Patterico's Pontifications

6/9/2020

Family Harassed By Suspicious Locals Concerned They Were Antifa Protesters

Filed under: General — Dana @ 10:10 am



[guest post by Dana]

I saw this story, and couldn’t stop thinking about how frightening this must have been for the family involved:

A family of four found themselves stranded near a Washington state campsite shortly after they were confronted by a group of people asking if they were Antifa protesters, local police say.

The multiracial family — a husband and wife, their 16-year-old daughter and the husband’s mother — drove about seven hours before they reached the city of Forks on June 3, where they stopped to buy some camping supplies, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

At the store, they were confronted by “seven or eight car loads of people” who repeatedly asked the family if they were with Antifa, police said.

So what if they had been with Antifa? What would the carloads of people have done? As reported, the family was not doing anything illegal, they were not rabble-rousing, and they were not even protesting. They were simply buying camping supplies for a camping trip. Does one’s activism now determine whether Americans are allowed to buy food in a store, or go on a camping trip? What makes anyone think they have the right to demand that private citizens in a public place need to confirm or deny whether they are with an activist group? Further, if the family had been Antifa protesters, why would they be dumb enough to admit to it when confronted by suspicious villagers? But the bottom line is really this: If the family hadn’t been multi-racial, no questions would have been asked by anyone.

More:

The family told the group they weren’t affiliated with Antifa and had to drive their bus around multiple vehicles as they left the store, police said.

As the family got on the road again, they told police they were followed by at least four vehicles — two of which seemed to be carrying passengers with semiautomatic rifles.

When they reached their destination and set up a tent, they began hearing gunshots and power saws, police said.

“The family, concerned for their safety, decided to pack up their camp and leave. As they drove back down the spur road they discovered someone had fell trees across the road, preventing their exit,” according to the sheriff’s department.

Luckily for the family, four high school students who saw them, came to their aid by clearing the trees from the road and calling the police (although the family had already called 911).

The report says that the sheriff’s department is now conducting a criminal investigation into the incident.

More generous high schoolers like these four, please.

–Dana

30 Responses to “Family Harassed By Suspicious Locals Concerned They Were Antifa Protesters”

  1. I’ve been to Forks. On the surface, at least, it’s just another small town parked in a beautiful area…

    Dana (0feb77)

  2. Forks is a weird place, part Indian reservations and part redneck hillbilly logging country. The Twilight folks picked the right location for the book-movie vehicle. Mrs. Montagu and I stayed in a nice oceanfront cabin in La Push a few decades ago, and we found the whole area to be desolate and a little wild.
    Generally, WA State coast is not that appealing. Too rainy, too cold and too windy. If we want to see the ocean, we usually head to Oregon, where it’s a little less cold.
    Ironically, that mixed race family may have been in similar straits had they taken a shorter drive to northern Idaho, where Hayden Lake is famous for its white nationalism, but I’m sure the family already knew about that.

    Paul Montagu (567b83)

  3. The Epoch of the Stupid. I’ll leave it to future historians to set the actual starting date.

    JVW (ee64e4)

  4. It’s interesting how you describe Forks, Paul Montagu, because in my experience, every little town and hamlet in the PNW seems to have a character distinct from their neighbors. I’m familiar with Ports Townsend, Ludlow, and Angeles, and they are all notably different although being fairly close to each other. Everything from architecture, to history, and to the residents themselves, and the kinds of people drawn to the communities.

    Dana (0feb77)

  5. From the CNN article:

    Antifa is short for anti-fascists and describes a broad group of people whose political beliefs lean toward the left — often the far left — but do not conform with the Democratic Party platform.

    They don’t have to conform with the Democrat platform because they are busy rewriting the Democrat platform to conform with their own beliefs.

    JVW (ee64e4)

  6. Pursue and prosecute them and keep a list of these occurrences to see how prevalent they are.

    Have it on the same page as the list of perpetrators of crimes in the current riots (who should also be prosecuted but I hear some locales are giving Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free cards).

