Over 1,200 Turn Out for Biojustice March and Rally

Police Presence Intense, but Marchers Appear Satisfied

by MARK GABRISH CONLAN

Copyright

The demonstration was a lot of fun, and quite successful despite the swarm of police everywhere. For the police to want to protect bystanders and property is reasonable, but to actively discourage turnout is insane! It's anti-democratic. The job of the police should be to protect and serve all citizens, people at the conference, protestors, everyone. Do they try to discourage people from registering in and participating in the conference? Personally, I didn't see police behavior worse than just their excessive and intimidating presence, but the real crime is in the threats and propaganda spread they before the event to scare protestors away. They're more concerned with serving and protecting their corporate paymasters than making the city safe for democracy. To echo what many shouted at them during the march, "Shame on you!!!"

- She actually is so brain-washed that she thinks U.S.-nazi Bio is "good, helpful science"! The mid-section of U.S. hospitals has been utterly duped!

- At Quebec, the same overly-make-uped media types like Ms Harris, only asked superficial questions from those they considered "well-groomed"! REAL SCIENTISTS DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT KIND OF ANAL "TOILET TRAINING" - yet that's who they feel "comfortable" with, and that's who the believe, BECAUSE IT DOESN'T TEST THEIR MINDS IN ANY WAY!

- What this situation reminds me of, more than anything, is the nurse Manchens, who "serviced" the SS during WWII! They too, thought everything was "hunky-dory", and that their "great leader" Hitler, would "take good care of things"! Even AFTER the war - this bunch could NEVER FIGURE OUT, what went wrong!

- Makes you dispair for humanity! Personally, I am incredulous that these technicians can take MONSANTOS claim that the PROTESTERS are all "anti-scientific" at all seriously - as it must Europeans who are "up on the field"! Can Kay make any sense of the fact we regard her as a MORON, and a BRAIN-WASHED DUPE?

- I doubt it: her little cocoon of media-saturated co-workers, like the German Manchekem, will have a real rude awakening some day - and that day will be soon! When the plagues hit - will these numb-skulls believe their "great leaders' propaganda lies" too???

this "bobby "character.... i was at the march taking photos and all of the sudden, some freak grabs the biodevistation banner and tries to incite the people. of course the "established media" swarms around him for the story they had been waiting for. my first thought was " what is this guy doing here, when he should obviously be passed out under crystal pier?" every protester, even the anarchist, were well behaved. my belief is this guy was a plant. but, if someone who was there could verify that he was actually there to protest, please correct me. and if this was true, then why was he drunk?

much love

chris

the protests that draw smaller crowds are the stuff of a movemnent. The big media event quebec/washigton/seattle stuff is only like the membership drive or telethon portion of your movement programming. Its the smaller ones and the people responsible for them that make up a movement. There were marches long before seattle, they just wearnt en vogue.

its only because of endless years of smaller marches with "disapointing" turnouts that a movement has emerged.

I first got active because of adbusters when i was in highschool. in 1996 when i moved to university I got a taste of marches. I went to as many as I could. Even the ones with preachy people with old ideas. Sometimes there would only be 50 people but it didn't matter because we had something to say. Eventually that started growing. After days of action in toronto, seattle a few years later, the numbers exploded. Even the pot march draws thousands now. remember when it drew 40.

The point isnt just to show up for big media festivals. in a way that is contrary to many of the cultural goals that have been set forth in the movement.

Its not about the media circus, or the anarchists and huge marches, the frequency of smaller marches alone is enough.

here in canada all the health care, janitorial and related workers are striking in Nova Scotia. Thats at least the third one this month. Since quebec there has been gothemborg, all the enropeans ones for bushes visit, anti-poverty in Toronto, Bio in San Diego not to mention massive strikes in argentina and aids mareches etc.... in developping countries. The fact that people having opinion is becoming a daily occurence is where the both the victory and the stuff of real meaningful change is.

The more people that get used to using their voice now, the more that will give input later, when its time to actually MOVE forward and at that point, the more opinions the better.

So the 1200 in California, to me are as important, if not more than gotembourg, barcelona and the chemical catastrophe that was quebec

sorry for taking so long

The turnout wasn't "disappointing". Knowing how self-centered and materialistic the average San Diegan is, it's amazing anyone was there at all. Southern Cal is about getting what you want, driving your car, flaunting your muscles, tan, fake boobs, etc. But these folks can be brought into the fold. Even one person on a street corner with a sign gets attention. I've been the only one standing in a cold rain in Chicago protesting pet stores, and though it sucks to feel so alone, people pay attention. Get the flyers out, make the signs. Remain committed. Ignore the Jennas and work with the rest. Talk to co-workers, talk to people in the grocery store. Make signs for your car windows. And when things get really hopeless, we can always start burning shit down.

