Adam Kokesh Body Slammed for Dancing at Jefferson Memorial

reply to post by stephinrazin


Let's see...you can't dance in a publically-funded space?
You can't shout out when the cops arrest you for dancing?
You can't record video in a public space?
WTF? I don't get it at all. I'm ashamed of America if this is what it's come down to. The cops don't have anything better to do? I wonder if the cops sleep well at night knowing that this is how they feed and clothe their children.

No, the question is should we even BE outraged for the reason he was arrested. Adam Kokesh and his agenda is nowhere as brilliant, important or pertinent as those by Gandhi, MLK, or anyone else mentioned in this thread. It's almost laughable you compare them. He is an ACTIVIST people. He does this to get attention. I guarantee he could find some 1000 places to legally dance within a mile of that spot. Why does he have to dance THERE? Yes.. because he feels he is above the law. He feels government laws are irrelevant, and he should have not just freedoms, but ANY freedom he feels is important, laws be damned.

He can protest. He can dance. He just can't do it there. The country is not going to be destroyed because of our inability to dance, protest, or otherwise make a fool of ourselves in that particular spot.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

Originally posted by notonsamepage
reply to post by OutKast Searcher

 

Post Removed By Staff

I seem to have touched a nerve...did you not get the responses you were hoping for?


It is quite simple really...we live in a nation of laws...

and the highest law is the Constitution.

All laws must be in accordance with such.

This law is not.

individuals do not have the power to determine if a law is just or not (if you think you do, go re-read the constitution and find where it says this...come back and post it)....

Easy. First line. WE THE PEOPLE.

and if you break those laws you suffer the consequences. if you want to further your consequences...go ahead and resist arrest...which is also against the law.

I would rather break an unconstitutional law than lay down and have my freedom and rights trampled on.

Do you think laws should not be enforced? Should I be able to steal from you? Should I be able to kill someone just because I don't like them?

Apples and oranges.

So now dancing is equated to murder and theft.

Who are YOU to choose which laws should or should not be enforced???

edit on 5/29/2011 by semperfortis because: (no reason given)

WE THE PEOPLE.

Originally posted by Konah

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

And people do have the power to change the government....it is called voting....not breaking laws.

How's that working out for you? Or, for the rest of America for that matter in lieu of the bills passed last Thursday?

Unconstitutional laws do need to be broken, over and over again until they are abolished for good.

Edit to Add: And another thing, our Founding Fathers believed in civil disobedience and dissent, they actually said it was our duty as American citizens. Sometimes you just have to break the law for a larger message to be heard.

edit on 5/29/2011 by Konah because: (no reason given)

It's working out pretty well for me...thanks.


And like I and others have said...I 100% support this law that some people seem to think is wrong. I don't want to see protestors or anything of the sort if I go to visit a memorial.

If I was on vacation with my family...and we picked that day to go to the Jefferson memorial and it was ruined by these idiots...I would be applauding the police for getting them out of there. What "right" do they have to interfere with my visit to the memorial???

Originally posted by moonzoo7
reply to post by stephinrazin

 

Let's see...you can't dance in a publically-funded space?
You can't shout out when the cops arrest you for dancing?
You can't record video in a public space?
WTF? I don't get it at all. I'm ashamed of America if this is what it's come down to. The cops don't have anything better to do? I wonder if the cops sleep well at night knowing that this is how they feed and clothe their children.

The cops don't create the laws...they enforce them.

It's not the cops job to decide if a law is unjust or wrong.

They have a job...and if you insist on forcing them to do that job...they are required to do so. These officers gave them plenty of warnings and opportunities to walk away peacefully...but that wasn't these peoples goal. Their goal was to create a production and then act surprised when they got the result they wanted.

Originally posted by NuroSlam
reply to post by eXia7

 

To be shown on Russia Tv, I wonder what the russians think about america

A poor example of democracy?

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by mayabong

 

While I think you are right to an extent. I do think there are unjust laws. There have been lots of unjust laws in the past and sometimes it just takes people to rise up and say no, for the law to go away. Go say what you just said to Rosa Parks. lol

Yes...there are unjust laws. But you have to ask...were these people doing this because of how unjust this "no dancing" law is??? Or were they doing it to make a scene, create a video (with a professional camera guy running around in the background), and make the claim of "police state"?

The professional was from NBC4, which did not report on much.

Would you say their claims are unfounded?

