April 17, 2010

A word with the lone protester.

On Thursday, in Madison, the Tea Party had broken up, and we were walking away when we saw one man, in another part of the Capitol Square, standing alone, holding up a sign. I would have walked on by, but Meade, wielding a small camera, approached him.

DSC09151

No one else was anywhere near him, but he staunchly held up his sign, which read: "911 Underground Demolition!" The "11" part of "911" was shaped like the World Trade Center Towers.

DSC09153

Meade said "hi" and read the sign out loud as he walked up. "So you believe it was..."

"I'm the only one," the man said. "911 Truth doesn't even know this stuff."

He handed Meade a paper that explained that the WTC was built with explosive nuclear devices underground. The man said he was thrown out of the Tea Party: "They literally told me to go away. They don't want me here."

I asked, "Were you trying to start a counter-demonstration over on this side?"

He said, "No, not at all. They just didn't want me over there. There were all these spies, like, pointing at me."

I said, "Who are the 'they'? Who didn't want you over there?"

He paused, giggled, then laughed and said, "The Illuminati."

39 comments:

Expat(ish) said...

I would have asked if I could take pictures of his bumper stickers. Probably would have been some cool stuff there.

-XC

JAL said...

So.

Was he paranoid schizophrenic?

Or an infiltraitor?

Anonymous said...

That right there could be teased into a great short story.

As my whimsy leads me.. said...

I second JAL's first suggestion.

Toy

WV: Wayane: What Wayne's wife calls down to the basement to get Wayne to leave his trains and help her move the refrigerator.

Capt. Schmoe said...

Obama's health plan will get this poor man the medication he needs!

Anonymous said...

Capt -- Thank God Obamacare is forcing this man to buy things.

Meade said...

Earlier, I had a long conversation with a guy from New York who described himself as a "radical liberal."

I'm a uniter, not a divider.

I'm Full of Soup said...

I bought some cheesesteaks this afternoon and while I was waiting, I overheard this young guy, sitting in a booth with two college girls, saying the WTC towers were blown up by explosives. After I left, I felt guilty that I did not tell him he was a deluded crackpot while punching him in the mouth.

Oops - I guess I am one of those people Bill Clinton was talking about.

WestVirginiaRebel said...

On the other hand, how do we know Ann isn't a member of the Illuminati...

KCFleming said...

Whar a moron.

Everyone knows the Illuminati are controlled by Mister Ed.

Chip Ahoy said...

9❙❙
U N D ☆ E R ☆GRO☆UN☆D☆
⌁D⌁e⌁mo⌁l⌁it⌁i⌁on⌁⌁


Construction of the towers began in 1966. Johnson was president, Richard Helms directed the CIA, J. Edgar Hoover still ran the FBI. So you can easily see how this is possible even though the UN is a more likely target for this sort of thing. I bet this guy's a hoot at parties.

Anonymous said...

The best part about these people for me is the fact that, with these fictions, they are foisting controllers onto things that were totally out of control. There's great comfort in the notion that a secret cabal of people is actually conspiring to control this crazy world. Even if the cabal is evil.

The alternative is having to look into the chaotic abyss. This these feeble minds cannot fathom. The insecurity would be too overwhelming.

Synova said...

I feel sort of sorry for the guy getting excluded... it's too bad that things are such that he couldn't have just been tolerated like a crazy relative.

Is this an example of the coarsening of debate? We can't even indulge someone who might be off his meds, all alone out there, because we all know that if we do that we'll be attacked and slandered for it?

If so it's sort of ironic that the more we try to force a civil debate the less compassionate it becomes. But I suppose that the important word in that sentence is "force."

We maybe should consider that in other areas where we're tempted to restrict speech in the interest of civility.

Anyway, I'm glad Meade went to say hello.

Anonymous said...

Synova -- It is a fact that the left gets to have its Michael Moores and its communists and socialists and its one-child-per-family advocates and so many other kooks. It is also a fact that the right must always police and purge itself of nutball conspiracy freaks and racists.

That's how it goes.

The Crack Emcee said...

Best laugh I've had all day.

Alex said...

I say the TP people should have a zero-tolerance policy towards anyone who's a crazy or possible infiltrator trying to pose as crazy. Either way keep the image up as responsible, smart citizens who are outraged at Obama.

Synova said...

Sure, Alex. But I've yet to hear of a "zero tolerance policy" in real life that didn't descend into fascist misapplication.

Alex said...

