If they are actually opposed to fascism, I will be one of them. I'll do my best (and likely succeed) to channel my rage into debate and the democratic process, though. One benefit of age I suppose.
They claimed that Portland would be peaceful after the Feds left --- instead it has gotten worse. They claimed the Feds were "inciting" the violence - now the Feds are gone -- what is the excuse. Portland police chief says riots not helping cause of racial justice: ‘Enough is enough’ “Spectacle is drowning out the voices that need to be heard to make positive change" Chief Chuck Lovell says https://www.foxnews.com/us/portland...ping-cause-of-racial-justice-enough-is-enough Portland, Ore., police Chief Chuck Lovell on Wednesday morning decried violent instigators who he said are marring the message of mostly peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters. "Portlanders need to send a strong message that enough is enough," Lovell told reporters at Tom McCall Waterfront Park, according to KGW-TV in Portland. "This is not forwarding the goals that are going to lead to better outcomes for people of color. This movement is really powerful, but the violence has taken away from it. ... This is not what Portland is about. This is not what we need in our city." The protests, which have sometimes turned into late-night riots focused on the Multnomah County Justice Center and the federal courthouse, have continued unabated for more than two months since the May 25 death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis. Lovell said there have been many large peaceful protests that required no police presence but the smaller offshoot actions -- setting fires, breaking windows and throwing objects at police -- are taking away from the larger message. Late Wednesday, Portland police declared a riot and said they believe an explosive device had been left outside a precinct. People were ordered to disperse, and some streets were closed. “I’ve never seen a summer like this,” Lovell, who was named police chief in early June, said. He added that shootings have also spiked since the defunding of the Gun Violence Reduction Team over accusations of racism. There were 99 shootings in July, up from 35 in July 2019, police said, according to OregonLive.com. Lovell told reporters he doesn’t believe the team's actions were racist even though it arrested more Black suspects than anyone else. He said the majority of victims are Black – 66% last month. “A lot of those stops end with handshakes and conversation,” he said. “And there's a real familiarity and people miss it. We hear from a lot of people in the community saying 'hey, we need the Gun Violence Reduction Team back. We need these officers that know our community, that know this issue of gun violence that we really relied on to help stay safe.'" He added that taking police off patrol to cover protests has left fewer officers to respond to emergencies, according to KGW. Downtown protests have become more peaceful since federal officers agreed to leave last week, so some instigators have moved to other police buildings across the city to cause problems. Early Wednesday, police had declared a riot and made three arrests after saying demonstrators set fires, erected barricades in a street and broke into the police union headquarters. Police said someone also fired a gun during the unrest and a pickup truck accelerated into the crowd while pushing an unoccupied motorcycle in front of it. Lovell wrote a New York Times op-ed Monday titled, “I’m the Police Chief in Portland. Violence Isn’t the Answer.” “As a Black man and a public servant, I see that spectacle is drowning out the voices that need to be heard to make positive change,” he wrote. "This violence is doing nothing to further the Black Lives Matter movement." Lovell also praised officers’ “professionalism” and said he has confidence in his community.
Glad to see he said "mostly peaceful protesters". As for the shootings increase, that's mainly summer + unemployment.
