I, Jerk
by Andrew BreitbartThis week’s Washington Times column:
In this day of polarized politics, it’s incumbent on good citizens to be vigorously truthful. Even in the heat of battle, partisans should own up to their mistakes. Rectifying errors builds credibility. Honest self-criticism ensures a healthy debate and a healthier democracy.
OK, fine. I messed up.
Late last month, my wife, Susie, and I took a day trip to Shutters, an elegant, white-veneered hotel along the ritzy Santa Monica shoreline. It’s a special-occasion place, and we went there to take in a rare parental reprieve.
We went to the hotel’s second-floor veranda overlooking the Pacific and ordered spinach-and-artichoke dip and two margaritas. Except for a mild wind, the day was perfect for checking out seagulls and passers-by on the boardwalk below.
Santa Monica is an upscale part of Los Angeles, and Shutters is a pricey joint. But the nearby pier-cum-amusement-park and its spacious public beach is a multifaceted, people-watching experience.
Soon after our drinks arrived, a group of mostly-college-age kids began walking by in large bunches, many in tandem holding large rope segments in groups of 20 or so. They clearly were marching for something they considered important.
As they passed, the protesters stared sourly at the second story where we sat. Fellow patrons wondered aloud what this now massive conga line was all about. About 300 people into the procession, I spotted a sign that had “war” written in it. One T-shirt read, “Stop forcing our children to be your soldiers.”
It’s a voluntary army, you stupid kids!
A thousand marchers into the protest, the sour looks aimed at the hotel’s clientele began to wear on us. The marchers’ defiant smugness started to make an enemy of me.
“Oh, no,” I thought. The antiwar movement that I saw growing only days after Sept. 11, 2001, was at it again. I thought: Even with a new president – and one who mostly shares their point of view – the I-love-a-protest-parade political left couldn’t help itself. It likes ruining nice sunny days. Protesting is what these people do. Sneering at their fellow citizens is their chief skill. Projecting arrogance is their birthright.
So with the antiwar sign, the T-shirt and the thousand-strong parade right under our noses, I began to seethe. These anti-warriors were trying to destroy the peaceful seaside vibe and our pleasant Jose Cuervo buzz.
You can read the column in full here.
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164 Comments
Obviously the liberal parents of these "college aged kids" didn't tell them how their rights to protest freely were earned.
The link to read the whole column is wrong. It goes to a column from last December.
The link is now correct.
How humiliating. You did the right thing in confessing. Even though not myself a Catholic, I realize it's good for the soul.
Public display of angst and indiscriminate fund-raising have now become the American way…
Wow, Lefties are great at laughing at their own jokes.
For me the sad thing is that the left with their "faux" protests over made up issues with no agenda in mind but the furtherance of their political cause has brought us to a state that now when we see a protest we automatically assume it is some kind of tripe.
You Andrew were made aware of this because you reacted and therefore that reaction had one positive benefit. It made you aware of the true nature of the cause. Had you not done so and ignored it then it would have been dismissed as yet another group of paid liberal lunatics. So in a sense the opportunity to support their cause here has had a beneficial effect for them.
I would suggest in the future if there are more than 20 people in the protest you should check it out as most of the liberal anti war protests never really garner more than that. They don't have to since they know the MSM will cover it as if there were hundreds there.
It is strange Andrew, but even at my moments of high embaraasment, or well earned shame or scorn, I get this weird feeling of pleasurable -yes that's correct – relief owning up to my transgression. And I've come to realize that it is not only the cessation of guilt within me that's brings on this feeling, it is the knowledge that I've learned another lesson about what not to do -and this knowledge makes me better- and it raises and speeds the opportunity for being forgiven -receiving forgiveness is so soul quickening. I was married to a girl who just would not say she was wrong about anything more serious than burning the toast. For the life of me, I will never understand why this is such a hard thing. And if you're really out there Andrew, why is it BH has so few advertisers? I'm not complaining, just asking.
http://shermansmarch.blogspot.com
Get out your MixMaster and pre-heat your oven to 350, time to bake some pie Johnny Boy. I like coconut custard myself.
