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How #OccupyWallStreet Is Evolving and Gaining Power
#OccupyWallStreet is evolving. Now in its third week, the protest movement not only continues to grow—it is maturing and becoming stronger in impressive ways.
What started as a few hundred independent activists gathering for a protest on Wall Street, and a few dozen having the resolve to extend their demonstration by camping out in Manhattan’s financial district, has become something much bigger. It has become the embodiment of longstanding progressive hopes that Americans who have been hit hard by the economic crisis—those left jobless, in debt, underemployed, foreclosed, or insecure—would finally get mad enough to publicly vent their outrage at the oligarchs who have for too long perverted our democratic politics and created gross inequality in our country.
The movement is rapidly spreading to cities around the country—to Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, DC., among many others. And it has progressed in some very promising respects. Here are three:
1. The Demand Problem Has Been Solved
Throughout the first couple weeks of the action, the question of whether #OccupyWallStreet had clear enough demands was constantly raised, both by progressive commentators and in the mainstream media coverage the mobilization was receiving. This issue has ceased to be a serious problem because, as the protests have grown, their central focus has become significantly more defined.
During the first week, there was a real problem: When you had just a few dozen people at occupied Liberty Plaza, individual idiosyncrasies stood out. If several of the protesters were Ron Paul libertarians or were obsessed with eliminating the Federal Reserve, another few were 9/11 conspiracy theorists, and several others, when asked by reporters, responded by saying, “We don’t believe in demands,” you ended up with a bona fide messaging crisis.
But that is no longer the situation. The mobilization has now drawn thousands of people who have rallied behind the call of “We Are the 99 Percent.” MoveOn.org summed it up this way: “What do the protesters want? A solution to the jobs crisis, corporate money out of politics, fairer tax rates, and policies that work for 99% of Americans instead of the 1% at the top.”
But you don’t have to take one organization’s word for it. Go to the “We Are the 99 Percent” Tumblr. Read the incredibly moving personal testimonials presented there. Then tell me this protest does not have a message.
For observers who want more specific grievances or detailed policy proposals, declarations now abound, ranging from bold and inclusive statements issued by Wall Street protesters themselves via their general assembly to more modest reform manifestos offered, with only a wee bit of condescension, by figures such as New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof.
Critics who remain preoccupied with the demand issue are missing the point. As Betsy Reed has smartly noted in the Nation, well-formulated lists of proposals do not guarantee that your actions will be taken seriously. (Anyone remember “The May 12 Coalition” or “One Nation Working Together”? Not too many people do, despite strong organization and tight messaging.) Conversely, actions such as #OccupyWallStreet that effectively capture the public imagination and inspire participation despite vague demands can contain great promise—and should be celebrated for the potential they offer.
Ultimately, the movement’s outcry against corporate power is no more diffuse than the Tea Party’s denunciation of “big government.” Protesters do not need to hash out exactly what percentage the capital gains tax rate should be, or precisely how many millions of dollars in student debt should be forgiven, in order for them to have an impact. Like the Tea Party, a broad social movement uprising can do much to alter the climate of public opinion, something that can benefit many different progressive campaigns in the medium to long term. Indeed, many who are running more targeted campaigns (with more narrow and winnable goals) are productively linking up with the mobilization. Which is a second promising development:
2. The Occupation Has Drawn Together an Amazing Coalition
When it started, #OccupyWallStreet was made up of students and independent activists who responded to a call to action that was initially put out by Adbusters but that enjoyed very limited institutional backing. The major organized constituencies of the left—unions, community groups, environmentalists, faith based organizations, and the like—were not part of the mobilization. This was a problem, suggesting that the protests might not have significant reach and would have limited resources at their disposal.
Yet as the actions have gained momentum, the institutional groups have come. Nationally, all sorts have flocked to support #OccupyWallStreet, including but not limited to MoveOn.org and other major organizations associated with the American Dream Movement. In New York City, major unions have declared their support for #OccupyWallStreet, and a veritable who’s who of labor and community organizations are marching to the financial district to show their solidarity.
In just one amazing display of unity among many, the city’s Transit Workers Union (TWU) issued a blistering condemnation of the NYPD this past weekend after police, in the process of arresting some 700 marchers on the Brooklyn Bridge, commandeered three public buses and forced TWU members to transport their captives. “TWU Local 100 supports the protesters on Wall Street and takes great offense that the mayor and NYPD have ordered operators to transport citizens who were exercising their constitutional right to protest—and shouldn’t have been arrested in the first place,” the union president said.
