Posts Tagged ‘dnc’

Tips for conservatives covering leftist protests

Posted: September 1, 2024 by John Ruberry in blogs, News/opinion, opinion/news, politics
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By John Ruberry

Last month the Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago at the United Center.

I did some photography work for a right-of-center publication. There’s no need to mention which one.

Left-wing radicals are trained to spot “infiltrators” among within their protests. To get the best coverage, it’s important to blend in. It’s also wise to do so in terms of personal safety.

During the DNC protests–which were mostly centered around Union Park, which is roughly halfway between the UC and downtown Chicago–I witnessed three fights, but no one seemed to get injured in them.

Here are some tips regarding not only in covering protests. but also, how not to get spotted, to use a favorite put-down of the leftists, as a “counterrevolutionary.”

For starters, when you cover protests, whether the organizers have a rally permit or not, these gatherings often turn into marches. Wear comfortable shoes, dress for the weather, and depending on the conditions outdoors, have bottled water and sunscreen available. If you can’t remain on your feet for several hours, or if you don’t feel confident walking a few miles, then covering rallies is not for you.

And because these events can last several hours, bring light snacks.

Blending in:

The DNC protests were largely Hamas pep rallies—the attendees, politically speaking, for the most part, were to the left of Kamala Harris. Obviously, I left my Donald Trump button at home.

At these rallies—most credible sources said that about 3,500 protesters attended the big ones–often there are people handing out buttons and protest signs. Don’t sell yourself out. I picked out a “thought criminal” button and a “give peace a chance sign.” I support peace under the right conditions and as a Republican living in Illinois, that makes me a thought criminal.

And wear a hat with the logo of a local sports team. Once again, you want to blend it.

Don’t go alone. Okay, a couple of days last month, I broke that rule, but having someone watch your back is sound advice on most occasions in Chicago.

Have a cover story. Often, I’m asked at these protests, “Why are you here and who are you working for?” I always reply, truthfully, that I am a free-lance photographer and an amateur historian. Have a pseudonym already picked out, because someone may ask for your name. This is not the time for a Ralph Kramden “hummina-hummina-hummina” moment.

Ask permission to take someone’s photograph or to videotape them. There are several reasons. The first one is simply because it’s the polite thing to do. Secondly, you’ll capture much better images. Finally, it decreases the odds of you being identified as a provocateur.

What to do if spotted? I’ve only been outed once at a leftist protest, after someone noticed me speaking to a well-known conservative videographer. But because at that time the scene was chaotic–hooligans were throwing water bottles at police officers–the radicals quickly lost interest in me. If that attack on the cops hadn’t broken out, I would have left for home.

Live to document another day.

You don’t want to make the same mistake as two other videographers I know, who years ago not only refused to blend in at a protest, but when identified–which didn’t take long–they suffered the indignity of having their $1,000 video camera snatched from them. The leftists decided to play keep-away and catch with their equipment, which of course was quickly dropped on a sidewalk. Then the radicals stomped on the video camera.

Keep calm and remain strong. Imagine yourself as a glacier–sturdy and slow moving–with such a permanence that people forget you are there.

If you have your own tips on not getting noticed at left-wing protests, drop them in the comments section.

John Ruberry regularly blogs at Marathon Pundit.

Update (DTG) : Instalanche! Thanks Glenn (Actually Sarah Hoyt) John is on a roll! I always found that my doctor who scarf and hat make people assume I’m a leftist so all I had to do is be quiet and listen and I could cover any event without grief. It doesn’t take long for a leftist to pontificate if you just wait.

Say his name: Jai’mani Amir Rivera. The 7-year-old was allegedly murdered in Chicago by a teen who officials say cut off his ankle monitor

Posted: June 23, 2024 by John Ruberry in crime, News/opinion, opinion/news, politics
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By John Ruberry

The biggest news story in Chicago at the end of last week was the vandalism of Chicago’s iconic Buckingham Fountain by pro-Hamas protesters. 

That’s tragic, because the more important news was the arrest of 16-year-old Raysean Comer, who according to court records allegedly shot to death a 7-year-old, Jai’mani Amir Rivera, on Chicago’s West Side. Rivera had just completed first grade. The murder occurred about a mile from the United Center, where the Democratic National Convention will be held later this summer.

Say his name: Jai’mani Amir Rivera.

Illinois’ governor, J.B. Pritzker, a likely 2028 presidential candidate–and possibly even this year–was the main catalyst for bringing the DNC to Chicago.

Again, according to court records as well as the essential CWB Chicago site, Comer was on pre-trial release, but under electronic monitoring, for alleged aggravated battery and being in possession of a stolen automobile. Two weeks ago, according to local officials, Comer cut off his ankle monitor. 

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart is in charge of the county electronic monitoring program.

Hey Dart! Did you try to find Comer after he removed his ankle monitor?

Back to Pritzker.

With great fanfare in response to the George Floyd murder–the Chicago Democrat signed the SAFE-T Act into law–it eliminates cash bail throughout Illinois. It took effect last autumn. 

Comer is now locked up in Cook County Jail. But he’s the 14th person in Chicago this year, according to CWB Chicago, who is accused of shooting, attempting to shoot, or killing someone while on pretrial release. 

Hey Jackass, another great Chicago site, notes that last week was a very bloody one. “Final tally for the week of 6/16 – 6/22: 125 people shot, 24 fatally,” Hey Jackass posted Sunday morning on X. “The last time #Chicago tallied at least 125 shot in a single week was 9/26/21 – 10/2/21 with 23 killed, 102 wounded.”

