The Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party is controlled by a bunch of manipulators constantly striving to smother the very voices of peace and social justice who are expected to vote DFL who marched on Labor Day in Saint Paul; yet, they arrogantly expect working people to vote for the Dumb Donkeys they have been forcing on us through a very undemocratic "endorsement process" where the Chamber of Commerce and the Summit Hill Club select who we will have the right to vote for. As such, we end up with a bunch of dumb donkeys without any respect for the right of the people to voice their views and concerns in a way that enables them to be participants in the decision-making process--- which democracy is supposed to be all about.
It is no coincidence that the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party's elected officials would try to silence the voices for peace and social justice... this is the same Party which remains shamefully silent as more than 30,000 Minnesotans continue to go to work in smoke-filled casinos without any rights under state or federal labor laws at the hands of managements every bit as mean and vicious as the black-booted thugs who posed as police officers during the Republican National Convention.
In the weeks ahead, I will be posting, under the theme--- America Marches Against the Republican Party; many of the hundreds of pictures I took during the very peaceful March Against the Republican National Convention which drew thousands of people will be posted at:
http://saintpaulmn.blogspot.com/
You will likely see your friends and neighbors along with the disgraceful and arrogant intimidation they had to endure to voice their concerns about the future of our country.
Tom Paine and Thomas Jefferson would be convulsing in their graves if they knew what took place in St. Paul in the name of "democracy" as public officials worked in collusion and conspiracy to try to intimidate and coerce people into silence.
Susan Gaertner, the Ramsey County Attorney--- who intends to run for Governor of Minnesota on the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party ticket was the primary orchestrator of the vicious and violent police repression aimed at smothering democracy during the Republican Party's National Convention. This is the same Susan Gaertner who made a highly publicized, self-serving speech: "The Link Between Animal Abuse and a Culture of Violence" as the Ramsey County Attorney at the 42nd Annual Criminal Justice Institute on August 27, 2007. If only Susan Gaertner had half the concern for Human Beings she pretends to have for dogs, the police violence during the RNC in St. Paul never would have taken place.
Had any cop done to any dog, what they did to human beings, in St. Paul during the Republican National Convention, Susan Gaertner would have opportunistically grand-standed and prosecuted with the full force of the law.
In fact, Susan Gaertner--- Ramsey County Prosecutor, along with Brian Melendez and the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party's elected public officials, with well thought out premeditation, approved of--- and organized--- the most violent and heinous criminal activity on the part of the police. It was Gaertner who coordinated the activities of the FBI, Homeland Security, National Guard, Minnesota Highway Patrol, Sheriff Fletcher and the St. Paul and Minneapolis Police Departments and the media--- all media--- has ignored Susan Gaertner's role in organizing what many people are describing as a fascist assault on the democratic rights of the people of Minnesota.
Apparently Susan Gaertner learned how to mistreat the people who pay her salary by watching the methods used by the criminals who mistreat animals.
Do these politicians like Susan Gaertner, R.T. Ryback and Chris Coleman have no understanding of the meaning of the word: S-H-A-M-E? Minnesotans should give Gaertner and this bunch of worthless dumb donkeys a dictionary, not their votes.
The time has come to tell these corrupt Democrats to go their own way and for working people to reconstitute the real Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party as envisioned by Floyd B. Olson, Elmer A. Benson and John Bernard who used the powers of the police to protect the people from the kind of thugs Susan Gaertner, R.T. Ryback and Chris Coleman hired to thwart, stifle and beat down democracy.
The reason the politicians are opposing a complete investigation into the police violence and misconduct is because they know where such an investigation will lead.
That the best "friend" organized crime has ever had in Minnesota--- Tom Heffelfinger--- has been chosen to look into this matter by Democratic Party politicians speaks volumes. Alan L. Maki
EXCLUSIVE: Democrats Pre-Authorized Use of Force at RNC
by Michael Cavlan
Explosive News: Democrats' Collaboration at Republican National Convention Exposed. Secret meetings authorized excessive use of force.
We know the stories of police abuse, mass arrests, targeting journalists, street medics, use of rubber bullets, plastic bullets, wooden baton rounds, mace, tear
gas, tasering and other differently lethal methods of crowd control in St Paul and Minneapolis this week. What is not known is how the local Democratic Party and other so called progressive elected officials collaborated with authorities in the past weeks and months before the RNC Convention in St Paul, giving them legal authority for their excesses and abuses of power.
This is your Independent Journalista's on-the-ground account of what happened and how local elected officials collaborated with the authorities and again abandoned their Oath to Protect and Defend the Constitution from All Enemies, Foreign and
Domestic. This is the news that you will not hear from the corporate media, Air
America, the Nation magazine or other so called progressive, alternative media outlets. This is true, muckraking journalism that honestly speaks truth to power, no matter how uncomfortable it makes some folks.
