- George 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."
-
- The 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
|
