Reply #75: I was IN the group in Jacksonville that was pepper sprayed!

[Sukie1941]

I know this post is several weeks later, but the scenario in J'ville that late afternoon and evening was unbelievable...something from a bad movie. I was there with a group of 100 or so folks who had attended the John Edwards rally a day or so before and we got leaflets to have a city-approved "Unwelcome" rally in front of the Jacksonville Inn. Many of us brought picnic dinners to eat at Doc Griffith park, and there were many university people there from Ashland, lots of kids, many dogs. We made one pass through town, then back to the park to write slogans on this log red plastic "carpet" then took it back in front of the Inn and rolled it out.

I will never forget walking past the fire station and in the dark behind the building were over 30 state and local troopers in full riot gear. I was on my way to join a very small group of about 20 mostly younger folks with little kids, even dogs on leashes, who had left the main group in front of the Jacksonville Inn because they heard Bush was going into the back of the Inn to the outdoor patio area to eat dinner after his rally. I just stood before this group of manikin-like policemen and suggested they realize there were babies and small children in the group. No one looked at me or spoke; it is their technique to not make eye contact.

Little did our group know what would ensue, all because Bush changed his mind at the last minute and decided to eat at the Inn rather than in the Inn's honeymoon cottage a block away.

There was a great letter published by a woman whose party was inside the patio at the Inn (had been there since before the prez decided to change his dining plans). The prez approached the table of Democrats several times to apologize for the fuss during their dinner and even asked the diners if they thought he should leave. They politely told him that considering the scene outside ("four more years," "three more weeks") Bush would be better off staying inside, and they invited him to go back and sit down at his table!

It was the move from the Inn to the honeymoon cottage that brought out the riot police and a huge mass of peaceful people were moved BACKWARDS two blocks. It was during this time the pepper spraying started. It is so much overkill, you wouldn't believe it. We had many small kids and babies, even twins in a stroller. The bull horn was blaring at us but was so muffled we couldn't understand what the orders were. We were so crowded there was no place to move. The secret service helicopter was passing over the town, and at one point after we had been pushed back into a business parking lot and surrounded, the helicopter came down very close to us and shined lights on us. The police were videoing the crowd the entire incident. Traffic was built up on the streets entering the town, and people were getting out of cars to see what the problem was. One guy stood next to me and I pointed out that we were mostly surrounded by riot police. Then he saw the video going and took off. Most of us couldn't go anywhere as our cars were in the restricted area. Some townspeople who had walked downtown couldn't go home!

Bush came into the little town, whose main drag is all of five blocks and it is a state highway running through the town (pop. 2,225 and second oldest town in Oregon--entire town on National Historic Register--gold mining town). Anyway, Bush came to the valley early, decided to drive into Jacksonville in mid afternoon, then left again at rush hour for the Expo, came back to the Inn about a hour after dark, was transported from the Inn to the honeymoon cottage, left the next morning during rush hour.

The main drag serves all of the Applegate River valley travel, and the town itself is usually congested with traffic and tourists.

So that was five trips with the entire entourage, 65 miles per hour through the streets, and the restaurant goers asked him if he had enjoyed the beautiful Rogue Valley; Bush replied that all he does is get into and out of the car and go places, he doesn't have time to look at the scenery.

Every one of his trips in and out of town held up traffic for 30 minutes, including my mom, who was a quarter mile from her driveway and couldn't get home.

Some people's cars were towed away to make room for the prez' entourage's vehicles.

Concrete barricades were set up on side streets, and since J'ville has its own fire department, had we had a fire or med emergency, good luck, folks!

I hope the creep stays out of our town and our state!

BTW, one guy took SEVEN pepper pellets to his back as he was trying to pick up a 65-yr old man who had been beaten with a batton. This was about three rows ahead of me as we were walking backwards two blocks. Had he not taken the hits, the two little girls next to me might have gotten hit in the face.

A week later the young college student in MA got hit in the eye with the exact same pellets (like paint ball pellets) and DIED. So much for non-lethal pellets.