Now, before we get to the facts surrounding how our elected officials betrayed us and the Bill of Rights, a truth must be stated. No matter what the local City Councils of St Paul and Minneapolis did, the authorities would have done what they did.
This story is not about that. It is instead about how the local government knowingly collaborated with them, with no input from citizens and finally passed a Resolution granting them legal authority to use rubber and plastic bullets, wooden baton rounds, tasers and chemical weapons that were deployed against peaceful protesters, journalists and street medics treating the victims of their brutality in a secret meeting with no public allowed.
In the months before the Republicans came to town, there had been a flurry of activity. Local activists were keeping a close eye on their local elected officials. Initially, there had been a so called Free Speech Committee set up, supposedly to look at how authorities could allow free speech during the RNC and keep order.
However, local activists immediately developed some serious concerns. We found out that the Free Speech Committee did not allow any members of the public to add our input. Only City Council members on the committee and lawyers were allowed to speak. There was no free speech allowed at the misnamed Free Speech Committee.
Nonetheless, activists followed the Committee's actions closely and were present during each meeting. The City Council of Minneapolis is almost 100% Democratic. In fact the only real opposition in Minneapolis is the Green Party which currently has one Green on the City Council, Cam Gordon, who was a small light in a very dark room. But, we were to discover, even that light was to be extinguished.
The so called Free Speech Committee would change the time and locations of its meetings, in an obvious attempt of loosing the local activists who were closely following
their intents and actions. During this time, Councilman Gordon kept the local activist community appraised of when and where these meetings were being held, including
last minute changes. There was much talk of using the Washington Model of crowd
control versus other Models. The Washington Model was touted as being a little less restrictive.
There was also discussion on protest groups being required to register themselves and even their members, to be "allowed" to protest. At these times, Cam Gordon spoke eloquently on behalf of the community and in opposition to these repressive measures. When he spoke, he drew cheers from the activists present. We also waved our protest signs in agreement each time. We would also boo when the head of the Committee, Paul Ostrow, would make an especially egregious remark. That was the
extent of public participation and free speech at the so called Free Speech Committee meetings.
This went on for moths at a time. Then suddenly we found out that the Free Speech Committee had their last meeting, July 16th. The meeting itself was unannounced, unlike the other meetings which at least had a pretense of openness and public inclusion. At the next Minneapolis City Council meeting July 25th, the recommendation of the misnamed Free Speech Committee was announced. The Free Speech Committee Resolution passed unanimously, even by our one small light, Councilman Cam Gordon.
The Minneapolis Police were given "legal" authority to shut down any protest or group of 25 people or greater. They were also authorized to use rubber bullets, mace and the other array of non-lethal weapons on innocent, peaceful demonstrators, practicing our First Amendment Rights. Also violated repeatedly was the Fourth Amendment Right protecting us citizens against illegal search and seizure. Police violated the laws of assault and battery and destruction of evidence of their crimes, as
evidenced by their targeting journalists. All talk of the Washington Model was removed.
As this Resolution was passed by the large Democratic majority Minneapolis City
Council july 25th, another protest broke out. Local activists presented each member of the Minneapolis City Council, including Mayor RT Ryback with a Statement of Reprobation, condemning them for this betrayal of our most precious right to Free Speech, Assembly and Peaceful Petition of Our Government.
One of the main organizers, Michelle Gross of Communities United Against Police
Brutality, presented the Statement of Reprobation to both Councilman Cam Gordon
and the head of the Free Speech Committee, Councilman Paul Ostrow. Another was handed to Mayor RT Ryback.
During this presentation, a young man, Jude Ortiz with Coldsnap Legal Collective, read aloud the charges against the Minneapolis City Council. When he did so, he
was bundled off the podium by Minneapolis Police and brought to the Hennepin County Jail. He was later released uncharged.
All Minneapolis City Councils are taped and shown on local Public Access TV - all except for this one, which has never seen the light of day. Clearly, the "progressive" City Council had something to hide.
Since then, Michelle Gross was arrested twice, during peaceful protests that were targeted by police.
Many of the examples of excess and police brutality and thuggery were practiced
by Minneapolis Police. But, all of these actions and betrayals were mirrored by the 100% Democratic City Council of St Paul. Both Mayor RT Ryback and Mayor Chris Coleman, who laud themselves as "progressive" held a Press Conference, calling the RNC Convention a "success."
Ironically, we now have a number of the very City Councilpersons who gave our rights away, without a fight, now engaging in tough talk and rhetoric. This includes my own Councilwoman Elizabeth Glidden and Councilman Gary Schiff. Covering Your A** with tough talk will not make up for your betrayal of the citizens of our country, Council members and Mayors. Not even close.
I ask the question again. What do we do about it? I leave the answer up to you.
Michael Cavlan