Protesters: Do They Have A Life?

[NYSandman]

I felt like doing this thread after the gay marriage thread.

I'm wondering why people seem to want to force their opinions on everyone else.

I'm seeing all this protesting over China and the olympics. China has a bad human rights policy? Um, so? How does this effect my life? I do feel bad that China seems to kill people like no tomorrow, but I'm not going to waste my day, miss work, and possbly get arrested to protest a country I, personally, care nothing about. What is this shit with blocking passage of the torch?

I've been in Manhattan, where animal rights people, who I think are mostly insane, will harrass people going into McDonalds or to go buy a fur coat.

How dare you! How DARE you try and tell me what I should feel and how to live my life. How dare you block my path and call me names for going agains your beliefs, the key word being YOUR.

I know that throughout history, protests have changed things for the better, but on things like abortion and human rights in other countries and eating meat, all things that people have radically different opinions on, you should mind your own fucking business.

I find it absolutely sickening to see these hippies lying in the street blocking traffic because they believe the spotted owl may go extinct.

And, let me ask this. Do these people have jobs? Do they have lives? Are their lives so utterly empty of all personal sacrafice and endeaver, that they must find something, anything to cause trouble over?

I'm not trying to hurt anyone with strong views. I am also not totally against public protest, which my country was built on. But, during those protests, you have no right to get in people's faces, and you have no right to force your opinion on others, and start trouble if they disagree with you. You have a right to speak your mind, and that is where it ends. If you block the entrance to an abortion clinic, a fur store, or stop a torch from being carried, you need to go to prison.

Better yet, maybe you need to find something to do with yourself, and stop worrying if the two gays who live next door to you get married. Who cares? How, on God's earth, does it effect you?

I have never, EVER understood this. I basically care about nothing that doesn't personally effect me or the ones I care about.

Perhaps if everyone minded their own business, the world would be a better place.

 

[Jonny B]

I agree that people trying to force their beliefs on others is wrong, however the form of protesting over China isn't designed to do that, it's designed to give people the big picture and give them information they wouldn't necessarily have had access to without this. I think the whole point would be that it will put pressure on China to change their ways some people care about that, no-one is forcing you to watch or listen so they aren't really hurting anyone. Who knows they might get the Olympics pulled from China and force them to re-think their human rights policies... isn't that a good thing?

 

[klunderbunker]

Amen brother. I've been in the same place before. To get to school I go through downtown Lexington. A few months ago there was the whole illegal immigrants amnesty issue going on, and there was a rally downtown. Thousands of I'm assuming illegal immigrants were marching and chanting in Spanish. They blocked off main street with these damn signs and were knocking on car windows and shoving petitions in people's faces. Never said what it was for, just basically said to sign it. I left my window up but these guys followed me. Because of them, I was late for an exam and wound up nearly failing it because I ran out of time.

There is no reason whatsoever to put a halt to other people's lives because of any issue that's going on in your life. I could care less about illegal immigrants being made legal. They had no right whatsoever to hold up things like that and then bang on people's windows throwing papers in their faces. Same goes for what's going on now with the torch. The torch is an international symbol of unity and peace. For those people to try to put it out over an issue in a country on the other side of the world makes me sick.

 

[X]

I felt like doing this thread after the gay marriage thread.

I'm wondering why people seem to want to force their opinions on everyone else.

Natural human instinct.

I'm seeing all this protesting over China and the olympics. China has a bad human rights policy? Um, so?

Wow. That is just so utterly...I'm not even sure I can find a word for how sad it is that you actually just said that. Would it be cool if it was 1941 and I said "Yeah, so some Holocaust thing is happening? Um, so?". See how utterly fucking disrespectful that is?

How does this effect my life? I do feel bad that China seems to kill people like no tomorrow, but I'm not going to waste my day, miss work, and possbly get arrested to protest a country I, personally, care nothing about.

Thats fine, you don't have to. But if everyone had the attitude you do, we'd still be in the dark ages, or we'd be the National Socialist States of Germany.

What is this shit with blocking passage of the torch?

It's a form of protest, and a rather intelligent one at that.

I've been in Manhattan, where animal rights people, who I think are mostly insane, will harrass people going into McDonalds or to go buy a fur coat.

I agree with you there, those scum anger me to no end. Same with the hardcore straight edge people. Thats cool, you can believe whatever you want, but the second you're fucking with me, I'm going to hurt you.

I find it absolutely sickening to see these hippies lying in the street blocking traffic because they believe the spotted owl may go extinct.

And I find it absolutely sickening that protestors are automatically hippies for daring to protest. Such bullshit; do you know how many fascist protests there have been in history?

And, let me ask this. Do these people have jobs? Do they have lives? Are their lives so utterly empty of all personal sacrafice and endeaver, that they must find something, anything to cause trouble over?

