The Mayor of Minneapolis was on a few Sunday talk shows this morning..

[kentuck]

...and he kept saying that the people of his city would not be "intimidated". Also, he said that some folks were afraid to leave their homes and go get groceries. That sounds like "intimidation" to me.

The goon squads are on their beat. If they don't like the way you look at them, they will gang up on you and tackle you to the ground and carry you to a nearby vehicle and throw you in the back seat. If you escape any injury, then you will be lucky. Why would anyone not be "intimidated"?

Meanwhile, FOX News, and other propaganda outlets for this regime, say that they are just doing their job. This should disturb every American. We are on a deep slide into authoritarianism.

They portray these thugs as God-fearing, "patriotic, law enforcement officers". But are they really? Or are they pardoned criminals and members of right-wing militia groups, wearing masks to cover their true identities?

It appears the regime is winning the propaganda war in defining these "law enforcement officers".

The Mayor of Minneapolis can say that they are not "intimidated". But from my view, he looked traumatized. He was slow to answer questions because he, himself, has been threatened with arrest. He is intimidated by these thugs masquerading as law enforcement.

[Ocelot II]

1. Fuck that. We are not intimidated.

If you lived here you'd know that. There's grassroots organizing going on, and people who have never done community organizing before are getting involved. It's at the neighborhood level, a resistance movement that's not intimidated in the least. Fuck that defeatism. It's not what's happening here.

[kentuck]

2. That is really good to hear....

....because your Mayor looked intimidated to me. And who are these people that are afraid to leave their homes? Why?

On edit, I should add that it is very admirable to see so many brave Minnesotans standing up and marching against these thugs. I am an older person and I don't know that I would survive being thrown to the ground, as they seem to do with every person that disagrees with them. It is very disturbing. I hate what they are doing to our country.

[Ocelot II]

4. He looked exhausted, not intimidated.

The people who are afraid to leave their homes are the non-white immigrants (documented or not), or other non-white American-born people whom ICE wrongly assumes are immigrants even when they produce passports - they are mostly Somali, Hmong, Latino, but ICE is even abducting Native people (there is a large Native American community here). Community organizers have set up arrangements for food to be brought to them, escorts to medical and other appointments, and other assistance, even looking after pets left alone after owners have been abducted. Those people are justifiably frightened, but the larger community that is trying to look after them is not.

[Mister Ed]

5. He looked exhausted but defiant to me.

We're all exhausted but defiant.

Sure, there are people who don't dare leave their homes. And there are people bravely bringing food and necessities to them. Our state, as a whole, has not yet been successfully intimidated.

I wish the critics who tell us we're not doing it right would come on up and take a first-hand look, or perhaps even lend a hand

[kentuck]

7. Your words are encouraging, Mister Ed.

Yes, he did look exhausted. But I know that he and Governor Walz are both being threatened by this regime.

I don't know that anyone could do a better job than Minnesotans are doing at this time? It's good to hear first hand accounts.

[Mister Ed]

8. Thank you.

It occurs to me that Ukraine's President Zelenskyy often looks exhausted but defiant in interviews as well. It's certainly understandable given his circumstances - which are not entirely unlike ours.

[karynnj]

3. I wonder if we should address whether they are engaged in law enforcement

They do not have the jurisdiction for policing rallies. We should demand that their role be more narrowly defined.

If they are law enforcement, they should wear uniforms that identify them as such and identify who they are. They should not wear masks.

They should follow rules requiring warrants if they are going into homes or non public spaces. The first step after they arrest (detain) someone should be the normal due process. For US citizens, all rights need to be respected.

Another thing is that undue force should not be used. (The video of the disabled woman in a car going to a doctor's appointment clearly shows way more force used on a small woman than would have been needed EVEN IF SHE HAD DONE SOMETHING THAT PUT ANYONE IN DANGER. This would not be normal force for legitimate police.

Those are ALL things we always took for granted with law enforcement.

The other thing to dispute is that people detained, who are not citizens or here legally, are criminals .. much less violent criminals.

[karynnj]

6. I suspect they made a mistake targeting Minneapolis

If you remember, part of why Walz was chosen is that they would have a harder time othering a school teacher/national guard/ native of Minnesota.

Also from a sister who lived in that neighborhood when working on a masters back in the late 1970s, they have long been a close, engaged community.

I also wonder if the Scandinavian roots there are part of why their culture values community rather than rugged individualism.

[keep_left]

10. Your conjecture (Scandinavian influence) is largely correct.

It's especially true in northern MN, where there were large numbers of Scandinavian settlers (as well as other ethnic groups, including eastern Europeans and Italians). All of those groups valued community and solidarity; radical politics and labor union organizing were influential for MN history in general, and the north country in particular.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. Frey is not exactly the person to meet the moment. I think it's clear from any footage you see how people are faring.

[Ocelot II]

11. Cut the guy some slack, he probably hasn't slept in a week.

I can't think of anyone else who'd do a better job, with the possible exception of Aisha Gomez.

[themaguffin]

12. He's in an impossible situation

[bluestarone]

13. Even our leaders deserve our friendship and encouragement.

They have to know we love them and at some point in time, be there when they need us most!!

[truddy777]

14. When Fear Gets Renamed as Strength

Calling this situation anything other than intimidation feels dishonest. If people are afraid to leave their homes, that is the definition of being intimidated, no matter how carefully the language gets managed on TV. When armed force operates without trust or accountability, fear becomes the point, not a side effect. Watching leaders insist everything is fine while visibly strained only deepens the disconnect between rhetoric and reality.