Land of the Free?...

I would like to bring up the some questions and concerns of my own. The First Amendment gives all Americans the right to assemble, protest, and petition, but why does this fall under fire when it comes to protesting politicians?

At the DNC, about 100 people were arrested when a crowd of about 300 people disrupted traffic near the Denver City and County Building (read article here). Now I understand that our right to protest is supposed to be granted when we do it in a peaceful way. This group decided not to be peaceful. The arrests I feel were warranted.

Now we come to the RNC convention this week. Again there were arrest, but I am lost as to why the arrests were made. When you read the article you find out that the police raided homes of these people that were planning to protest. They were planning and they get arrested. Why is this OK? I was also speechless to find out that "25-30 officers in riot gear, with semi-automatic weapons drawn, entering homes of those suspected of planning protests, handcuffing and forcing them to lay on the floor, while law enforcement officers searched the homes, seizing computers, journals, and political pamphlets." When did our freedoms get tossed out and this police state start to take over?

It has also been reported, as mentioned above, that the federal government was involved with this raid. From the article: "As the police attacks on protesters in Minnesota continue...it appears increasingly clear that it is the Federal Government that is directing this intimidation campaign. Minnesota Public Radio reported yesterday that "the searches were led by the Ramsey County Sheriff's office. Deputies coordinated searches with the Minneapolis and St. Paul police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation."

What laws allow the police and the FBI to raid a home, seize computers and pamphlets and make this type of arrest when the people are only planning to protest? Also, is it extreme that they went in with full riot gear? Also, why isn't this a bigger story on the news? People are losing their rights and the news gives it a no more than a little coverage.

I truly believe in our constitution and what it has done for us, but I also believe that we as a society need to follow the constitution and allow the freedoms that it affords us.

Read Articles here:
Massive Police Raids on Suspected Protesters in Minneapolis

Federal Government Involved in Raid on Protesters

Protester Raid