I’m well aware that there are times when I don’t sound like the liberal I claim to be.  Maybe it’s because I listen to a lot of Conservative talk radio (not that I have much choice here in Tampa).  Who knows?  I like to think it’s because I try to evaluate every situation for what it is and not simply write everything as being “bad” if it doesn’t necessarily mesh with what I believe in.

And one would think that a college student (yay education) grilling a politician (boo!) to find out whether or not there’s really any difference between him and his supposed opponents (there isn’t) would be a person I could get behind, right? 

Yeah, wrong.

Near as I can tell, Andrew Meyer is yet another in a long line of rude people who likes to make others uncomfortable who went too far and pretty much got what he deserved.  Good luck getting to his web site, because despite the fact that Mr. Meyer spent the evening in jail his personal web site was constantly being updated with links to news sites and updates. 

Mr. Meyer is the kind of person who, reportedly, made a video of himself wearing a home made sign that said “Harry Dies” after the release of the latest Harry Potter book.  I can’t confirm this, because the article that says he did references a video I cannot find on his web site.  Perhaps it was deleted because it showed him in a less than ideal light?  Mr. Meyer would love that kind of conspiracy theory.

And what about that first video that made it out on the web?  Amazingly enough it seemed to have a few choice edits, leaving out the part where someone asks him to get to the point and ask his question and replies with “I’ll ask my question.  I even have two more.  He’s spoken for 2 hours now and it’s my turn” (or something to that effect…I have not been able to find a transcript online). 

So let’s review a few things here…

According to several accounts he barged to the front of the line and cut in front of another student to ask his question.

He was asked by someone (I’m assuming one of the moderators, but it might have been a cop) to get to the point and ask his question.  He refuses to do so and continues on his rant.

His microphone is cut off and he begins shouting.

The police begin to escort him out and he continues yelling, wanting to know what he did wrong.

Here’s a big one, gang…

He pulls free of the cops, begins flailing his arms about, and yells “Get your hands off of me!”

Big.  Big.  Mistake.

Look, here’s the bottom line – You don’t resist the cops.  You don’t argue with cops.  You definitely don’t try to run from cops.  Why?  Because they have GUNS.  Because they have the ability to put you in jail.  Because, and this is especially important if you really do believe that we live in a police state, if you’re arrested and charged with a crime “innocent until proven guilty” is really kind of lip service. 

I used to work in an Exxon station where I got to know a lot of cops.  Part of getting to know them let me in on the “darker” sides of police work.  I’m not talking about the fact that they risk their lives by doing their jobs.  I’m talking about the fact that if they want to charge you with a crime they will find one, and there really isn’t a damn thing you can do about it.  Need a reason to pull you over?  A quick flick of the nightstick guarantees that there was a turn signal out. 

Is it pretty?  No.  But it’s true.  I learned things about men, good men, who were genuinely committed to doing the right thing that gave me a whole new level of fear (and respect) for the law.  If these men would bend the rules, what would a BAD cop do? 

In any case, I really see this Meyer guy as a product of the Jackass generation.  The loud, in your face, say things to make you squirm gang.  I believe he went in there fully intending on making Senator Kerry look bad, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if his level of resistance was part of that. 

The ONLY thing I can say about this encounter that I think was over the line was the tazering itself.  I’m not sure that with six cops and one skinny college kid there was really a need to go to that length, but hey…I wasn’t there.  I wasn’t the cop who was worried that maybe this guy was going to hurt someone, or himself.  Hell, they might have thought he was going to try to hurt Senator Kerry.  Don’t know.  Can’t put myself in those shoes.

So yeah, here’s me not being a “liberal” and agreeing that this is a sign that Free Speech is under assault in our country.  Andrew Meyer was way, way out of line.  Did he get what he deserved?  I don’t know if I can say for sure on that, but I do believe that this wasn’t an “innocent student” who was being silenced for having controversial views.  This was a guy acting like a jackass who continued to do so when the situation Got Serious, and what happened after that was a direct result.  The truly sad thing is that as a journalism major he’s likely to turn this into a profit of some kind. 

I guarantee you his 15 minutes aren’t done just yet.

