🔥 Under Fire: The Public Square Under Siege 🔥

Welcome to the American public square, 2025 edition

Nov 25, 2025

🗣️ Introduction / Hook

Good evening, folks. Grab a chair, maybe a helmet 🪖 — the First Amendment is getting elbowed around like it owes someone money.

You’ve probably heard of Cam Higby — independent conservative journalist, citizen reporter, professional target 🎯. He shows up where others won’t, camera in hand, telling stories from the front lines. And what does he get for it? Punched, sprayed, shoved, harassed. Welcome to the American public square, 2025 edition.

And it’s not just journalists. Ordinary people, citizens just trying to pray or speak their minds, are getting shoved aside by self-appointed Thought Police 🕵️‍♀️ — the kind of people who think that if you make them uncomfortable, you should be run off the square.

Yes, I said “Thought Police.” Yes, I mean it.

📰 Cam Higby: When Journalism Means Getting Hit

Higby’s story is a case study in courage under fire — and in what happens when ideology becomes physical. In Seattle on June 14, 2025, he was covering a “No Kings” rally when three men allegedly decided he needed a hands-on lesson in civic debate. Result: a dented helmet, a broken gas mask, and a concussion that left him dizzy and nauseated 🤕.

He didn’t back down. He didn’t yell or run. He adapted — masks, distance, camera angles — but he kept going. Because surrendering to intimidation isn’t just personal; it’s a statement about what the public square is allowed to be. And if Higby retreats, every voice that comes after him is just a little quieter.

🥓 Not Just Reporters: Citizens Under Fire

It’s not only journalists who are facing intimidation and harassment — ordinary Americans are finding that exercising their First Amendment rights can land them in trouble. Take Florida, for example: three men, peacefully waving bacon 🥓 and declaring Jesus as Lord ✝️, were arrested. Not for threats. Not for violence. Not for touching anyone. No, they were arrested simply because some people didn’t like what they saw.

Yes, you read that correctly. Offense is not a crime. Discomfort is not a crime. Yet somehow, in 2025, the rules have changed. Public spaces — once the heart of free expression — are now battlegrounds where simply showing up and speaking your mind can make you a criminal.

Felony charges are pending; the point was made: some people want to make public space unsafe for anyone who doesn’t conform to their ideology. They want to provoke, intimidate, and set an example.

Offense is not a crime. Discomfort is not a crime. Feeling threatened because someone waved bacon at your forehead? That’s life. But when the goal is to turn public space into an ideological VIP club, that’s dangerous — and, frankly, un-American ⚠️.

🧐 Narrative Control & Media Hypocrisy

And here’s where it gets even trickier: media coverage. Some outlets call Higby a “provocateur.” Some treat the bacon-waving Florida incident like a prank. What they gloss over is the pattern: ideological harassment, attacks on speech, and threats in the public square.

The narrative matters. Label an assault “playful provocation,” and suddenly it’s a story about entertainment. Label it “targeted political intimidation,” and it’s a civic crisis. The media often chooses the first. And that choice, whether intentional or not, shapes how society perceives what’s acceptable in public discourse.

🛡️ Citizen Journalism: Civic Duty, Not a Hobby

Higby’s work reminds us why citizen journalism exists: not for clicks, not for fame, but for preserving the public square. When mainstream outlets avoid a story or downplay the motives, independent reporters step in. They document, bear witness, and defend spaces where ideas — even unpopular ones — can be expressed.

It’s not glamorous. It’s not easy. And sometimes, it’s dangerous. But it’s necessary. Because if only “approved” voices get to tell the story, the public square stops being a square — it becomes a stage for sanctioned narratives only.

⚡ Ideological Violence & the Chilling Effect

These attacks aren’t random. They’re deliberate, designed to intimidate. When Higby is punched on the street, that’s a message: “Stay silent.” When bacon is waved in front of prayer, that’s a message: “Your beliefs are unacceptable here.”

And it works. People start self-censoring, retreating from public space, or avoiding participation altogether. The public square — physical or digital — becomes a place of fear instead of debate. And make no mistake: fear is the ultimate silencer.

🌐 Public-Square Safety Meets Digital Suppression

Physical risk isn’t the only threat. Conservative voices also face digital suppression: demonetization, shadowbanning, harassment. Put these together, and suddenly your message is twice endangered.

Even if you survive in public, the reach of your voice can be clipped online. That’s not debate. That’s control. And when only “safe” ideas survive, the essence of Western civic life — open, messy, uncomfortable debate — disappears.

⚖️ What’s at Stake

🏛️ Democracy: If only approved ideas are allowed, the marketplace of ideas collapses.
🔍 Accountability: When voices are silenced, power goes unchecked.
🌎 Civilization: At its core, Western society is built on the idea that discourse is messy, provocative, and free. Chop that away, and the pillars crumble.

✊ Call to Action

Support independent voices: follow, share, donate. Not because you agree, but because public discourse needs defenders 🖋️.
Push for legal protections: treat ideological violence seriously ⚖️.
Demand media accountability: call out selective coverage, insist on full stories 🕵️‍♂️.
Defend the public square: online or offline, encourage spaces where ideas can be expressed freely 🏛️.

🎤 Closing Note

Cam Higby didn’t pick an easy fight. He stepped into the line of fire because he believes in a public square that belongs to everyone.

And his fight? It’s ours, too. Because if he loses the square, we all lose.

🪄 Extreme Absurdist Pocket FOB Edition Checklist

“Free Speech Under Siege / Cam Higby Edition”

⚠️ Reading this may induce sudden awareness of the fragility of the public square. Keep ideological narcs at a safe distance.

🗣️ Show up. Camera, notebook, courage. If it’s dangerous, you are officially in the public square league.
🥓 Provoke responsibly. Bacon, signs, chants — discomfort is not a crime. (Bacon may offend vegetarians.)
🤕 Wear protection. Helmets, gas masks, existential armor. Expect adversity. Expect absurdity. Expect questions about your life choices.
📹 Document everything. Livestream, record, archive. Chaos is evidence.
🌐 Guard the digital square. Shadowbans are real. Likes ≠ safety. Troll armies lurking.
⚖️ Call out hypocrisy. Media misdirection is a plague. Highlight omissions, connect dots, wink grimly.
✊ Persist. Retreat is contagious. Stay. Show up. Repeat.
🔍 Spot patterns. Assaults, harassment, legal intimidation. Notice repetition. Share findings. Smile grimly.
🏛️ Defend pillars. The public square is civilization’s stage. Messy debate is mandatory.
🎤 Inspire action. Share, discuss, amplify. Silence is optional; courage is compulsory.
🕵️‍♂️ Trust instincts. Feels like a setup? Probably. Record anyway. Witness anyway. Learn anyway.
🔔 Ring the alarm. Loud, public, inconvenient noise. Let them know the square is yours too.
🧱 Build backup squares. Digital, physical, metaphorical — leave breadcrumbs for those who follow.
🌀 Embrace absurdity. Dent helmets, bacon-waved prayers, assaulted reporters — the absurd is the warning bell.
⚡ Remember gravity. Every livestream, every tweet matters. The square is fragile. Freedom is not.

🪄 Ultra Extreme Absurdist Pocket Fob Edition Checklist