    By all means let people know this lawlessness and excuse of national events to terrorize people will NOT be tolerated.
    __

    harkin (a0489d)

  7. “ Antifa is short for anti-fascists and describes a broad group of people whose political beliefs lean toward the left ”
    __ _

    “Fascists divide themselves into two categories: fascists and anti-fascists”. – Enio Flaiano
    _

    harkin (a0489d)

  8. You’re right about the distinctiveness of the different towns, Dana.
    Sequim and Port Angeles are maybe ten miles apart but vastly different. Port Townsend and Port Ludlow are lovely spots, where Port Angeles is more industrial and lunch bucket. Forks is a whole other world, but it changes when you get to Quinault and again when you get to cheesy Open Sores Ocean Shores.

    Paul Montagu (567b83)

  9. they followed stalins in the 30s against social democrats, and then against nazis, I call them black bloc because it doesn’t flatter their ego, andy ngo, has chronicled their deeds, rather extensively from his perch in portland, o’keefe has followed their more recent track records,

    narciso (7404b5)

  10. So it turns out the 75 year-old codger who cracked open his skull after the Buffalo Police shoved him was … wait for it … an antifa provocateur!

    According to an unimpeachable source:

    Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment. @OANN I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?

    More…

    Dave (1bb933)

  11. “ Lopez said that looters might spill over into residential areas and wanted answers on how the city would handle that.

    “Once they’re done looting and rioting and whatever’s going to happen tonight, God help us, what happens when they start going after residents? Going into the neighborhoods? Once they start trying to break down people’s doors, if they think they’ve got something,” he said. “I’ve got gangbangers with AK-47s walking around right now, just waiting to settle some scores. What are we going to do, and what do we tell residents, other than good faith people stand up? It’s not going to be enough.”

    Lightfoot initially didn’t answer Lopez’s inquiry and wanted to move on to the next question. But Lopez said, “It’s not something you ignore. This is a question that I have.”

    The phone call then took a profane turn as the two elected officials began exchanging expletives.

    “I think you’re 100% full of sh*t, is what I think,” Lightfoot said.

    “F— you, then,” Lopez responded. “Who are you to tell me I’m full of sh*t? … Maybe you should come out and see what’s going on.”

    “If you think we’re not ready, and we stood by and let the neighborhoods go up, there’s nothing intelligent that I could say to you,” Lightfoot responded. “That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. I understand you want to preen.”

    “Mayor, you need to check your f—ing attitude. That’s what you need to do,” Lopez replied.”

    Chicago mayor and alderman exchange profanities over concerns about looters in leaked audio

    https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/stupidest-thing-i-have-ever-heard-chicago-mayor-rips-alderman-for-voicing-concerns-about-looters-in-leaked-audio
    __ _

    In capable hands, just like Minneapolis.
    _

    harkin (a0489d)

  12. she may not have turned out to be the right lizard,

    narciso (7404b5)

  13. The OAN reporter who reported on Gugino’s so-called Antifa connections is literally a Siberian Russian who literally worked for Sputnik, a pro-Putin propaganda organ. Imagine the OAN schlub who saw “Sputnik” on the guy’s resume and still said, “You’re hired!”
    We are deep, deep in Bizarro TrumpWorld and I want out.

    Paul Montagu (567b83)

  14. Imagine the OAN schlub who saw “Sputnik” on the guy’s resume and still said, “You’re hired!”

    Hell, it’s probably what got him on the short list…

    Dave (1bb933)

  15. Well, that – with no context whatsoever – certainly justifies having his skull cracked open by the cops and PROVES that he’s ANTIFA!

    Dave (1bb933)

  16. “any pithy come back dave, paul”

    It’s probably bullsh*t. Wayback Machine doesn’t have any record of that twitter account prior to Jun 6 (a day after he was pushed). https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://twitter.com/martingugino

    It’s more telling that you think this excuses the cop who pushed him, and all the other cops who ignored him bleeding on the ground.