Yeah, voluntary army but your neocon globalist pals are getting rid of every other job so people won't have a choice but to volunteer.
Ah, nothing like the public apology. I'd say it's an honest mistake, AB. Remember, 99 percent of the time, people who are protesting are protesting things that are so far to the left they're hard to keep up with. When was the last time Conservatives protested? 4/15 – and it wasn't even a march. I'm guessing if you'd mingled with the crowd and looked at their signs, no matter how noble the cause, there would have been some venom directed at the beliefs of the bulk of people who read this site. Ultimately, I'm sure whatever they were protesting, like everything in the world, was believed, ultimately, to be the fault of Bush or Cheney.
Andrew: Did you forget that despite the hotel surroundings, you were in the land of Tom Hayden and Jane Fonda?
Unlike most liberals Andrew, you had the stones to admit a mistake. Good for you.
I believe the point of the protest was to bring awareness of their cause to people. Obviously they weren't doing a good job if the viewers had no idea what they were protesting. A protest without direction is pointless. Or are you expecting AB to be psychic? At least AB has the maturity to admit a wrong unlike you who are just deluded that everything you do is wonderful.
Andrew stuff like that happens all the time. You are a good man for admitting a mistake and all the more admirable for taking responsibility. Thank you for being a straight shooter.
Yea cons just hide the truth so that they are not required to admit a mistake. Strom screwing that 15 yr old black girl. Was that child allowed to have and use the thurmond name??? Burton who would not even give his name to his child (He referred to him as 'the child' as a matter of fact) Yea the honest Cons. Keep lying about it. LOL
Funny how Johnny Boy is resorting to the usual Liberal pomp and circumstance of namecalling. Shocker.
Deny others their freedoms? Hmmm, didn't know "cons" supported the fairness doctine? Didn't know that Bush took the Census and brought it into the White House? You mean that kind of denial of freedom?
Everybody who is even a tad familiar with you, Andrew Breitbart, knows that you are among the Good Guys.
The story is amusing despite the embarrassment, and I doubt you'd find anyone who wouldn't laud you for the first jesture if that group was as you'd reasonably assumed them to be.
The guy who sent you the email did a good deed, too, and so have you in straightening it out. You'd have been a jerk only if you hadn't changed course as you have, though the first response seems to be more one of irritationcombinedwithexhaustion at the irritating, annoying Leftwing in this country.
All of that means, I understand. The story is a actually a sweet one of human events.
Now that I think of it, maybe going to Shutters was sort of Jerk-material, though.
Next time drive down the coast to lovely O.C. and try Monarch Beach or thereabouts.
I think he was apologizing for having a thoughtless reaction towards an assembly of people who held a common opinion.
There's some irony in there if you can find it.
No. You did the right thing.
What good is a protest in Santa Monica? That's like pissing into a light socket.
Honest mistake, full apology, sincere contrition, learned your lesson…I say move on a wiser man, but move on.
I really feel for you on this one, Andrew. I always tell my kids one of the goals you should have in life is to have as few cringe worthy moments as possible. Luckily, for most of us they get fewer and farther between as we enter middle age. You had a doozy, but you quickly made amends. That's all that we can do in this life.
Liberals won't be happy until they can make everyone miserable. What am I saying? They will never be happy or content! They're liberals! Discontent, hatefulness and strife is what makes them tick. When they run out of material that causes their mental depression they'll create something new like man made global warming just to keep the discord going . On the bright side they're keeping pharmaceutical companies busy trying to cure their ills of disgruntlement, depression and unhappiness.
Yup, you messed up alright.
It is a good man who knows how to own up to the mistakes he has made. This is a smart piece.
Now if only those on the Left side of the political spectrum could absorb such a lesson.
