Thursday, October 18, 2007

I'm Torn, Quite Frankly

I'm saddened by the bad behavior of the pro-budget rallyers at the Capitol yesterday. I'll go on record as saying that personal invective and profanity was uncalled for and unnecessary. The AFP crowd was wrong enough all on their own, their talking points so feeble that those who rallied in support of the Lege doing their jobs should have been able to make their point without being nasty.

On the other hand...Politics ain't beanbag, Children, and this Is Madison. We used to tear gas students for trying to score some peace. People were clubbed for crossing the street at the wrong time. That the AFP squawkers were able to get out of Madison with their clothes and their dignity intact shows just how mushy Madison has gotten. Somewhere Paul Soglin is chuckling about the level of outrage that the AFP crowd is sharing because they were called bad names and someone blew an airhorn.

Kids, if you want to come into the belly of the Beast, grab a microphone and tell people they are worthless you might want to, to steal a phrase from Owen's blog, Ranger Up. If you are bringing unpopular ranting onto the grounds of the Capitol (and your foolishness is unpopular outside of Dohnal's circle) you might want to grow some huevos and be ready to feel the reflection of your disrespect back to you.

If you thought you would be greeted with a carpet of flower petals and an ecstatic throng chanting your names then your self-image is just as skewed as your politics. I'm disappointed by bad behavior but not surprised. That you were surprised shows that you have no idea how little regard working men and women have for your foolishness.



Just as an Inside Baseball thing... Fred reported that AFP couldn't get their ducks in a row to get video up from their soiree two weeks ago. It finally made it to YouTube this week. Now Owen report that the stage was set up to face into the afternoon sun with a microphone too low to use so that he had to stoop and squint to get his message across. AFP might want to consider hiring a media guy or gal. They don't seem to be really competent at getting their message out on a regular basis.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Just to clarify, the stage was not facing the sun. It was noon and the sun was right overhead. My eyes are sensitive to light, so it bothered me. I don't think it bothered other folks.

- Owen

grumps said...

So noted, Owen. I just keep seeing references to these piddling errors of omission and wonder just how organized of an organization AFP is.

Jim

Anonymous said...

They do well. They hired an AV firm that let them down on timeliness in DC. I am sure they would not hire them again.

The good news is they recovered those videos and got them posted.

Not everything runs perfectly.

Especially the first time you try an event of that size.

To the attendees the event went off without a hitch.

Anonymous said...

I can't help but be amazed that the 'protesters' would be shocked that people, when their livelihoods are on the line, would become emotional. What did they expect the counter protesters to say, "Yes, please take away my job."