→ 7 answers so far ↓

• 1 Tiffany! // Apr 8, 2008 at 12:36 pm

  I wholeheartedly desire to be a part of the demonstration tomorrow, however I just got quite sick and missed Monday classes, so I probably have to go to my Wed ones now, unfortunately.
  I think that the French are the best protesters because their OTP (olympic torch protest) resulted in the flame having to be extinguished (by its security detail) FIVE times. I guess the french just have more experience protesting and striking (ahem… I mean having ‘Social Movements’).
  I think that China is a rotten place for the Olympics and the olympic slogan this year is really a slap in the face to those suffering under Chinese regime. Not to mention, the pollution has made some olympians drop out of certain events for health reasons.. ick!
  Last big demonstration I was a part of was in Stockton (around 96 or 97) when the city council voted to use Eminent Domain to force a longtime mexican restaurant in down town to move (without paying them adequate relocation costs as well) so they could level it and add a McDonalds. It was part of their Gateway project to entice people to drive off of the freeway into downtown Stockton and check it out. We made signs (My infamous one with TB chihuahua is still hung up somewhere at their new location) and marched to city hall protesting. It was a good experience and I thank my parents for allowing me to be embittered by local government at an early age.

• 2 heypal // Apr 8, 2008 at 6:28 pm

  bah.

• 3 hadas // Apr 8, 2008 at 9:53 pm

  specifically, the french are good at protesting by lighting things on fire..namely, cars.

• 4 NateG // Apr 8, 2008 at 10:12 pm

  I think that political protests can be cool, but are like way over used these days…

  like real political protests should be a last measure when all other efforts to change whatever issue have failed… and only important issues…

  I kinda feel that because protests happen so often these days (especially in sf) that when they happen nobody cares….

  Also protests need to be strictly nonviolent… like gandhi and MLK said and did back in the day. Cuz the moment you hit a cop or try and move back a police barrier and/or other violent acts you might as well have not protested at all cuz you turn people away and all that… and in general most cops i have seen handling protesters are pretty cool about it until you throw a bottle in their face…

  last protest i saw was at UCSC this past november with kids protesting the university’s long range development plan… and that in my opinion was a protest that failed to accomplish any reasonable goals in large part cuz a lot of those protesters thought it was cool to throw rocks at cops who were just trying to maintain a barrier..

  Last protest i participated in was in march 03… the anti iraq war protests before the war (lot of good that did us…)… i was attending SF state at the time and so i went to the monthly protests… Anyways, those protests were in large part very well organized and peaceful. I do remember that at the last one their was a group of “breakaway” protesters who decided to do such things as storm the SF mall throwing paint balls and smashing random windows and scream “we have bombs”.. kind of ruining the efforts to like promote peace that the other 100,000 people who were there fought so hard for

• 5 Beth // Apr 9, 2008 at 11:23 am

  I don’t think politics belong in the Olympics. It’s our chance to drop all differences and have a good ol’ time trying to show each other who’s the best damn ribbon dancer out there.

  Sometimes I wonder if these “lifer” protesters are just looking for a way to feel important or relevant. Living in SF has made me a bit jaded on this subject…I feel as though so many people have a “Have cause, will protest!” sort of attitude.

  I’d rather find another way to make a difference. Or, honestly, just attend a pub quiz.

  If this makes me sound like an active member of the apathetic generation…so be it. I’d rather just go live on a barely-populated, tropical island and live like the Swiss Family Robinson, anyhow.

• 6 Tiffany! // Apr 9, 2008 at 5:35 pm

  So… I was a good girl and went to my Wednesday classes… so ironic because by doing that I actually came closer to the bloody thing than if I had gone to protest it.
  I was riding the 28 bus through the park onto Park Presidio when the largest motorcade which I have ever seen passed by. About 5 busses, 2 limo busses, a couple of limos, 20 or so police cars, 80-100 police bikes, a fire engine, and of course a news truck following…. Ah, it appears that Gav changed the route entirely, going through his Marina hood and then putting it on a bus for the airport.
  PS> Am I the only person who is too young to remember the 1980 olympics? I hear that the US govt forced the US athletes to boycott it. Food for thought is all.

• 7 Stefan // Apr 10, 2008 at 8:08 am

  Political protest is good and necessary. Somtimes it has to be violent. Re: Paris/EU vs USA: While Europeans know how to protest better cause they had more experience, I believe the main reason why the states are lacking in the protest camp is the fact that you’ll get arrested, beaten and raped and convicted of some ridiculous crime in the US, while in Europe you may get a ticket for smashing a few windows… Plus, police brutality is much bigger problem in the US. In NYC, for example, they behave like fucking robocop, above the law who can do what they want! it’s even more of a crime to hurt or kill a cop than a regular citizen. That shit would never ever fly in EU. As a matter of fact, you could walk up to a cop and tell them to go fuck themselves and nothing would happen… cause they understand that they protect and serve us, not the other way around. and there is no preferred treatment for them in front of court either!! I actually feel that cops in Germany at least are held to a higher standard, given that they are part of the executive and have more power!
  In the US, technically they could shoot you if you throw a stone at the cops. thats why noone is going all out in the states. also, people in the EU are just more into social protest, so I guess there are more people that show up and its broader, with people from the middle calss and even with money… In the US it’s mostly treehuggers and hippies that do that. In Paris you had those dirty arabs from the Paris subburbs, just like we have all the turks in Berlin on May 1st, that just wait for those things to go off in order to beat the shit out of cops…
  imagine LA with some Latino youths just waiting to fuck shit up. You actually had it once, and the whole city burned…
  And another reason i see is that being socially involved is much more of a fashion trend in the states than in Europe. So most of you guys just talk and dress the part, but if a rich hedge fund guy comes along, or you have a real chance to make money, you all bend over like whores… dont say no, cause I have seen it without exception. You rationalize it with some lame excuse, like you have to go classes or something even lamerererer…
  So protest rules, and it makes the world a better place.

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