So you didn't know what they were protesting? Why were they giving innocent bystanders sour looks? Please. As if you were kidnapping those poor children and forcing them to become soldiers–I think that's more in Obama's line–civilian brown shirts you know, forced volunteerism, and all that. . .
We are not responsible for what the citizens of Africa choose to do with their children. There has been a long tradition of slavery there. Talk about white guilt! I'd think there are issues closer to home these protesters would stand a better chance of affecting. Why aren't they yelling about how THEIR future has been mortgaged to the hilt?
You’re forgiven Andrew. You can’t be to careful these days it could of as easily been a herd of worthless America hating leftists, better to be safe than sorry. I bet you blushed, mea-culpa, mea-culpa, now go forth and sin no more, ha!
You’re forgiven Andrew. You can’t be to careful these days it could of as easily been a herd of worthless America hating leftists, better to be safe than sorry. I bet you blushed, mea-culpa, mea-culpa, now go forth and sin no more, ha!
I went out for a walk near the Santa Monica pier last July 4th. I encountered a lame, obnoxious "anti-war" march similar to the one Andrew described. I walked up to the very first man walking point – a guy about 50. I looked him square in the eye and said, "Spreading enemy propaganda on the Fourth of July. You ought to be ashamed of yourself."
The look on his face: priceless. Not a word of response. Just a slack jaw. Made my day.
honest mistake; it's no big deal unless others try to make it so. You did the right thing.
"Apology accepted, Captain Needa."
Just kidding! Thank you for your heartfelt apology, Andrew. Your reading public forgives you.
Regarding Invisible children: I am thankful to know that people still protest for the right reasons.
Now that's an apology.
No bit of "I'm sorry you're upset" or any of the other non-apology apologies we're all so used to hearing.
There is one lesson that could be learned by those who want to undertake a promotional march or walk or whatever… and that's to figure out a way to make it clear to those innocent bystanders what the cause actually is.
Remember, being a Liberal is never having to say you're sorry (because you "meant well").
Obviously the protest was not very effective if the people viewing the protest didn't realize clearly what they were protesting. If these were college kids protesting something that is going on in AFRICA, how is it that you had to find out about that from a news photographer, and not from the protest signs and banners?
Well done, sir. A miscommunication, and an honest mistake. You owned up to it once you found out what the protest was really about. Good on you.
Hopefully, the protesters will better communicate their message in the future if they want more awareness of the issue. However, what can we do? Free the citizens like we did in Iraq? But wait, most folks hated that. And compared to Iraq, we really would have a much harder time in Africa, be it Somalia or Sudan or wherever.
So what would the protesters who wanna save the kids and stop the genocide have us do? I bet most have no idea what it would take to stop these horrific atrocities. The truth is, if we went in to stop it, within a year or two most of these protesters would be protesting us and calling us imperialist invaders. Most Americans, based on reactions to Iraq, couldn't stomach what it would take to save any of these poor souls in Africa, I'm sad to say.
I'd suggest Patron, not Jose.
And water cannons.
Andrew, you make a good point. We are so beaten down by the daily shenanigans that even a good protest is awashed with ambiguity. But, it's not your your fault. You purveyed the area, saw the signs and heard the rants and were not able to understand the cause. It's just the way things are.
I'm sorry to admit, I laughed openly (and loudly) at your pain, Andrew. All you can do is tell the protester you're sorry and explain the misunderstanding. We've all been there (not flipping off peaceful people protesting a horrible atrocity….God forbid), and carry those painful moments where we hit the wall at a full sprint, only to have shudder moments when we inadvertently recall them years later. Good for you for confessing. Just remember to take that extra 5 seconds to think first next time.
Stuff happens. keep being mad at the knee jerk Left.
The real question is, what good is a protest?
I don't understand…why were they protesting at Shutters? Is the place genocide central?