Edited to add some additional information

Meyer’s microphone was, indeed, cut off by the moderators of the forum and NOT the police.  “Members of Accent, Student Government’s speakers bureau, cut off the microphone because Meyer used profanity, said Steven Blank, Accent chairman. Accent sponsored the forum, which was held at the University Auditorium.”

http://www.alligator.org/articles/2007/09/18/news/campus/arrest.txt

In this same article it states that students were going to protest to have all tazers removed from campus.   Because, you know, it’s much better to have your campus police use guns or batons to subdue non-violent resisters.

Mr. Limbaugh,

Despite the fact that you and I have had a very loose association for many years now, it’s fairly likely that you have no idea who I am. While I do have a rather large ego, I’m ok with that fact. You’re a busy man, and while there certainly can’t be a large number of people who call themselves liberal that have actually taken the time to listen to your show or read your books I have no reason to believe you’d have any actual interest in seeking out my company or advice.

This isn’t the first time I’ve considered addressing you directly. I almost did so once before about six months ago. As is frequently the case on your daily show, you were discussing the “drive by” media and the Hollywood Left, and you had a caller who phoned you to rally against all the Hollywood types who were upset over the Fox show “24” and how the anti-terrorist hero Jack Bauer was free propaganda for the Bush Administration. During this call, you correctly pointed out to the caller that there had been no such outcry from Hollywood about “24.” Instead of taking the opportunity to continue your rant you actually spoke the truth, and I was impressed. One of the things I’ve noticed about you in the past is that while you make outrageous claims about the left, you can almost always back them up in fact. It offends me that you will point to a small group of individuals and paint everyone associated with them using the same brush, but you always seem to base at least some small part of your rhetoric in reality.

Because of this fact I have always had a small amount of admiration for what you do.

That was up until recently.

Yes, Mr. Limbaugh, I am referring to the comments you made about Michael J. Fox and the subsequent comments you have made in the days since then.

I’m not going to make emotional statements to the similarities your own struggles with hearing and drug addiction, nor will I lower myself to making insults at your expense in response. As much as I appreciate Keith Olberman, his recent interview with Steven Seder devolved into this at times, even while he was discussing the virtues of grace. No, Mr. Limbaugh, I will not do what you and others have done in this and lower myself to ad hominem attacks. I will simply state a simple fact.

I am disappointed in you, sir. Some how, some way, I thought you were better than this. Perhaps that is a failing on my part, but there it is. Your refusal to budge even one inch on this matter makes you look even worse. You continue to repeat the false claims that Mr. Fox was off his medication when the commercial was filmed, despite numerous medical experts coming out to say that his movements in it were a direct result of taking his medication. You continue to paint him as a tool for the left, even though it’s clear that Mr. Fox is supporting a candidate who he feels will help him find a cure for the disease that is slowly destroying his life – Much like he did when he filmed a commercial to support Arlen Specter in 2004 (a Republican, in case you had forgotten).

Three days after you made your comments, I tuned in to your show yet again to hear you referring to a comment that George Clooney made in 2003. Mr. Clooney made jokes about Charlton Heston’s Alzheimer’s disease, and when pressed for an apology afterward commented that because Mr. Heston was the head of the NRA he deserved what he had gotten. You held this up as evidence that your actions were no worse than those on the left, and as such they were justified. No, Mr. Limbaugh, there is no justification for what you have done. As the saying goes, two wrongs do not make a right. What you did was wrong. You have made baseless claims about the sincerity of Mr. Fox’s condition, and accused him of exaggerating his disease to win votes for the Democratic Party. Until and unless you can prove that what you have said is true you have moral right to continue these statements.

Unfortunately, it seems, actually showing some class and admitting that you are wrong is the farthest thing from your mind.

In the grand scheme of things, my opinion of what you have done matters very little. For what little it ends up being worth, though, I just wanted you to know that this insignificant man in St. Petersburg, Florida has a very simple message for you –

You should be ashamed of yourself.

Sincerely Yours,

Michael C. McGreevy

Fox : I Wasn’t Acting Or Off Medication
Olberman Gives Us The Link To Limbaugh’s Attack on Michael J. Fox