Cindy Sheehan's weighty problem

Cindy Sheehan's statement to all of her "friends" after she was arrested in the gallery before President Bush's State of the Union speech last night. The security guard who hauled her out of the gallery was Mike Weight.

Dear Friends,

As most of you have probably heard, I was arrested before the State of the Union Address tonight. I am speechless with fury at what happened and with grief over what we have lost in our country.

CindySheehan's diary: There have been lies from the police and distortions by the press. (Shocker) So this is what really happened:

This afternoon at the People's State of the Union Address in DC where I was joined by Congresspersons Lynn Woolsey and John Conyers, Ann Wright, Malik Rahim and John Cavanagh, Lynn brought me a ticket to the State of the Union Address. At that time, I was wearing the shirt that said: 2245 Dead. How many more?

After the PSOTU press conference, I was having second thoughts about going to the SOTU at the Capitol. I didn't feel comfortable going. I knew George Bush would say things that would hurt me and anger me and I knew that I couldn't disrupt the address because Lynn had given me the ticket and I didn't want to be disruptive out of respect for her. I, in fact, had given the ticket to John Bruhns who is in Iraq Veterans Against the War. However, Lynn's office had already called the media and everyone knew I was going to be there so I sucked it up and went.

I got the ticket back from John, and I met one of Congresswoman Barbara Lee's staffers in the Longworth Congressional Office building and we went to the Capitol via the undergroud tunnel. I went through security once, then had to use the rest room and went through security again.

My ticket was in the 5th gallery, front row, fourth seat in. The person who in a few minutes was to arrest me, helped me to my seat.

I had just sat down and I was warm from climbing 3 flights of stairs back up from the bathroom so I unzipped my jacket. I turned to the right to take my left arm out, when the same officer saw my shirt and yelled; "Protester." He then ran over to me, hauled me out of my seat and roughly (with my hands behind my back) shoved me up the stairs. I said something like "I'm going, do you have to be so rough?" By the way, his name is Mike Weight.

The officer ran with me to the elevators yelling at everyone to move out of the way. When we got to the elevators, he cuffed me and took me outside to await a squad car. On the way out, someone behind me said, "That's Cindy Sheehan." At which point the officer who arrested me said: "Take these steps slowly." I said, "You didn't care about being careful when you were dragging me up the other steps." He said, "That's because you were protesting." Wow, I get hauled out of the People's House because I was, "Protesting."

I was never told that I couldn't wear that shirt into the Congress. I was never asked to take it off or zip my jacket back up. If I had been asked to do any of those things...I would have, and written about the suppression of my freedom of speech later. I was immediately, and roughly (I have the bruises and muscle spasms to prove it) hauled off and arrested for "unlawful conduct."

After I had my personal items inventoried and my fingers printed, a nice Sgt. came in and looked at my shirt and said, "2245, huh? I just got back from there."

I told him that my son died there. That's when the enormity of my loss hit me. I have lost my son. I have lost my First Amendment rights. I have lost the country that I love. Where did America go? I started crying in pain.

What did Casey die for? What did the 2244 other brave young Americans die for? What are tens of thousands of them over there in harm's way for still? For this? I can't even wear a shrit that has the number of troops on it that George Bush and his arrogant and ignorant policies are responsible for killing.

I wore the shirt to make a statement. The press knew I was going to be there and I thought every once in awhile they would show me and I would have the shirt on. I did not wear it to be disruptive, or I would have unzipped my jacket during George's speech. If I had any idea what happens to people who wear shirts that make the neocons uncomfortable that I would be arrested...maybe I would have, but I didn't.

There have already been many wild stories out there.

I have some lawyers looking into filing a First Amendment lawsuit against the government for what happened tonight. I will file it. It is time to take our freedoms and our country back.

I don't want to live in a country that prohibits any person, whether he/she has paid the ulitmate price for that country, from wearing, saying, writing, or telephoning any negative statements about the government. That's why I am going to take my freedoms and liberties back. That's why I am not going to let Bushco take anything else away from me...or you.

I am so appreciative of the couple of hundred of protesters who came to the jail while I was locked up to show their support....we have so much potential for good...there is so much good in so many people.

