# Florida Man charged with stealing Speaker's podium **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 10, 2021, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157 "2021-01-10T02:28:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FigNorton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fignorton/32/5619_2.png) [@FigNorton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FigNorton)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/21 "2021-01-10T15:48:37Z")
I guess but you know for sure the Boston Tea Party would have livestreamed. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/22 "2021-01-10T16:16:41Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > All these people must be punished MUCH more severely than if the were, say, taking over some business offices … or even if they were taking over the Capitol for some less awful reason (the lulz?). All this wordplay is their pun-ishment. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/23 "2021-01-10T16:19:19Z")
> [@FigNorton](#): > > I guess but you know for sure the Boston Tea Party would have livestreamed. - As the rioters are learning, that’s how you wind up in hot water. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/24 "2021-01-10T16:46:41Z")
“So like there’s the fucking HARBOR behind me, and we like TRASHED all the tea, and we’re like dressed up as fucking Red Indians LOL! 😂 😜” ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/25 "2021-01-10T16:54:38Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Since the actions themselves are so horrendous— people dying, the Capitol vandalized — many of us are (understandably) losing sight of the stated PURPOSE behind this insurrection. > > It was to PREVENT THE RESULTS OF AN ELECTION. It was SPECIFICALLY to end American democracy. > > All these people must be punished MUCH more severely than if the were, say, taking over some business offices … or even if they were taking over the Capitol for some less awful reason (the lulz?). Absolutley understood. And as I posted earlier, I’m hopeful that the more little idjits they catch and convict, the greater the chance of getting evidence about the real villains in the mob. Who’s the one with the handcuff zipties, for instance? Were there identifiable ones who had guns, ready to use? Who was pounding on the door of the House Chamber, clearly interfering with the vote count and threatening the life and safety of the Representatives? The videos are of great help there, but evidence from real live witnesses is essential. Once it sinks into Florida Man and Desk Man that they may be looking at some federal time, they may start to talk to the FBI and US Attorneys who are investigating. That’s a standard tactic with investigating and prosecuting organised crime and it may work here as well. In the meantime, no harm in pointing and laughing at the first level of idjits, until the more serious criminals start to be identified. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/26 "2021-01-10T17:00:54Z")
> [@FigNorton](#): > > I guess but you know for sure the Boston Tea Party would have livestreamed. Not so either, their disguises were not expertly done, [they were mostly symbolic as to say that they were now American as the natives and F\*\*\* the empire.](https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/disguise-of-sons-of-liberty) They also did want to remain as anonymous as possible. > **[Participants in the Boston Tea Party | Boston Tea Party Participants](https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/participants-in-the-boston-tea-party)** > > Were your relatives participants in the Boston Tea Party? Find out here! > For fear of punishment, many participants of the Boston Tea Party remained anonymous for many years after the event. To date it is known that 116 people are documented to have participated. Not all of the participants of the Boston Tea Party are known; many carried the secret of their participation to their graves. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/27 "2021-01-10T17:03:50Z")
> [@FigNorton](#): > > you really think a 40 something old George Washington wouldn’t have livestreamed some of is antics? Nope. Washington was a soldier from an early age, and a good one. One of the basic principles of being a soldier is “Never give intel to the enemy.” ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/28 "2021-01-10T17:04:36Z")
“We are SO owning the jibs!” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/29 "2021-01-10T17:04:56Z")
Here’s an entry from one of my favorite bloggers on point: > **[Dear Idiots: Please Keep Posting Pictures of You Committing Crimes – Lowering...](https://www.loweringthebar.net/2021/01/dear-idiots-please-keep-posting-pictures-of-you-committing-federal-crimes.html)** ---
**Author:** ![FigNorton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fignorton/32/5619_2.png) [@FigNorton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FigNorton)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/30 "2021-01-10T17:05:52Z")
Yeah but they didn’t all dress up. Come on, are we really saying there were no yahoos in group? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/31 "2021-01-10T17:15:23Z")