Synova - the stakes are way too high to have anything but a zero tolerance policy in these rallies. We need to send the message to the John Birchers, racists and other creeps that they are NOT welcome.

Synova said...

Alex, I know that you like to think of yourself as provocative but you're wrong.

Zero tolerance removes all opportunity for judgment and common sense, it's the opposite of responsibility, which is why it always goes so wrong. In truth, the stakes are way too high to get stupid.

Because there is no cure for stupid.

There is a lot of landscape between zero tolerance and doing nothing at all. Expression should always be tolerated past of a point of discomfort. The alternative is to start favoring comfort too highly.

Life should be messy. We go wrong when we try to hard to tidy up.

reader_iam said...

What's it all about, Alfie?
Is it just for the moment we live?
What's it all about when you sort it out, Alfie?
Are we meant to take more than we give
or are we meant to be kind?
And if only fools are kind, Alfie,
then I guess it's wise to be cruel.
And if life belongs only to the strong, Alfie,
what will you lend on an old golden rule?
As sure as I believe there's a heaven above, Alfie,
I know there's something much more,
something even non-believers can believe in.
I believe in love, Alfie.
Without true love we just exist, Alfie.
Until you find the love you've
missed you're nothing, Alfie.
When you walk let your heart lead the way
and you'll find love any day, Alfie, Alfie.

reader_iam said...

Alternatively, it's all about the documentary, including documenting those alternatives.

reader_iam said...

Including that guy, staunch, sign and all.

Revenant said...

After I left, I felt guilty that I did not tell him he was a deluded crackpot while punching him in the mouth.

Spit on them. You're less likely to get arrested and it really communicates the proper level of contempt. :)

rhhardin said...

The towers were built over radio row.

It's not impossible that something surplus that Leeds' was offering for sale finally blew up.

"Used ROMs. Many useful patterns." - Polypaks

Unknown said...

"The Lone Protester."

Hi-yo, Paranoia!! Oy vey!!

Synova said...

I feel sort of sorry for the guy getting excluded... it's too bad that things are such that he couldn't have just been tolerated like a crazy relative.

Is this an example of the coarsening of debate? We can't even indulge someone who might be off his meds, all alone out there, because we all know that if we do that we'll be attacked and slandered for it?


You have a good heart.

Opus One Media said...

like moths to a flame.

Deb said...

Zero tolerance removes all opportunity for judgment and common sense

All you have to do is look at zero tolerance weapons policy cases in public schools, where elementary school kids are suspended for having a Tweety-bird key chain at school (September 29, 2000) to find the truth in this statement.

Triangle Man said...

Alex has successfully demonstrated why Althouse is derided by liberals. It's too important to tolerate dissent or different perspectives.

Triangle Man said...

...not that Althouse's thoughts are delusional like the 9|| guy.


PS. I think I had another near brush with the Meadehouses this week. I came out of Wholefoods and found a silver TT parked next to me.

William said...

Just from the picture, the young man appears presentable and polite. Everyone is entitled to a few cranky beliefs....My own cranky belief is that my future happiness is little dependent upon what the government does.

Meade said...

Tman, did it have a bumper sticker? "You dinga this car door, I breaka that organic whole wheat pasta ona your head"

Fred4Pres said...

Meade, did you get his name. I need it for the next meeting of the Illuminat...I mean Rotary.

Meade said...

Ha ha. No, Fred. He already seemed plenty nervous as it was. I didn't want to be the one to cause him to jump completely out of his skin.

Unknown said...

Infiltrator.

I hope.

Actually many college kids are indeed Truthers, because their loony professors have convinced them of such nonsense.

Triangle Man said...

Fred, he's already in the database and the GPS telemetry is solid. Been watching him since he ordered the Anarchist's Cookbook back in 9th grade.


Meade, it had a different bumper sticker: "I bleed caffeine and tannins." Must have been someone else.

Meade said...

Wait. That was our car!

Meade said...

Next time, howzabout a howdy? Just please don't look in my cart and count all the boxes of wine, okay?

Triangle Man said...

If I ever actually see you instead of the car you can bet I will say hello. So far it has been two Silvio sightings and zero Meadehouse.

Methadras said...

More people believe in alien abductions than they do the Illuminati. More people know what alien abduction is vs. people who have ever heard of the Illuminati. Therefore one can surmise is that the Illuminati are doing a piss poor job of promoting 'The Conspiracy'.

wv = sects = HAHA!!