I Love My Country But Fear My Government

[snurri]

I Love My Country But Fear My Government
Originally uploaded by Snurri

Yesterday janradder, psycheknot, my friend Pete who is not part of the LJ cult, and I walked from my place to Harriet Island for the Take Back Labor Day Concert put on by SEIU. Normally it would be perhaps a twenty-five minute walk to the Wabasha Street Bridge, but since streets around the Excel and RNC are closed I had walked the alternate route the night before and estimated it would take us perhaps forty minutes. Which turned out to be completely wrong, because we left while the demonstration was going on, and were diverted even further around downtown.

The demonstration was peaceful as far as we saw, and I felt a little bad for going to the concert instead. There had been some violence ahead of it, apparently; while having lunch before leaving we were told that a group of self-styled anarchists had set a couple of dumpsters on fire and rammed one into an occupied police car. (There's a picture of a police SUV with a shattered window in the set, which may or may not be the same one.) The cops reacted pretty quickly to that, and there were several arrests. (There had also been one arrest in the morning when the Iraq Veterans Against the War marched on the RNC.) Along the demonstration route (which was ridiculously contained) there were hundreds of cops in full riot gear, which was frankly pretty scary. Some of them looked relaxed and bored, even sleepy, and then some of them looked ready to uncoil at the first sign of . . . anything. They routed us around St. Peter, all the way up 7th to Minnesota and away from the river to 10th before we could actually get off the route and head for the bridges. We were so delayed that we missed Billy Bragg, who played first.

Also, I had managed to pick out my Don Don t-shirt that morning, without thinking about the elephant iconography. I pictured myself being confronted by angry marchers, protesting my liberalism and screaming "I just like elephants!" Happily, despite some wary looks, no t-shirt related violence occurred.

The concert was enjoyable; a good crowd, and good sound despite not being terribly close to the stage. It was hot, though, and I am quite sunburned today. Steve Earle was good, Tom Morello was not, and local rap group Atmosphere was clearly the big draw. I liked them, too. We stayed for most of Mos Def's set and then headed out to make the long walk back.

More fun was had when the Wabasha Street Bridge which we had crossed just a few hours earlier was denied us. I cursed Tim Pawlenty and Norm Coleman, and we walked along the train tracks to the Robert Street Bridge. Then it was another hour around downtown while chartered buses filled with delegates passed us, escorted by police cars. It felt very like being in an occupied city, with cops even on the outlying corners.

There was a lot that happened that we missed while relaxing at the concert. Glenn Greenwald is again invaluable for his roundup of the events. MinnPost has a summary as well. And here's a blog account from a woman who found herself caught up in some of the violence yesterday.

It's quite bizarre to have all of this happening here, and I haven't processed it yet.
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EDIT: As others have pointed out, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was arrested yesterday. Haddayr links to a petition protesting this and other harassment of independent journalists.

Comments

[tanaise.livejournal.com]

Luckily, republicans would never use humorous depictions of elephants in their own propaganda, so you were safe.

[snurri.livejournal.com]

We did discuss that. Republican elephants are scary and dignified.

[tanaise.livejournal.com]

Or unintentionally humorous, like the one that looks like road kill.

[jocelina.livejournal.com]

That t-shirt is, as the kids like to say, made of win.

Did you hear that Amy Goodman was arrested? That kind of shocked me.

It's kind of interesting to see who is talking about what. At the coffeeshop down the street from where I work, one of the baristas and a couple of customers were talking about the protests and the arrests. Here at the office, about half of the city-dwellers had heard about the protests and the hot, hot anarchist action; the people who live out in the suburbs seemed to have forgotten that the convention was taking place, and had only a vague awareness of the protests.

Everyone at the office, however, is aware that Palin's teenage daughter is pregnant.

[snurri.livejournal.com]

I did hear that. I've watched that video a few times now and I still have no idea what they were arresting her for.

It just goes to prove that most Minneapolis people have no idea what goes on in Saint Paul. We may as well be in a different state! Teen pregnancy, however, crosses all borders.

I am thinking about going down there this evening, but just the thought of making that walk again is making me tired.

[jocelina.livejournal.com]

It is a pretty long walk.

And apparently Rage is playing at the Capitol tonight, according to my brother -- he is on his way there now and reported that there are "tons of cops in riot gear."

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Take back the elephants!

[snurri.livejournal.com]

Waaay down in Minnesooota land . . . let my . . . elephants . . . gooo!!