Bush greeted by Paterno at airport, protesters at auditorium (Penn State)

[struggle4progress]

<snip> At least several hundred protesters gathered on a hot, humid afternoon on a plaza just outside the air-conditioned auditorium where Bush spoke.

Police on the scene said there were no arrests. The gathering was part of what was billed as a "silent protest" of Bush's Social Security proposals by the group, Pennsylvania United to Protect Social Security.

Some of the signs in the crowd read, "Hands off my Social Security" and "Social Security: Don't gamble with our future."

"Santorum represents the ultraconservative radical right," said Robert Shepherd, chairman of the Centre County Democratic Committee. "He represents much of what is wrong about this administration." <snip>

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/11894140.htm

[Botany]

1. Say it aint so Joe ..... say it aint so .....

Jo Pa you have been a hero to me ..... now this?

[Beowulf]

5. Paterno is a life-long repub

and seconded GHW Bush's nomination in 1988. Repub tried to get him to run for governor in the 1980's.

Joe invited Pere Bush in 1992 to speak on the Penn State campus then forced the Nittany Lion mascot, the cheerleaders, and the Penn State Blue Band to perform at a GOP rally.

Whatever you think of Joe..., it probably wrong.

[PunkPop]

7. That's what you get for worshiping a football coach. eom

[Botany]

10. I have never worshiped a football coach. You know nothing .....

.... about me. Although Jo Pa has done some "stand up things"
the * support is hard to swallow.

[sasquatch]

2. My Grandma always used to say this about Joe Paterno

"He always looks like someone who would have their hand in your when you weren't looking."
:D

[alcibiades_mystery]

8. Um...che faccia de criminale?

Sure Grandma wasn't responding to his Italian-ness?

[sasquatch]

11. Well her father was a German immigrant who left because of Hitler

So maybe it's an old grudge from Deutchland because of Mussolini. It doesn't matter in my eyes because she hates Bush and is a loyal Democrat.

[alcibiades_mystery]

13. Oh well

Might matter in the eyes of some Italians, but then I guess we shouldn't care about the prejudices of one Grandmother.

[Erika]

3. I wish Bush would come here so Idahoans could protest!

But he won't. The red stater ag welfare recipients here went 70% for Bush so he'll never show up.

[wakeme2008]

4. Zzzzzzzz

Some teens in the rear of the auditorium were seen snoozing while others chatted quietly.


* is putting them to sleep :rofl:

[alcibiades_mystery]

6. I was there

It was pretty cool for being hotter than a sonovabitch.

Nobody stayed in the protest area. I saw Bush's limo (or a decoy) as it snuck in the back entrance - fucking weaselly bitch. By the time the event let out, we were all right up to the front of the Eisenhower Auditorium, and all these Republicans had to walk right past a swelling line of protesters to get out of there. It was hilarious looking at their faces. Some of these idiots waved the little flags they'd been given inside, as if THAT was a rebuke to us! You're the treasonous bastard member of the death cult, shitbird, not me.

One of the things that struck me most: it was obvious that the WH press corps that accompanied Bush comes in a pack. You could see them all file into the place minutes before the limo pulled up. Then, you could see them all leave when the event was getting out. What was shocking was this: a mere 200 feet behind them as they left was a line of several hundred loud (fuck silent protest) and colorfully signed protestors, and I didn't see ONE of the press people look back at us. Not one. It is impossible that they didn't know we were there, or that they couldn't hear us. They had to make a conscious effort to avoid looking in our direction. It weirded me out something fierce, as apt as it is as a metaphor for our time.

[ElectroPrincess]

9. Thanks for the feedback ...

With time, the protests will grow increasingly LARGE. Neither the press NOR * will be able to dismiss the Disenchanted American People as "a focus group."

[RamboLiberal]

12. Ha Ha - the audience was snoozing

From the article:

Some teenage convention-goers in the back of the auditorium appeared to doze off at times during the middle of Bush's speech and awoke only at the sound of applause, usually from nearby adults.

I watched a couple of minutes of President Cuckoo Bananas speech on the PCN channel tonight and that audience was not very enthusiastic.

[ugarte]

14. Just proves JoePa is senile

both on the field and off. He needs to head off to pasture.

[teryang]

15. Reminds me of the old anti war protests at Penn State

...during the Vietnam era. The administration was profoundly committed to the war and the war industry. The student body was radicalized and willing to take chances to stop the war. Of course, there was a draft back then.

The description above of the conduct of the press corps is truly informative.