Let's see what the mayor of Portland is saying now --- since the Feds left the violence has greatly increased. Mayor Ted Wheeler was so supportive of the rioters when they were targeting the Feds. Now the mayor has changed his tune about the rioters. Portland mayor condemns rioters for 'attempting to commit murder' The mayor said violent protesters will be used as "props" for President Trump's reelection campaign https://www.foxnews.com/us/portland-mayor-condemns-rioters-for-attempting-to-commit-murder Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler Thursday evening condemned the actions of rioters who attempted to set fire to a police precinct and blocked the exits while officers were inside. “When you commit arson with an accelerant in an attempt to burn down a building that is occupied by people who you have intentionally trapped inside, you are not demonstrating, you are attempting to commit murder," Wheeler said in a news conference with Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell. "Don’t think for a moment that you are if you are participating in this activity, you are not being a prop for the reelection campaign of Donald Trump — because you absolutely are," he said. "You are creating the B-roll film that will be used in ads nationally to help Donald Trump during this campaign. If you don’t want to be part of that, then don’t show up.” A riot was declared Wednesday evening when agitators descended upon the Portland Police Bureau’s East Precinct building, spray-painted over security cameras, broke a glass door with a 2x4, lit a fire using an accelerant and threw fireworks and other objects at officers, according to FOX 12 in Portland. Police said that a truck also attempted to run over officers. The front doors of the precinct were barricaded before the fire was started with more than 20 officers and civilian employees inside, police said, according to FOX 12. Officers used tear gas to disperse the rioters and at least eight people were arrested. A federal court order bars police from using tear gas unless a riot is declared. “I believe that city staff could have died last night,” Wheeler said. “I cannot and I will not tolerate that. This is not peaceful protests. This is not advocacy to advance reforms.” Rioters also vandalized and broke into Portland’s Police Association Tuesday night. Wheeler also urged peaceful protesters to avoid gatherings that could turn destructive or violent, according to Oregon Live. “If you are a nonviolent demonstrator and you don’t want to be part of intentional violence, please stay away from these areas,” Wheeler said. “Our community must say that this violence is not Portland, that these actions do not reflect our values and these crimes are distracting from reform, not advancing.” The clashes between thousands of protesters and federal agents sent by the Trump administration to guard the federal courthouse stopped after an agreement between Democratic Gov. Kate Brown and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that called for the agents to begin drawing down their presence in Portland’s downtown on July 30. Then some instigators moved on to other police buildings across the city to cause problems. Wednesday night’s violence in a residential neighborhood on the east side of the city began after a group of about 100 people gathered in a nearby park for a rally advertised on social media by the group Pacific Northwest Youth Liberation Front with the slogan “No cops. No prisons. Total abolition." The group then marched to the precinct. At the same time, a larger peaceful group of Black Lives Matter protesters gathered downtown to give speeches. No police presence was necessary, Portland Police Bureau Capt. Tony Passadore said. “Hurting people and trying to trap people in a building and burn them up, it’s just completely awful,” Portland Fire & Rescue Lt. Damon Simmons reiterated in the news conference, according to FOX 12. Wheeler said the city anticipates “additional planned attacks on public buildings” in the coming days and said he was giving the police leeway to do what they needed to do to counter those plans as long as it can be done without threatening peaceful protesters. On Wednesday, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell said rioters aren’t forwarding the cause of racial injustice protesters. "Portlanders need to send a strong message that enough is enough," he said. “This movement is really powerful, but the violence has taken away from it.” Wheeler was met with jeers from protesters two weeks ago when he joined them for a dialogue.
While Mayor Enabler is not wrong, it is still somewhat sickening to see that the pivotal value in Portland and Seattle- in regard to whether a behavior is good or bad- is whether it helps or hurts Trump. This is the new secular progressive Golden Rule. And this is the value that he is trying to appeal to within them now because he knows that it is a waste to time to point out that things like attempted murder, looting, and arson are bad in and of themselves. It is taking the mayors of Portland and Seattle months to realize what normal people knew from the beginning. Now they speak out because things have advanced to point of threatening their careers. However, if either of the chameleon scumbags thought that it would help their poltical careers they would torch city hall and a federal building in a heartbeat. They want to bring things under control because they are under more threat than Trump's political future now and that is not supposed to be how the dance goes.
However the mayor is right on one thing... these violent riots only serve to help re-elect President Trump. They play right into the top talking points of his campaign. I will admit that everything you stated above s also true.
Everything bad is Antifa. They just keep repeating the name to distract simpletons from the reality that the protests are a large tent of different walks of life. The explicitly anti-government far right and false-flag tactic Boogaloo Bois who have however been picked up for murder and bomb making are getting little attention. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fo...harges-yet-no-sign-of-antifa-involvement/amp/ 51 Protesters Facing Federal Charges—Yet No Sign Of Antifa Involvement.