3. The Movement Is Becoming an Umbrella for Economic Justice Causes Nationwide
As the movement spreads nationwide, #OccupyWallStreet is becoming a unifying umbrella under which people outraged about corporate greed can get involved in supporting any number of ongoing efforts to create living-wage jobs, end foreclosures and predatory lending practices, hold banks accountable, get corporate money out of politics, and otherwise promote economic justice and genuine democracy. Much as the Tea Party has served as an overarching brand for conservative discontent, #OccupyWallStreet is giving people the opportunity to identify with a national struggle while advancing causes relevant to their local communities.
In Boston, community groups doing anti-foreclosure actions at Bank of America were able to merge their efforts with #OccupyBoston demands. Likewise, #OccupyLA joined with the United Teachers of Los Angeles in a bank protest during one of its first days in existence. Organizers who have been working on anti-corporate campaigns for months or years now are starting to benefit from the new energy—and new media attention—afforded by a movement that is now seen as a national phenomenon. #OccupyWallStreet, in turn, benefits whenever greater numbers of local drives identify with their overarching effort, when their coalition is broadened, and their credibility as a national force is reinforced by the local buy-in.
The potential for expanding this type of solidarity is great, and it is likely that more groups will be linking up their campaigns in the days and weeks to come. Fortunately, #OccupyWallStreet, which has already made some remarkable strides, is evolving still.
- Posted in
64 Comments so far
Show All"We are the 99 percent"
That's it, isn't it?
Manysummits
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Yes, and we are.
Go to the link and see some of the others.
Humans are only the 1 % on planet Earth, and they alone have ALL the rights . . .
Everyone else -- birds, bugs, beasts, "livestock" (on Wall Street, "commodities"), "beasts of burden," "lab" animals, "zoo" animals, "game" animals, "pets," "pests," endangered species, all wildlife, all marine life, etc -- they are the 99 %, who, in the current system, have NO meaningful, positive rights, especially the right to life, to be left alone in dignity, to be respected, and protected, just as the human 99 % want to be treated by the top 1 % of humans . . . .
I am a voice for those 99 % who suffer and die for the top 1 % that choose to turn a deaf ear. These other 99 % are just as equally deserving of life, respect, peace, and joy, as the 99 % of us who can raise our voices in protest, and I join with them, and I also raise my voice in protest against the human 1 % that benefits at the expense of the other 99 %. We are all evolutionary kin. Family.
Americans are the Greatest - the greatest at stuffing things up, yes. You've ridden roughshod over your continent for hundreds of years, destroying forest after prairie after pristine lake in your pursuit of freedom (let's not even get started on the people and the cultures you've wiped out). You've created the greatest modern era Dust Bowl since the Romans deforested North Africa. You made the topsoil go away now your rivers won't stay put, your storms are out of control and you wonder why? You've poisoned your children with genetically modified food and bad television and then wonder why they run amok. You made the motorcar a god and moved your houses away from your town centers and wonder what happened to your 'community'. You worship freedom and yet you are more certainly imprisoned in your own homes than the people your armies oppress. Now the penny is finally starting to drop... Let's hope it's not too late. When you're done with your mad race, look around at the rest of the world. We'll be here with our brooms... cleaning up the mess you've made.
It would be nice to see a new federal party called "99". Here is hoping...
We are the 99%, but what do we want? The 1% have had it their way for (at least) 30 years, and they've made an unholy mess of it, I think all CDers would agree. But it's harder to think of what will create a just society while retaining a viable planet, and even harder to decide what to push for first and what comes after.
The obvious motive of many Occupy Wall Street protesters is disgust with the gross inequalities in income, wealth and power that exist in the US today. A large fraction of the American people agree (for example, two-thirds think taxes should be raised on those making $250,000 or more yet Senate Democrats can't bring themselves to propose it). But how to translate that supermajority view into reality? Can we have a genuine democracy, an egalitarian society and a healthy environment with an economic system that rewards narrow, short-term, bottom-line policies and a culture that worships wealth and material possessions?
Just heading out to go to Occupy Ashland Oregon..
I guess you would say we are spreading out..
Did you see the Oboombers reason why the bastards that have stolen our
country aren't in Jail... Just a little question what do you think
FDR would do?
Hopefully it will evolve into a new political party, the 99 Percent Party, and contribute to the demise of the Democratic Party, whose members in office appear to be committing political suicide anyway.
Totally agree with you in seeing the demise of the Democratic Party as a necessary development if the country is ever going to undergo a meaningful political renaissance.