Violent crime is increasing in Chicago, despite false assurances otherwise. Murders, for now, being an exception. As I’ve noted earlier here at DTG, Pritzker, and Chicago’s leftist mayor, Brandon Johnson, scored a lucky break when a court challenge delayed implementation of the SAFE-T Act. Summer is the most violent season in Chicago, and the summer of 2024, as we know, has started off badly in terms of public safety. 

So far this year, according to Larry Snelling, Chicago’s police superintendant, 127 youths have been shot. And seventeen of them have died.

Chicago’s violent crime epidemic pre-dates the SAFE-T Act. Eight years ago, a George Soros-funded catch-and-release prosecutor, Kim Foxx, was elected as Cook County’s state’s attorney. She chose not to run for a third term, her successor will be an improvement.

Friday night, the Chicago Police Department held a press conference announcing the arrest of Comer. It was one of those “all-hands-on-deck” events. Perhaps they were out of town or otherwise busy, but three people were noticeably absent at the presser: Foxx, Dart, and Mayor Brandon Johnson. Chicago’s mayor spoke favorably of the Defund the Police movement in 2020, and he’s the most egregious minimizer of crime in his city.

The SAFE-T Act is a monumental failure, and it needs to be repealed.

If Pritzker runs for president, law-and-order Americans–still a majority in this country–needs to tell everyone else that he signed the SAFE-T Act into law. Or better yet, chant “SAFE-T Act!”

Johnson needs to be reminded that his most important duty is to protect the lives of 2.7 million Chicagoans. His dismissal of youth violence as kids doing “silly things” makes things worse.

Good riddance to Foxx.

Say his name: Jai’mani Amir Rivera.

There is a GoFundMe page dedicated to covering Rivera’s funeral expenses. Click here to donate.

John Ruberry regularly blogs at Marathon Pundit.

Chicago’s Summer of Misery: Criminals emboldened over cop shortages, no-cash bail, and a Soros prosecutor

Posted: June 16, 2024 by John Ruberry in crime, culture, News/opinion, opinion/news, politics
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By John Ruberry

Chicago, not surprisingly, is coming apart at the seams. 

While recently propped up a bit by COVID relief money, which will run out next year, Chicago, because of massive unfunded pension liabilities, is essentially bankrupt. Its streets and roads are in terrible shape. Riding on Chicago’s buses, and even more so its el trains, can be trip into a scene from Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange. The George Floyd riots of 2020 chased out major retailers on North Michigan Avenue, and fear of crime has solidified the work-at-home movement, keeping office workers, and their wallets, out of Chicago’s central business district, the Loop.

Last year, Chicagoans voted in a defund-the-police advocate, Brandon Johnson, as mayor. In 2020, while a county commissioner–as well as working as an organizer for the Chicago Teachers Union–Johnson said of the defund movement, “I don’t look at it as a slogan,” he said. “It’s an actual real political goal.” 

At a forum the month before the runoff election, which Johnson of course won, he answered back to that statement with this lie, “I said it was a political goal, I never said it was mine.”

Chicago used to be a hard-knuckle newspaper town. The Front Page, a 1928 play that inspired two movies of the same name, was written by two Chicago newspaper reporters. Chicago has devolved from that to subservience. Led by its worst journalist, PBS Chicago’s Heather Cherone, the local media barely pressed Johnson on his hypocrisy over the defund movement.

Fourteen months into Johnson’s term, with the exception of murder, the crime rate continues to rise in Chicago. To be fair, not everything is Johnson’s fault. Until December, Chicago is plagued with a George Soros-so-called prosecutor, Kim Foxx. And last fall, Illinois’ SAFE-T Act, which abolishes cash bail, went into effect. 

Chicago has about 11,000 police officers, and Johnson’s handpicked police chief, Larry Snelling, says the CPD is short 2,000 cops. 

It’s a glorious new era for criminals. They are emboldened because they don’t fear getting caught, and if they are arrested, Chicago’s criminals have a decent chance of not getting punished.

As I have here before, I am going to list some recent headlines from the essential CWB Chicago:

Yes, a man was shot near the home of the man who signed SAFE-T Act into law. And let me reiterate, these are recent CWB Chicago stories, the oldest is from three days ago. And notice the anarchic nature, when digested together, of these crimes.

Yes, lawbreakers are emboldened in Chicago. A look at this X video from 16th & 17th District Chicago Police Scanner. Police were dispatched to break up a raucous party. Just a few years ago such a police call would be termed “routine.” Look at how these beasts, many recording the mayhem, react. One law enforcement officer is struck in the head while some women twerk, as if they are in a porn video, in response.

On the upside, the jackals are multi-racial. Even as it’s falling apart, Chicago is coming together.

Chicago’s 16th Police District, on the Northwest Side, was considered a safe place to live. No place is safe in Chicago. On a personal note, my daughter and one of my sisters live within the district’s boundaries.

Also from 16th & 17th District Chicago Police Scanner, is this disturbing sign outside the entrance of the 16th Police District station, which because only one cop is working the desk there, advises crime victims to drive to another police station if they want faster service.

Citywide, the complaints from residents calling 911 and having to wait hours for police to respond are piling up.

In two months, the Democratic National Convention will convene in Chicago. Thousands of protesters rioters are expected to descend upon the city.

And the Chicago Police Department, because of staff shortages, cannot even handle a normal weekend.

Chicago’s Summer of Misery is here.

As of this writing, 3:45pm CDT Sunday June 16, there have been 38 people who have been shot in Chicago. Six of them, including a 13-year-old boy, are dead.

UPDATE June 17:

Last weekend ended up being an extremely violent one. The final shooting total, for now, for last weekend in Chicago was 71 people shot and nine killed. There were two mass shootings early Monday morning an hour apart from each other.

Here is coverage of one of the Monday mass shootings.

Welcome to Detroit.

John Ruberry regularly blogs at Marathon Pundit.