Protesters Disrespect War Memorial

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In the capitol rotunda here in Madison there is a war memorial for those who died so we can enjoy our freedoms. Last Saturday when I was there the memorial wasn’t touched. It was the first place I looked to see if there were any issues. Via Ann Althouse, it is apparently not the case anymore, sadly.

I will be there today to see if this memorial is still defaced, and if it is, they are going to get a piece of my mind and if they don’t take that crap down immediately I will take it down myself. Althouse and her husband do a fine job letting these kids have it. These are some of the most disgusting and disturbing images I have seen of this last fortnight.

34 thoughts on “Protesters Disrespect War Memorial”

  1. This looks like a petty picking on Ann and her husband’s part. As witnessed at the end of the video, the kids sent forward some young bureaucrat-in-the-making and she’ll correct the “disrespect”. It’s all superficial, the request as well the response.
    The issue is not with symbolism of “war memorial”. It’s just a tiny unpleasant brushstroke on a big military-left attack picture.
    Why didn’t they ask a different question: what are these young people are doing in the Capitol building? They are not members of the public union, are they? Why they are not in school? Why administrators and teaching staff of their colleges allowed them the leave? Why they are not being disciplined?

    Maybe these questions don’t come to Ann Althouse’s mind as she is part of same mindset, being one from academia. And her husband, with his “I am sympathetic to your cause” statement – what is there to praise, Dan?

  2. There is trash and stickers on the war memorial and even a damned water bottle on the floor. To me this is extremely disrespectful and it is 100% wrong. I am glad that Althouse and her husband said something.

  4. They probably cleaned it up, Dan, after that nagging session with Althouse and her husband. Anyone who dealt with teenagers and 20yos recognize their reaction: it’s a tone of an annoyed teenager who are told to “clean up his mess”.

    There is disrespect there, Dan, but not to a stone stele with handful of names goldleafed on it; the disrespect is to a honest-working people who are NOT members of government unions, people who have no job security, no bargaining rights, no guaranteed medicine or pensions – and who are the people who pay for all these goodies that public union members have. This disrespect is the issue. Maybe you should explain this to the kids instead of quarreling with them over such a superficial matter, as some paper garbage stuck on a granite memorial.

  5. I really don’t want to get into anything but the memorial. It is pretty black and white to me. There is junk on and around the war memorial. It is extremely disrespectful. What you think about Althouse, her husband and the others in the video is fine, but not the point of my post.

  6. Tatyana – after viewing the video I would agree that the taking to task of these clueless kids was overkill and just not necessary. Asking them to remove the items and waiting for them to remove the items would have served the purpose of showing that the other side is wrong. That being said, I applaud them for speaking up. Most people would muter to themselves and wait for the comfort of a friendly environment surrounded by like minded and sympathetic listeners.

    Dan – Bottom line, these kids have no clue. I suspect though that if you go back today and there is stuff on the memorial it is manned by people with a clue and a “stick” to poke you with. This theater at the capital is being played (by those with the Lead parts) to the 20%ers. Those who are not set right or left. Just be carful. The left would like nothing better then confrontation by the right. Remember, for them the ends justify the means. Good luck my man.

  8. Mike: true, they did speak up.
    But it was not difficult or heroic of them, there is not much to applaud them for.
    Both of them are used to public speaking, Althouse in particular, being a lawyer and an University lecturer. More, she’s used to dealing with students – obviously, these kids are used to professors chiding them. Even the vocabulary of Ann and her husband is the same as these kids; they operate in same discourse, same terms – strictly symbolic. Listen to what he said “I am sympathetic…you hurt your cause” . Their cause! I hate this language of limousine liberals.
    So if only the kids would not stick paper trash on the stone, everything is hunky-dory.

    I’d like to see Althouse and her husband to speak up to somebody of equal weight – to an adult organizer or a union functionary. Only I don’t think they will; their outrage is purely superficial.

  9. Tatyana – I do see your point. You know the background of the Althouses. It is a lesson for me in being cautious in drawing conclusions without enough information. It seems that in general, both sides on a contentious issue, are looking for that emotional trigger to rally their side and/or discredit the opposition. That is how I saw the overkill of the Althouses lecturing the kids. As for speaking up, I have witnessed way too many times when people see something going on that they disagree with but wait for the comfort of a friendly environment to express their outrage rather than having the courage to speak directly to those who offend them. Especially for someone who does not have much public speaking experience. In this criticism, I include myself.