However, concurrently with the long term work of forming this "99 Percent Party" (long-term work that should start NOW), we should seriously push to have a non-corporate candidate primary Obama, and that would be totally outside the wishes of the party establishment (if the party establishment endorses the idea that would be a bad sign). What are the chances that an "insurgent candidate" could emerge from all of this? Of course that the goals of the occupation must go well beyond short term electoral politics, but pushing for a challenge to the Democratic Party establishment (which includes Obama, most prominently) would be helpful in a number of ways, not least of which would be to identify which of the johnny-come-late organization are there to offer real support, as opposed to try to co-opt meaningful change, something that will inevitably happen.
Ideally there would be a strong non-corporate candidate to primary Barry. I know that it is best to be flexible and to take advantage of any opportunities that may arise and not to just doggedly pursue one approach regardless of the feedback that it receives. I just do not see such a candidate on the horizon. I wish I did.
"I just do not see such a candidate on the horizon"
I'm with you. But I'm thinking about the old phrase "if you build it, they will come", transformed in our current situation to something like "if we build it [as in, build an outcry for such a person to come forward], he or she will come". It occurs to me that the occupation may be just the ideal launching pad for such a campaign.
If this occupation wasn't happening, I would definitely not waste time with any such fantasies.
Cicero, waiting for a hero to arrive is neither important or productive. What is important is the message and the energy that is carrying it forward to the 99%.
In a way, I agree with you. The message is important. I want to send the message to our corporate overlords that we the people are not going to obediently support the sanitized candidate that they approve of, and that their media promote as a "serious candidate". I want to send them the message that their tactics no longer work, and that we the people, without their approval, can support a candidate that explicitly designates the top 1% as the problem. And I am hoping that we can do that, precisely, with "the energy that is carrying it forward to the 99%". So we are largely talking about the same thing.
But eventually, we 99% will HAVE TO OCCUPY a clear, veto-proof, majority of the 535 congressional seats, and the white house/cabinet positions, with OUR representatives to bring the message into policies, regs, and laws; to make the energy perform "useful work" as a physicist might say( ALSO to RE-ASSERT the sovereignty/supremacy of statesmen/women, and their laws, over wallstreet financiers). Otherwise it's just more street theater/mardi gras.
It could easily happen because the idea you propose is most probably arising in the minds of many, many people as we speak.
"During the first week, there was a real problem:--individual idiosyncrasies stood out."
"Yet as the actions have gained momentum, the institutional groups have come."
oh goodie! institutions have leaders and spokespersons--someone a corporation can converse with and a politician can make promi$e$ to.
I don't think a summary by MoveOn.org of the OWS 'demands' is helpful. The Declaration of General Assembly -- http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/10/02-1 -- should end this incessant need to simplify it and reduce it to reformist goals of moribund, disgraced liberal groups like MoveOn.org. To MoveOn: MOVE OVER, get out of the way, and stop over-simplifying this for the corporate media.
I agree with you about MoveOn!
"To MoveOn: MOVE OVER, get out of the way, and stop over-simplifying this for the corporate media." -- Stiv
Let me humbly submit a "simplification". Two demands only:
1. Corporate personhood amendment
2. Reinstate (repeal the repeal) of Glass-Steagall
These are likely things that 99% of us can have some sort of consensus about. All other ideological battles can happen when corporate interference is out of the picture and the too big to fail banks are destroyed.
Fine, those can be your demands. Me, my 'one demand' is global revolution.
A good point that needs to be made. I admit that for me, the more I look at it, the more I feel that it is the life-affirmative energy and dynamic growth that is what is truly exciting about the "We are the 99%" Movement. I am probably as guilty as anyone of over-thinking all this.
With each passing day President Obama is becoming a more and more pathetic figure, his words ring hollow, mere rhetoric. Sad, he could have opted for greatness, he was at the right place at the right time and blew it.
i apologize if i sound annoying, it is not my intention. However, what president hasn't been in a position to opt for greatness? Who among them wasn't at the right place at the right time? Yes, he fooled many people, but that doesn't make him a potentially 'great' man, does it. It makes him a very slick and opportunistic one.
No, I think this is a very special time. Roosevelt opted for the people and thus for greatness, the situation is similiar now.
Big Brother: Well-argued. There are also similar astrological cycles at play, but I'll soon elaborate on those stellar facts on You Tube.
I thought I'd mention that there is a film on youtube called "Kymatica" that goes into the archetypal matrix of the human psyche. The film kind of jumps around between many subjects, but it is still all right. I watched it because someone said they thought it was even more revolutionary than Zeitgeist, so I checked it out.
