OK DU'ers, help me out. An editor of our newspaper said

[mmonk]

Democratic Congress members who won't hold town hall meetings because of the lunatics can't take the heat and aren't being democratic. Help me gather how opposition protesters or even attendees were handled in the previous administration. I personally don't think these disruptors should be given a false air of attending to ask legitimate questions.

[TheCowsCameHome]

1. These disruptors have no interest in what the speaker has to say.

They are being stirred up by talk show hosts and other buffoons.

(If all of them were like Barney Frank it wouldn't be such a problem. God, I love that guy.)

[mmonk]

2. I plan to use Frank's example on how to handle them.

However, I intend to show the hypocrisy as well.

[alphafemale]

3. How the opposition was treated during the previous administration? Really? WARNING GRAPHIC

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=&imgrefurl=http://www.staticbrain.com/archive/dare-to-be-imprisoned-photo-essay/&usg=__GjEUOf46mrWjYJBrfUeUXX_zRLc=&h=344&w=250&sz=19&hl=en&start=3&um=1&tbnid=ETy_06xk-4D4CM:&tbnh=120&tbnw=87&prev=/images%3Fq%3Doakland%2Bport%2Bprotest%26hl%3Den%26um%3D1


There was also that baby that was pepper sprayed in Seattle in 2002? but I wasn't able to quickly find any working links to that anymore.

[mmonk]

9. Those are good. I'm also looking for examples of town hall

meetings from the previous administration of how people that actually got in were treated or that were refused entry based on things such as T shirts and bumper stickers.

[H2O Man]

4. Town hall meetings

are an example of the "public square" that are an essential part of our democracy. Their value is in allowing the discussion and debate of the important issues of the day. When one segment of the public plans beforehand to disrupt these meetings in such a way that no discussion or debate of ideas is possible, then it is those people who are denying everyone else the opportunity to take part in this most basic process.

[mmonk]

6. Good points. I'll use them in rebuttal to him.

[TheCowsCameHome]

10. Exactly right.

When radio blabbermouths (just one example) incite their listeners to be disruptive, everyone loses.

[Berry Cool]

5. I can tell you how they were handled in THIS administration by a congresswoman who knew how.

She didn't go as far as Barney Frank but she still held an excellent meeting. It wasn't actually a "town hall" that I attended but what she called a "state of the district" meeting open to the public.

Rep. Marcia Fudge, OH-11, permitted a Q&A at the end of her presentation by anyone who cared to line up politely before the microphone at the end and ask a question. Those who could not save their questions or statements for the end--those who attempted to disrupt her statements by standing up and screaming hysterically--were met immediately by security, and told to sit down and wait for the end to ask questions--and were escorted from the room by security if they could not do so. One would-be disruptor who attempted to yell something about how government supported health care would "KILL OLD PEOPLE!" was removed. Another was also taken, I believe. Rep. Fudge actually addressed that "pull the plug on Grandma" nonsense right at the time he was removed, explaining why it was false.

At the end, representatives of a range of opinions did ask questions. She answered them all to the best of her ability. But, as you can see from these videos, order reigned. I have included two: one that doesn't show the attempted disruption (whose sound is unfortunately not that good) and another (probably from local TV news) that does show teabaggers being removed (apparently posted by a teabagger sympathizer in a failed attempt to "prove" that their dissent was unfairly squelched by "fascist tactics by Democrats"--which is nonsense, of course; they were permitted to ask questions at the end along with everyone else).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCU1ShvVTU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWrKbJIqM5U

As far as I'm concerned, this is how it should be done.

"Fascism," my ass.

[mmonk]

7. Thanks.

[mmonk]

8. I have another question. I'm trying to engage this editor in meaningful

dialogue about this soon in a newspaper rebuttal. I was asking for help, with examples if possible. So why are some unrecommending this post?