This piece from Buzzfeed reminds us of CNN’s Brian Stelter taking umbrage at suggestions that vandalism and looting in Manhattan had made the city look “shattered by thuggery.” He complained of Fox News (of course) using footage from the George Floyd riots when in fact most of the broken glass had been swept up and the plywood was starting to come down from store windows. Stelter even got his corner garbage can back, which had been taken away because vandals kept setting fire to it. It wasn’t so bad — it was morning in America.
Now Stelter is trying to shame Sean Hannity and right-wing media for making Portland look worse than it is. When he saw Hannity leading his show with “MORE VIOLENCE GRIPS PORTLAND” and scary video from the streets, he knew something was up.
Buzzfeed has a similar take on the city of Portland, which has now had riots downtown for more than 50 nights in a row. City residents who live on the outskirts say it’s not as bad as President Trump and the right-wing media would have you believe, and it’s the DHS that has the city under siege.
Portlanders feel like they aren’t living in the same city they see on TV or online. They say outside the downtown core where nightly protests take place it’s business as usual. It’s the actions of the local police and federal forces that trouble them. https://t.co/MyY5yZFN36
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) July 21, 2020
C’mon, Chelsea’s parents. Trust her.
“I have family members who live on the outskirts of Portland,” Unsbee said, “and they still believe the news more than what I’m saying.” https://t.co/MyY5yZFN36
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) July 21, 2020
They live on the outskirts, huh? Of course, the people who would vote someone like Ted Wheeler to be their mayor would think Trump was the problem.
People whose houses aren't smashed, looted or set on fire don't see a problem with riots. https://t.co/rxX2ylfqua
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 21, 2020
Some parts of Chicago have the same rate of violence as your average town in Switzerland, too, it's an odd juxtaposition.
— Zaid Jilani (@ZaidJilani) July 21, 2020
It's all fun and games until the great unwashed try their crap on the gilded homes.
— Ne m'embrassez pas ? (@SorellaTorta) July 21, 2020
The woke are sometimes the least empathetic. In order to reach their compassionate goals, they’re indifferent about anyone else getting stepped on.
If the riots were destroying their homes the story would change; then they’d oppose those specific rioters.
— Scott Bridgeman (@Devils73) July 21, 2020
I assure you that when taxes go up and home values go down, they’ll see the problem.
— Kerfuffle Actual ??? (@shoshido) July 21, 2020
Outside of Pearl Harbor it’s business as usual.
— Callahan (@SidePolitical) July 21, 2020
The NIMBY riots
— @UWedge (@UWedge) July 21, 2020
My home and city are fine but I see a big goddamn problem with riots.
Don't assume everyone is complacent.
— KaptaynAmeryka (@KaptaynAmeryka) July 21, 2020
It’s like Black Lives Matter protesters blocking intersections. Just back up and go another way if you don’t want to get shot. Same thing with Seattle; it’s a great town — just don’t drive through CHOP if you don’t want to get shot and killed.
“Outside the parts of Poland overrun by Nazi tanks, residents say things are very peaceful.”
— BattleSwarm (@BattleSwarmBlog) July 21, 2020
“The riots don’t seem that big of a deal to me.” pic.twitter.com/U5KhvqC6WW
— Gun Chunks (@Goons_Out) July 21, 2020
“Look at all of the parts of the city that the rioters aren’t destroying!”
— Max Nordau (@MaxNordau) July 21, 2020
“Residents living in hillside neighborhoods say reports of floods in valley seem overblown and only effect people living in the flooded areas.”
— Gentleman Roadie (@GentlemanRoadie) July 21, 2020
They aren't nightly protests. They are nightly riots.
— Shane Styles (@shaner5000) July 21, 2020
There's a good reason why Portland is viewed nationally as the epicenter of the radical left fringe. Their city is not under siege, their city is simply experiencing what law enforcement actually looks like.
— #FREEHONGKONG (@philllosoraptor) July 21, 2020
As we’d mentioned in another post, even Politico Magazine did an extensive piece on how liberal Portland became so violent — and that was back in 2017.
Go downtown and check out the federal buildings.
— Annie La B ??? (@arelab13) July 21, 2020
I, too, don't personally notice what's happening in riot-torn places because I don't live there.
— You Should Have Voted For Gary (@colorblindk1d) July 21, 2020
Build a @Starbucks or @BankofAmerica next to @tedwheeler’s house and that riot shit stops yesterday.
— furious_Stay Six Feet Away_a (@furious_a) July 21, 2020
Word is the city acted pretty quickly when anarchists tried to build an “autonomous zone” outside the mayor’s condo.
For those who live in Portland and don’t travel downtown or to the federal courthouse, the DHS — a right-wing media source to be sure — gave an update on what’s going on there:
THREAD: Portland is rife with violent anarchists assaulting federal officers & federal buildings. The 50+ day siege continued this weekend:
— DHS spokesperson (@SpoxDHS) July 20, 2020
-Rioters launched watch rockets injuring an officer
-Rioters barricaded officers inside Hatfield Courthouse then launched commercial grade explosive fireworks at the building, attempting to injure or kill officers— DHS spokesperson (@SpoxDHS) July 20, 2020
-Rioters attempted to permanently blind officers targeting their eyes with laser weapons
-Rioters destroyed courthouse surveillance camerasThis isn’t a peaceful crowd. These are federal crimes.
— DHS spokesperson (@SpoxDHS) July 20, 2020
Well, if the feds don’t want to be attacked, they shouldn’t be there, right?
Related:
‘Mother of all ratios’: Brian Stelter admits there are ‘real problems’ in Portland, but criticizes the right-wing coverage https://t.co/7bFozn7jS3
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) July 21, 2020
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