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How NOT to torch the ass of the ruling class
Next time you decide to carry a Molotov to a demo, keep an eye out for cameras.
There are many possible morals to the story below.
1. Don't take molotov cocktails to demonstrations. You can do just as much damage with much less incriminating tools.
2. If you take a Molotov to the demo, don't take it out of your bag and leave it laying around RIGHT IN FRONT OF A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA.
3. If you are going to carry a bomb, WEAR A DISGUISE.
4. Or best of all -- stick with nonviolent protest. Keep your powder dry. Don't strike with force until you have a killing blow. Solo bombings have never done much for a revolution. I'm not the "peace police," I just don't see why young guys always need to cast themselves as heros in the struggle, rather than doing the hard work of talking to people who disagree and constantly growing the movement. In short, once the arguments have succeeded, the "system" will be hollowed out to the point that it doesn't take Molotovs to destroy it.
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http://www.sfgate.com Return to regular view
Surveillance tape points to S.F. bomb suspect
Jaxon Van Derbeken, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, April 3, 2003
©2003 San Francisco Chronicle | Feedback
URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/04/03/BA284285.DTL
A San Francisco State student who faces a maximum of 10 years in prison on federal charges of possessing a Molotov cocktail was arrested after police recognized him as a protester they had booked just minutes after the device was planted.
Jacob Lehman, 25, of San Francisco appeared in federal court Wednesday on charges of possessing an explosive device -- a Molotov cocktail -- found March 21 on Market Street between Third and Fourth streets, a day after 1,400 protesters were arrested.
Lehman denies the charges and was released on $200,000 bond.
"When everything comes out, it will show he has been falsely charged," said his attorney, Geoffrey Rotwein. "He's a very nice person, he's very intelligent, I just think these are false charges."
Last week, police realized that Lehman had been arrested four minutes after a surveillance tape from a business showed someone placing a device on Market Street that consisted of a wick and gasoline in a glass bottle.
Officer Robert Maddox saw Lehman on the tape, which was distributed to the media, and remembered having to chase down Lehman. Lehman repeatedly sat in front of traffic on Market Street and was arrested after he fled from Maddox and hid behind a homeless man, said San Francisco Police arson investigator Jeffrey Levin.
Maddox saw the tape and contacted investigators to tell them that the suspect he had arrested, who had refused to give his name, appeared to be the same person.
A fingerprint from the device matched a print taken when Lehman was cited as a John Doe.
San Francisco police and federal agents with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms searched the Arcata (Humboldt County) home of Lehman's parents on March 28 and an address on 10th Avenue in San Francisco the following day. They found evidence at his parents' home suggesting the making of incendiary devices.
Authorities are still searching for Lehman's alleged accomplice, a woman who accompanied him when a package containing the device was delivered. She is described as slender, white, 5 feet 8, with brown, shoulder-length hair.
E-mail Jaxon Van Derbeken at jvanderbeken [at] sfchronicle.com.
©2003 San Francisco Chronicle | Feedback
Page A - 17
1. Don't take molotov cocktails to demonstrations. You can do just as much damage with much less incriminating tools.
2. If you take a Molotov to the demo, don't take it out of your bag and leave it laying around RIGHT IN FRONT OF A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA.
3. If you are going to carry a bomb, WEAR A DISGUISE.
4. Or best of all -- stick with nonviolent protest. Keep your powder dry. Don't strike with force until you have a killing blow. Solo bombings have never done much for a revolution. I'm not the "peace police," I just don't see why young guys always need to cast themselves as heros in the struggle, rather than doing the hard work of talking to people who disagree and constantly growing the movement. In short, once the arguments have succeeded, the "system" will be hollowed out to the point that it doesn't take Molotovs to destroy it.
---------
http://www.sfgate.com Return to regular view
Surveillance tape points to S.F. bomb suspect
Jaxon Van Derbeken, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, April 3, 2003
©2003 San Francisco Chronicle | Feedback
URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/04/03/BA284285.DTL
A San Francisco State student who faces a maximum of 10 years in prison on federal charges of possessing a Molotov cocktail was arrested after police recognized him as a protester they had booked just minutes after the device was planted.
Jacob Lehman, 25, of San Francisco appeared in federal court Wednesday on charges of possessing an explosive device -- a Molotov cocktail -- found March 21 on Market Street between Third and Fourth streets, a day after 1,400 protesters were arrested.
Lehman denies the charges and was released on $200,000 bond.
