Meet the Democratic Party, Up Close and Personal

Meet the Democratic Party, Up Close and Personal

 by John Hinderaker /Powerline

We linked yesterday to Dana Loesch’s post on a violent attack by union longshoremen in Washington:

Earlier this morning 500 or so members of the AFL-CIO stormed a port in Washington, vandalized the facility, reportedly cut the brake lines of train cars, and held six guards hostage. Shockingly, no one was arrested. Earlier that week a judge issued a restraining order against this same group after they clashed with police while brandishing bats and issuing death threats.

Remarkably, this union violence seems to have received hardly any national news coverage. Local reporters did follow up on the story, however, and went to the union’s local headquarters to try to get the longshoremen’s side of the story. What followed wasn’t pretty; in fact, there is hardly any part of the encounter that we can quote on this family web site. This video shows a portion of it. Warning–not safe for work:

(Go to Powerlineblog entry to see video--unable to embed it)
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/09/meet-the-democratic-party-up-close-and-personal.php


Glenn Reynolds comments: “This is the face of one of Obama’s core constituencies. This is what you voted for when you voted for ‘hope and change.’” That is exactly right. When you watch this guy, you are seeing the essence of the Democratic Party. Has any Tea Partier ever acted in such a violent, threatening, disgusting manner? No.
You might think that the union member is a low-life from the gutter, but the remarkable thing is that in all probability, he makes more money than you do:

In 2007, average annual full-time wages for 15,000 workers at 29 West Coast ports topped $136,000, according to the Pacific Maritime Association, which negotiates and administers contracts between ports and the ILWU. Longshoremen earned an average of more than $125,000, clerks more than $145,000 and foremen more than $200,000.
Workers also get benefits packages worth $50,000 per year, according to the association’s 2007 report.

This is the ugly face of union privilege and entitlement that the Obama administration is determined to preserve.
UPDATE: The overpaid union thugs continued their violent rampage today:

With officers far outnumbered by protesters, Sheriff’s deputies, police officers and Washington State Patrol troopers had to back off to a defensive position during Wednesday’s ILWU rally due to threats to their safety.
“Our teams of 4 or 5 officers were confronted by baseball bat and axe handle wielding protesters.” Said Cowlitz County Sheriff Mark Nelson. ///
Due to being seriously outnumbered by violent protesters, additional arrests were not made at that time. However, “This investigation is far from over.” Nelson said. “I anticipate that as we review the evidence we have collected, we will be making many more arrests.”

I certainly hope so.

Also continuing is the investigation in to the Thursday morning assault and carjacking that took place on the EGT plantsite after security was overrun by a mob of ILWU supporters. At around 4:30 a.m., hundreds of supporters tore down fences, smashed windows, cut air hoses to a grain train, and opened the rail cars, spilling grain all over the ground. Several pieces of evidence, including bolt cutters, pipes, ILWU signs and fliers were left lying around the facility.
Also of great concern was the perception of safety by the security personnel on scene. After seeing all the cars and people massing, then pouring through their gates, smashing out the guardshack window with a baseball bat, and causing damage, the officers had no way out. They were blocked from leaving down E. Mill Road, and there was no other open access out of the facility. At some point they felt that their personal safety was at too great a risk, and they ran for a vehicle and headed towards a back gate. They reported that a group tried to block them in, but the lights of approaching law enforcement vehicles stopped the group and the officers were able to flee.
One of the most frightening parts of the incident was when several saboteures, blocked a Columbia Security officer, (a 48 year old Longview man) dragged him out of his security patrol vehicle, took the vehicle and after recklessly driving it around the EGT facility, crashed it into an embankment. “This is no different than if it had happened on the street, or in the parking lot of any local business.” Sheriff Nelson said. “It was a felonious act.”

Let’s hope these thugs are prosecuted and sentenced to long prison terms. The essential question, it seems to me, is whether a union can ever be a legitimate organization. The constant violence and threats of violence that we see from unions these days makes me think that the answer may well be in the negative.