Did the police enforce a Constitutional law?

Do you think Rosa Parks was trying to find a law where she could make a scene to try to show the police as "evil nazis"??? [ Or do you think she was just tired and wanted to sit down...and got arressted because the law actually was unjust??? I don't think Rosa Parks came equipped with a camera crew to get some hits on youtube.

She was there to make a statement, just as Kokesh and his crew were.

SHe was an activist. Not just some random woman.

I actually don't think this "no dancing" law is unjust...If I go to the Jefferson Memorial...I want to see the memorial...not people protesting, dancing, or trying to make a scene.

It is a public place. Laws can't be made restricting freedom.

I am sure Bostonians just wanted their tea.

If you don't like the law...pettition to get it changed...don't go provoke the police just to see if they will enforce the law...that is stupid.

Like the American Revolution, yes?

Originally posted by Lemon.Fresh
You fail.

Maybe these people need to go to the Vietnam Memorial and trying dancing and acting a fool.

No soldier is buried there. It's just black granite with 58,000 names inscribed on it in an open area. They won't have to worry about the police there. I guarantee this.

A public library is neither a tomb or memorial. Do you support the rights of these clowns dancing around or the staff that would like to keep order so other patrons can enjoy the atmosphere?

There is a time and place to protest. Forgive me if I'm mistaken but you sound like a Westboro Baptist Church supporter.

There is reasons protesting is not allowed inside. You can get 100 people to protest and fill up the inside of that memorial. So then all the visitors who came to see and pay there respects to this memorial would be unable to enter. And what are they trying to do now....? Oh do the same thing again with even more people maybe even filling it up so no visitor can view the memorial. That's just not respectful to other people whom are visiting in my opinion.

There is tons of places to protest and we are so lucky in this country we are allowed to. In other country's you can't protest anywhere. Here we can practically anywhere that won't cause a major disruption to the public and visitors.

Originally posted by Asktheanimals
Doesn't anyone know what decorum is and what might or might not be appropriate in a memorial such as this? If I were visiting the Jefferson memorial I would like to be able to enjoy it and not be annoyed by people being loud or otherwise obnoxious.

The only ones loud and obnoxious were the cops.

Everyone else was just quietly dancing with themselves.

How ironic that you wish to memorialize a man by restricting the very things that man championed.

While I have great respect for people protesting (esp Adam Kokesh) this was the wrong place to do it.
Outside would be fine but not inside the memorial itself.

. . .

Again, where is the clause for this in the Constitution?

reply to post by OutKast Searcher


fact of the matter is, no law was broke. Laws are in place to protect the well-fare and well-being of a person and the public. Dancing in a public area that was built using tax payers money is not against the law in any state. Cops cannot arrest a couple for dancing just because he gave them an unvalid warning. They pose no threat to the public or to the cops life. If our revolutionary fathers seen this....

Originally posted by Intelearthling

Originally posted by Lemon.Fresh
You fail.

Maybe these people need to go to the Vietnam Memorial and trying dancing and acting a fool.

No soldier is buried there. It's just black granite with 58,000 names inscribed on it in an open area. They won't have to worry about the police there. I guarantee this.

A public library is neither a tomb or memorial. Do you support the rights of these clowns dancing around or the staff that would like to keep order so other patrons can enjoy the atmosphere?

There is a time and place to protest. Forgive me if I'm mistaken but you sound like a Westboro Baptist Church supporter.

Hey kid, does it really hurt you and cause a public disturbance when 2 people are slow dancing?

Stop defending these atrocious actions.

reply to post by fleabit


I know Kokesh is no MLK. The reality is we are in a creeping fascist state. You may not feel that having to ask permission to exercise an inalienable right like free assembly is a problem. I think it is one more straw on the camel's back. Each new outrage is not ground breaking when viewed in a vacuum, but we do not live in a vacuum. This is just one more indication of the excessive state power. It may not be the worst of the outrages going on, but that does not mean we should disregard it. We are good little serfs who have become accustomed to tyranny to the point we defend it when it is not in the worst visible form.

reply to post by fleabit


Translation:


How dare someone stands up for their rights. I have no respect for people who stand up to tyranny.