Behold something you will never see from Lefties or the Vein Stream Media: an admission of wrong and a heartfelt apology. But that requires intelligence and a conscience. Okay, Got it.
True John. And as you have pointed out many times, if this protest had happened in Iran, getting flipped off would have been the least of their worries.
I don't buy this mea culpa. I think you're actually quite pleased at your jerkiness.
My guess is that if you really felt bad, you'd have lead with who they were first, rather than justifying your smug middle-fingering.
See, the thing is, regardless of what they were protesting, not of it was as stupid or foolish than a middle-aged grown man giving the finger like a pissy teenager without the ability to form actual words or arguments.
What are you really apologizing for? The cause was just and you were a jerk. If the cause had been less just, you'd still have been a jerk. Even if everyone involved in the protest was jerkier than a middle-aged grown man giving the finger — you were still a middle-aged grown man giving the finger.
I mean, your doing so is your right, just as they have the right to march. But you can only control your own middle finger, dude.
Andrew, you may have a little egg on your face, but you helped put their cause in the national spotlight through your column. So, one day, little children in Africa may hear stories from their grandparents about a California liberator who helped change their world forever through the passion that flowed through his middle finger.
So what ever happened to the Iraq War protests, anyway? The war is still going on, but the protests kind of petered right around the time Obama got elected. What a coinkydink.
Were there any signs that read "Stop abducting children in Africa" or "Stop the war in Uganda/Congo?" Was anyone wearing "Invisible Children" T-shirts? That protest march might have picked up a lot of kids along the way who thought it was an anti-Iraq war protest. You shouldn't apologize too soon.
Oh man Andrew that's harsh; I am so sorry for you. I know how crappy you must have felt, but given the atmosphere in our country we've become so preemptive in our responses and expectations.
You mean those crafty neocons in the unions who demand that they get their "fair share" even when entire industries tank? Those there neocons?
Oops! Mistakes happen. At least you owned it before it owned you. Sometimes, you get so used to fighting against what you see so often that you just get so wound up you go off half-cocked. It happens to everyone I think.
That's the stupidest thing I've ever read. "If this had been in Iran…" Are those the only two options? Iran or Santa Monica? What about the moon? If the protest had been on the moon, getting flipped off would be the least of their worries, since they'd have suffocated from lack of oxygen.
Maybe instead of turning this into a "left versus right" thing, which it isn't, we should all be able to unite in rooting for an end to forced child conscription in African conflicts, and grown men giving the middle finger because he feels smarter than a group of people of whom he knows nothing.
Oh, wow. I am really sorry. I can see how a mistake like that could easily happen.
But the important thing is you attempted to correct your error! I am still waiting for one single person to do so for the 8 years we had to listen to lies about President Bush.
These things happen. Thank you for your honesty and openness.
That was…classic! I thought that kind of stuff only happened to me. Life can be full of regrets, unless you're man (or woman) enough to own up to your mistakes. I only hope that I can continue to live up to the example that AB set.
Maybe if the protest would have been organized enough to show what exactly they were marching for they wouldn't have gotten the finger? I mean seriously, 90% of "protests" are fingerworthy, and that's a conservative estimate. If that group were smarter, people wouldn't have had to wonder what they were protesting over eh?
I believe, and I'm sure the illustrious Mr. Price will correct me if I'm wrong, that his statement didn't mean that Santa Monica or Iran were the only 2 options, but that the mere fact that there is freedom of assembly here means that getting your feelings hurt is the most nasty outcome that will happen to protests in the US. Whereas in other places in the world, not so much, and that paradoxically the liberal lunatic fringe that are the ones who tend to protest the most, seem to have a twisted love for the very sort of countries and policies where they would get shot or run over with a tank, than with America where the most dangerous thing lobbed at them is a finger and possibly a "stupid hippies" comment. See how it works?
