I watched douche bag protesters interrupt President Bush at a citizenship ceremony held at Monticello on July 4th.

There is a time and a place for protesting. And I'm not talking about legal rights here, I'm talking about common fucking decency. It's about celebrating and acknowledging the good when you see it. It's about realizing that in doing so you honor the justice in your own cause.

It's about realizing that if you merely treat such moments as a media-opportunity that all you become is an obnoxious prick. Little more than a Brittany Spears in a political wrapper. Eventually you will be dismissed as Rene Marie has been here - as just another member of the Rent-a-riot crowd. Another Al Sharpton or Fred Phelps wannabe, someone who's only claim to fame is an ability to inciting, otherwise decent people, into senseless violence.

It's about showing respect to those who deserve it when they deserve it.

Realizing that by doing so, the power of any just criticizm you make thereafter is magnified. But sadly, the latter is missing from American politics at the moment. IMHO, a large number of Americans are supporting their political parties with the same one-eyed devotion that they give their sports teams. This is why the parties have selected the most electable candidate for President rather than the best one.

And that is dangerous.

In the land of the free,
And the home of the brave!

P.S.> Be sure and stop that idiot Obama from being elected and kick all those scummy green democrats out of office!

The rest of the world is indeed looking to you for the leadership to flush this evil down the toilet for good!

We salute you!

I get the feeling that most of the crowd were unsure of whether or not they just heard the national anthem or not. Did you see the one guy behind her who kept his hand on his heart the whole time? I think that was the reason they clapped, they weren't sure if this wasn't just a third US national anthem that they hadn't heard before. It was an "emperor's clothes" moment if you ask me.

Fo' sho', Linz. No harm meant. Was taking the piss again. God I love this fancy British gutterspeak. Have you advertised your tutorial prowess in the local paper? I think it'd be a smash hit.

... Jeremy—his heart, bleeding though it may be, is in the right place. We have one or two like that in Wellington who take everything absolutely literally, as explained on another thread. The solution you propose is exactly what is required, of course.

BTW, only in Denver, surely, would the Mayor be named "Hickenlooper"? And where was Mr. Hickenlooper when this wench was blaspheming? Is he in the video?

Another ugh goes to Luke H. It's called hyperbole, joking, screwing about, taking the piss. No, they should not have murdered her. Grow a sense of humor, bud!

And if you'd have read further, about one comma further to be precise, you would have seen the following in my post:

especially when those symbols and songs are expressions of your inalienable right to act however you want towards them, free of harm, free of consequence.

I offer to you a method of reading skill improvement once offered to me by the principal of SOLO.

Shame on every one of those people that didn't take hold of that great big bloody flagpole behind her and run it through her throat.

She did something dishonest and objectionable, but within her rights,
and you rage that the people around her didn't murder her?

There are lines of taste and decency you don't cross when it comes to symbols and songs that important

What happened to "The right to freedom of speech is a precious one that must be defended"?

What happened to the freedom to offend?

Not only was that astonishingly disrespectful, that was a terrible song. Give me some Aretha, some B.B. King, a little "Georgia On My Mind". Those can at least be considered well-done examples of the renewed hope and musical spirit of a long-oppressed people taking shape and "rising above".

Shame on every one of those people that didn't take hold of that great big bloody flagpole behind her and run it through her throat. I understand that she may feel excluded from this often-great nation. If true, that must be a horrible feeling. But you should write a fucking book, not brazenly act like a douche-bag in front of the colors. There are lines of taste and decency you don't cross when it comes to symbols and songs that important, especially when those symbols and songs are expressions of your inalienable right to act however you want towards them, free of harm, free of consequence. Way to be a smart-ass, and way to squander an opportunity to pay homage, douche-bag.

Not a single word was said, not a single criticism was raised, not even
by Denver's Mayor, or any other government official present. Cowards,
the lot of them.

Here's a statement issued by Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper on July 2, 2008:

The
City asked Rene Marie to sing the national anthem at yesterday's State
of the City event. She agreed to do so, and she deceived us.

"Her
actions showed a lack of understanding for how strongly our community
feels about patriotic symbols and traditions, and overshadowed a day of
great importance to our City.

"We all respect artistic license
and support freedom of expression. But in a tradition-laden civic
ceremony that included a law enforcement color guard presenting our
flags and the Pledge of Allegiance - making a personal substitution for
the national anthem was not an option. We asked for the Star Spangled
Banner and that's what we expected.

"No matter what her reasons
for taking this action and deliberately withholding her plans from
event organizers, she absolutely chose the wrong time and place to do
it. She knew what the City's expectations were, and she was dishonest
about her intentions. She imposed her personal choices and their
consequences on others - depriving our 12,000 City employees and
community-at-large of an opportunity to have their collective
accomplishments celebrated and leaving many in our community feeling
disrespected.

We will do whatever it takes to ensure that a
situation like this never occurs again, even if I have to sing the
national anthem myself.

As we approach the Independence Day
weekend, Denver - as always - is committed to the values that symbols
like our flag and our national anthem represent."

... were no voices raised in protest, the morons actually applauded!!! Jesus H. Christ!!