Campaign ploy? Secret Service intimidating Kerry voters . . .

[TeeYiYi]

Things getting sticky for owner of sticker
By Matthew D. LaPlante
The Salt Lake Tribune

Derek Kjar is not the president's biggest fan.



But the 19-year-old Salt Lake County man says he does not intend to harm President Bush with anything more than a vote for John Kerry come November.

Just to be sure, though, agents from the Secret Service recently paid Kjar a visit, telling him that his neighbors had alerted them to a potentially threatening bumper sticker on his car.

The sticker, which can be found on a number of Web sites, features a black-and-white likeness of Bush, a crown tilted slightly on his head. Under the image are the words "KING GEORGE - OFF WITH HIS HEAD."

<snip>

Kjar said two agents visited him at his job at a dry cleaning service, where they asked him about whether he had any ties to terrorist groups or enjoyed reading historical accounts of assassinations. They also asked Kjar about his friends and family, and even wanted to know how he paid his monthly rent.

The agents finally left after Kjar handed over the sticker.

More: http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_2406167

TYY

On Edit: sp

[GCP]

1. "Intimidating" Kerry voters

Bastards, this stuff is getting scary.

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

2. The brownshirts are coming for me next...

Makes me think we should ALL put that bumpersticker on our cars just to keep them busy.

[Cobalt Violet]

3. And how sad now that derek said...

He is no longer going to put up sticker. Free speech silenced.

[Nimrod]

4. One more step

Toward martial law. I'm waiting for the first mass roundup of domestic terrorists, starting with anyone who makes jokes about violence or revolution and ending with anyone with a Kerry/Edwards bumper sticker.

[billybob537]

5. BEWARE the BUSHSTAPPO!

[in_cog_ni_to]

6. You cannot threaten the Fuhrer.

The SS will be on your doorstep within days. It's called FASCISM. We are there. We are living it. It has happened.

[shawcomm]

9. You can't threaten any president.

If you do it in public, it can have consquences. I read about a freeper that was investigated for posting something about President Clinton.

[Crunchy Frog]

11. I seem to recall Jesse Helms

getting away with it during Clinton's presidency.

I think it's somewhat of a stretch to see that bumper sticker as a genuine threat against Bush.

[blondeatlast]

15. Exactly. Was he ever paid a visit? nt

[shawcomm]

18. The thing I read

said that at the time, the freeper wrote something that someone construed as a threat to President Clinton. It said that the Secret Service visited him at his home, questioned him for a while, long enough for him to get the point not to do it again, then left.

Everyone is acting like this is something new. Threats, even those that are misconstrued as threats, are going to be investigated, even if it's merely a phone call, but most have an agent come out to see if it's really something to worry about or not. This has been policy for ages.

If you write something that can be misconstrued as a threat to the president, it's possible that someone will turn it in and the secret service will check it out. That's their job - keeping presidents safe regardless of political affiliation.

[blondeatlast]

20. Citation, please? I'm a librarian, on the front lines of censorship

battles.

SENATOR JESSE HELMS made the threat, not a freeper.

1994 Nov 21, Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., remarked in a newspaper interview that President Clinton "better have a bodyguard" if he were to visit North Carolina; Helms later called his comment a mistake. (AP, 11/21/99)

[shawcomm]

22. Heck, I read this a couple of years ago.

I don't remember even where. It wasn't an article, it was either a blog or message board. The one I'm talking about was an actual freeper, not Jesse Helms. So, if you want to look at their site, you might be able to find it. Just remember to bathe before you come back. I'll try to find it if you want, but I think it's silly to think you need proof that the SS will investigate a perceived threat to the president, regardless of who he is.

This has nothing to do with the Patriot Act. That's a whole other assault on the U.S. This is and has been the policy of the Treasury Dept., under whose authority the SS falls. If they get wind of a perceived threat, even when someone calls in a bumper sticker, it's their job and duty to check it out.

[blondeatlast]

23. I don't pollute Freepdom out of respect for their right to exist,

just as I expect them not to come here for DU's right to exist. I know both happen, but I personally want nothing to do with it; although I am damn good at ferreting them out when they find their way here.

I know threats against the President must be investigated, but that was a hardball tactic. A simple phone call could easily have achieved the same result. The guy cried, for pity's sake.

I also said nothing about the Patriot Act, fyi.

[shawcomm]

25. Sorry, the Patriot thing wasn't directed at you

I was just commenting on it.

Sure, it could have been cleared up by a phone call, but do they worry about making some guy cry or do they make sure they have protected the president? They are going to protect the president.

[in_cog_ni_to]

12. NO ONE can tell me

that our lives were the same WITHOUT the PATRIOT ACT. There's no way in hell that the Clinton administration was ever like THIS. No way!

[tuvor]

7. Isn't there a law, though?

Even if it's in jest, it's still about assassination.

[TeeYiYi]

8. This kid cried — he was scared so bad . . .

"He said the agent he contacted in response to a cryptic message left on his voice mail would not even say why he wanted to talk - only that he wanted to meet Thursday morning.