As for ending forced child conscription in African nations, sure I'm all for it. How exactly do you propose we do that? A well crafted UN resolution? Those always work so well. The only way to get to the root problem in places like the Sudan would be to go in and change the regime. But I'm guessing that would be a horrible thing to do in your opinion, so we'll just have to hope nagging those places to death will bring some real change…
Andrew,
I understand the impulse that led to your impetuous gesture, and I appreciate your bringing the subject of child soldiers into the light.
The real crime of the modern left is to trivialize things that really do happen outside the USA.
In the world outside our cozy little cocoon, young children are forced to become soldiers for vicious warlords. Real fascists commit real atrocities against helpless, innocent victims.
Something else that just hit me is that many people cannot see the difference between these two situations! In fact, I'd bet money that some of those protesters fall into that camp.
hahahaha hilarious
We are all a leetle bit touchy these days after being baited, switched, smothered, scattered and smattered by lefty nutcases.
Time we get to be the "knee jerks"!
This is like a really, really petty version of the torture debate.
The cause doesn't matter. The people on the other side of the waterboarding or the middle finger don't matter. There are things that civilized societies and grown-up adults shouldn't do under any circumstances.
One is not violate human decency and descend into barbarism, and the other is not violate human maturity and descend into childishness.
That's what bugs me about this column. It's as if it would have been OK, understandable, even encouraged to give the middle finger if it had been people protesting taxation in a tea party… urg, I mean the war. But someone like Andrew, who supposedly is a communicator tasked with adding to the political debate in this country, giving the middle finger is just a step above farting near them. Or calling someone a poopie-head. We give timeouts for that in my house, because even the 5-year-old should know better.
Excellent points, both!
The problem is Mo that those people don't consider anything they said about Bush to be a lie at all. They're just Truths that we haven't gotten to the bottom of yet, or something.
Disappearing post runaround again tonight too. We'll see if this makes it come back.
this nation is worth saving. don't let the left destroy it…
Dude, the man made a mistake and apologized. Publicly. But that's not good enough for you, eh?
Like I said in another comment, I am still waiting for an apology from ANYONE who spent the last 8 years lying, slandering and hating President Bush.
Okay, you are hilarious.
"Maybe if the protest would have been organized enough to show what exactly they were marching for they wouldn't have gotten the finger?"
You know NOTHING about the protest to justify that comment. It's a guess, because the only reason that Andrew could have decided to make the super-mature decision to give the middle finger to someone he thought he disagreed with, would be if those people had done something wrong. But you don't even speculate at that, you just go back to assuming they deserved it.
And then you go off on the "liberal punitive fringe" somehow having a "love" and countries that discourage protesting. But your claim of 90% of protests being fingerworthy, and Andrews complaints of privledge and snootiness of protesters shows much more contempt for that American values than I, an avowed Liberal, share.
Protests aren't an enemy of America, and a drunken "Buzz" at a high-end restaurant shouldn't be so fragile to be upset by First Amendment activism.
As an adult, I can look at, say the "tea party" protests, think they're ridiculous given the facts of current tax policy, but know full well there's plenty of landscape in the country I can stare it if I'd rather not watch protesters I disagree with. And while I found all the "sucession" talk truly anti-American, I pretty much figured that was a minority not worth my attention.
Loving America, and protesting it, are not mutually exclusive. Loving America and making stupid assumptions without facts is not either. But I respect the former, better.
oops. Guess the Knee Jerk cocktail was a little on the strong side.
We went through what, 5 years of war protests? I've seen some of these things in person and they were filled with people comparing President Bush to Hitler, calling him a war criminal, calling our soldiers terrorists, saying lies that we started this war for oil, and the childish nonsense that our VOLUNTEER soldiers are somehow sent against their will.
Lies and slander, all of it.
So yeah, this was a perfectly understandable mistake.
It'd be good enough for me, if the apology was sincere. I think he's embarrassed because he got caught making a stupid decision (giving the finger) for a cause he agreed with. But even if it was, as he assumed, falsly, a bunch of rich smug kids protesting something he'd agreed with — giving them the finger would be just as jerky.
