Shot In The Dark: It's Midday on a School Day. Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?

April 25, 2006

It's Midday on a School Day. Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?

The pro-Hussein movement is at it again

**COLLEGE NOT COMBAT!
Solidarity Against War and Anti-Immigrant Racism

What?

Not against Meat, too?

TWIN CITIES STUDENT
** W A L K O U T **
Friday April 28

NOON RALLY at University of Minnesota, Northrop Plaza
(map: http://yawr.org/april28/map.html )
** High schoolers: leave class 10:30am. Bus, carpool, or march to U of M rally [Note to my kids; no, you will not]
* Rally followed by march through downtown Minneapolis to…
* Free Concert at 3pm at MCTC by Loring Park, featuring Desdamona, Kanser, I Self Divine, The Elementals, A New Day, Two Wurds, more. Bring a bag lunch.

I won't need the lunch, but the bag my come in handy.

Do they have demands? They're a bunch of angry college kids. Whaddya think?

We are walking out to demand:
* END the occupation of Iraq NOW! to fund education and social needs [Leaving aside the boundless racism inherent in that statmenet - hasn't bottomless funding done so much good for both!]
* NO! to military recruitment in our schools [Absurd - and racist and classist too. The military is a traditional route to education and skills training for the poor, minorities and immigrants. The military should be barred from school no sooner than ]
* YES! to equal access to higher education [I've always been curious about this. What do they mean by "equal access?" Regardless of money? We have that. Or do they mean regardless of academic merit or, for that matter, aptitude or desire to even seek it in the first place? What if a kid WANTS to be a mechanic or a soldier or a cosmetologist? ]
* YES! to living wage jobs for youth ["Living wage jobs" for "youth"? Most "youth" don't "live" on their own; they don't need a "living wage". The ones that do - most likely - do so because of very dubious choices of their own (or of their parents). And mandating a "living wage" inevitably means there will be fewer jobs for "youth". By the way, I can listen to fingers on chalk boards all day long, but "youth" as a noun, especially referring to the entire mass of juveniles, has always rubbed me the wrong way]
* STOP racist attacks on immigrants and civil liberties [Like "enforcing the law?"]

Reading the list of organizers and supporters is like finding a copy of a poster from the '60s...:

Organized by:
** Youth Against War and Racism / 612.760.1980 / http://yawr.org
** U of M Anti-War Organizing League / http://www.tc.umn.edu/~awol / / < umnawol@gmail.com >
** Socialist Alternative / 612.226.9129 / http://www.socialistalternative.org /
** MCTC Students Against War and Racism / < ellaac@hotmail.com >

Endorsed by: La Raza Student Cultural Center, Women's Student Activist Collective ["Collective"? Wow. And what happened to the Student Women Kulaks, anyway?], Equal Access Coalition, Belfry Center for Social and Cultural Activities [The joke here would be too easy. I'll pass.], Anti-War Committee, Freedom Road Socialist Organization [Is "Freedom Road Socialism" like "Vibrant Life Mortuary?"], Daybreak Newspaper, North Country Co-op, Arise! Books and Resource Collective, Welfare Rights Committee, Counter-Propaganda Coalition, Green Party (4th and 5th Districts), Twin Cities Peace Campaign

I'm goign to have a couple of correspondents on duty in a couple of schools. I'm going to see what the teachers in Saint Paul and Minneapolis have to say - or do - about this.

Posted by Mitch at April 25, 2006 06:29 AM | TrackBack

Comments

Friday sounds like it might be a good day to schedule a pop quiz worth an entire letter grade with mandatory detention for any unexcused absence (an excused absence of course requiring a parent to meet with the teacher or principal in person to explain why it was a medical or family emergency that caused their child to be gone that particular day).

Posted by: Thorley Winston at April 25, 2006 09:38 AM

Hey Mitch, the "pro-Hussein" slur is idiotic. Unless you are willing to confess your own apparent pro-Kim Jong-il leanings, secret fondness for Hu Jintao, Robert Mugabe-philia and Ahmadinejad support - evidenced by your failure to call for their removal through invasion and the loss of American life.

The slur is stupid and intellectually thuggish. You should retire it.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 09:58 AM

So I read through your post, and the links a few times and couldn't find it. Can you point me to the 'pro-Hussein' part because that is really disturbing. Or is this just another case of you making stuff up again.

Flash

Posted by: Flash at April 25, 2006 10:01 AM

Much as I hate to defend AC, it is only right to point out the the first sentence of Mitch's article contains the pro-Hussein reference.

I don't agree with AC's characterizatin, but the reference *IS* there.

Posted by: Loren at April 25, 2006 10:16 AM

I believe Flash was chiding Mitch, not the Clown. None of the material Mitch quotes or links to - for all its other faults - can fairly be characterized as "pro-Hussein.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 10:25 AM

Yes, Mitch, I have to agree with AC and Flash. Could you please strike the Pro-Hussein comment. It is misleading.

You could replace it with something that would paint a more accurate picture like "anti-reality subversive commies"...

