{"article":{"id":1672,"heading":"Flash Point: Los Angeles","author":"VillageVoice.com","created":"2000-08-17 15:05:10","modified":"2000-08-17 16:07:20","last_modified":"Thu, 17 Aug 2000 23:07:20","article":"<p>villagevoice.com exclusive <br>  <br> Flash Point: Los Angeles <br>  <br> Arrests Climb as Police Practice Politics of Kevlar <br>  <br> by Joshua Clover <br><br> VISIT VILLAGEVOICE.COM FOR CONTINUING COVERAGE OF \"THE HOLLYWOOD SQUARES: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION\" SERIES FROM LOS ANGELES.<\/p>\n","contact":"","link":"http:\/\/www.villagevoice.com\/issues\/0033\/gore6.shtml","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"villagevoice.com exclusive\r\nFlash Point: Los Angeles\r\nArrests Climb as Police Practice Politics of Kevlar\r\nby Joshua Clover","numcomment":1,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2000\/08\/1672.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":1703,"heading":"Response to Voice Article","article":"I sent the following letter to the editor of the Voice in response the article on the police tactics in LA, particularly the preemptive strike on the animal rights group.  I am putting it here, not because I am proud of the writing or that it is anything that any of us don't know, but for the following reason.\r\n\r\nAt this point, the messages of our actions are being lost on the vast majority of people in America.  This is because of the spin that corporate media is putting on the actions in complicity with the actions of the police.  IMC and similar left voices are great, but whatever voices of truth- timid and limited that they may be, make it into the corporate media need to be thanked, encouraged, cultivated.  Without some sort of insinuation of truth into the media by our movement the actions are much less effective and the violence much, much easier for the law to carry out.  \r\n\r\nJoshua, thank you for the article on the police reaction to overwhelmingly peaceful gatherings in LA.  It is obvious from my perspective that the instigation of violence and the erosion of civil rights by the police is a tactic that serves the establishment in two ways.  The first and most obvious being to scare the hell out the people, both physically and with the threat of being thrown into a judicial system complicit with harassment and punishment for political ends.  The second and more important being that the violence and threats of violence, blamed on the protesters, provides the perfect distraction from the very real issues that are being put forth by the people.  The only way that this works is with the complicity of the press.  An open, honest, and intelligent press is fundamental to democracy and anti-thetical to the war of propaganda and terror that is being attempted.  Thank you for your honest coverage.","author":"grampi","parent_id":1672,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2000-08-17 16:07:20","modified":"2000-08-17 16:20:37","fileurl":""}]}