an electronics store close to where protests will take place. Cohen said he’ll board up his windows early next week, and will close for the latter part of the week when the biggest demonstrations are expected. He and some friends also plan to sleep in the store all week to make sure there aren’t any problems.
Some businesses are defiantly choosing to remain open. "We cannot cave into this," said Eileen Alvarez, owner of Cafe Con Leche, a coffee shop that opened in May. "I agree with what (the protesters) believe in. I just don’t agree with how they deal with it." Alvarez said that while she will remain open and will serve protesters, police and journalists, she’s concerned about the loss of her regular customers for the week. "I’m a small business owner," she said. "I don’t know if I can survive."
Can somebody tell me why any city in their right mind would agree to host any of these meetings?
Posted by:Steve

#12  Current Chicago practice is to threaten to sue the crap out of anyone who damages property. The war protests were relatively well-behaved as a result.
Posted by: eLarson   2003-11-14 11:22:27 PM  

#11   The massive "protests" will stop when local police have '68 Chicago flashbacks two events in a row.Has to be twice in a row for the idea to sink in and the followers quit attending.Then the hard core will be left,who want a confrontation,which will drive away any of the peaceful types,further discrediting cause and making it easier for authorities to deal harshly with rioters.
Posted by: Stephen   2003-11-14 10:22:05 PM  

#10  There must be a few planners and instigators, they need surveillance and quick jugging. The rest are cannon fodder and chaff. Jug the biggies and there will be peace in many metropolitan areas around the western world.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2003-11-14 7:10:55 PM  

#9  Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?

If the B.C. Sheriffs don't get 'em, the mugger industry sure will. And there won't be any love coming to them from Calle Ocho, either.
Posted by: Anonymous   2003-11-14 5:19:42 PM  

#8  Can somebody tell me why any city in their right mind would agree to host any of these meetings?

Maybe the local police are looking for some stick practice... one can hope, anyway. :)
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats   2003-11-14 5:13:54 PM  

#7  Starhawk...oh man. I've actually had a couple of brief run-ins with her...which I enjoyed very much. A person who is completely defenseless when confronted with rational thought. Why she ever traveled so far from her lair I don't know. Shipman: I was thinking the same thing....she might as well staple a bullseye to her forehead. At least we're exporting our whatckjobs. With any luck...she'll stay.
Posted by: Rex Mundi   2003-11-14 4:44:21 PM  

#6  Don't worry. Miami isn't Seattle or San Fransisco... Folks in Miami live for international trade, legal & otherwise and the coppers all got them killer flashlights.

And trust me.... these guys sound like easy pickings for the local mug-a-tourist industry.
Posted by: Shipman   2003-11-14 4:34:02 PM  

#5  Good Question Steve.

Here in Seattle (for the WTO riots) the 'Anarchist's took over a building. The seattle mayor said 'Thats ok'. When they starting destroying shops and businesses the seattle mayor said 'Thats ok. Just arrest the worst ones - but dont impose on their "rights" '.

When Y2K came around and the seattle residents (you know.. the people who pay his salary...) wanted to hold a fair or celebration at the seattle center the mayor said "Thats not ok. We might have terrorists!". (There was little, if any cause for this fear BTW).

The next election the seattle mayor wanted to serve another term and the seattle residents said 'Thats not ok. Take a hike!'.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2003-11-14 4:23:57 PM  

#4  The cops are too soft on these people. Here in Sacramento they did not start cracking skulls until the busted the police line. I would be more proactive and crack them when tried to bust the police line. You be surprised how many backed off after the first couple of idiots were popped and carted away.
Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter)   2003-11-14 3:56:01 PM  

#3  S. Beach is a freak show. It was just a matter of time before it was 'San Francisco-ized' by the whackos of the left.
Posted by: Anonymous   2003-11-14 3:55:51 PM  

#2  They need to host these things in cities where its cold, or no fun to visit on holiday. Keeps the idiots away.
Posted by: RussSchultz   2003-11-14 3:52:44 PM  

#1  They couldn't have had idiots like this back during the age of merchantilism or in the age of barter.
Posted by: Anonymous   2003-11-14 3:17:45 PM  

00:00