What do you think about protests?

fuzzybuddy

fuzzybuddy

SF VIP
Location
The Sticks, Northeast PA.
There's riots and protests all over the globe, from Paris to Moscow, from Hong Kong to Puerto Rico. I remember in the 50s-60s seeing police dogs attacking protestors in the Deep South, and moms & dads attacking school buses in Boston. Of course, there's is the man standing up to that tank in Tienanmen Square. Do you think most protests fail? Do you think protests are , in the long run, a good or a bad thing? What makes a successful protest?
 

Clearly the question is about protests. Some want to automatically call a protest a riot and scream about "terrorism", which has nothing to do with the question. 🙄😒
 
I have no problem with peaceful protests, demonstrations, boycotts, etc...

An old fashioned protest is like the whistle on the tea kettle, it lets off steam and draws our attention but doesn't boil over and make a mess.

The problem seems to be similar to our problems with political discussions on SF where at some point we cross a line. Too often peaceful well-intentioned protests and demonstrations turn into destructive riots, looting sprees, etc...

Another recent phenomenon is the addition of paid protestors that tend to use the naive well-meaning protestors to push an agenda funded by some nameless faceless group.
 
so right dolly ' there is nothing wrong in making a stand and get heard ' usually for pay rises NHS for instance -
or firemen ' but rioting is different 'it can lead to killings -robbing stores - injury ' its thuggish - its usually out of control violence-
but protest peacefully is good it causes awareness of people needs and wants - and sometimes it works '
 
We were at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, standing in a long line for two hours to pick up some tickets. We struck up a conversation with the two ladies behind us. They were an American government agent who was part of the team in charge of security for the American athletes and her mother. The agent told us that there were more than 300 protest groups expected to show up during the two weeks, ranging from some who planned violent protests intended to disrupt the Olympics to others who just wanted to get their cause out in the open.

During the time we stood in line and chatted, she received several calls about disturbances. One call left her laughing. She said there was a reported disturbance, but it turned out to be a group of elderly Japanese ladies who couldn't find their tour bus and were marching down the street singing and chanting while they looked for it. She said THAT kind of demonstration she could handle.....
 
Protests/marches/demonstrations simply bring attention to an issue but are useless unless further action is taken. A protester who marches and then goes home proudly thinking "OK, I've done my part" has just wasted energy. Writing letters, making phone calls, knocking on doors, volunteering time. donating money are all actions that can bring about change. Voting is also a decisive action that can bring about change

The Boston Tea Party would have been nothing but a waste of good tea had it not been followed up by decisive action.
 
Aunt Bea said:
I have no problem with peaceful protests, demonstrations, boycotts, etc...

An old fashioned protest is like the whistle on the tea kettle, it lets off steam and draws our attention but doesn't boil over and make a mess.

The problem seems to be similar to our problems with political discussions on SF where at some point we cross a line. Too often peaceful well-intentioned protests and demonstrations turn into destructive riots, looting sprees, etc...

Another recent phenomenon is the addition of paid protestors that tend to use the naive well-meaning protestors to push an agenda funded by some nameless faceless group.
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So true Aunt Bea...the race riots in the 60's were about the "paid agitators" that were hired (believed to be outside the country hires). When major event protesters were compared across the country, the same faces appeared over and over in cities thousands of miles apart within days of each other. That happened in Cleveland, Ohio. I was escorted to my teenage part time job by the National Guard!
 
Liberty said:
So true Aunt Bea...the race riots in the 60's were about the "paid agitators" that were hired (believed to be outside the country hires). When major event protesters were compared across the country, the same faces appeared over and over in cities thousands of miles apart within days of each other. That happened in Cleveland, Ohio. I was escorted to my teenage part time job by the National Guard!
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I agree but that ship has left the harbor. Today we would be fighting the worlds armies. Already have them here training along with ours to stop " uprisings". Even worse look at the sheep clapping and welcoming them.

 
To clarify. Let's discuss the range of civil discourse from protests up and to riots. That's because I don't know the point where a protest becomes a riot. What do you call the unrest in Paris recently- protests or riots?
 
Manatee said:
What % of protests start peacefully and turn violent?
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Now that's a good question Manatee...makes me think of Kent State U in the old days...started as a sit in, ended with multiple dead.
Sad, but true. Guess its "mob mentality". Gotta have good police presence I guess or things can turn ugly.
 
Liberty said:
Now that's a good question Manatee...makes me think of Kent State U in the old days...started as a sit in, ended with multiple dead.
Sad, but true. Guess its "mob mentality". Gotta have good police presence I guess or things can turn ugly.
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It was the National Guard rioting that left 4 dead, not the protesters.
 
Sadly, many of the "in city" protests end up as "cover" for non-protesters who use the situations to rob and pillage businesses in the area. Protesters get blamed but in many cases have little or nothing to do with the crime and resulting destruction. And the business owners have no way to determine who trashed their place and end up blaming it on the protest and protesters.
 
Remember Waco? Very personal to us...we owned the plane the ATF rented. Who didn't know that was going to end badly? We watched it on TV night after night, sitting there in the corner of the picture while they gave the blow by blow. They brought back the dead agents in it and we promptly thereafer put it up for sale. God bless them all.
 
I'm not sure when a protest gets 'violent'. When someone dies? I think protests go from a harsh word through to war. What matters is the amount emotional energy behind a protest. It's how angry or fed up some are over a situation. I think it's that amount of energy that determines the level of violence. The level of emotion is what will justify the means to an end- up to killing and war. I can't think of any "advancement" human interactions which didn't start out as a protest- voying rights, civil rights, etc.
 

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