Because Andrew considers himself a contributor to political dialogue, he expects us to take his opinions seriously. I would hope he would want folks who disagree with his opinions, to still take his arguments seriously enough to provoke thought and discussion.
That's what the apology should be for — debasing himself and undermining his role in the grand American debate. Not because this was a worthy protest — designed to bring awareness to an issue we can all agree deserves our attention — but because he has a bigger outlet every day of the week than any Santa Monica protest. And if he resents the First Amendment enough to give any protest the finger, maybe we should hold his work in similar disdain.
But never mind that. Left right left right! Left bad! Right good!
Wouldn't it be nice to strive for something better? Rather than complaining, why not be the change you'd like to see?
No, it's not! Yeah, some people protesting the war said stupid things. And, as such, they are stupid people, not worthy of respect. Just as anyone saying Obama is Hitler are equally worthy of disdain. There are ample reasons to disagree with Bush, and Obama, and wonderful adult ways of having that discussion — be it through loud protests or intelligent commentary.
But anti-war morons should not taint the entire anti-war movement, any more than the white supremacists at the Tea Parties should taint real concerns about deficit spending.
But here's the thing — where do you fall? I think if you want to be taken seriously, you look at the larger issue before tarring anyone with a broad brush — or giving the finger.
This is only understandable if you've already given up in being part of adult discussions of political issues. I'd have hoped Mr. Breitbart would have done otherwise.
Bob, your post proves the old adage: "Never explain yourself. Your friends don't require it and your enemies don't believe it."
More than anything, Breitbart's point was that ain't nobody perfect.
True confession isn't good enough for you. Had he denied culpability you'd be cheering him on, like the supporters of O.J. and Bill Clinton.
"I wasn't giving anyone the middle finger, I was just checking the direction of the wind!"
That's how you would handle it, wouldn't you?
If Andrew said he thought the protest was anti-war, because the people were *acting* like they were anti-war, then I'll take him at his word that the reason for the protest wasn't very clear to people observing it. And before you latch on to that, yes I would gladly flip off a Code Pink protest if one happened to break out across the street from me too. So my point that the protest wasn't clearly designated stands, since I only have what Mr. Breitbart saw, what he reasoned from what he saw, and what his reaction in that case was. If you need to be told a day or two later what the protest you saw was precisely, then they didn't do a very good job at getting their message across.
As for the maturity level, flipping someone the bird may not be the most mature thing in the world, but sometimes it is applicable. I've seen many a soldier get the bird flipped in their general direction, which is the right of the person doing it as well, even if the irony of using freedom of speech on one of the main reasons you have it is sort of ironic to say the least. But going back to maturity, how mature is wearing an orange jumpsuit at a protest? Or making a big paper mache head that combines Bush with Hitler? Or throwing blood on someone wearing a fur coat? Not very mature either. At least the finger costs nothing, again showing conservatives have a better grip on financial matters than liberals, I mean have you seen the cost of paper mache materials lately? It's crazy.
As for loving the very people that would run them over with a tank, I stand by that. Case in point: Queers for Palestine. Now I'm sure Hamas is happy to get people all over the world bringing their "cause" to the forefront, but exactly how long do you think that group would last if they went to Gaza City to have a sit-in with the very people they claim to be behind? Code Pink is another one, except for being useful as potential human shields, how long do you think they'd be tolerated if they went and sat side by side with the Taliban in an attempt to end the war? One of the anti-war group leaders I saw (forget the group, he was interviewed on TV) showed off his collection of Che, Castro and Chavez posters in his office, if he went down to Cuba or Venezuela and hung out for more than a photo op, how many people do you think he'd get behind him to go out and start talking about being against torture in Havana? About 5, and then they'd get a practical demonstration.
