Civil disobedience in Tennessee ... gawd, it's been a long time, too long. Speaking of little Tennessee tyrants, wannabe union-buster Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey has been caught gloating over the arrests of protesters at the Capitol (scroll down & watch the arrests). Hell, maybe Ramsey ordered the arrests:“The right of all citizens to protest and assemble peacefully is sacred in the State of Tennessee,” Ramsey said in a statement. “However, this General Assembly will not be intimidated by nomadic bands of professional agitators on spring break bent on disruption. We talk through our differences here. Tennessee is not Wisconsin.”
Sacred? This is not the first time Bible-thumping Ramsey has gotten his Holy Bible confused with the law of the land, or the U.S. Constitution. Obviously, Tennessee looking like Wisconsin, i.e., Tennesseans standing up for their rights, is Ramsey's worst nightmare. Let's hope Ramsey's worst nightmare becomes a daily occurrence:
NASHVILLE -- State troopers carried seven young activists -- six from Memphis -- out of a state Senate committee hearing Tuesday, where they were among four dozen who loudly protested several anti-union bills that were due to be heard but were delayed.
The four men and three women locked arms and dropped to the floor after refusing requests to leave. They were later forcibly removed by troopers who charged them with misdemeanor disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, according to Tennessee Highway Patrol Col. Tracy Trott.
The first video is from Chattanooga Organized for Action where there's more video, photos, really bad dreams for Ramsey, etc., the 2nd video is via Nashville's Channel 2:
Earlier, several hundred union members and supporters from across the state rallied outside the State Capitol against a dozen or so bills they described as anti-union and anti-worker. Several rally speakers, including AFSCME and NAACP leaders from the Memphis area, denounced the bills.
Times Free Press: Tennessee Highway Patrolmen began dragging protesters from a Senate Commerce Committee hearing this afternoon after they disrupted proceedings with chants of “Hey, hey, ho, ho, union busting has got to go.”
Update: R. Neal has more at KnoxViews. Also, MSNBC has an interesting slant on the story, old-timer union leaders say civil disobedience is just rude, not how we do things here in Tennessee. Yeah, just look what all those years of meek politeness have gotten us.
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