You sound rather ignorant here, automatically assuming that protestors don't have jobs, when some of the most successful and wealthy people in America are involved in political protests.

I'm not trying to hurt anyone with strong views. I am also not totally against public protest, which my country was built on. But, during those protests, you have no right to get in people's faces, and you have no right to force your opinion on others, and start trouble if they disagree with you. You have a right to speak your mind, and that is where it ends. If you block the entrance to an abortion clinic, a fur store, or stop a torch from being carried, you need to go to prison.

Sounds like fascism to me. How do you think the American Revolution happened? They peacefully chanted slogans and carried signs and marched down the street to become independent? No, they fucking attacked and killed British troops and war ships.

People have the right to peaceful protest, that I give you. That is what the law gives the people the right to. But not all laws are moral, or right for that matter. And if you want something to change drastically, you need violent protest. Despite what most think, peaceful protest has almost zero effect whatsoever on the issues they are protesting. Especially war protestors; why are you wasting your time? Do you really think they're going to stop? Really? You want them to stop huh? Well then stop fucking chanting, and start actual civil disobedience, which incase people have forgotten, IS ILLEGAL. Want the war to end? Stop paying your taxes. Without the American people's taxes, theres no war.

Better yet, maybe you need to find something to do with yourself, and stop worrying if the two gays who live next door to you get married. Who cares? How, on God's earth, does it effect you?

Understood completely, and agreed with completely. And if I ever saw anti-Gay protestors, I would personally walk up to every one of them and ask them what the fuck is wrong with them, and would they like a brick to the face.

I have never, EVER understood this. I basically care about nothing that doesn't personally effect me or the ones I care about.

It's a religious thing. Don't ask me to understand it either man.

Perhaps if everyone minded their own business, the world would be a better place.

Amen to that.

 

[NYSandman]

Cool. Some agrees and some disagrees. The problem with China is they are still using a system of Government that is supposedly dead. However, because China does have nuclear weapons, I think we need to really use kid gloves when handling these guys.

Also, human rights are violated everywhere, such as in Africa and, of course, in the middle east.

I think that the allied countries, USA, Britian, etc, need to understand that the weight of the world shouldn't rest all on their shoulders. We have been sacrificing for years, and none of these countries give a shit.

Let them do what they want, and adopt an isolationist attitude. Let these idiots kill each other, and make them understand that any attacks on us will be met with force, nuclear force. But, I think the "leave us alone and we'll leave you alone" policy may apply.

I also acknowlege what happened in world war 2, and the dire need to stop Hitler at all costs. But, things have changed and the free world is so fucked up, with our economies and the such, that we really need to start being a bit more selfish and take care of ourselves.

 

[HBK-aholic]

I agree with practically everything you said.

I don't care personally what someone believes, or think is right or wrong, but DO NOT say anything to me about doing it. We have different beliefs, that's fine. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But don't try and force it down my throat. I hate the people who simply try and get things made illegal, or make you feel bad, simply because you've done something THEY don't agree with. News flash. I don't care what you think is right or wrong. It's my life and I'll live it how I want to.

I HATE the people who stand outside hospitals screaming 'murderer' at the doctors, or women going for abortions. Or the people who go to a homosexual's funeral and ruin it, or the people who stand in front of shops selling animal fur and tell me not to buy it. What is it to them what I do with my life? Nothing.

 

[X]

I find it very naive that so many of you are saying "Oh its fine if they protest, just don't involve me in it!". Okay, then that's not really protest.

99% of all countries were founded on VIOLENT PROTEST. Peaceful protest has NEVER accomplished ANYTHING, whatsoever. Don't let anyone fool you into thinking different. The race riots were the reason for the Civil Rights Act, not MLK peacefully walking down a street, and don't even get me started on the whole "Gandhi saved India by giving the Brits a peace sign and saying "Please don't do that!" bullshit that people believe.

Violent protest is the only form of protest that works. If you disagree with people protesting in non-peaceful ways, then please come up with a better idea as to how America could've been saved from the Brits without war, or how peaceful protesting was going to stop Hitler from advancing into Poland.

God, the naivety is simply astounding.

 

[HBK-aholic]

I find it very naive that so many of you are saying "Oh its fine if they protest, just don't involve me in it!". Okay, then that's not really protest.

Simply because it's up to them how to live their life. And it's up to me how I live mine. So if it's not something that will affect my life I won't get too bothered by it. Sounds selfish, or whatever, but if I worried about every countrys problems, and every little thing that didn't involve me I'd have killed myself by now.

At the end of the day, I don't understand why people can't just have their own views, and not involve me in them. People trying to ban abortion, homosexuality etc. bothers me because that's stopping the rights I have as a person. What if I wanted an abortion, or to have a wedding as a lesbian? People have no right to stop me doing something just because they feel it's wrong.