Fed Up: Retiree Clashes With D.C. Occupiers After Attempting to Cut Down 'Tent of Dreams' With Scissors

Tuesday afternoon D.C. Occupiers were in for a rude awakening as a local retiree walked up to their "Tent of Dreams" -- pitched over a statue of the General for whom McPherson square is named -- and attempted to cut it down with a pair of scissors.

Rick Mangus began cutting the strings that held the tent together when protesters realized what he was doing and closed in.

A confrontation ensued, almost escalating to physical violence by protesters against Mangus. Park police stepped in and assisted the tax payer and concerned citizen out of the square to safety.

Mangus was not alone, however, as another fed-up resident also attempted to take down the Occupiers' tent earlier that afternoon.

"Well I was trying to take it down so I could see it, they can put it back up if they want to, they say its free speech to cover it up, I just figured it was free speech to take it down," said Paul Ferrow, who works as an elevator contractor and is reportedly sick of the Occupy movement monopolizing and destroying the square.

"If you guys had seen this park about six months ago it was beautiful, we had brand new sod put down on the lawn, it was green and it was beautiful and I ate lunch here frequently during the week, now look at it," Ferrow said.

Fox News' Megyn Kelly interviewed Mangus about the incident:

"I’m not an avenging angel, I’m just an average person who has seen this park transformed into a beautiful spot where people can go for lunch, or just to go down and read a book, or whatever -- it's now a desolate wasteland," Mangus said.

"The grass is gone. It is overrun by rats. It’s a dangerous spot. There are hypodermic needles all over the place laying on the ground. The place smells of urine, and it’s very disgusting."

He added, "President Nixon used to call the American people the silent majority. Well, we have turned in now into the comatose majority, and something needs to give here. I mean our politicians don’t listen to us. For example, the Mayor of this city plus members of the city council has embraced these people. This has cost the city almost a million dollars in support, back up support for the US park police, or when these people decide to block a highway in the city, plus the trash pick up, and other items."

Confrontation after Men Try to Remove Occupy DC Tent from McPherson Square: MyFoxDC.com