In practice, as people invest more and more of their time in the (Occupy) movement and don't see any results, you'll probably see more arrests, radicalism, and violence. Then, eventually, either Donny Deutsch will get his wish and they'll go out in a Kent State style blaze of glory, the locals will get tired of stepping in human excrement when they go to work and they'll demand the local government shut down the protests, or it'll just get cold and the numbers will dwindle down to handfuls of people until the liberal cuckoo birds return in the spring. -- John Hawkins, 10/21/2011
The Occupy Movement has always been a pretty dodgy political movement. There are no leaders, no demands, no cohesive agenda uniting the people who are attending -- just a bunch of thugs, anarchists, bums, college students, revolutionaries, liberal activists and freeloaders camping out and looking to make trouble. In violation of the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution, sympathetic mayors have often allowed members of the Occupy Movement to get away with breaking the law. Cops have turned a blind eye, permits and fees have been waived, and they've been allowed to do things on a regular basis that would get anyone else arrested.
When citizen pressure has finally forced mayors to attempt to enforce the law, like say actually refusing to allow the Occupy Movement to camp overnight in public parks where no camping is allowed -- the police, not the criminals in the Occupy Movement, have been treated as the problem by the Left.
This is bad enough.
However, because the Occupy Movement has often gotten away with breaking the law, it's becoming increasingly disruptive and violent.
There have already been 6500 arrests (If the law had been enforced, there probably should have been 3-4 times that many) 10 deaths and the protests have cost more than 26 million dollars.
Now we're seeing the Occupy Movement deliberately block traffic, disrupt pro-life rallies, throw condoms at Catholic school girls, invade conservative conferences and push old ladies down the stairs.
This isn't the Occupy Movement using its right to free speech; this is the Occupy Movement attempting to shut down other people's free speech. This isn't the Occupy Movement being pushed around; this is the Occupy Movement attempting to provoke violence -- and it's being allowed, approved, and applauded on the Left.
That says a lot about the moral bankruptcy of liberalism, but it also says something about the lack of blind justice in this country. If the FBI can declare the Insane Clown Posse's fans, Juggalos, to be a criminal gang, then it's certainly time that it does the same thing to the Occupy Movement. At a minimum, we should have judges looking to throw the book at members of the Occupy Movement to set an example. The Occupy Movement has a right to free speech, but nobody has a right to break the law and squelch other people's free speech with impunity.
Follow John Hawkins on Twitter: www.twitter.com/johnhawkinsrwn
who have corrupted our government.The 225 politicans who pledged
to Lobbyist Grover Norquist should be defeated.Organize against this group
and work to change the system peacefully and politically.
up a related topic for debate. OWS has accused American banks (because of greed) of causing a
4 year long recession (so far) by floating $billions in illegal and predatory loans, then packaging
them as securities that they knew were going to fail. They then used credit default swaps to bet
against the securities they sold as tripleA. When the bubble burst 100's of $billions in bailouts were required to keep them afloat. Millions became unemployed and millions are still unemloyed.
The banks then went on a 4 year foreclosure spree and as a result millions lost their homes
and countless of these were illegal foreclosures. And on, and on, and on.....
To speed things up, here's a few possible responses to choose from:
A. Never happened, it's all an urban myth.
B. What recession? I'm okay Jack.
C. It's all a creation of the left wing press.
D. The most successful home grown terrorist attack to date.
E. Since corporations are people, greed is a civil right.
F. Send in Seal Team 6 (against OWS)
G. Send in Seal Team 6 (against the banks)
Ahh, another one of those conservative wizards that can't get his mind around the concept of a Democratic movement. And, since he can't understand it, it must be bad.
My thoughts, if you don't like our country and can't learn peacefully protest and dialog to make positive change -- then feel free to go spend your time with the other jihadists that help create this. The Occupy movement is bad -- from beginning to the middle and through the end.
"a) Wall Street b) K Street and c) large commerce..Â. " are not the government, they are, along with their lackey's in the republican party, greedy, destructive, and profoundly anti-American.
