Republican National Convention

[JohnT]

Now the protesters are attacking the police:

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/nyc-atta0901,0,2447865.story?coll=ny-nynews-headlines

Police search for assailant as criticism mounts

BY SEAN GARDINER AND LORETTA CHAO
Staff Writers

September 1, 2004


As police asked for the public's help finding a protester who attacked a police officer during a demonstration, civil rights officials charged yesterday that inflexible police tactics were partially to blame for the assault.

Det. William Sample was knocked off his scooter Monday night after driving into a crowd of protesters on Eighth Avenue near 29th Street, then kicked and punched by a man until rendered unconscious.

The attacker snuck away through a throng of police, escaping even after an the officer grabbed him and pushed him back into the crowd.

Sample was taken to St. Vincent's Hospital and may have suffered a concussion in what Police Commissioner Ray Kelly called a "blatant, vicious attack."

But officials from the New York Civil Liberties Union said police tactics exacerbated an already volatile situation. ( - JT)

"There was a complete lack of flexibility and communication," said Christopher Dunn, NYCLU associate legal director.

Paul Browne, a police spokesman, retorted, "citing communication as a rationale for the vicious beating of an officer is mind-boggling." ( )

The clash began when police attempted to place metal barriers across the intersection around 8 p.m. but didn't announce what they were doing, said Alex Vitale, an NYCLU consultant. Protesters assumed they were going to be arrested and linked arms to block the barriers, Vitale said.

Two dozen police in riot gear then rushed in, followed by the officers wearing regular clothes on unmarked scooters. Vitale said only after some of the protesters were injured by the scooters was the officer attacked.

"Use of these pens is a potential flash-point for confrontation," Vitale said.

Browne said the protesters, marching for Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, gathered at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza at E. 47th and Second Avenue Monday and wanted to march even though they didn't have a permit. Police accommodated them and even provided an escort.

When police tried to place barriers to allow emergency vehicles cross-town access, protesters grabbed the barriers and threw one of them at the officers, Browne said. Sample was hurt coming to those officers' aid.

The placement of barriers on the south side of an intersection is designed to avoid penning in protesters, Browne said, and was lauded by protest organizers, including the NYCLU, at an anti-war protest in March.

The police yesterday asked anyone who witnessed or videotaped the attack to contact them at 1-800-577-TIPS. They were also looking for a "legal adviser" from the National Lawyers Guild who was filmed watching the attack.

"Rather than come up with rationale for an assault on a police officer it would be helpful if any of the 20 so-called legal advisers would come forward with information to help us identify the assailant," Browne said.

[GePap]

http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/24/news/election_rnc_nyc.reut/

Convention could cost NYC $309 million

Mayor claims RNC convention will help the city, but the comptroller's office sees big price tag.
August 24, 2004: 5:50 PM EDT



NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City stands to lose about $309 million as a result of the Republican National Convention, the city comptroller's office reported Tuesday, contrary to the city's claim of a $265 million economic gain.


Mayor Michael Bloomberg has touted the four-day event that starts on Aug. 30 as an economic boom, bringing in about 50,000 visitors to the city, including 14,000 delegates.

Many of the streets surrounding Madison Square Garden, the site of the convention, will be closed to traffic, and businesses in the area have been bracing for what they lament could be a financially draining week.

Eli Rios, who owns Aurora Gallery as well as a fine art restoration business just two blocks from the convention site, is trying to rent his space for parties and art shows during the political fest, rather than use it for restoration jobs.

"It's not that I won't have work for the restorers to do. I have plenty of work. But with the streets closed off, the entrance to our block is closed. The problem is getting the work in and out," he said.

In reaching its $265 million economic gain estimate, the city has factored in local business concerns and a potential flight of New York City residents during the week, said Michael Sherman, a spokesman for the city's Economic Development Corporation.

That figure includes direct and indirect spending by the city, the host committee, the national Republican Party and the roughly 50,000 visitors, Sherman said.

"We have looked at all those issues and we still think that there will be a very positive overall benefit," he said.

However, an unofficial analysis by City Comptroller William Thompson estimated the potential $309 million blow to the city using a calculation that assumes a $70.3 million daily loss of the city's gross city product, or $281.2 million over the four days.

Added to that is $28 million from security costs that will not be reimbursed, he said. The total security tab for New York City's Police Department is forecast at $78 million, Thompson said, with about $50 million in federal funding. That's the same amount of federal funding received by Boston, site of last month's Democratic National Convention.

Marsha Van Wagner, an economist with the Citizens Budget Commission, a fiscal watchdog group, said residents' exiting the city for less congested climes may have a negative impact for the week, but in the aggregate it will not really drain the city of revenue.

"Most people who are leaving aren't going to take extra vacation time, they're just moving vacation time around," she said.