Posted by: Nordeaster at April 25, 2006 10:28 AM

Pro Hussein nailed it. Consequences of actions and all that.

Posted by: Mark at April 25, 2006 01:35 PM

Guess that makes you wingnuts pro-bin Laden.

Dude makes more videos than Britney and you pansy-ass Republicans aren't willing to do what's necessary to take him out.

Consequences of actions. And all that.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 01:49 PM

"Hey Mitch, the "pro-Hussein" slur is idiotic."

You shoulda been around here during the salad days when he called war protesters "pro-rape."

Posted by: Tim at April 25, 2006 02:38 PM

Of course Angryclown has never said any such thing. Tim is clearly pro-stupidity.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 02:45 PM

O, Belligerent Bozo, font of all knowledge, please, tell us what is necessary to capture Bin Laden. Don't hold back just because a Republican would benefit!

P.S. You misread Tim's comment.

Posted by: Brian at April 25, 2006 02:53 PM

Ah thanks for helping the Clown out with Tim, "Brian." Having gotten us this far, perhaps you've divined whether Tim purports to quote Mitch or to satirically misquote him?

As for capturing bin Laden, that might be difficult. It would permit the achievement of Angryclown's dream - seeing Osama executed by Santa Claus during the Super Bowl half-time show -but he may not permit himself to be taken alive. Angryclown would settle for his violent death at the hands of the U.S. military.

So far we've invaded two countries, 50% of which had something to do with 9/11. Perhaps we could, you know, direct some military force toward the place where bin Laden actually lives, instead of kowtowing to a military dictator who doesn't quite control his own country. Just a thought.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 03:09 PM

But do these kids get college credit??

http://www.goactablog.org/blog/archives/2006/04/#000165

Posted by: kb at April 25, 2006 03:54 PM

Personally, I think trying to capture a dried smear of blood, hair and turban on some Tora-Bora rock is probably a waste of time and money.

Posted by: Ryan at April 25, 2006 04:00 PM

Of course you do, Ryan. You're a yes-man. Some scumbag kills 3,000 Americans in history's worst terrorist attack. Bush has been completely impotent in "smoking him out," so he pretends it's not a big deal. You agree. Cause that's what you do.

Let's pretend a Democrat were in office, with bin Laden alive almost 5 years after 9/11. Would you still consider it "not worth the time and money" to hunt him down? Of course not. You're a *right-wing* yes-man.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 04:15 PM

Let's pretend a Democrat was in office, with bin Laden alive after the first WTC attack. The Khobar Towers attack, the US Cole attack, the African embassy attacks, the Somalia invasion...oh wait. We don't have to pretend. Heck of job, B.J.
Yup that second domestic terror attack after 9/11 was devestating.

Posted by: Kermit at April 25, 2006 04:42 PM

AC, your reading comprehension skills are really off the mark today. By my comment, I was quite clearly implying that I think OBL is long since dead, and going after a corpse seems like a complete waste of time and money. Mmmkay?

Posted by: Ryan at April 25, 2006 05:05 PM

Angryclown had high hopes for you, Kermit. Alas, you are just another of the knee-jerk simpletons that populate Mitch's comments section. Let me see if I understand all the subtleties of your argument, Kerm: "Republicans good. Democrats bad."

I said nothing at all about Clinton. I disagreed with Ryan's absurd statement that killing bin Laden wouldn't be worth the price of the powder to do it. You have inadvertently supported my argument, assuming that if Angryclown criticizes the current president, he must therefore support every action or inaction of his predecessor. Not so.

In your ham-handed argument, you supply Angryclown with even more justification for his point that the continued existence of bin Laden is a major failure.

Posted by: angryclown at April 25, 2006 05:06 PM

* NO! to military recruitment in our schools

Since none of the organizers are going to join the military any time soon, what they're trying to do is stop other kids who disagree with them politically from joining the military.
To the left progress is worth any price that others have to pay.

Posted by: Terry at April 25, 2006 05:24 PM

Well, a quick search of the site reveals that Tim's quoting Mitch:

http://www.shotinthedark.info/archives/001933.html

No "purporting" about it.

As for the rest, I don't think it's wise to focus exclusively on Osama bin Laden, and it's apparent that the administration feels the same way. I think if a Democrat had been in charge, and had made ObL the sole priority as you seem to wish W would, I'd be screaming my head off. He's a priority, but he's not the only priority. Once he's killed, it'll only be a matter of time before another terrorist attack; maybe then you'll understand the nature of the enemies we face and get serious about defeating them.

(I could be wrong. He could be the last terrorist we kill; that would be fine too.)

Posted by: Brian at April 25, 2006 08:04 PM

Ryan brayed: "AC, your reading comprehension skills are really off the mark today. By my comment, I was quite clearly implying that I think OBL is long since dead, and going after a corpse seems like a complete waste of time and money. Mmmkay?"