OWS is an attempt to restore the government to a Democracy by attacking "a) Wall Street b) K Street and c) large commerce..Â. " and the Plutocracy they have created.
I do understand. You and your ilk are the enemies of the country and should be really glad that OWS is such a peaceful movement.
I agree with their goals of social justice and rules that are fair for the 99%. But if the OWS movement starts using TACTICS that I disapprove of, then they can go to prison as far as I'm concerned, because they no longer represent me, one of the 99%, who is depending on this movement to facilitate change.
If they start wrecking the movement through violent acts, then I hope they're rounded up and thrown in jail. And I hope authorities throw away the key, because that's not the way to facilitate positive change.
We the people are not criminals! We have legitimate grievances against our government! But as soon as we allow those who claim to represent us to start *behaving* like criminals, then they taint the rest of us with the crimes they are committing in our names!
And I, for one, won't stand for it.
So the OWS movement better get it's act together and return to nonviolence or I will turn against them and lobby my representatives to throw them all in jail.
I'm serious.
and the ones hired by outsiders to cause trouble?
the homeless(steroetypical variety) that are just hanging around because they can get a meal --something harder to come by as their ranks swell with the group formerly called middle class--- if they cause trouble? (like they tend to do no matter where they get a meal)
"so you will turn against the movement if a few thugs call themselves OWS members?"
Me:
Yes! And for one simple reason. As far as I can tell, the OWS movement as a whole hasn't completely renounced nonviolence. In the beginning phases of the movement there were discussions among The New York General Assembly about whether or not they would stay completely nonviolent. Because they couldn't reach consensus, they left the question open. So at that time, at least, the official OWS position was an openness to considering some violent tactics and a hesitancy to demand complete nonviolence from their fellow protestors. I've been against this from the beginning.
For me the cause of nonviolence is far more important that the OWS cause. And I will not sacrifice my main political cause to activists that I don't see eye to eye with. Unless they make nonviolence their main cause and make political reform their secondary cause, they will fail at both. Gandhi understood that. Few other people do.
Land of the Free and all!! ha.ha. It would be a great joke...except this dude is serious!
He joins the muddle: unconcerned about actions that should be taken, nor who should benefit, but only concerned about who shall exercise those powers.
God willing it won't be John Hawkins or the FBI.
I see them camping. I see them complaining about not being able to camp. I see them talk about their library, their society, their new paradigm, and a whole host of utopian ideals that are important to them but totally irrelevant to outsiders. I see them patronize and alienate anyone who questions their approach. If it weren't for the pointless disruptions like the port protest and the crimes committed by a few, they wouldn't even register any more.
utopian ideals?-- all men are created equal? one man -one vote? a gov. uncorrupted by graft and laws that are equally inforced?----------liberty and JUSTICE for all (not just the ones who can buy the laws that favor their bottom line)?
I can't find the rationale' in your comment.
Care to clarify?
the 99% agenda is simple, get money out of politics. public servants are supposed to serve the public, not just those whose pockets are deep enough to fund their campaign.
the actual belief that most people dissatisfied with the system have in common is getting organized money and non-flesh entities like corporations, unions, PACs and other interest groups out of politics. that's the underlying agenda the MSM don't want anyone hearing, because they're the biggest beneficiaries of unlimited, unregulated political money.
A very few bankers (so far) have gone to jail-- so does that mean we don't need banks?
Some cops get busted every year-- so we don't need law?
If it were simple, why the different approaches? Surely the supporters would all agree on what they want and how to get it, if were truly simple?
The agenda was described as "simple" and you can't fathom why accomplishing it isn't "simple"?
What's the agenda of education reform?
What's the agenda of Political reform?
What's the agenda of Social reform?
What's the agenda of the Labor Movement?
All of these agenda's might be considered "simple" in their basic intent. Do any of them seem "simple" to fix in your estimation?
Maybe you didn't notice, but, between the "Tea Party" protests of a few years ago, and the current OWS protests, the basic underlying sentiment seems to be that a significant number of people in this Country ARE NOT SATISFIED with the way things ARE. Some see it as the fault of one (or more) individual who has "too much power"; some see it as the fault of a group of people. Some see it as the fault of corruption within the system; some see it as the fault of "the system" itself.
