I do not think this was a "staged performance". I do think there are people with much hate toward those of different political/religious/lifestyle persuasions. Our recent political campaign was evidence of manipulation based upon fear tactics and the "better protect ours since those with power/authority have left us out". appealing to the basest instincts, pretending to belong to the group of "have nots" is despicable behavior. But does garner votes and a dedicated following. I came of age in The deep south; these political manipulations are expected and accepted.

Is there any way to determine the identity of the 2 hecklers/dehumanizers? they are scared bullies, as pkell noted, "protecting what's theirs" in anticipatation of a lack of supply. cave men mentality.

and anyone has a right to protest or rally in support of a political cause. sitting down with a sign does not constitute provacative behavior. If encountering someone sitting down with a sign is going to provoke such dehumanizing behavior, one should stay home and yell at the TV screen. The man with the sign reminded me of Ghandi's tactics. or Martin Luther King's.

I would like to think I would intervene in the face of dehumanizing behavior. Though given that anyone with the impulse control of a 3 year old can own a gun, I am more loathe to correct/engage people in public, though I would use my cell phone to call the police. I have taught our children that we do not want to live in a society that does not care for those in need. madelyn

I hope that I would not have looked the other way if the person had been suffering from a different disease. I think the scene elicits a universal sense of disgust. Watch the 2nd link provided by Stevem - Chris Matthews on MSNBC chewing out the head of the group that those men were there representing, "Americans for Prosperity." Chris is a bully for sure, but I really love it when he is right on with his righteousness. There is no suggestion that it was staged - just purely turning the camera on what they saw happening. There is no possible excuse for this kind of behavior, and none either for looking for some kind of reasonable reason for their behavior. It is just plain ugly.

Carey, I did not mean to suggest that any of us would or would not intervene had we been on the scene and the person had a different disease.

My point is simply that this horrendous behavior (man's inhumanity to man) is nothing new and shouldn't come as such a shock to us. We are more up in arms about this particular incident because we know it could have just as easily been one of us. Let this be a wake up call that moves us to do our part to bring about change.
sheryl

This video is beyond chilling to me. The man baiting the protesters could have PD, PTSD, Schizophrenia, Alcoholism, MS or any other "hidden" ailment...does it really matter? I don't mean to be extremist and this is not a political statement; it is, in a way, history repeating itself. At one time it was the belief of a megalomaniac soul-less killer who aimed to purify a nation; now it is largely the purview of your neighbor.

in an efficient nation there should be no room for weak and frail people.

Some people are born to be a burden on the rest.

Every 400 seconds $100 of your money goes for the persons with bad heredity such as the insane...criminals and other defectives.

The feebleminded and disabled are "useless eaters" ...unless they can work.



Ever hear of T4? I doubt anyone in that Ohio footage has, yet they resemble the same sort of warped group psychology that provided the social framework for the campaign launched by Hitler to purge Nazi Germany of any disabled individuals that sullied the gene pool. His beliefs came from the extremist views of the Eugenics Movement here in the good ol' U S of A! Those quotes above are from both Nazis and Americans, by the way.

People with mental or physical disabilities never were assigned a badge because they were rarely sent to concentration camps.

No, instead nearly 300,000 "disabled" people (very loosely defined it could include a child with a learning disability) were gassed at six centers. Children would comment "there goes the Murder Box" when another busload of useless eaters arrived in their town.

How could this happen? A government was able to sell the disabled to the public as a burden by "attaching levels of economic viability to human worth". Society was seen in terms of being a disabled "useless eater"; a burden on the taxpayer, or a cogent, productive, member of the workforce. After viewing that footage, I realize that not much has changed except its the man on the street making the distinction and judging human worth, not the government or doctors under the guise of Social Darwinism.

That person in the video who haughtily throws money at the man sitting in front of him and deriding his health status equates him with being nothing more than a freeloading bum. He is essentially saying...

