Saturday, February 11, 2006

POLICE STUPIDITY: A BIG VICTORY FOR CINDY SHEEHAN AND THE RADICAL LEFT

Cindy Sheehan, the anti-war protester who lost her son in Iraq and who previously camped out near President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, was arrested in the Capitol's gallery just before the President was about to deliver his State of the Union message. What did she do to get busted? She wore a T-shirt that said, "2,245 Dead. How Many More?". Several hours after her arrest, the Capitol Police announced that she should not have been arrested and all charges against her were dropped. Thus Sheehan and the radical left scored a big victory.

The police officer who arrested Sheehan, clearly demonstrated how to put your instincts in motion before you put your brain in gear. Her T-shirt may have violated Congressional etiquette, but since when is the display of bad taste a violation of the law? Had Sheehan stood up in the middle of the President' speech and silently opened her jacket to display the T-Shirt, that might have constituted a public disturbance, although that is doubtful. Had she stood up during the President's presentation and shouted "2,245 Dead, How Many More?", she would most certainly have created a disturbance for which she should have been arrested.

All Americans should join Cindy Sheehan in her grief as a mother who has lost a son. Casey Sheehan, a true hero, laid down his life in the service of his country. Does she have a right to protest against the war in Iraq? Of course she does, and we should all fight to defend her right to do so! But Sheehan no longer deserves our sympathy. She has been captured by, and become a willing tool of the radical left. She has stated on numerous occasions that the U.S. is an imperialist nation, a favorite catch-phrase of the extreme left. She has publicly stated that a Jewish cabal led the U.S. into the Iraq War in the interests of the State of Israel. She went to Venezuela, where she publicly embraced its anti-American leader, Hugo Chavez, and called President Bush the world's greatest terrorist. Cindy Sheehan is no longer a grieving mother - she is nothing more than a radical left-wing trouble maker on a mission, determined to attack the President at every stop, and spewing out anti-American rhetoric at every opportunity.

How did Sheehan end up in the Capitol's gallery for the State of the Union message? She received a ticket from Rep. Lynn Woolsey, a California democrat who is a fervent opponent of the Iraq War. Was it Rep. Woolsey's intent to embarrass President Bush by having Sheehan present during his State of the Union message? You bet it was! Sheehan claims that she opened her jacket, thus displaying the T-shirt, because she was warm after climbing several flights of steps. What a crock! She admits that she wanted to make a statement with the T-shirt, but claims that she had no intention of creating a disturbance, Another crock! You can bet that sometime during the President's presentation she would have stood up and called attention to herself and her T-shirt.

Stupid is as stupid does! Surely, the arresting officer must have recognized Sheehan, given all the media publicity she has received. He should have checked with his supervisor before making the arrest. Then the supervisor should have checked to make sure that Sheehan's T-shirt violated the law. After all, that T-shirt did not require a split-second life or death response. Sheehan should have been given any benefit of doubt and allowed to remain in the gallery. If the Justice Department later ruled that the message on the T-shirt, by itself, constituted a violation of the law, a warrant for her arrest would have been issued and she could have been taken into custody at her home or at her next public appearance. Of course, she should have been arrested forthwith, had she created an actual disturbance in the gallery, either before or during the State of the Union message.

What did the police stupidity of this arrest accomplish? It has brought more undeserved attention to Sheehan. Now she and her fellow radical left-wing ideologues are trumpeting the claim that the government is taking away our freedom of speech. They have been given new ammunition in their anti-war and anti-American activities, thereby giving more aid and comfort to our enemies. When the arresting officer put his instincts in motion before he put his brain in gear, he scored a big victory for the radical left and its ideology.

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