  10. Maybe I am nuts – but from the tone they seem actually pissed off that the war memorial is disrespected, like I am. Yes they are both trained orators and arguers, and certainly buried the kids orally, but so what. I imagine they would have said the same thing to anyone who would have been manning that station from union president down to those students.

  11. It would have been so easy for those “kids” to have just said “You know, you have a point. Thank you for for helping us get our message across in more considered way” and then proceeded to take down the stickers. What is wrong with people that they feel they have to defend the indefensible? They would have come out looking better for being open-minded enough to address the problem immediately and taking charge of the situation. As it is, they come out looking like clueless tools.

  12. Dan – Yes, but what good did it do to bury the kids orally (pile on)? They are clueless? The point was made to them that this was wrong on their part and why it was wrong. The rest of the it struck me as an attempt at gotcha. I too believe their behavior is wrong and I am outraged that they are so clueless that they don’t even see why others might be offended by it. With that said, the oral beat down, was not necessary to make the important point of right and wrong. Of course, this is easy for me to say in the comfort of my chair with time to control my emotional response. Arm chair quarterback just popped into my mind to best describe my ramblings here. As I said before, good luck, and be watchful for the snare.

  13. What is Ann doing down by the Capitol? As a faculty member of the You-Knee-Verse-It-Tee, doesn’t she, like, have work to do? Evening or weekends are times a person should be getting caught up on writing papers.

  14. I think the telling thing here is that the kids didn’t see the War Memorial as anything special. That bespeaks a very specific cultural point of views.

    I think it very unlikely they would have behaved so cavalier about, say, an MLK memorial or a memorial to some labor leader.

  15. Well, I went down there a few hours ago. Everything is now off of the memorial and it no longer looks like a bulletin board. Unfortunately there is still stuff piled around the bottom of it under the flags and at the base of the memorial. I did not talk to them about it, just took photos and video.

  16. Paul Milenkovic,

    What is Ann doing down by the Capitol? As a faculty member of the You-Knee-Verse-It-Tee, doesn’t she, like, have work to do?

    Hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah,hah!

  17. Tell those two carping fools to go forth and cut their crap. Have they servwed in a war for their country? those people who served and died died for the rights that are now being taken away by the GOP…phuck them…oh, golly. a stone memorial etc etc
    the people are suffering…worry about those that are alive and were protected by those who died for them.

  19. I seriously doubt the kids knew what the memorial was and would be hard put to answer a few simple questions about the wars it memorialized. A few easy ones would be “Who were our allies and our enemies in World War II?” Another might be the same about World War I. They could ask what decade was the Civil War fought ?

    was very happy with my daughter high school history teacher who assign such essay questions as “Why did Stalin negotiate and sign a nonaggression treaty with Hitler ? Of course, that was private school.

  20. Dan – Thanks for the report. Glad to hear it was cleaned up.

    Andrew – and what “rights … are now being taken away by the GOP” that our servicemen and women died for to protect?

  21. Dan, aside from memorial (glad to hear I was right: they cleaned it up to be PC, as they were directed), will you write an update of what you saw at the front? Will there be pictures?

  22. Tatyana – yes on Monday or Tuesday I will have another post or two with plenty of video and photos of inside and outside of the capitol. There were a TON of people down there today and the streets were blocked off around the building for the hordes.

    The whole inside of our beautiful capitol building is a disaster, completely covered with homemade and pre printed signs put up with tape. It looks like total sh1t, and makes me sick. They are supposedly clearing everybody out at 4pm tomorrow to clean it. Boy do I feel sorry for the custodians, there must be tons and tons of paper to get down off the walls, with plenty of trash all over the floor too.

  25. I love that building. I spent a very happy time working on a project in beautiful Madison. I wod walk around the square, and sometimes through the capital. The pictures of what they have been allowed to do to the place literally nauseates me.

  26. Thank you, Dan. I’ve read today of “demonstration of solidarity with Wisconsin workers”, it made me want to puke. I hope your pictures will show the world the real face of those “poor exploited” workers.

