This show of force by the DC Metro Capitol PD was nothing more than that. It was done in front of parents and children specifically to instill fear of what could happen to them should they disobey. Fear, they use fear to coerce people into behaving as they would like.
ter·ror·ism
noun /ˈterəˌrizəm/
The government is force and every law they pass is done with the threat of force. That force is now used to intimidate, harass, and stop children from partaking in free enterprise. Not only that but the female officer on more than one occasion attempted to stop the documentation of the behavior of the police. If you happen to find the names of the officers involved, please, post them in the comments.
It’s good to know that given the crime rate in DC the police have nothing better to do that to shut down someone selling lemonade. Especially on Lemonade Freedom Day.
State Sponsored Criminal Count: +4 = 33
Because there is no greater crime than children selling lemonade in the capital of the “most free” country on earth.
TMM is the owner, editor, and principal author at The Minuteman, a competitive shooter, and staff member for Boomershoot. Even in his free time he’s merging his love and knowledge of computers and technology with his love of firearms.
Many know his private name and information however due to the current political climate, many are distancing themselves due to the abandonment of Due Process.
I hope somebody got the badge number of the bitch who constantly swatted at the camera.
Given that she had to completely extend her arm to assault the camera-holder they were not getting unreasonably close. Plus in most shots she advanced on the Camera’s position.
I see that as far more unsettling than the fact that they brought in a huge number of cops to arrest people who were likely selling lemonade at a loss.
Hmm. I’m conflicted on this one. They were on capitol grounds and I believe Congress has a right to determine what occurs on capitol grounds within reason. (Obviously, they should not be allowed to exclude the public from any and all Congressional meetings, hearings, sessions and offices.) If they had been selling lemonade on their front stoop or yard and then the cops came to arrest them, then I would be outraged.
On the other hand, the Capitol police did not cover themselves in glory either. The bicycle cop trying to intimidate the teen girl in to not paying was just precious. And the female cop who kept swatting at the camera should be sued by the cameraman for assault.
I support the kids for the reason that they have been shutting down kids selling lemonade on their door step. They apply no common !*#$ing sense to the the laws they create. Permitting laws are nothing but extortion.
400 bucks for a permit for a lemonade stand. I know my lemonade stand growing up NEVER made that much over all the summers I ran it. WizardPC’s recent post say’s it extremely well.
I would support the cops if they weren’t acting like thugs and applying some common sense. Ultimately though I have to blame those who created all these laws that are ripe for abuse.
I agree that $400 is stupid and excessive for a permit to sell any product on the Capitol grounds. Either ban people from selling products on Capitol grounds or remove the requirement. It may be a stupid law, but it is not injustice to have it or enforce it. It is injustice to require the same permit to sell products on your own property. To restrict the use of one’s own property undermines the principles of private property ownership.
And yes, as I already pointed out, the cops acted like thugs. Hence I stated that I was conflicted. Had the cops just written a citation and allowed the courts to handle something that was not an immediate threat to anyone or even the public at large, this would be mostly a non-story. The permitting process is still stupid and/or excessive in most cases, but only a nuisance if not for thuggish behavior on the part of law enforcement.
I understand where you’re coming from. I have some issues overall since it all went down on “public” property. That said, they were also going for maximum political impact since for the most part the other incidents are being consistently suppressed.
Their location provided maximum viewing, both for good and bad. The Police were able to inflict fear on the maximum number of people, at the same time the protesters were able to display to the maximum number of people how the government is force.