Once more people, Code Pink was involved in this. For anyone who missed my posts on this last night, Code Pink has been in Egypt stirring things up for that revolution. Their agenda is closer to the Kent State riots than to Tea Party. Maybe she just showed up at Kokesh's party. Maybe he put fliers out and she just came spontaneously. This was not a spontaneous event, and clearly some of the people were intent on creating a scene. Disturbing the peace is an ordinance everywhere you go. The body slamming did seem a bit much though. I am ordinarily outraged at things that look Police Statish, but it was a deliberate prodding by known radicals. The first people in the film to be arrested were the Code Pink members. Again, remember it was communist agitators at Kent State who provoked the Establishment by setting fires to school property. They were anarchists. Kokesh is a Ron Paul supporter and he would do well to pick fights that do not involve State Memorials. They can waltz down anystreet USA and no one would look twice. Look at people in New York or California who skateboard, rollerblade, dance, play drums, play chess. You cannot tell me that free expression has been locked up forever. But it might be, as the real crackdowns are coming on the Internet. They are happening in the schools too, if you happen to be Christian. And that's not new to communism. Just ask anybody from a former Communist country.

The sane thing would have been for the cops to have told the dancers to move to an inconspicuous space and dance your hearts out. But no....they love violence and need to push others around in the name of keeping the peace. See the irony here?

Lemon Fresh and I have butted heads in the past but we're united on this unconstitutional infringement on free expression and assembly.

It saddens me to watch the US gradually sink into Fascism. This is just the beginning! But thank GOD for iphones and the www; at least we can record our demise into tyranny.

Originally posted by Asktheanimals
reply to post by Cryptonomicon

 

Thank you Crypto for providing this.

Here is a very relevant bit from the court case:

Visitors to the Memorial interior must ascend a stairway, traverse a portico, and pass a sign that says “Quiet / Respect Please” before entering.

Source - www.cadc.uscourts.gov...$file/10-5078-1308285.pdf

There is also a provision that the interior should be for "quiet contemplation".

Absolutely, and that's all well and good.

But a sign that reads "Quiet / Respect Please" gives the impression that it's a polite request, but that they are not *obligated by law* to behave certain way. It's a request. This is further exacerbated by the fact that in the immediate surrounding area (off the steps and on the sidewalk) it's 100% okay to DANCE your heart out.

And that's where the confusion lies.

You see - the lady in that original case was QUIETLY DANCING - she was Quiet, and being Respectful, but she was still found to be "breaking the law".

So you understand still, why the signage is INSUFFICIENT? It needs to clearly state that "This U.S. Government building is a non-public forum and thus..." etc. and it goes on to explain that the LAW (not a request) distinguishes between the interior of the building and the exterior surrounding park.

The sign asking "please", if anything, further clouds the issue rather than clarify it.

For those of you who haven't yet figured it out:

AMERICA IS NOT FREE

Originally posted by fleabit
No, the question is should we even BE outraged for the reason he was arrested. Adam Kokesh and his agenda is nowhere as brilliant, important or pertinent as those by Gandhi, MLK, or anyone else mentioned in this thread.

A right is a right. Just because you believe on has more importance over another does not make it so.

Some protest taxes, some protest inequality. Some protest other violations.

They are all equal and valid.

It's almost laughable you compare them.

No. Standing in the face of the ones who violate your rights, no matter what right it is is NOT laughable. It is commendable.

He is an ACTIVIST people.

As were our founding fathers.

As was Rosa Parks, MLK, and Ghandi, and a host of others.

He does this to get attention.

Good on him. Bring attention to violations.

The problem is?

I guarantee he could find some 1000 places to legally dance within a mile of that spot.

It was a protest. A protected first amendment right.

You can assemble and protest anywhere.

Go read the 1st. You will learn a lot.

Why does he have to dance THERE? Yes.. because he feels he is above the law. He feels government laws are irrelevant, and he should have not just freedoms, but ANY freedom he feels is important, laws be damned.

The law is unconstitutional, and he is showing it as such by protesting.

Why did Bostonians throw tea into the harbor?

[quoe]He can protest. He can dance. He just can't do it there. The country is not going to be destroyed because of our inability to dance, protest, or otherwise make a fool of ourselves in that particular spot.

Clause in the 1st Amendment plz?

Originally posted by whaaa
The sane thing would have been for the cops to have told the dancers to move to an inconspicuous space and dance your hearts out. But no....they love violence and need to push others around in the name of keeping the peace. See the irony here?

They did EXACTLY that.

Watch again.




What would be your solution after warning them several times and calmly explaining to them that if they continue they will be arrested...and then they do it right in your face???