"When everything comes out, it will show he has been falsely charged," said his attorney, Geoffrey Rotwein. "He's a very nice person, he's very intelligent, I just think these are false charges."
Last week, police realized that Lehman had been arrested four minutes after a surveillance tape from a business showed someone placing a device on Market Street that consisted of a wick and gasoline in a glass bottle.
Officer Robert Maddox saw Lehman on the tape, which was distributed to the media, and remembered having to chase down Lehman. Lehman repeatedly sat in front of traffic on Market Street and was arrested after he fled from Maddox and hid behind a homeless man, said San Francisco Police arson investigator Jeffrey Levin.
Maddox saw the tape and contacted investigators to tell them that the suspect he had arrested, who had refused to give his name, appeared to be the same person.
A fingerprint from the device matched a print taken when Lehman was cited as a John Doe.
San Francisco police and federal agents with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms searched the Arcata (Humboldt County) home of Lehman's parents on March 28 and an address on 10th Avenue in San Francisco the following day. They found evidence at his parents' home suggesting the making of incendiary devices.
Authorities are still searching for Lehman's alleged accomplice, a woman who accompanied him when a package containing the device was delivered. She is described as slender, white, 5 feet 8, with brown, shoulder-length hair.
E-mail Jaxon Van Derbeken at jvanderbeken [at] sfchronicle.com.
©2003 San Francisco Chronicle | Feedback
Page A - 17
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Thank you for posting this.
Please remember: not all of us demonstrators are like this. Most of us are peaceful and promote peace at our demonstrations.
Please remember: not all of us demonstrators are like this. Most of us are peaceful and promote peace at our demonstrations.
Because people can swear and say exactly whatever they want on any side, however silly, or profound it might be. Is there really any greater example of total free speech around, esp. one that's read so widely by activists and our friends in blue alike?
And as for the Molotov -- sorry kiddo, but if you wanna play like that, you *will* have to pay. that's how it goes -- a lot less exciting to walk around talking to people "growing" the movement, but that is what it takes. All the past successful movements took this slow and steady approach -- not the gung-ho revolutionary one. Because to anyone who looks around, it's fairly obvious that's *not* the kind of situation we're in.
peace-
X
And as for the Molotov -- sorry kiddo, but if you wanna play like that, you *will* have to pay. that's how it goes -- a lot less exciting to walk around talking to people "growing" the movement, but that is what it takes. All the past successful movements took this slow and steady approach -- not the gung-ho revolutionary one. Because to anyone who looks around, it's fairly obvious that's *not* the kind of situation we're in.
peace-
X
Has anyone thrown a Molotov in SF in the last few years? No. And this guy is accused not of having Molotovs, but of making them, and leaving them in the street (with his fingerprints on them). Why, so someone else could pick them up and use them? Very unlikely. Looks like planted evidence.
Here is an sfgate story about a window smashing at Powell and Market organized by J. Grubler. They sent out announcements beforehand.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2003/04/03/protest.DTL
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2003/04/03/protest.DTL
"All the past successful movements took this slow and steady approach -- not the gung-ho revolutionary one."
Seriously, what the fuck are you talking about? I guess Paris 1789 and Paris 1968 were both all about conversing with people and walking around?
Dude, you sat in an intersection and accomplished nothing, now shut the hell up already.
Seriously, what the fuck are you talking about? I guess Paris 1789 and Paris 1968 were both all about conversing with people and walking around?
Dude, you sat in an intersection and accomplished nothing, now shut the hell up already.
Paris '68 failed. France 1789 cleared the way for Napoleon (a DICTATOR). Xylem is right.
Planted evidence is a time honored technique of the pigs, from the joint "found" in someones car to the gun "found" after they have killed some innocent passerby.
Set up is what it is, they get to paint the anti war movement as violent, scare middle off the road supporters, and reinforce the facist propaganda.
Same technique they will use in Iraq to "find" WMDs. They were so lame with the "evidence" of Iraq buying uranium in Africa the WMDs will probbaly have a made in America stickers on them. Look closely!
Set up is what it is, they get to paint the anti war movement as violent, scare middle off the road supporters, and reinforce the facist propaganda.
Same technique they will use in Iraq to "find" WMDs. They were so lame with the "evidence" of Iraq buying uranium in Africa the WMDs will probbaly have a made in America stickers on them. Look closely!
"Paris '68 failed. France 1789 cleared the way for Napoleon (a DICTATOR). Xylem is right."
