Once again, Wisconsinites attempting to participate in their government and express their rights have been abused in the Assembly gallery. As a constituent reported to Rep. Mark Pocan,
they arrested 6 persons quietly holding a picture of 1) apple pie, 2) ronald reagan, 3) jesus, 4) the american flag, and 5) mother theresa 6) a constitution and a page grabbed at and swiped a 12 yr old girls school notebook with flowery doodles on it and words "first amendment".
Yes, just take a look at these subversives. A 12-year-old girl was sitting in the gallery working on her civics homework while watching the Assembly, and the sergeant-at-arms didn't like that when she had to lift her notebook to turn the page, it showed a page with a florid "First Amendment / Freedom of Speech" written on it, so he slapped the notebook back onto her lap. Her dad, who was nearly arrested for defending her and her younger sister, tells the full story here (or here if you can't get on Facebook). They seem determined to make the Capitol a police state. Fortunately, the Democrats are fighting the abuse as best they can, and Rep. Andy Jorgensen even called for an ovation for the family. And judging from the video (first link), it seems as though the girls came through it with good humor. But what the hell are we teaching our kids if they have to go through this? We can't get the Republicans out of power soon enough.
