The incidents in New Hampshire and Arizona could signal the beginning of a “disturbing trend.” (Such as reminding out of touch politicians who pays their salary? — Ed)
About a dozen people carrying guns, including one with a military-style rifle, milled among protesters outside the convention center where President Barack Obama was giving a speech Monday � the latest incident in which protesters have openly displayed firearms near the president.
Gun-rights advocates say they’re exercising their constitutional right to bear arms and protest, while those who argue for more gun control say it could be a disaster waiting to happen.
Phoenix police said the gun-toters at Monday’s event, including the man carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder, didn’t need permits. No crimes were committed, and no one was arrested.
The man with the rifle declined to be identified but told The Arizona Republic that he was carrying the assault weapon because he could. “In Arizona, I still have some freedoms,” he said.
Phoenixpolice Detective J. Oliver, who monitored the man at the downtownprotest, said police also wanted to make sure no one decided to harmhim.
“Just by his presence and people seeingthe rifle and people knowing the president was in town, it sparked alot of emotions,” Oliver said. “We were keeping peace on both ends.”
Last week, during Obama’s health care town hall in Portsmouth, N.H., a man carrying a sign reading “It is time to water the tree of liberty” stood outside with a pistol strapped to his leg.
“It’s a political statement,” he told The Boston Globe. “If you don’t use your rights, then you lose your rights.”
Police asked the man to move away from school property, but he was not arrested.
From a reader: While the group may have been within their constitutional rights, the ruling elite is desperate to have such incidents occur in an effort to criminalize their opponents and tar any dissent as “violent,” even when no violence is planned or occurs. In fact, the federal government used a similar case to launch a COINTELPRO operation against the Black Panthers when that group pulled a similar stunt at the Sacramento, California State House in 1967. But while the Panthers were indeed a genuine threat to law and order, patriots of today are legitimate people with real concerns and the potential to effect genuine social change. In the face of the ruthless demagoguery of the Obamanation, which has openly slandered millions of its opponents as potential or actual “domestic terrorists,” a reasoned approach is called for.