“...WE DO NOT SUBSCRIBE TO THE VIEW THAT ONE SHOULD FEED THE HUNGRY, GIVE DRINK TO THE THIRSTY, OR CLOTHE THE NAKED . . . . OUR OBJECTIVES ARE ENTIRELY DIFFERENT: WE MUST HAVE A HEALTHY PEOPLE IN ORDER TO PREVAIL IN THE WORLD."

I imagine the man with the air of superiority would describe himself as a Libertarian free-thinker and most likely lists Ayn Rand as a favorite author; his thinking is not at all original, and his behavior ominously parallels the words of Joseph Goebbels- Nazi Minister of Propaganda.

I'm sorry if this offends anyone, but when we start dehumanizing people based on what we perceive as their ability to contribute to society, and work, or mindlessly consume goods, then we end up on a very slippery slope.

For further info:


USHMM "Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race."

"A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust."
"Useless Eaters: Disability as Genocidal Marker in Nazi Germany."

Amen, Sister! Keep the faith ~~~~~~~~~

wow - all those judgements and conclusions from two guys misbehaving on a video. And not a mention of how it clearly states that the guy with pd sat down right in front of them.

chris matthews drew more conclusions out of thin air than i hope anyone ever does about me. How does he know the guy with the tie is an MBA? How does he not know that the pwp could have an MBA? Now they are idiots and nazis. The opposite is much closer to the truth. We could be in trouble because there won't be enough coverage to save the ill and life saving procedures will be too expensive for us There hasn't been a satisfactory explanation about where the money is coming from to pay for it. The cost is going to go too high. This demands an explanation.

The pwp did a good job in bringing out the worst in a few guys with a tv camera handy... but no thanks to his manipulative approach. He got exactly what he wanted. i don't want pity and i wouldn't use my illness to incite that kind of anger in the first place. There are much better ways to do it.

paula

"Sitting down" in the face of dehumanizing, provocative words and deeds is a time honored action taken by most of our most important civil rights heroes. It is the easiest, yet maybe the most difficult act in the civil disobedience arsenal. Gandhi sat down in India; MLK Jr's support of the students who sat down at the lunch counter in Greensboro sparked the Civil Rights movement; Rosa Parks bravely sat down in the front seat of a bus.

There is no excuse for the rhetoric being used by the right against health reform. There's lots of room for disagreement - but words have consequences. They can inflame. That man with Parkinson's took brave and noble action on behalf of us all - he sat down in the face of a firestorm.

I see no where in this thread where anyone has condoned the guys or used rhetoric against health care reform. Wanting to know where the money comes from is not "right" rhetoric, nor have i called anyone names.

i just don't agree about what happened with the pwp. they were terrible to him, but that's what he was hoping for. there are plenty of reasons to be against the health reform until we see it. i don't know anyone who doesn't want all to have health care. they do want and have a right to see it!

paula

Personally, I wouldnt have done what that man with pd did, for the simple reason, if they tried to do to me, what they did to him, I would be in jail right now

I think it took guts to do what that man did..Maybe he wasnt looking for pity, maybe he was looking for compassion

I do not think anyone wants to be dehumanized. I do think the guy wiith PD was taking a page out of the nonviolent strategies rule book. The fact that the responders reacted in the way they did is on them--not him. Why not sit across from him with their own sign, noting their state of being or whatever?
The barely submerged rage evidenced by the money thrower shoudl have been sublimated on the football field; isn't that what sports are for? Sign him up for a hockey team.
Maybe there should be nationalized rules of conduct for protesters/rally participants. Only use of sign language would be allowed, and no obscene gestures. (I am intrigued by the use of sign language for babies while they are preverbal. So anyone wanting to protest/rally, etc. must first learn sign language. Begin early to prepare future participants)
Now onto a strategy of my own, I really am serious about this:
Nationalizse the pharmaceutical industry. This industry realized >$580 Billion last year.
I truly do not think it could get any worse, even with the government in charge. And there would be enough money to support the health care industry for a few yrs anyway.
I have a vivid imagination and lots of time on my hands at present. . Madelyn