He is most definitely not *right* as he has failed to cite an example of a revolution that made *no* use of incendiary devices, much less one that did not involve violence or the threat of violence to any degree. Not that that's even the issue -- the onus is on 'Xylem' to show how a revolution can be effected by simply walking around, talking to people, and occasionally stopping up traffic for half an hour.
While Paris 1968 was a failure as an anarchist uprising, it did at least the working class better conditions. Which is a lot more than blocking traffic ever did.
He is most definitely not *right* as he has failed to cite an example of a revolution that made *no* use of incendiary devices, much less one that did not involve violence or the threat of violence to any degree. Not that that's even the issue -- the onus is on 'Xylem' to show how a revolution can be effected by simply walking around, talking to people, and occasionally stopping up traffic for half an hour.
While Paris 1968 was a failure as an anarchist uprising, it did at least the working class better conditions. Which is a lot more than blocking traffic ever did.
First, this may seem silly to some, but despite hhl's slightly less than glowing commendation (it's IMC after all, we get used to it ;> ), i'm feeling rather honored that at least some people know the action me and our group was involved in on Mar 20 -- i wondered first if i'd said something about it in my posting here, but i hadn't, so clearly people *have* been reading other postings. kind of cool, because there is so much traffic on Indybay that i hardly thought i'd be recognized as a "regular", but i have been, for the first time i can remember. wow, feeling all glowy inside.
now, before someone jumps me for insipidly riding my high horse there too quickly, let me get to a bit of a defense of the rest, so you can then jump me for *that*.
1. first, i'll admit straight out i'm no expert historian in all social movements of the past, so perhaps i do have things to learn from others.
2. i was referring to recent US movements that have had varying degrees of success -- civil rights, save the whales, anti-nuclear, women's rights, forest protection, anti-globalization -- defiant as tactics have been in many of these movements, they have succeeded when they have because people brought pressure to bear on the govt, which made the right vote or call in the end. the govt just cracks down harder when people riot, and the general public becomes more fearful -- friends aren't generally won over that way. one of my recent-period heroes, Judi Bari, has written extensively on this in Timber Wars, for one source.
3. you may want your revolution to happen now -- but if you look around, i think you'll find conditions pretty different from situations in the past where actual revolutions have occurred. if you think i'm mistaken, i'd like to see your evidence.
4. defending what we did -- first, traffic was disrupted for more like 3 hrs. second, the aim of the day was disruption. third, it wasn't my decision, or preference. rather, targetting corps. and media was, as has been happening more in recent times. that brings attention and focus to bear quite a bit better.
5. i also want to applaud people pointing out that the evidence may well have been planted, and nothing should be assumed -- because of the fine history of Cointelpro, everything should be scrutinized meticulously, and the onus is on the police to prove their case. still, we may not know conclusively, so it is good to remember always the possibilities.
ok -- fire away, that's what i post for.. (kinda ;> )
-X
now, before someone jumps me for insipidly riding my high horse there too quickly, let me get to a bit of a defense of the rest, so you can then jump me for *that*.
1. first, i'll admit straight out i'm no expert historian in all social movements of the past, so perhaps i do have things to learn from others.
2. i was referring to recent US movements that have had varying degrees of success -- civil rights, save the whales, anti-nuclear, women's rights, forest protection, anti-globalization -- defiant as tactics have been in many of these movements, they have succeeded when they have because people brought pressure to bear on the govt, which made the right vote or call in the end. the govt just cracks down harder when people riot, and the general public becomes more fearful -- friends aren't generally won over that way. one of my recent-period heroes, Judi Bari, has written extensively on this in Timber Wars, for one source.
3. you may want your revolution to happen now -- but if you look around, i think you'll find conditions pretty different from situations in the past where actual revolutions have occurred. if you think i'm mistaken, i'd like to see your evidence.
4. defending what we did -- first, traffic was disrupted for more like 3 hrs. second, the aim of the day was disruption. third, it wasn't my decision, or preference. rather, targetting corps. and media was, as has been happening more in recent times. that brings attention and focus to bear quite a bit better.
5. i also want to applaud people pointing out that the evidence may well have been planted, and nothing should be assumed -- because of the fine history of Cointelpro, everything should be scrutinized meticulously, and the onus is on the police to prove their case. still, we may not know conclusively, so it is good to remember always the possibilities.
ok -- fire away, that's what i post for.. (kinda ;> )
-X
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