___________________________________________________________
I should mention though that, although Zeitgeist comes from a humanistic-scientific POV, there are people in the Zeitgeist Movement who see, and are part of, the spiritual dimension of what is happening on this planet..
Good point but I think you might be giving FDR too much credit for "meaningful concessions." People think more taxes on corporations mean more fairness but there are plenty of corporate liberals like Soros, Gates and Buffett who want to gain power in Washington through paying more taxes and using the big government programs to create even more of an unfair system. This is exactly what happened with FDR. Some big businesses opposed FDR but other corporate liberal executives supported him. There was a group of these corporate executives who were called the Business Advisory Council who literally wrote the legislation of the New Deal and wrote it to of course benefit themselves and increase the power of their corporations. The main founder and organizer of the BAC was Sidney Weinberg from Goldman Sachs whose nickname was "Mr. Wall Street." So, behind all the wonderful big government New Deal programs was Mr. Wall Street! Today's Mr. Wall Street, Warren Buffett, is trying to organize a big government takeover with his corporate liberal friends through calling for more fairness. You can be sure whatever Warren Buffett is planning will be similar to the BAC and will help Wall Street the most. Consider what a famous member of the left you mention said about the New Deal in 1940. As he says, the concessions were meagre compared to the benefit to corporate liberal executives and their businesses:
From socialist George Novack:
"The principal task imposed upon the Democratic administration was the rescue of American capitalism. Roosevelt solicited the support of American business men in reward for fulfilling this job.Through its monetary measures, through the RFC, AAA, NRA, HOLC, FCA, the FDIC and other agencies, through its public works program, the Federal government mobilized its full resources behind the magnates of Big Business and High Finance.
As the claims of the lower orders in the United States for relief could not be utterly denied, the New Deal gave certain concessions to them. These concessions were meagre compared to the magnificent sums placed at the disposition of the big propertied interests by the state. For every dollar wrested from the government by the lower classes, ten were donated to the plutocracy. Even those measures presumably taken for the exclusive benefit of the poor turned out to benefit the rich no less. AAA payments flowed into the pockets of large landowners and helped drive the agricultural workers off the land."
Actually the facts show otherwise.
During the 20's boom the wealthy got the greatest proportion of income and wealth
they ever got until today. The New Deal support for Unions, Rural Electrification,
CCC, WPA, Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, the GI Bill redistributed income and wealth which can be seen in actual income distributions over time.
When I was studying for my PhD in Sociology, before moving to computers, the basic distribution of income after WW II was considered stable and fixed. Whether a Democrat or Republican won only shifted the income distribution a few percentage points. But after Reagan succeeded in turn by the NeoLiberals like Clinton and Obama, the income and wealth distribution shifted until today it is more unequal than the 20's.
This is not to say that progressives did not get shafted.
Most Union leaders were Socialist and wanted not only more money but some control over the means of production. But the Cold War reaction purged these radicals, indeed, again Reagan played that role in the Screen Actors Guild.
The Unions compromised with places on Boards or direct influence over industrial
decisions in exchange for higher wages, health and pension benefits and of course
very nice remuneration for Union leaders. So unlike Germany which requires
Labor membership on Corporate Boards, the Unions had no influence on decisions to move production to the antiUnion South, offsource, offshore or even idiotic decisions like the Auto companies to push for SUV's and pickups even though these are
gas-gazzling planet destroying behemoths.
We need to go back to democracy in the workplace not just money.
And we are running out of resources and destroying the planet which means the
glut of auto-addicted sprawl consumerism has to end.
Instead of creating ever more junk and makework jobs in the Military-Industrial Complex, Insurance bureaucracy etc we need to invest in Green sustainability
and work less hours.
Awesome, i totally agree that this is a special time. In fact i think it is far more profound than Roosevelt's time. This is global and on many different levels.
But my point is this, and i could be wrong....I have a feeling you wouldn't be saying that George W. could have opted for greatness following sept. 11, 2001, no matter what the facts are behind the event. Or that Nixon could have opted for greatness and ended the Vietnam 'war' years earlier. In the interest of sincerity, i am beyond exhaustion with people assuming that obama has some kind of greatness or specialness within him, and he just hasn't let his 'inner obama' come forth.