From that blog: > [@](#): > > “I was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he told a reporter, which is certainly true but not a helpful defense if you were there on purpose. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/32 "2021-01-10T17:16:29Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > the stated PURPOSE behind this insurrection. > > It was to PREVENT THE RESULTS OF AN ELECTION. It was SPECIFICALLY to end American democracy. Motivation is hard to prove in court. In their minds, firm in their belief of the facts as they have been old them, they were trying to SAVE American democracy from being stolen by a fixed election. I believe they really believed that. That being their stated PURPOSE does not diminish what they actually DID: insurrection. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/33 "2021-01-10T17:17:30Z")
> [@susan](#): > > “So like there’s the fucking HARBOR behind me, and we like TRASHED all the tea, and we’re like dressed up as fucking Red Indians LOL! 😂 😜” “Sure, we told all of our friends that we were going to try to implicate the Indians, but it was totally the fault of the Indians!” ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/34 "2021-01-10T17:17:32Z")
> [@FigNorton](#): > > Yeah but they didn’t all dress up. Come on, are we really saying there were no yahoos in group? Seems that that was the case, even Francis Akeley was disguised as a “Mohawk” Indian during the tea party, and [he was known as the only man imprisoned for event. He was eventually released and died of wounds received at the battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolution.](https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/francis-akeley) ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/35 "2021-01-10T18:13:48Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Once it sinks into Florida Man and Desk Man that they may be looking at some federal time, they may start to talk to the FBI and US Attorneys who are investigating. That’s a standard tactic with investigating and prosecuting organised crime and it may work here as well. Here’s an example of what I mean: > **[FBI Investigating 'Inside Job' Involving Capitol Police, Other Staffers...](https://www.tmz.com/2021/01/08/capitol-insurrection-fbi-inside-job-capitol-police-staffers-rioters/)** > > The FBI has reasons to believe the mob of Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol not only premeditated the assault, but might have been aided by police and staffers in the building ... TMZ has learned. > [@](#): > > High ranking sources inside the Capitol Police Dept. tell TMZ the FBI is looking at several facts that stink of an inside job. For starters, the Bureau is puzzled by the ease with which the mob found its way to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. > > It’s not off any main hallway or next to other Congressional offices … in fact, the path to get to the entrance is maze-like and not open to the public like other parts of the Capitol. The rioters who took it over – vandalizing it and stealing a laptop – got there within 10 minutes of entering the Capitol. > > We’re told the FBI feels someone must have provided a roadmap for them to find it that quickly. Remember, the Capitol has been closed to the public since March due to the pandemic so it’s not like these guys could have been casing it to plot their path. So who’s the obvious person to answer that question? Desk Man. You can bet he’s not going to just get a little fine and plead out for trespassing. He’s going to get interrogated, probably repeatedly, by the FBI, who will ask: “How did you, a low-life schlub from the country, get to the Speaker’s office so quickly? Who told you were it was? How did they tell you? Give us names and communications methods, right now. And by the way, here’s the list of potential federal crimes you can be charged with, and the cumulative years in federal pen that you’re looking at.” ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/36 "2021-01-10T18:20:44Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > How did you, a low-life schlub from the country, get to the Speaker’s office so quickly? Who told you were it was? How did they tell you? Give us names and communications methods, right now. And by the way, here’s the list of potential federal crimes you can be charged with, and the cumulative years in federal pen that you’re looking at.” A lot of taped local police interrogations are made public (after trial, I assume) but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one by the FBI. I’d love to see how these really go down. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/37 "2021-01-10T18:44:51Z")
Fantastic, thank you very much 😆 ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/38 "2021-01-10T20:01:36Z")
Raising the eternal question: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/39 "2021-01-10T20:05:56Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > And Horny Fur Man has been arrested: No one’s answered the important question: what is up with that hat? ---
**Author:** ![anny\_m](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@anny\_m](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anny_m)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157/40 "2021-01-10T20:18:15Z")
Didn’t Trump sign an Executive Order that allowed ten years in prison for damaging a federal monument? Would not the Capitol building be considered a federal monument? I would find it poetic justice if the insurrectionists got another ten years in prison due to a Trump EO. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/florida-man-charged-with-stealing-speakers-podium/930157.md?page=3)