The heckler, Ethan Elder from Arizona, was brutally removed from the hall. Here is a picture:
UPDATE!
We have a new video showing the heckling and the removal of Ethan Elder - and this time, it's even more shocking! It becomes much clearer how aggressively the crowd behaved towards Ethan - mob rule! The video includes some annotations by a Palinbot. Watch (I recommend full screen!):
ANOTHER UPDATE!
ANOTHER UPDATE!
A new video has emerged, which shows even better how violently Ethan Elder, who was walking to the exit already at this point, was grabbed by Palin's and McCain's supporters and then removed from the hall.
Ethan also told me in an email-message today that he is considering a lawsuit because of the violation of his rights. I would say, go for it, Ethan!
He also told me today that he and his friend Alex are very happy about the strong support coming from the blogsphere.
As it turns out, he was there together with a second young man called Alex who later heckled Sarah Palin during her speech again. Here is the video of the second heckler being wrestled to the ground, subdued, arrested and escorted away:
ABC15.com has more details:
"But just as Palin took the podium, hecklers began to disrupt the former Alaska governor.
Witnesses said one of the hecklers was pulled up by the hair by a McCain/Palin supporter.
As the man -- who said his name is Alex -- was taken out of the auditorium, he is seen in video being tackled by three men, one identified as a police officer in plain clothes, a man in a McCain T-shirt, and another man.
Witnesses say another protestor was also punched by someone in the crowd.
Ethan Elder was taken into custody by police, but was later released.
Police say no arrests were made and nobody is facing charges.
"I shouted my message. My intention was to speak my political opinion and leave peacefully," Elder said. "I was immediately assaulted by the crowd. They turned angry and belligerent."
Some protestors complained that the Palin/McCain supporters who attacked them were not taken into custody or charged by police.
Meantime, McCain supporters called some of the protestors rude and wondered why they would attend a rally for McCain if they don't agree with him.
Alex said the group of detractors went to the rally with the intent of disrupting Saturday's event."
"But just as Palin took the podium, hecklers began to disrupt the former Alaska governor.
Witnesses said one of the hecklers was pulled up by the hair by a McCain/Palin supporter.
As the man -- who said his name is Alex -- was taken out of the auditorium, he is seen in video being tackled by three men, one identified as a police officer in plain clothes, a man in a McCain T-shirt, and another man.
Witnesses say another protestor was also punched by someone in the crowd.
Ethan Elder was taken into custody by police, but was later released.
Police say no arrests were made and nobody is facing charges.
"I shouted my message. My intention was to speak my political opinion and leave peacefully," Elder said. "I was immediately assaulted by the crowd. They turned angry and belligerent."
Some protestors complained that the Palin/McCain supporters who attacked them were not taken into custody or charged by police.
Meantime, McCain supporters called some of the protestors rude and wondered why they would attend a rally for McCain if they don't agree with him.
Alex said the group of detractors went to the rally with the intent of disrupting Saturday's event."
On the first youtube video above which I posted in my "doublegrandmapalin" youtube account, Ethan Elder aka "azcarpetman" commented 3 hours ago:
"Let me just say that I was the who shouted "He sold us to the corporations in the bail out bill" I was physically assaulted and put into a choke hold by fans. Then i was led outside and cuffed. I was not charged with anything. My friend is in the other video being arrested as well. People need to wake up."
"Let me just say that I was the who shouted "He sold us to the corporations in the bail out bill" I was physically assaulted and put into a choke hold by fans. Then i was led outside and cuffed. I was not charged with anything. My friend is in the other video being arrested as well. People need to wake up."
I believe that this comment is genuine. UPDATE: An internet search has confirmed that "azcarpetman" is indeed Ethan Elder, the first heckler! His friend Alex in the second video shouted "I hate Obama. I don't like Obama. I'm a libertarian!", therefore it's obvious that these protesters don't consider themselves to be liberals, but neither are they McCain supporters. It's rather telling that the hecklers were libertarians, as these people are sometimes regarded as the "real" teabaggers. Sarah Palin and John McCain however claimed in their speeches today that the teabaggers are part of the Republican party - and therefore they try to "suffocate" the teabaggers at the same time. The brutal treatment of these protesters is almost symbolic.
It doesn't matter for us whether these protesters are libertarians or Obama fans. Their treatment was despicable. Sarah Palin and her faithful Palinbots have no interest in freedom of speech. You have the right to hail Queen Sarah - if you don't agree with her, you could face a rough time. I was pretty shocked, as were some of our commenters on Palingates today, that the crowd in Arizona in the morning was in a "nazi like frenzy". Where is this supposed to lead? This looked like the competition "Who is the biggest demagogue in town".
In the afternoon, Sarah Palin spoke in Nevada, in Harry Reid's district, and she delivered what was one of the worst speeches of her career. It was clearly not her day, and she tried her best to spew as much vitriol at the "Obama/Pelosi/Reid gang" as she could. Her voice was a mess, her talking points were moronic, she was glued to her script, and I am pretty sure that Harry Reid had a good laugh:
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UPDATE:
On his facebook, Ethan Elder gives more details about what happened and about his opinions, - and he clearly is not publicity shy ;-) His facebook also confirms that he has libertarian views.
"Watch!!!!!! ALEX AND I ARRESTED AND ASSAULTED AT MCCAIN RALLY!!! WAKE UP!! WATCH MY INTERVIEW AND OTHER VID. IT WILL BE ON NEWS."