You're right, Ryan, I did misread your post. Angryclown vastly underestimated the depth of your stupidity. Here's a link to a Times story detailing the most recent audiotape from UBL, broadcast on Sunday, in which he addressed the Danish cartoon controversy and sanctions against the Hamas-led Palestinian government. Granted, he didn't provide the previous night's baseball scores, but the tape is pretty good evidence he was alive and well quite recently. Mmmmmkay?

Dumbass.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/24/world/middleeast/24binladen.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Posted by: angryclown at April 26, 2006 07:50 AM

For some reason, I don't find audiotapes all that compelling, AC. The man's a dried splat, until he actually shows himself, without any doubt, that he's otherwise.

Posted by: Ryan at April 26, 2006 07:59 AM

Many thanks for the research assist, "Brian." It turns out Angryclown gave Tim far too little credit and Mitch far too much. The quote in full:

"pro-Terror, pro-Antisemitism, pro-rape, pro-dictatorship demonstrations"

Tim: abject apologies. Mitch: get a frikken grip.

Brian: You present a false dichotomy. Angryclown favors war against our enemies. He differs from the administration in the following important respects: 1) In a world of limited resources, Angryclown would first pursue the enemies who have shown they possess the means and ability to attack Americans, as evidenced by their having done so. 2) Angryclown believes that an incompetently prosecuted war does little to enhance America's security.

Posted by: angryclown at April 26, 2006 07:59 AM

Ryan hallucininated: "For some reason, I don't find audiotapes all that compelling, AC. The man's a dried splat, until he actually shows himself, without any doubt, that he's otherwise."

"For some reason," eh Ryan? Would that reason be stupidity? Intoxication? Failure to read Monday's newspaper? Do share the reason, Ryan. Angryclown would like to better appreciate your unique perspective.

Posted by: angryclown at April 26, 2006 08:04 AM

Sounds like a bunch of squirrelly groups with very big names and very small offices....

Throw them some doggie treats and they will probably go away for awhile like A.C.

Posted by: Greg at April 26, 2006 08:31 AM

"Angryclown would like to better appreciate your unique perspective."

Yeah, right. You're all about appreciating perspectives here, AC. We've all come to admire your perspective appreciation abilities.

If we look at such reports as this:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/24/terror/main1535970.shtml

We see such damning proof as "after a new audio tape purportedly from the al Qaeda chief," and "if it is bin Laden on the tape."

Even in the link you provide, it states "Although there was no way to absolutely confirm the tape's authenticity." Gee, that's hardly proof bin Laden's still alive now is it?

I know, I know, the Bush administration said it believes the tape to be authentic. So, here I am in disagreement. But also, what else could the Bush White House say? That it's a fake? Yeah, imagine the uproar if they had the audacity to claim that. Folks like AC would pee themselves in glee at the chance to suckle at the teat of that PR nightmare.

I fully acquiesce that I could be wrong and that bin Laden is still crawling around the mountains somewhere, but the audiotapes and the grainy few videotapes that kinda, sorta but not quite resemble bin Laden haven't been proof enough for me.

Now, back to your chain yanking, AC, your one true gift.

Posted by: Ryan at April 26, 2006 09:47 AM

I'm also wondering where you stand on the authenticity of the moon landings and curvature of the earth, Ryan.

Here's the No. 1 sworn enemy of the U.S., mocking America and calling his followers to jihad. And you prefer to pretend it's not happening. I guess you're one of those guys who prefers to think it's raining when somebody spits on you.

Used to be the one thing you could respect about conservatives was at least they weren't cowards. Used to be.

Posted by: angryclown at April 26, 2006 10:33 AM

"And you prefer to pretend it's not happening."

You have a singular talent for reading incorrectly into everything everyone writes, AC.

I'm not pretending it's not happening, you shithead. I'm simply questioning whether it's ACTUALLY bin Laden. I mean, seriously, I wouldn't be surprised if we're still getting audiotapes from "bin Laden" in the year 2987.

And, as I said, I'm perfectly prepared to admit I was wrong if OBL is captured alive (or dead, as "he" "claims" he'll never be captured alive) and propped in front of cameras with an apple crammed in his mouth. As it is, I think he's likely dead.

Just curious here, AC, but if it is eventually revealed that OBL DID expire back in 2002 or thereabouts, will you have the same ability to admit YOU were wrong? Or could we expect more snark and chain yanking?

I thought so.

Posted by: Ryan at April 26, 2006 11:19 AM

I'm pretending you don't exist, Ryan.

Posted by: angryclown at April 26, 2006 11:24 AM

Best news all day, AC.

Posted by: Ryan at April 26, 2006 11:40 AM

A "Song" for "AC"

If I had some scare quotes
I'd "hammer" in the morning
I'd "hammer" in the "evening"
All over this "land"

I'd hammer out "danger"
I'd hammer out a "warning"
I'd hammer out
"love" "between" "my" "brother"
"and" "my" "sister"
"All over this land"

"Brian"

(No need to "thank" me.)

Posted by: Brian at April 26, 2006 01:05 PM

Posted by: Clark Boggart at May 3, 2006 06:00 PM