I can understand why many of the protestors feel the way they do. They think that scientists who are involved in bioengineering are ignorant, incompetent, unethical and hypocritical like the protestors are. Well, thank goodness, they aren't.

Mankind has been bioengineering food sources for hundreds of years. . Virtually every bit of food you eat has been altered to taste better, grow faster, produce more, resist drought, resist pests or has been otherwise improved using cross-breeding, grafting and other techniques. You would be hard-pressed to find any food source that exists today as it did 200 years ago. The only difference now is that we are able to make precision changes in a much shorter period of time

Throughout the ages the ignorant among us have cringed in fear at that which they don’t understand. Much like the man in the story who fears, “Well, we might be mutants. We might change into anything.” He might have said, “The sky is falling, the sky is falling,” because those who fear bioengineering are the Chicken Littles of the world.

And as for the police presence…after Seattle, Quebec City, Los Angeles., Washington D.C., and Long Beach…they would have been irresponsible to do less. I applaud them.

As for those of you who will call me names…better check your own tolerance for dissent.

Worry about yourselves. Face it, the cops outnumbered you, and kicked your ass! Now go home and lick you wounds!

Or better yet, Cheeseburgers are on special at Jack In The Box!

Mankind? It's amazing how an indviduals vocabulary can really provide perceptive clues into their assumptions. Why don't we talk about humanity.

I think its time to the discuss real, supposed or fictitious consequences of manipulating genetics. Not, please, whether scientists are evil, cruel and seditious or whether or not protestors on the street are illogical, flaky or uninformed...

My questions center over who really benefits? Do I believe the spokesMAN for Bio claiming disease prevention or do I hear the woman who can't afford to get a breast cancer screening because there is 1 company who patented a gene - a real, live, human gene that exists in millions of women's bodies - and under US patent law, under trade law, can charge a fee (that they determine) to any and every screening that identifies this gene, anywhere in the world?

...Manipulating genes for profit...

This is my fear-base. Yes, FEAR, an appropriate, life-saving, survival mechanism given to humans. I fear Bio and its consequences.

Maybe I am wrong. Possibly this world does reflect the values of mankind - I keep waiting for a world that reflects the needs of humans.

TRD must stand for "turd" because you are an idiot! Start burning shit down? Come on! Get a life!!

I support the right to free speech and the right to demonstrate. I do not support radicals and overzealous persons. The San Diego Police Department was correct in MAKING SURE that no problems would arise during the BIO TECH conference. You only have to look at past history to see how ugly things can get. The police were only trying to protect the city and its citizens. You cry babies need to shut up and get a life. You act like a bunch of kids crying because the teacher won't let you act up in the playground. If others hadn't acted like idiots and created the riots of past, people would have more respect for you. Start working on improving your image, and maybe you would have more legtitimate supporters.

In Seattle there were approx 50-60,000 protesters which included labor unions members, environmentalists, students, etc... The violence that resulted was NOT perpetuated by protesters. If you investigate what really happened you will find that a handful of protesters decided to do economic damage (break windows) to Starbucks, Nike, etc... The Violence didnt erupt until police chose to clear the streets with the use of tear gas and rubber bullets. Instead of arresting the people responsible for the vandalism (i.e. the anarchists breaking windows) they stood by and watched and allowed the damage to occur. Then they used this as an EXCUSE to clear the streets. Seattle was a peaceful protest with a few minor incidents! The police could have arrested the few breaking the law without gassing the entire city. Instead they started a POLICE RIOT which resulted in real violence. Yes a handful of protesters did some economic damage. That is true. But also true is the fact that the police responded to broken glass by voilently gassing and shooting rubber bullets at PEACEFUL protesters. I think you need to investigate what really happened at these protests instead of just believing what the corporate media tells you.

Broken windows can be fixed. Our food is getting fucking poisoned here. What the fuck are we arguing about here really? Our food is being poisoned and people are starving to death and all you people can do is try to create a buffer between you and the crazy (In a good way) anarchist youth? Breaking windows is the least every person on the street should be doing, these corporations are murdering people. Don't people fucking realize this? How can you march in a calm and orderly manner dancing with puppets as people starve to death. These people that break windows, and clash with the police are angry. And they have every fucking right to be. My comrades sit in prison while you stand in the street trying to make sure your not associated with them. My comrades get deported and you still grovel. Do you realize the risk these people go through. We have nothing left to lose. Complacency is the enemy here.

-Ramapage

Thank you Rampage for speaking some truth to these people. Listen up people: BROKEN WINDOWS CAN BE BOARDED UP, BUT THE DAMAGE THESE CORPORATIONS HAVE INFLICTED ON POOR COUNTRIES CAN NEVER BE REPAIRED. By the way Rampage, it's too bad we never met up after the protest...oh well, there's always the next city.

In the spirit of Resistance,

danny