"This is me yelling at palin. I said "John Mccain sold us out to the corporations in the bail out bill" Then as i tried to leav, i was attacked by the attendees. They put me in a choke hold until unmarked cops came and cuffed me. Wake up people, watch the news for my interview."
"Alex and I protested and heckled mccain and palin. This is what happens to us. More to come. Watch the news. Wake up america, the movment is beggining"
This was the "public preparation" on facebook for the events today:
"Anyone want to crash john Mccain and Sarah Palins rally this saturday at Dobson High. The more the better. Lets give this neo-con some quality advice. I cant wait to see him stammer in frustration in front of the whole audience lmfao!!! I'm serious though so dont tell me you will come if you wont."
"you want to join anthony? We are up to nine people so far. At staggared intervals we could interrupt his entire speech. Mccain is a self-righteos lying turncoat son of a bitch. Palin is his ignorant celebrity gimp for arousing bored christian mothers"
"crash them! lol. it would be hard on your lonesome. Im talking to my frineds parents today who are hardcore libeterians that might come to. they support either way."
UPDATE 2:
A few hours ago, I contacted "azcarpetman" Ethan Elder over youtube. At this point I was still asking for a confirmation of his identity, which is now not in doubt any more.
I am happy to say that Ethan Elder just responded to me, and the following is what he wrote (unedited). Thanks a lot, Ethan! Here is his message:
"Hi Patrick
Please excuse the grammatical and syntax errors as I have been responding to people all day. I guess I'll start with introductions. I am Ethan Elder, a freshman at ASU majoring in Industrial Engineering. As far as proof goes, you are free to look at my facebook page. Also, abc15.com covered the event with a less slanted angle and included my name. My friend and I do not support either the Democrats or the Republicans. If you could, please make it clear that I am in no way a Obama Supporter.
I attended the rally to voice my opinion peacefully. I feel that John Mccain represents a neoconservtive movement that has infiltrated the republican party and tainted conservative principles. The exact words I yelled out was : "He( mccain) sold us to the corporations in the bail out bill". I yelled several more times in response to Palins dismissal and then attempted to leave. I was then attacked by the nearby supporters arround me. I was pulled, shoved and punched in multiple directions and then a man came up from behind and put me in a headlock. I nearly past out, but wasnt concerned about that (to tell you the truth I was glad that they exposed their immaturity and irrationality).
I assaulted no one, and used no explicit language inside the building. One of the men who came up and grabbed me was an unmarked cop ( the man without a hat) and led me out. I was then thrown to the ground and arrested in the same manner as my friend. I was confused because since the cops failed to identify themselves till later, I had no idea who they were. Again, only one unmarked cop grabbed me from inside. The rest were Angy protesters.
I could of pressed charges for assault but chose not to. After i left and the speech continued, my friend yelled out as well after Palin remarked on the deficit. he said from something along the lines of "The war on terror is whats putting us in debt". He was then also attacked by the crowd and thrown outside. My local nbc news channel has an exccellent angle of the physical assaults he recieved inside from the attendees. We also have a video from the other end of the bleachers of him we have yet to compile and post. We were detained there, then we were both released without any charges. As for my motivations? Mccain is a neocon. Palin is as well. They do not represent conservative values. They preach war mongering and fallacious misconstrued information about there involvement with the financial collapse. This is just a summary, I would be willing to provide a more adequate account concering my motivations however if you have any specific questions."
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UPDATE 3:
Want to see some REAL hecklers? Just take a look at the teabaggers, Sarah Palin's crowd. They love to exercise their right of free speech, love to scream at members of Congress, harrass them and to spit on them. Spit on them? Well, Fox News didn't believe it, and Tea Party groups offered a $ 15k reward for proof of the incident!
It looks like they will have to cough up the money - Huffington Post now released the video of the incident:
The teabaggers are a mob, nothing else - free speech only applies to them. See what happens if somebody shows dissent - they DO NOT appreciate it at all:
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UPDATE 4:
I just spotted something. On the video with the spitting incident I just posted above, from about 2:20 onwards, you can clearly see a flag in the background which is a variation of the original nazi swastika flag. These type of flags are very popular amongst neo nazis so that they don't have to display the real swastika - it's a code:
This flag or a variant which is very, very close has actually been used at a violent incident in Los Angeles before, as we learn from this educational website about flags.
Here is a comparison between the already know nazi-symbol (as explained on this website) and the flag that was shown at the teabaggers rally in Washington (many thanks to EyeOnYou!):
This flag or a variant which is very, very close has actually been used at a violent incident in Los Angeles before, as we learn from this educational website about flags.Here is a comparison between the already know nazi-symbol (as explained on this website) and the flag that was shown at the teabaggers rally in Washington (many thanks to EyeOnYou!):
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EDIT:
I was forced to make an addition to "update 4" because I have seen in comments which were left on the "Congressman spitting" youtube video and also on blogs that some people persistently claim that the flag in the background is not a nazi flag, but the state flag of Tennessee!
Well, here is the state flag of Tennessee - does it look ANYTHING like that? Do you people need new glasses or what? Look:
Anybody who still claims that the flag in the background is the state flag of Tennessee has to be either blind or ignorant...
(end of edit)
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But Sean Hannity would probably say now: "What? This good American just doesn't discriminate against the color red and was creative!"
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