    Davethulhu (b9acf0)

  17. harkin (a0489d) — 6/9/2020 @ 11:08 am

    I’m very much interested in the answer to Lopez’s question. There are other questions no one really wants to ask that I’m curious about. For example, if Trump says jump and the military brass ignore him like prominent D’s are demanding but also refuse to resign, what happens next?

    frosty (f27e97)

  18. “any pithy come back dave, paul”

    Comeback for what, narciso? He doesn’t like the police. It doesn’t prove that he engaged in violence while protesting, it doesn’t prove an affiliation with Antifa, and it doesn’t justify BPD violence against him.
    What it does show is that you really like dissembling Trump-enabling hacks like Conservative Treehouse. It’s not something I’d be proud of, but you be you.

    Paul Montagu (567b83)

  19. @19: The outrage directed here illustrates Gugino’s white privilege.

    beer ‘n pretzels (7375f7)

  20. #21

    For example, if Trump says jump and the military brass ignore him like prominent D’s are demanding but also refuse to resign, what happens next

    Depends on the number of officers involved. Trump would back down in the face of a revolt of multiple military officers. If it’s just one person, it’s a “your fired” situation.

    The fact this isn’t completely unimaginable says something about where we are.

    My wife like a story about a man during the Katrina floods who turns away a boat and a helicopter saying “No, the Lord will save me”. So the guy ends up at the pearly gates more than a little upset. And God says “What’s your problem — I sent you the boat and the helicopter.”

    I see the failed impeachment as the Nation’s missed opportunity with Trump. He proved himself unfit and was impeached. The GOP had given him the opportunity to prove it again and again and again.

    Appalled (1a17de)

  21. Appalled (1a17de) — 6/9/2020 @ 12:35 pm

    My wife like a story about a man during the Katrina floods who turns away a boat and a helicopter saying “No, the Lord will save me”.

    It;s an old story, and it predates Katrina and I never heard it told specific to a certain flood, And there were three things that came, noot two:

    https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0745683/characters/nm0001500

    he West Wing (TV Series)
    Take This Sabbath Day (2000)
    Karl Malden: Father Thomas Cavanaugh
    Showing all 1 items

    ,,,Quotes

    Father Thomas Cavanaugh : You remind me of the man that lived by the river. He heard a radio report that the river was going to rush up and flood the town, and that the all the residents should evacuate their homes. But the man said, “I’m religious. I pray. God loves me. God will save me.”

    The waters rose up. A guy in a rowboat came along and he shouted, “Hey, hey you, you in there. The town is flooding. Let me take you to safety.” But the man shouted back, “I’m religious. I pray. God loves me. God will save me.”

    A helicopter was hovering overhead and a guy with a megaphone shouted, “Hey you, you down there. The town is flooding. Let me drop this ladder and I’ll take you to safety.” But the man shouted back that he was religious, that he prayed, that God loved him and that God will take him to safety.

    Well… the man drowned. And standing at the gates of St. Peter he demanded an audience with God. “Lord,” he said, “I’m a religious man, I pray, I thought you loved me. Why did this happen?” God said, “I sent you a radio report, a helicopter and a guy in a rowboat. What the hell are you doing here?”

    Here it is in National Review, 2003:

    https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/prayer-old-joke-jonah-goldberg-2

    Sammy Finkelman (fe9fb2)

  22. I saw an interview with the author of the Anti-Fascist Handbook the othe night. He said that Antifa was a small unorganized group without leadership. He noted that when they do cll for potests, only a few hundred people show up.

    But yet Antifa remains the Boogeyman for the Right, or for Trump in particular.

    It’s all nonsense.

    Gawain's Ghost (b25cd1)

  23. In TrumpWorld, anyone without a MAGA hat is antifa.

    Dave (1bb933)

  24. Deliverance, Children Of The Corn, Wrong Turn, or Inbred?

    nk (1d9030)

  25. Macon County Jail?

    nk (1d9030)


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