A major unknown is how much the visitors will really spend in the city, because many are getting freebies and discounts on hotel rooms and attractions, and the tight security may deter them from venturing too far, she said.

Judging from the lack of reservations received at the Tribeca Grill, Nobu and Montrachet, some of the city's best-known restaurants, they do not appear to be lining up to spend in lower Manhattan.

Nobu, which usually is fully booked a month in advance, still has dinner seating available and lunch is wide open, said Tracy Nieporent of the Myriad Restaurant Group, owner of the restaurants.

"The way it's playing out right now, the convention isn't doing much for business," he said.

[chequita guevara]

One person = protestors?

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by JohnT


Never seen anybody call BS on himself before. We all appreciate your honesty.

And you quoted the NY Post! What's the world coming to???

It was the Daily News.

[Kidlicious]

People are being arrested arbitrarily, so the police are partially in fault.

[Ming]

GePap... directly from the story...

Economists will long debate the benefits of the Republican National Convention, which is being held at Madison Square Garden a couple blocks away from the store, and it will be weeks before all the receipts are tallied and the city knows whether the convention was an economic boom or a bust.

It is impossible at this point to determine the final results... so I will wait to see the real numbers and not just make stuff up like you are doing

And again... when it comes to security costs, the enhanced costs are directly related to the protesters, who are acting like animals... so put the blame where it belongs... on the protesters who are breaking the law, and not on the legal convention that was invited into the city

[JohnT]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
One person = protestors?

Why not? It was good enough in the thread about the other convention.

[rah]

I searched those quotes gepap and still couldn't find an excuse for many of the protestors to act like thugs. Am I missing something?

[GePap]

Yes, you and Ming lack any objectivity at all when it comes to the protestors, just as I lack it when it comes to the repugs. Thus your statements of acting like thugs or animals are, well, partisan hyperbole

[pchang]

McCain is a hot head. He looks good now, but if we were the nominee, people would be taking a much harder look at him. His flaws would begin to be revealed and he would not look so good. Despite this, I still think he would have been a better President that Bush or Gore. And I think he will be a better President than Kerry.

[Ming]

Originally posted by GePap
Yes, you and Ming lack any objectivity at all when it comes to the protestors, just as I lack it when it comes to the repugs.

Now we are getting somewhere...

[Ramo]

God, Ahnolds message is ironic beyond belief- to think that the people gathered around him trully give a **** about immigrants is absurd- so absurd as to be insulting.

I am an immigrant, I work with a permanent resident in my office- many of my constituents are immigrants, which is no surprise given 40% of NYC is foreign born. In my work I see every day what the republican controlled congress has done to the rights of permanent residents and legal immigrants- they have stripped them of most access to the safety net programs which they pay for out tax rates identical to citizens. It is under republicn Congresses that the INS and its predecessors hjave been given the power to esssential take away all civil rights from an immigrant accused of a crime. And our immigration bureaucracy is the worst bureaucracy of all- people wait YEARS upon years to become citizens, and until they do they have limited rights, yet pay the same taxes- and generally are too poor to benefit from regressive Republican tax strategies.

Hearing an ex-movie start talk to a bunch of rich white people from Oklahoma about how much they all care for immigrants is political theater at its most absurd.

I only got to hear part of his speech, but my thoughts exactly. This administration has stripped away the liberties of immigrants at every turn. I mean, it wasn't even a month ago that they gave border patrol agents vast powers of being able to deport people without giving them a say at a judicial hearing. What a bunch of shameless hypocrities.

It was also amusing that he was criticizing Soviet police tactics and then went on to affirm his support of Nixon (and basically call Humphrey a commie).

It was surreal.

[Agathon]

Obviously you weren't even watching the coverage then, and seeing the delegates being physically jostled and verbally abused while trying to get into the convention. Not an exageration.

Isn't that par for the course in New York, convention or no?

[Ming]

Originally posted by Agathon
Isn't that par for the course in New York, convention or no?

My experiences in NY would indicate that there is jostling, but it's unintentional (you just happen to be in somebodies way) and people traditionally don't even acknowlge you... too busy talking on their cell phones or looking at the ground

[OliverFA]

Originally posted by GePap
They hate us, have said that vocally for years, have acted in that hatred of us by denying us billions in dollars and not fulfilling their promises to us, and we are supposed to let them in with arms outstreched!? **** NO. When republicans act like they actually think NYC part of the US and not just a cheap political tool to impress the folks back elsewhere by using 9/11 as a boogeyman, then we will welcome them.

That´s very curious. You are complaining that "they" hate you. At least in your point of view that´s true. They hate you. And what is your answer? You answer them with hate. This is not the way to go. You cannot criticize something and then do the same.