There's nothing wrong with protesting, it's a right. It's also a right to counter-protest things you think are silly, even if it's the admittedly immature raising of Mr. Middle Finger. As for all of your high ground talk about stupid assumptions, Mr. Breitbart did apologize and admit he's wrong, something I've never seen a liberal do in a similar situation.
Pop quiz! Define: "neocon".
You have ten minutes.
No — I'm obviously urinating into the wind here. I just thought it was pretty funny that he was apologizing not for giving the middle finger at all — but because this was a "good" and not "bad" protest. As if that matters.
I'll say it again, although it's obviously lost here — most commentators seem to think the middle finger is a perfectly appropriate response. I think it's childish. And given that I would hope Andrew, being someone who traffics in ideas, would offer something a bit better than the middle finger in response to a disagreement, I expected the apology to be about that.
But there is a real need by some on this message board to put anyone who disagrees into an "enemy" camp, maybe the middle finger is what passes for discourse. I would have hoped different, but it seems most, from Andrew on down, prefer otherwise.
Seconded, I was going to ask the very same question. Define neocon or hit the road.
The only "high horse" tall enough for you, Bob, is the Trojan one.
And that's the fraud I think you're perched upon.
Sounds to me like someone's got a saggy diaper that leaks. Is that your problem Bob or does impotence have you down?
Tell us about it Bob, we're here for you.
Hey, sometimes good relationships start with these miscommunications. If their cause is good, see if we can help. Since conservatives are the only people who really care about human rights any more you might make a good ally in these folks. Give them a space for an editorial here. (Once again only if they are legit)
For goodness' sake, what else do you want the man to do? He made a mistake. He admitted it publicly. He owned up to it and did not make any excuses. And then he gave some publicity to the cause so that people will be aware of it and get involved if they so choose.
And these are just the things we know. Perhaps he's done more to repair his mistake that he chooses to remain silent about.
Why is that not good enough for you?
It's just sickening.
Spoken like a good little fascist Herr Bob.
Maybe something along the line as this:
http://www.iranpressnews.com/source/059029.htm (warning/very graphic)
http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerlsimon/2009/05/14/he...
Not quite the same as waterboarding or naked men stacked like a pyramid. As I watched this earlier today, my stomach churned. Absolute horror show. I wonder, what crime(s) do you think these young men committed?
Andrew – Rather than feel guilty, make your required $20 donation to the cause and get over it.
Here is where I am on all of the false Liberals and their protests. Until they are going to march in the country they want to protest against or take up arms to protect the innocents, they are just self masturbatory children doing something to make themselves feel better about slurping $5 latte's on their way to class in their $50k Beamers. Boo frakkin' hoo.
This blog post may be about making mistakes and learning lessons, but the only thing I keep thinking about is that protests still seem ineffective and pointless even when it's for a cause I would probably support. I'm reminded that they exist more to serve the protesters than actually help their cause.
Good find Jimmy. That's exactly the sort of treatment that repressive governments give to people they don't like. And the fact that idiots like "Bob" wouldn't understand the difference between with Andrew B. flipping someone off and murder/suppression of dissent just shows the depth of depravity within "Bob's" dark little soul.
Wait, did you just describe a protest or a UN resolution?
thats funny Stafford..Ive lost jobs that I deserved due to affirmative action. So you know what I did? I found other jobs….thats how it works for those of us who dont think we have to have it handed to us.
A classic faux pas and still a damned funny scene. We've all been there. Meanwhile, you did the right thing. Repentence keeps us grounded and is so good for the soul. No better place for this piece to appear today than in Madam Pelosi's D.C.
"Yeah, voluntary army but your neocon globalist pals are getting rid of every other job so people won't have a choice but to volunteer."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCOxcDcZ69o#t=0m49...
"So what ever happened to the Iraq War protests, anyway?"