Would you be saying the same thing if it were John McCain as president? For me, this issue goes beyond personality. It is about people who were so propagandized by someone's campaign rhetoric, that they still truly believe it, but think he just decided not to follow through. I have never seen anything like this before when it comes to a president - or any politician. It leads me to believe that these people can be fooled again, because they are not able to discern if someone is acting or if they are being real. And this has very far reaching implications.
1% own 75% (as best as I remember)of USA wealth.Oilybomber is a rampaging Fascist, imperialistic, environment destroyer.
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Actually it's closer to 40%, though obviously still obscene.
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http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/10/03/334156/top-five-wealthiest-one-percent/
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What I found even more amazing was that the bottom TWENTY percent own just 0.3% of total wealth in the country.
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http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html
(1)
"Like the Tea Party, a broad social movement uprising can do much to alter the climate of public opinion, something that can benefit many different progressive campaigns in the medium to long term"
-> and yet what shaped actual legislation and policies was less the Tea Party's mobilization and public opinion ('get yr govt hands off our medicare!') than the actual corporate forces behind both the Tea Party and Obummer. In many cases, public opinion does not really matter much (it can be bought/sold/manipuated/ignored). These corporate forces are still at work and it's not yet clear precisely how the occupation will change that. Support simply from unions is insufficient without recognition of the corporatist top-down nature of some unions.
(2)
The support of now discredited corporate reformist Democratic organizations like MoveOn and Van Jone$ Rebuild the Dream should be seen with caution as potentially threatening the actual transformative potential. Don't underestimate the will of corporate forces to make a few token concessions in order to undermine strong claims.
(3)
We should not be distracted by the notion of OWS as 'unifying umbrella', which ignores the actual potency of the specific, very situated action, that is, occupation. Turning OWS into a brand for "local buy-in" would totally be counter-productive to the tactic.
Mundu, you have consicely outlined my own thoughts/concerns.
I was going to say that cooptation is a very powerful way to take the substance out of anything. And creating 'franchises' or 'McOccupations' nationwide makes me wonder if this isn't a parallel of 'change you can believe in' - part two.
Although i am glad to not see the name of Leslie Kagan in this movement!
Tahir Square tolerated many diverse groups just as long as they stood behind the main demand, "The people want to change the regime!" (*all* of it) ...
Yes, both wings of the corporate duopoly have a vested interest in preventing a real, independent progressive political movement and possible third party from arising...and really growing.
“There may be some criticism of Obama,” he said, “but I think when you look at the Republicans, there’s really no choice.”
A foolish remark, when he was staring right at the choice, direct action in the streets. He's left his mind in last year ...
Oilbomber is the embodiment of all that is repulsive and pathological about Amerikan politics. He is the face of inverted totalitarianism.
This may be a minor point, or not. The NYPD has a whole repertoire of tactics to physically divide demonstrations and keep people penned up for hours on side streets.
You will not see a crowd like that at the reflecting pool or the crowds marching down Fifth Avenue during the anti-Vietnam war protests. In that way they keep the press (and the marchers) from seeing the numbers gathered. It also provides the police with the opportunity to split off sections of the march and to start riots, which is all that most news media videotape and air.
I believe that we need to fight for venues that are large enough to accommodate the expected crowd in one place. They do it for concerts, ethnic parades and other events. Why not for those who are peaceably assembling for redress of grievances?
Meanwhile we must show the forbearance of a Jackie Robinson and not provide them the opportunity for a riot. They will have to do that without our help.
Let's just hope this thing isn't entirely coopted by MoveOn, or even the American Dream Movement. In many ways, the "American Dream" is largely responsible for all the insanity now proceeding apace around the globe. Will Americans ever stop dreaming and begin to live in the real world? That dream has ALWAYS been about becoming comfortably middle class and aspiring to greater wealth. Wall Street is where that dream has been most nourished and cultivated, where greed is enshrined and encouraged. Occupy Wall Street should be partly about disavowing the ultimately destructive American Dream. And MoveOn should take its own advice and just . . . move on.
We can certainly support those parts of the Founders principles which were progressive - such as the first public schools in the World, Land-grant colleges, freedom of Religion, the Post Office founded by Benjamin Franklin, Public Fire Dept's again founded by
Benjamin Franklin.
What is singularly amazing is how the wacko right wants to destroy all these public institutions in place of 1% Propertarianism.
We can support Green Transit walkable Main Streets in place of auto-addicted sprawl,
Credit Unions in place of Banksters, local farms instead of Corporate Agribusiness,
sharing tools, ladders, saws with Cooperative sharing clubs, worker run factories and businesses.