That's when Kjar began to cry. "I didn't know what the hell was going on," he said. "It made me so nervous."

<snip>

Kjar said he feared the agents were going to "take me away."

Now, he feels as if they did.

"I kind of feel trapped, like I'm not allowed to express my opinions. I felt like my freedom of speech was shot to hell right there."

Dani Eyer, director of the Utah chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said Kjar's experience exemplifies the "chilling effect" government actions can have on free speech."

TYY:grr:

[SheilaT]

10. That is a bumper sticker

that probably goes over the line. As much as I despise W, I'm not about to post or put anything on my car that could be construed as a threat to him.

But I have had a "No More Bushit" bumper sticker on my car. There are many, many anti-bush sentiments that can be expressed without appearing to threaten his life.

[blondeatlast]

17. It's a literary reference, too. You know, that literary guy, what was his

name, William something? And I don't mean Pitt, either.

From allshakespeare.com:

"Off with his head!"

--From King Richard III (III, iv, 76)

Richard shouts these words in the Tower of London, where he has accused Lord Hastings of plotting to destroy him. Hastings, who thought himself safe in his friendship with Richard, began a meeting of the Council wishing to set a date for the coronation of Prince Edward as new king. Richard arrives late for the meeting, and realizes Hastings must be removed from his path to the crown. Killing two birds with one stone, he discredits the Queen (who is another obstacle) by suggesting she participated in witchcraft to cause his deformity, baring his withered arm to drive home the point. He tricks Hastings into saying that anyone who practices witchcraft must be executed. At this point Richard jumps up, points to Hastings, and accuses him of "devilish plots" and "damned witch craft," calling him traitor and ordering him immediately beheaded.

Let's remember what happened to the original filmed version of "The Manchurian Candidate."

[SheilaT]

31. Let's remember

what happened to the original filmed version of "The Manchurian Candidate". I trust you're referring to the fact that it played in the theaters and then became completely unavailable for at least thirty-five years. No surprise. I actually saw it in the theater during it's first release. It was very powerful, and of course the nearly prescient parallel to the later assassination of JFK really was disturbing.

As for literary reference, it could also be a reference to whichever queen in Alice in Wonderland is constantly shouting "Off with her head/ Off with his head".

But quite frankly, the bumper sticker does not sound like a literary reference, and the king in Shakespeare's play wasn't named George.

I repeat, there are plenty of anti-Bush bumper stickers that can be put on a car that won't result in a visit from the secret service.

[kestrel91316]

13. Heck, folks, none of US need to threaten.................

to harm the Chimperor. He can take care of the harming thing quite handily himself, every time he eats a pretzel or gets on a bike. I am hoping the rumor about him drinking again is true. Nothing would make me happier than to see him suffer the consequences down the road. If he ever decides to stop trying to destroy all of us I might change my tune.

[catbert836]

30. Ooh, Now the SS is gonna take you away...

[Hornito]

14. This is but one of hundreds of examples of the state approved

fascism that has overtaken our nation, with the full support of Bush and his nazi cabinet. How much more proof do we need? The scary part is, knowing what's taken place already, is what are they planning when it becomes clear they might lose the election?

Personally, they don't scare me. I have nothing to hide. I am a Democrat, both big "D", and small. They might fuck with some poor kid in Salt Lake, but they come here, they will be talking to some high-powered lawyers, and a U.S. Senator who's a friend. I am flying my freak flag high, and adding yet another Kerry/Edwards sticker to my car.

[blondeatlast]

16. self-delete. nt

[TeeYiYi]

19. It looks like the Secret Service has been staying busy --->>

Secret Service's visit to cartoonist 'profoundly bad judgment'
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=11737

Secret Service questions student about anti-war drawings
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=13245

Wisconsin city's payment to end dispute over anti-Bush sign
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=13936

First Amendment re: bumper stickers
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/speech/arts/topic.aspx?topic=bumper_stickers

"For those citizens without wealth or power, a bumper sticker may be one of the few means available to convey a message to a public audience.” — Judge Myron H. Thompson in Baker v. Glover

TYY

[blondeatlast]

21. Pity the Secret Service aren't empowered to find WMDs,

OBL, etc.

[Old and In the Way]

24. How is a mention of King George in any way associated with

pResident Dimson?

Are the SS now saying he is King? We know he's a naked emporer who'd like to be dictator, but I don't recall crowning him King.

[shawcomm]

26. "features a black-and-white likeness of Bush"

[Old and In the Way]

29. Missed that....thanks.

[Christof]

27. God damn....fascism is starting up...

It's not the Secret Service anymore. It's the Gestapo. :scared:

[TeeYiYi]

28. A helluva lot of anti-W bumper stickers out there . . .

. . . SS has their work cut out for them:

http://irregulartimes.com/santibushmisc.html

I suspect this kid got targeted in Salt Lake City because of the way he looks. I hope the SL Trib follows up on the antics of his loser neighbors and how they are costing the tax payers money with their bogus complaints.

TYY