But the overall sentiment is that "something is not right" and it seems unlikely that it will be "self correcting". Do you find that sentiment is something you disagree with?
true. Now let's talk about some of the things you forgot to mention.
1.Because of greedy banks floating 100's of billions of dollars of shady loans, packaging them and
then selling as investments with false triple A ratings, Then knowing that the majority of the loans
would fail they began to bet against them. At some point they began to create to create investments
that where designed to fail so they could double their money by betting against them.
2.As a result of the actions mentioned in point one (and many not mentioned) when the housing
bubble burst there followed a near total collapse of the world and American economy. Millions became, and are still unemployed, and therefore unable to keep up their mortgage payments.
Untold 100's of billions were pumped into the banks to keep them afloat.
3.As a result of points 1 & 2, millions have lost their homes. But not just the regular defaulters.
Included in the millions were 1000's of active serving members of the armed forces, disabled returned veterans, people whose mortgages were payed and on and on....
4 For years later we have still not recovered from this.
5.And what about robo-signing, corruption of public official,Florida AG Pam Bondi firing 2 Assistant
AG who dared investigate illegal foreclosures, and again, on and on and on....
Reading your blog makes me despair for America.
Sorry, two wrongs don't make a right, and Occupy has always been a group of people who conspire together to break laws, violating the rights of others. It really doesn't matter whether it's for money or for an ideal, they're a gang.
And the only people who are fighting to bring the criminals onto the spotlight, let alone
justice are the bad guys. Also you are upset about people trampling the grass and
stopping you from throwing your Frisbee. Wow...
Let's get serious here, answer me one question: Are the banks in any way responsible
for the current economic crisis in America.
Just so you know,a tin foil hat will be awarded depending on how you answer the question
Secondly, Americans have assembled in large numbers to protest perceived injustices on numerous occasions in American history. You did study that at some time, right?
Here's another one for you dude, two wrong facts don't make a correct statement.
"Now they're overtly committing property crimes/Not even if the banks have done it"
Here's a link for you, with summary:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/civil/tampa-retiree-says-he-lost-belongings-in-foreclosure-blunder/1177248
Elderly widower goes on vacation. Returns home to find the locks changed
on his doors, his house has been emptied of all his belongingsÂ, a large sign saying that he was trashed out because of eviction. Turns out the trashout company got the wrong address and he had no problems with his morgage. He phones bank involved and trashout company to get explanatioÂn and redress. Response was; mistakes happen, pound sand. Calls police, response: not our problem, sue them. Will probably never see his possessionÂs again. Now faced with expensive and lengthy law suits for redress.
As I said above" I can show you a 100 more" property crimes like this. Comments?
Going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you're legit and leave you with this. Reading between the lines, I think majority of the anti OWS posters here are more
upset about what OWS has said, and the dialog they have started, than any crimes they may have done. For them, this is a means to supress dissent and nothing else.
Bank crimes ARE being ignored -- and citizens without deep pockets can not seek redress because they don't have the money to fight a complex legal battle-- so banks win because they have money and power.
How can OWS be committing a crime if the crime has already been committed by someone else? How can you take property from someone who does not own it?
‎"The protest has been allowed to run its course. Now it’s time to focus on jobs and the economic restoration of our city. It’s time for bold leadership and forceful action, not unending social experimentation. We call upon the Oakland City Council and the Mayor of Oakland to step up and provide cohesive, common sense leadership-Â-----before it really is too late."
http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2011/11/08/11.8.11.oakland_letter_fin-mayor.pdf
It has been said, research to confirm, that crime in Oakland dropped 19% during the Occupy encampment.
And Oakland and others have blatantly, baldly lied about the protesters in order to demonize them, to justify their brutality and cowering to their local 1%:
http://occupyobservations.blogspot.com/2012/01/oakland-officials-caught-in-lies-about.html
Thank you for your consideration.
Google "income inequality wikipedia" genius....