It is important to remember that Democrat Cuomo is laying off scads of workers
while not raising taxes on Millionaires while basically gaining millions in campaign
support through a local Corporate PAC. NJ State Democrats could have voted
for the Millionaire's tax before Christie was elected but instead saved it for a
campaign issue knowing Christie would veto it. NJ Democrats have also supported
more Corporate tax breaks to "create jobs", the waste of $250 Million of NJ taxpayers money for the Xanadu mega mall in the Meadowlands with the Mall of America Corporation raking in the tax dollars.
No more tax breaks for Corporations!
Let them pay carbon taxes, Green taxes for every acre of green and tree they destroy - if they do the right thing then they will not be penalized.
Otherwise no more bribery to Corporations via tax breaks for "good behavior".
The only ones to get any break should be democratic organizations - Cooperatives,
Credit Unions etc.
" The alternative spells disaster for the United States of America "
Once again the morally indefensible "Lesser Of Two Evils" argument raises its ugly head. When will the Democrats ever get it, when you accept the lesser of two evils you still opted for evil, and defiled yourself . I challenge anyone to make a logical and reasoned defense of accepting and voting for evil.
Grievance thought of the day: "END TAX HAVENS!"
1 comment:
Beware the touch of the Dems, or Dem affiliation.
The Democratic Party demolishes democratic demonstrations.
THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE PRIVATIZED!
BAN THE DUOPOLY!
D & R can go to HELL! Vote FRESH START in Twenty Twelve!
* * * * *
Privatization is THEFT!
Deregulation is CORRUPTION!
Corporate Personhood is A WEAPON AGAINST WE THE PEOPLE!
Kent State (and don't forget Jackson State) didn't "kill" the anti-war movement. The DC mobes in 71 and 72 brought out out 100,000s. There was a solid anti-war plurality in Congress and public opinion favored ending the war (though not for the reasons expounded by the anti-war movement). The political class continued the war long after the money and the support ran out, just as the political class continues in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan now, against the tide of public opinion. Public influence over US foreign/military policy has always been weak; now it is effectively non-existent. Policy elites promote, launch and endlessly fight wars as needed by the prerogatives of empire. Killing the 4 at Kent State and the 2 at Jackson was a horror and scared the holy sh*t out of anti-war folks but it did not kill the movement.
As for "another 9-11", elites will always use disasters to consolidate political power, seize public assets and expand "market share". If Occupy Wall St, keeps building and growing, eventually there are going to be more horrors; the security apparatus cannot help but harm people. That's what it does. But will the rest of us come to "lurching, screeching halt"? I wouldn't bet for or against that. Too soon to tell.
Not only did Kent State and the accompanying (Nixon inspired) construction worker riots against antiwar demonstrators in downtown NYC not kill the movement, those boosted the turnout at the antiwar demonstration in DC the following weekend to *huge* numbers. That was the one where the demonstrators took off their clothes, and took over the Washington Monument Reflecting Pool to swim ...
I suspect something like this may be attempted as the Right becomes alarmed, but that doesn't mean it will stop Occupy. And you're wrong about the impact of Kent State. What killed the antiwar movement was that Nixon finally ended most American war participation in early 1973. In that, the main antiwar goal was achieved ...
Police in Tampa are settng up road blocks as I write, to block protestors from getting to the meeting place for today's Occupy Tampa.
I love the OWS protesters across the country. The reason it is growing and will continue to grow is that many American people are waking up and refusing to be sheeple anymore. Screw the labels of divide and conquer! That is the Modus Operandi of the greedy, corrupt 1%. We the 99% must forget political affliations and realize we are all Americans that are being hung in one way or another by Wall Street bankster, crooks and criminals. If we do not hang together, the 1% will surely keep on screwing and hanging us separately. Unless you consider yourself in the elite 1%, you have been; and are now being; and if you are a child, will be; screwed by the Wall Street Banksters. Maybe even the real grassroots Tea Party people like Ron Paul will join us.
What is great that so far, that the OWS movement cannot be labeled or demonized by the MSM and that is what frustrates people like Ann Coulter ( who like FOXY NEWS is a shill for the 1%) who have to resort to old,old, school and call the OWS protesters "commies".
!st they ignore you; then they laugh at you; and once the #OWS protests become a powerful threat to the 1%; then they will resort to violence and arrests ( which is happening now); and if that does not work to protect the 1%, next they will resort to a false flag attack on American soil, just like they did on 911, only this time it could be much worse, because the 1% will not release their death grip on their wealth and power.
I would hope I am wrong, but that is the scenario that looks the most logical to me.