[Seattle-editorial] Proposal: Black helicopters

[Jeremy G Kahn]

I approve.

But this seems like a lot of work given our current level of commitment 
here. I think we'd be well-served to just compose mini-features that 
point off to articles already on the newswire, rather than editing and 
rewriting news.

I think the proposals should usually be more like this:

title
subtitle
one or two paragraphs clipped from an interesting article
a link to the interesting article
maybe a link or three to related articles.

if we're going to put in more work, we could write them in the older 
style of composing a few paragraphs heavy with links to news and 
articles. But we shouldn't consider our role to be to rewrite existing 
articles.  Let's save ourselves the effort and feature them, warts and all.

Good work -- just making some suggestions about keeping it sustainable. 
Of course, this is all Just My Opinion. I won't be hurt if anybody feels 
differently. I know this isn't how we always do things in this working 
group.

--jeremy

typist at speakeasy.net wrote:

>Here's an edit of Mark's article on the protests.  I'm waiting to hear back on some first hand accounts of the Victor Steinbrueck park protests, which might be nice to add into this (a few sentences), but don't hold up the piece for that.  I left the Dean article that Mark also attached for a later edit.    
>
>Title: Black helicopters and millionaire mansions 
>Subtitle: Report on Bush Protests
>by Mark Taylor-Canfield
>
>
>The Emerald City came to a brief standstill on August 22
>when George W. Bush came to town. Surrounded by secret
>service and military-style police, Bush arrived in Air
>Force One at Boeing Field where he greeted a dozen VIP
>supporters. He was immediately whisked away to the
>multi-million dollar McCaw mansion on Lake Washington
>where he proceeded to raise 1.7 million dollars in
>less than two hours. Then he left Seattle,
>leaving behind him a significant political backlash in
>his wake.
>
>The local media was denied access to Bush while
>reporters from CNN and Fox were given the royal
>treatment. This caused some frustration among Seattle
>media journalists. Reporters from local radio stations
>were forced to give live reports of Bush's arrival
>from positions that were far removed 
>from the action. "I can barely see the president, I think he's greeting
>some VIPs but I can't tell who those people are," said 
>a reporter from KIRO radio.
>
>[suggested: link to rest of article here]
>
>Traffic was stopped on Interstate 5 and on the 520 
>floating bridge across Lake Washington to allow
>the president's motorcade to pass. After sitting
>through traffic delays caused by the Navy's
>Blue Angels a few weeks ago during Seattle's annual
>Seafair events, many commuters were frustrated by the
>traffic tie-ups caused by the president's motorcade
>and the intense security surrounding the Commander In
>Chief. Seattle's traffic congestion is some of the
>worst in the nation and even Bush was forced to sit in
>a traffic jam on I-5 before he finally reached the
>McCaw mansion at Hunts Point.
>
>Meanwhile, citizens reported seeing unidentified black
>helicopters, and the local television media did stories
>about military jets that chased private planes in the
>area. The jets even fired flares at small planes that
>strayed into a "no fly zone," forcing them to land.
>
>Protesters at Hunts Point were met with police in riot
>gear, helmet and clubs from local law enforcement agencies, including
>the only four police officers on the Hunts Point
>force, as well as police from Kirkland, Bellevue and
>Seattle. Demonstrators complained of law
>enforcement officers with no clear identification.
>Some of them looked more like soldiers--especially
>the ones in black uniforms carrying automatic
>weapons. One unidentified demonstrator at Hunts Point commented to
>reporters, "Welcome to the police state of America."
>Another man tried to block the motorcade route on Highway
>520 by standing in the
>freeway. He was immediately arrested. 
>
>According to KIRO radio, the secret service made
>several requests to the Kirkland police department,
>asking that the officers push protesters to a position
>150 feet away from the motorcade route.  Evidently,
>even local police agencies felt it necessary to rebel
>against heavy-handed federal authorities who had taken over
>the city for the day.  Police officers moved the crowd
>about 25 feet back from the street which still allowed
>them to be visible from the president's vehicle. The
>Bush handlers were trying very hard not to allow for
>camera shots of the protesters demonstrating near the
>official motorcade route. Presumably, they did not
>want people to see the president's vehicle and the
>protesters in the same frame on their TV sets during
>the evening news. 
>
>Their efforts failed, however, as anti-Bush
>demonstrators were a visible backdrop. 
>
>Attendees at the presidential fundraiser paid $2,000 each to meet the
>president. One beamed to local
>media that George W. had kissed her on the cheek. Her
>husband literally gave Bush the shirt off his back;
>the president liked his colorful shirt so much he
>gave it to Bush. 
>
>"Billionaires For Bush" were present at the protest to
>spoof the administration. Actors dressed as Bush and
>Cheney assured everyone that America is safe now
>that the US has secured the Iraqi oil fields. Dick Cheney
>carried a scythe and was dressed in a black robe like
>the Grim Reaper. A rich matron in a lace dress and pearls threw money at the
>crowd and urged them to support Bush so that she can
>continue to protect her wealthy lifestyle. 
>
>At the same time, in Bellevue a local right-wing
>radio station (KVI) had secured a permit for Bush 
>supporters at NE 8th and Bellevue Way,
>thereby pushing planned Bush protests down the road to a
>less visible location. However, anti-Bush demonstrators infiltrated
>the pro-Bush rallies at NE 8th and Bellevue making it difficult to tell which
>side of the fence people where on. "Bush 2004" competed with 
>anti-Bush signs all around the busy intersection. Eventually the anti-Bush demonstrators outnumbered the pro-Bush supporters.
>
>Another anti-Bush protest was held the
>following day even though Bush had already left town. 
>An estimated 3,000 to 5,000 demonstrators held a rally
>at Myrtle Edwards Park.  Keynote speakers included
>mainstream politicians like Seattle City Council
>President Peter Steinbrueck, US Congressman Adam
>Smith, Washington State Democratic Chairman Paul
>Berendt, former Clinton speechwriter and policy
>advisor Eric Luci. Demonstrators marched along the
>Seattle waterfront, receiving a mostly positive
>response from tourists and locals alike. 
>
>The previous day Bush's comments at a campaign stop in Eastern Washington angered environmentalists. Appearing in a small rural community that
>had voted 75% for Bush during the election, he came out
>solidly against demolishing any of the numerous dams which have
>contributed to the destruction of the salmon
>population. 
>
>Despite a well-financed luncheon, George W. Bush left a bad taste in the mouths of many Washington residents. It's probably no
>wonder that Democratic presidential candidate Howard
>Dean was able to draw 15,000 people from around the region 
>to his rally in Seattle two days after Bush's visit. It seems that
>they prefer a guy who serves peanut butter and jelly
>sandwiches at his fundraisers over the usual Bush
>fair of expensive lunches at millionaire
>mansions.
>
>
>
>
>
>
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