So some teabag Republicans go into a middle school classroom... no, it isn't a joke... and no, the story does not end with a punchline...
Bangor Daily News
The incident involved a group of Knox County Republicans who, like hundreds of others attending the Republican state convention at the Portland Expo, had gathered Friday at a nearby middle school for county caucuses.
That same Knox County contingent later would lead a surprise campaign to replace the generic Republican Party platform with a new — and much more controversial — platform embodying many of the positions espoused by Tea Party activists.
What was the "incident" you ask?... Well,
some [of the] Knox Republicans who gathered at King Middle School that Friday apparently were less than enthusiastic about the political overtones of some posters — some created by eighth-graders — and other materials they saw in the social studies classroom [the school had graciously allowed them to use].
When the teacher, Paul Clifford, returned to his classroom Monday morning, he discovered that a collage depicting the history of the labor movement was missing. In its place, someone had left a bumper sticker reading: "Working People Vote Republican."
Caucus members also apparently looked inside a closed cardboard box near Clifford’s desk that contained copies of the U.S. Constitution donated by the American Civil Liberties Union. Clifford later discovered a note left behind reading, "A Republican was here. What gives you the right to propagandize impressionable kids?"...
That's right, the "leaders" of the movement that best reflect the Republican base hijacked the Maine GOP platform are removing posters MADE BY 8TH-GRADERS from a SOCIAL STUDIES CLASSROOM. because they (presumably) show the American Labor Movement as something other than a defeated Communist plot to destroy America. stricken after reading Portland Press Herald article linked below. But they don't stop there, they double down by leaving a creepy note accusing the teacher of "propagandizing" his students WITH THE U.S. CONSTITUTION.
You'd think this would lead to a very quick, and unequivocal apology from the "mainstream" Republican leaders... oh wait... there aren't any of those left. So after the obilgatory "it was inappropriate blah blah blah," Knox County Republican Party Chair William Chapman was left free to "justify" his group's asshattery...
But Chapman acknowledged that he and others were disturbed by some of the posters they saw in the room, several of which he said obviously were made by professionals, not students. He described some of the posters as anti-American, anti-free enterprise and anti-religion.
"I saw nothing in the room — and nobody pointed out anything in the room — that appeared to give a more balanced view,"
*jaw dropping as I write...
So, these dipshits thought it a grand idea to steal/vandalize remove a collage showing the history of the American Labor Movement and replace it with an "I'm a working stiff who votes against my own interest" bumper sticker because there wasn't a collage up in the classroom showing how the American worker has been so unfair to the poor robber barons?... *picking jaw up off of floor... gathering senses... moving on...
This is the second time that the small Republican contingent from Knox County generated headlines from the convention. On Saturday, convention attendees overwhelmingly rejected the Republican platform put forward by party leaders and, instead, approved a more conservative platform proposed by the Knox County group.
While the platform echoes many of the issues raised by Tea Party activists, Chapman dismissed any suggestion that it was a "Tea Party platform." Instead, he described it as "an outgrowth of the dissatisfaction of what is happening in Washington and Augusta."
"It was democracy in action," he said.
With all due respect Mr. Chapman (which is very little), you have no business speaking about what constitutes "democracy in action."
Update (sort of)... just for full disclosure... Here is Maine Republican Party Executive Director Christie-Lee McNally on the "incident."
"The King Middle School was kind enough to allow the Maine Republican Party to use their facilities, and we are deeply concerned about the lack of respect shown to the faculty," McNally said in a statement. "The Maine Republican Party does not condone the destruction of property nor does it encourage the lack of tolerance that these people demonstrated."
Sorry Christie, but you cannot "not condone" the actions of the people who wrote YOUR OWN GODDAMN PLATFORM... they are you, you are them... you should just accept that or become a Democrat (since there's no other choice).
Update... It occurs to me that the teacher, Paul Clifford may well get a bit of hate mail over the coming days... I'm going to send him a note of support... no politics... just simple support.
Paul Clifford
c/o King Middle School
92 Deering Avenue
Portland, ME 04102-2990
Update... thanks to PA MOM, I was directed to another story on the incident in the Portland Press Herald... http://www.pressherald.com/...
It adds quite a bit of detail... After some admonitions from trusted Kossacks I've only included a little below, but you should read the entire thing if you want a fuller understanding of what went on.
When [teacher Paul Clifford] went home for the weekend on Friday, one of Clifford's most prized teaching tools – a collage-type poster depicting the history of the U.S. labor movement – was affixed to his classroom door. Clifford uses it each year to teach his students how to incorporate collages into their annual project on Norman Rockwell's historic "Four Freedoms" illustrations.
The poster includes this quote from the labor organizer and one-time presidential candidate Eugene V. Debs: "Intelligent discontent is the mainspring of civilization. Progress is born of agitation. It is agitation or stagnation."
"It's one of my favorite posters," said Clifford. "I've had it sitting there for seven years."
Emphasis on Intelligent discontent...