Four hours and 2 jails after I was arrested, I was let out. Again, I am so upset and sore it is hard to think straight.

Keep up the struggle...I promise you I will too.

Love and peace soon,
Cindy

She says, "I am speechless with fury at what happened . . ." and then proceeds to speak for another 18 paragraphs, 57 sentences.

She says, "I did not wear it (a protest T-shirt under her jacket) to be disruptive, or I would have unzipped my jacket during George's speech." She could not have unzipped it during the president's speech because she was arrested 45 minutes before the speech started.

She says that as she was being fingerprinted, "That's when the enormity of my loss hit me. I have lost my son. I have lost my First Amendment rights." Her son Casey was killed April 4, 2004 in Iraq. Her activities, from the protests outside the Crawford ranch all last summer to last week's appearence with Hugo Chavez and his stooge Harry Belafonte where she called George Bush "the greatest terrorist in the world" and "10 times worse than bin Laden" have been well documented. But, she just then (last night) realized her loss?

She set up a site called Casey's Peace Page in memory of her fallen warrior son. I call him her warrior son but she does not. Casey's Peace Page has not been updated since May 5, 2005, or 9 months ago. Maybe what she meant to say above was that she had forgotten her loss and just remembered it during the arrest procedure.

I have tried to avoid the name-calling and more critical comments re: Mrs. Sheehan, but, Lord-a-mighty, enough is enough. And I'm not the only one who feels that way.

Since I saluted her last summer when she took a stand in Crawford, Texas, it seems only fair that I make another public gesture now that Cindy Sheehan has removed one of her "Camp Casey" hiking shoes and stuck her foot firmly in her mouth.

That gesture is to raise a hand and cover up my wincing eyes.

And from another,

"But I'm trying to concentrate locally, on the families at Fort Lewis." Ruger said. "And I wouldn't want her (Sheehan) to go there and deliver that message. (The one calling the president the world's greatest terrorist)."

"Military culture says that, while we respect our leaders, we may also question them. But calling them terrorists moves the line," she said.

And from another,

Finally, former peace activist and military mom Vicky Monk said that, like me, she winced when she saw the words Sheehan used from her international platform.

Monk has separated herself from Military Families Speak Out since her son came home from Iraq. She's concentrating on his needs now.

She said she was troubled by being pressured to make more radical statements than she was comfortable with when she did travel to speak against the war to Japan and elsewhere. While her politics are conservative, "I have some criticisms about Bush and more important, questions about this war," Monk said. "When my son was there (in Iraq) I was asking the questions he had but couldn't ask. But some of the things people say really disturb me. When they talk in terms of extremes they're really losing people in that greater middle."

And even this:

She can say she didn't know. I can choose not to believe her. I like Cindy. I like her cause. I just don't believe this excuse.

But then, she still has these people in her corner:

I wish Freud or Fromme or somebody were still around so they could explain what the (bleep) is going on here. (reference is to Squeaky Fromme who tried to assassinate President Ford)

And this genius,

She was NEVER EVEN ASKED TO PUT HER JACKET ON... THEY JUST HAULED HER OUT....SHOOT FIRST, NO QUESTIONS ASK...(sic)

Welcome to the Police State.

And Cindy Sheehan wasn't the only one removed from the gallery:

Beverly Young, wife of Rep. C.W. Bill Young (news, bio, voting record) of Florida — chairman of the House Defense Appropriations subcommittee — was removed from the gallery because she was wearing a T-shirt that read, "Support the Troops — Defending Our Freedom."

And this is not the first time House rules have been violated in this manner. Another commenter has his timing a bit skewed:

In fact, as Cindy Sheehan was being dragged out of the Royal Speech, His Majesty was regaling us with the importance of respecting civil debate, the virtues of diversity and freedom, and the need to protect minority views.

Sister Toldjah has a roundup and many, many links.
More here:
Michelle Malkin, Say Anything, Generation Why?, GOP and College, The Jawa Report, Oblogatory Anecdotes, A Blog for All, Cam Edwards, Patterico, Tammy Bruce

TAGS: Cindy Sheehan, SOTU, State of the Union, arrested