They were so effective that they got an anti-war candidate with no practical experience to be elected president. Once president, that candidate proceeded to continue the policies of the previous regime in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
Looks like they made all those giant paper-mâché effigies for nothing.
Bad move Andrew. Understandable, but bad move. Never deploy the finger if you aren't sure about the target.
On the other hand, very classy move for owning up to it. If you hadn't, none of us would have ever known. In addition, you probably drove a bunch of your readers to a site that we would have never visited.
It's an understandable mistake, given the context, Sir. We're all human and you shouldn't beat yourself up about it. You've done the right thing by owning up to the error and bring attention to a good cause. It's understandable to just want a break from the politics & just relax for one day. Bad timing, nothing more.
I suppose this is what happens when we "ASSume".
You're reaction was right, except that you had the wrong protest. It happens to the best of us.
Don't get too down on yourself Breitbart. You flipped off "do-gooders". Even if their cause is worthy, in most cases "do-gooders", I think, do badly. How does what they were doing help anyone? And you probably didn't imagine their sour and smug demeanor.
"…our pleasant Jose Cuervo buzz."
OK, that right there is the point at which your entire day began to unravel, and that this calamity began to unfold. Let that be a lesson to you. As a true Texan connoisseur of very fine tequila, might I recommend that, in the future, you order a real top shelf Margarita made with, preferably, the nice, tart Herradura Silver. It'll give you a much clearer buzz. LOL!
Props on the mea culpa. many, many people could learn just a ton from that.
I agree. This website is a breath of fresh air.
When are they going to show up outside the White House gates again, along with Code Pink? Protesting alongside the Pacific Ocean in ritzy Santa Monica? Were they drinking appletinis as they protested? Lame.
Dear Andrew: I hate it when I assume something and I am sure I am so much in the right, only to be knocked down a peg or two.
There are times when I do that, and my wife is present she will say "That was an assumption…"
If noting else as I have been taught (and re-taught) these lessons, I have found I tend to repeat these transgressions less frequently.
Oh so it was a "good cause". Still it makes me wonder how walking down a beach with a raised fist is going to do anything for these children. Raising awareness? Recently, Tamil immigrants in Toronto, Canada shut down a major highway for several hours in order to raise awareness of the human tragedy in Sri Lanka. What exactly these people expect the Canadian government to do to stop a civil war 10,000 miles away isn't quite clear. Sternly worded messages perhaps? If anyone actually sent troops to try to fix these human tragedies, there would be marches against what you suspected in the first place. I guess it makes them feel better but it's all pointless. How long have they be moaning about Tibet?
Tell us about your time as a soldier, Andrew…tell us how many people you've proudly killed.
All you hypocritical Greedy Old People LOOOOOOOOOOVE wars…
BUT YOU NEVER FOUGHT IN ONE, right?
Tell us about your time as a soldier, Andrew…tell us how many people you've proudly killed.
All you hypocritical Greedy Old People LOOOOOOOOOOVE wars…
BUT YOU NEVER FOUGHT IN ONE, right?
Andrew, Could this be a "God Thing?" Think of the people exposed to the childrens' plight that would never had known had you 'behaved.' Perhaps it would behoove these college-educated students to be more specific with their signage. Many times, God uses our mistakes to enlarge His work force!
Andrew, Could this be a "God Thing?" Think of the people exposed to the childrens' plight that would never had known had you 'behaved.' Perhaps it would behoove these college-educated students to be more specific with their signage. Many times, God uses our mistakes to enlarge His work force!
Don't feel too bad, Andrew. For the past forty years, we have been conditioned ala Pavlov's dogs to salivate when we see a bunch of past, present or future hippies marking Trotskyesque columns over the cliff of hating America.
Naturally when you see a sign like the one you say, you go ballistic. It's a good lesson, however. We need not to have a knee-jerk reaction when we see protesters and immediately assume they are protesting our country…esp. since now the propaganda media and other Lefties are so horrified by tea partiers and the Notre Dame protesters.
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