One of the creepier aspects of our country: protesting is being outlawed. Maybe not made illegal, but controlled in such a way that law enforcement—ordered or abetted by the governments that employ them—can control what protesters say and do.
In 2008, there were the RNC 8, who were pre-emptively arrested by the Minneapolis Police and the FBI under on charges of terrorism.
In 2004 in New York City, more than 1800 people were arrested (90% of those saw the charges dropped) and uncounted others were detained while protesting the 2004 Republican Convention.
Add a more insidious force into the mix: the media. There has largely been a media blackout of the Occupy Wall Street Protests. Search the New York Times, you’ll find one of the paper’s blogs has covered it. No straight reportage. Amy Goodman reports that thousands are participating in the protests, but if that’s the case, where’s the coverage. And when I try to access Occupy Wall Street’s website, it’s blocked. My ISP is Comcast. I get a message that asks me if I only want content that is delivered securely. Regardless of my answer, I can’t get into the site. The second message blames Internet Explorer. I was able to get in with a proxy server, but couldn’t use the pages hyperlinks.
Until now, I haven’t really been following the Occupy Wall Street protests. Eighty protesters are reported arrested. There’s YouTube video showing 5 women maced–I can’t tell if they were the target. They are fenced in by orange mesh fencing.
I dont’ know what’s going on down there. But something is happening here in America. Something is wrong in our society when the government suppresses protest and the media ignores it. Imagine if the civil rights movement happened today with our trends in government “security” and our corporate media. Where would we be? This year we rejoiced when Arab populations rose up and protested their dictorial governments. I guess it’s okay. Unless it happens here.
When I accessed the link to Occupy Wall Street’s website just now (25-Sep-2011 12:22), it and its links worked fine. I’m guessing that whatever block may have been applied has now been removed.
That site publishes police activities that are horrific, and are a taste of things to come if we allow this police-state government to continue taking away core American rights with impunity.
I want to remind all of us that a Democratic President and Democratic House and Senate refused to investigate and prosecute war crimes committed by the prior administration. We should, therefore, not be surprised when that same government acts domestically.
I tried several times this morning.
It is for your own protection.
AFAIK, they are the only major channel covering this regularly.
he’s not on MSNBC any more.
Good for Fox, I guess. Their motives may differ for covering events, but at least their covering them.
He also posted some links which show a lot of police “enthusiasm” shall we say while making arrests.
Absent evidence, I might guess that most of the mainstream media is ignoring it because they’re afraid attention will only encourage the protesters. I might guess that Fox prefers to be able to portray the Left as emotional, violent, and unhinged. In depth coverage might suit that narrative better.
I’m not prepared to see them strolling arm-in-arm with us moonbats for health care anytime soon.
But this is an issue where Wall Street has had far too much influence on both our parties. Wasn’t that the crux of the last Sarah Palin speech I saw? If Sarah Palin goes to Wall St., I will too!
You can read Mark’s explanation just below. But the idea that people might be at BOTH is so foreign to progressives that they try to force TEA PArty attendees into a tiny box.
Once again – having actually attended meetings and talked to those there – the TEA Pary hates Republicans almost as much as Democrats. Many are concerned with ‘Agenda 21’ issues, and are virulently anti-corporate.
Since there IS no official hierarchy, it’s hard to know but if you were reality-based instead of alibi based, you’d recognize the potential there. And possibly blow it by maligning TEA Party activists to their faces as they stand with you on the barricades.
have to actually like each other to work together.
I’m picturing a big group hug, huddled inside the “Freedom Zone.” Them in their “Where’s the Birth Certificate” T Shirts and us in our “I can see Russia From My House” T Shirts singing Kumbaya, while being maced.
This is the current top post of Occupy Boston –
Now, complaints like that about public pensions are VERY common at TEA Party meetings. Not so diferent.
AND – they say the Revolution will be tomorrow, at the gazebo on the Common. So, leave work early if it seems wise, Down Towners.
on Occupy Boston. I don’t understand what those links have to do with it.
http://occupyboston.wordpress.com
The links are to a union web site. They aren’t complaining about unions–they are a union.
largely manufactured dissent. I’m sure there were real people involved, but they were always more grass fire than grass roots. And there was plenty of GOP or Koch money pouring on the gasoline.
And as is true with much of the Right, they are more interested in maintaining the current power structure than significantly changing it. The media eventually started calling them “small government” conservatives because they needed to tag the angry, incoherent mass with some sobriquet.
Without the ubiquity of video cameras, scumbags like this manly mace cop would get off free. Heck, he might still go free, but at least the world knows what he did.
A few years ago, another scumbag in the NYPD slammed a bicyclist to the ground. Said scumbag was eventually fired and convicted of lying about the incident, but unfortunately received no jail time. Seems to me that a message needs to be sent that cops can’t abuse, but the judge didn’t agree.
Of course, there is now a move to put people in jail who video crimes by the authorities:
POLICE STATE – Man Facing 75 Years In Jail For Filming Police
Rochester Police Arrest Woman For Videotaping Them From Her Front Yard
And, of course, there’s the Obama Administration’s unprecedented war on whistleblowers.
On the We The People White House Blog – a petition about the Wall Street Protests
As a headline that would sell newspapers. A scandal. Think of the outrage by women’s groups, domestic violence opponents. All the politician need do is have the cops be the surrogate woman beater. And all is quiet.
“Nothing to see here. Just cops being cops.”
NYC cops do what they do because the mayor condones it.
Are Feds upping their terror program against citizens with the threat of poisons?
The police work for the politicians and the corporations. You don’t blame the dog when he is commanded to attack you. You blame the one that made the attack command. Where’s the buck stop? Who’s really in charge and why do we let them get away with it?
“I promise you a police car on every sidewalk.” –Marion Berry
Our corporatocracy is flexing its muscle.
Yahoo claims that the problem was a spam filter issue, and that it has been resolved so that the emails are no longer being blocked. Here’s hoping that’s true.