  28. Dan, Tatyana….I think the disrespect for the memorial and the disrespect for taxpayers who are *not* government employees have a common root.

    The inability to feel the emotions of respect and gratitude is a core attribute of today’s “progressive” movement.

  29. Seems about the same as David Gilmore’s son not knowing and not caring about the cenotaph. Typical ’60s protestor behavior in both cases.

  31. David: but chiding them and ordering them to clean up their trash, like Althouse and her husband did, did not teach them to respect soldiers killed in the Wars. It only taught them to be more PC, to pay a lip-service to their memory. They now know that exposing their indifference will “hurt their cause”, and they learned to hide it. This is how perfect government bureaucrats are grown: internally not caring a bit, but on the surface – all concern and honey.

    Is that the outcome you wanted?

  32. Dan from Madison Says:
    February 26th, 2011 at 7:31 pm

    They are supposedly clearing everybody out at 4pm tomorrow to clean it.

    Just saw this at LEGAL INSURRECTION, with video.

    http://legalinsurrection.blogspot.com/2011/02/wisconsin-police-union-members-threaten.html

    At least some of the police unions are openly siding with the demonstrators and say they will not evict them from the Capitol Building.

    I don’t know which cops are responsible for security for the Capitol building in Madison. Here in Colorado it is our State Patrol. Is it local cops? Here we also have separate Departments that have police powers on Campuses and at some public buildings. Is it something like that in your Capitol, a Capitol Police Force? Or is it your state police? Does the Governor have another force he can call on short of the National Guard, which would be Federalized out from under him. I know you aren’t one of the 23 states/territories with a United States Code Title 32, Section 109 “State Guard” that the Federales cannot touch.

    If the State Police are not the ones in revolt [and with LEO’s refusing to obey lawful and Constitutional orders, you are in the area of insurrection], they can be tasked with the job of clearing. Not just pushing them out, but actively arresting and charging everyone. There is reason for that specific tactic. If law enforcement has joined the occupiers, an arrest will lead to immediate suspension and conviction will take them out of the LEO field for good, nationwide. They need to be out of the field. Similarly for most other public employees involved, and maybe the University students can be expelled. Arrest everyone and let the system grind on.

    If there is no other police force then I do not know what his options are. You want to avoid the National Guard, both because of the optics and because of the fact that Obama will be able to take them over with a phone call. Does your governor have the legal ability to create a militia in times of insurrection? [I have to admit that the idea of an army of angry unemployed dragging the Pampered Princes to a Paddy Wagon appeals to me, but is not practical.]

    At the point where law enforcement is in open revolt, there is no reason not to push through the permanent de-certifying of ALL public employee unions completely. Even the squishiest RINO has to see that if the union law enforcement is siding with those who are physically threatening them; that they and their families are not safe. And push through everything to drive the Left crazy. There is no longer any reason to hold back.

    Subotai Bahadur

  33. Subotai Bahadur – I can’t answer all of your questions but I can answer some of them. First a bit of commentary.

    From the photos and video I will put up tomorrow you will see that the capitol building is 100% trashed. There is garbage on the floor, and signs taped up on every imaginable wallspace. It looks like total sh1t.

    As for the cops. We have what is called the Capitol Police who are supposed to, well, police the capitol and its grounds. They have been hopelessly in over their heads with this whole thing, so the state cops and municipalities have been sending help. Just yesterday I saw for cops: city of Manitowoc, city of Madison, state police, capitol police, Dane county, and even some DNR wardens. There were probably others. The municipalities are going to be paid by the state for having their cops help with the protests. More state money out the door courtesy of the friendly protesters.

    So the eviction. The building desperately needs cleaned. I admittedly don’t know much about germs and bugs but there HAS to be a lice/bedbug/other problem brewing with so many people having been in there for so long. Fortunately I have a shaved head and try to make it a point not to touch anyone/anything when I am in there so I should be fine.

    Technically as of Friday there was a sleeping bag/mattress ban, but I did see a few in there yesterday afternoon including a few piled on the war memorial (sigh). They are slowly but surely closing off different areas of the capitol. Today in about two hours it is supposedly going to be closed and everyone has to gtfo. I have read in more than one place that there will be “peaceful resistance”, which means that I assume that a bunch of idiots will go limp and have to be hauled out of there.

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