Occupy

[Nephew Twiddleton]

All the Occupy protests in Europe.

Rome's protest sounds damn intense...probably because Berlusconi just won a vote of confidence and people are pissed.  London seems pretty peaceful so far...but I've only got the BBC's word for that, and I'm too far away to hear any screaming.

Holy fuck!

[Cain]

We're pretty pissed off.

Most of Europe started in on the austerity thing in 2009.  You guys have only really had it this year.

Also, Commies, Anarchists, Trade Unionists and bearded Lefties, oh my!

[Nephew Twiddleton]

We're pretty pissed off.

Most of Europe started in on the austerity thing in 2009.  You guys have only really had it this year.

Also, Commies, Anarchists, Trade Unionists and bearded Lefties, oh my!

Oh that last bit I figured. We have the perception that France is constantly protesting one thing or another (sometimes for things that boggles the average American mind). I think it's just the concentration of all those red circles. Logically I know Europe is a fairly small place with a high population density. It just kinda shocked me there a little so see it like that.

[Cain]

The most interesting clusters, to me, are the ones in Spain.  Of course, Spain does have a 20% unemployment rate, so it's pretty understandable...

[Triple Zero]

All the Occupy protests in Europe.

Rome's protest sounds damn intense...probably because Berlusconi just won a vote of confidence and people are pissed.  London seems pretty peaceful so far...but I've only got the BBC's word for that, and I'm too far away to hear any screaming.

Wow that's impressive.

I just saw the protest in Amsterdam on the news here, that whole protest kinda took me kind of by surprise, apparently I'm out of the loop I had no idea they were planning this ... Better pay some more attention to my own country Though I hadn't heard my friends about it either.

What also took me by surprise was the quality of the reporting about it (on the Dutch public broadcasting news, no less!), as well as the quality of the people articulating what they were protesting against: banks, money buying politics, corruption.

[Remington]

So, I read this thread 2 hours ago, then went out to take my GF downtown to get banking done. We park, go down to the bank, and are about to go in when we hear... chanting?

Occupy Edmonton marched right past us!

There was about 500 people, signs and everything. Lots of people were watching on the sidelines, and there was a light police presence. The protestors looked like normal people, too. No crazy homeless types. It was awesome. After I got back I looked up their site, the protests are focused more on supporting the US occupations and forcing anti-oilsands legislation (good luck) than anything else. The corruption in Canada isn't as bad as the States yet, so protests are lighter.

http://www.edmontonsun.com/2011/10/13/occupy-edmonton-protest-set-for-saturday
http://occupyedmonton.org/

Edit:
Average Canadian income: $43,000
Average Canadian CEO income: $6,600,000
Difference: 153x

Average US income: $33,190
Average US CEO income: (estimates vary, but this seems to be an average) $9,000,000
Difference: 271x

[Cain]

There seems to be some evidence that the 53%er blog is using fake images

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/15/1026620/-We-Are-the-53-is-Using-Fake-Images

Yes, the Great Orange Satan, unfortunately, but the criticisms of the pic seem quite legit.

[Hoser McRhizzy]

I fucking love Regina!




I know this thread is more about commentary, but I had to pay tribute to this titan somewhere.  He makes my spaz gland happy.

and just one more...  this one from Toronto: http://instagr.am/p/QO75K/

Back on topic - Interesting about the fake photo.  Has anyone looked into who's running the site? (please let it be Tom, the fake syrian lesbian!)  I didn't know about this 53% thingy and just checked out their blog briefly.  What a waste of space.

[Cain]

The guys running it are a professional Republican blogger, CNN pundit and radio show host (all one guy) and a Republican think tank analyst, noted for his Iraqi concentration camp fantasies on the internet (under the name of Tacitus).

[trix]

Well Occupy Milwaukee is okay.  It does seem to be mostly the hippy-ish types though.  I fit right in!  Unfortunately.

There was also almost a 1:1 police to protester ratio.  They had that shit locked DOWN.  Police were pretty friendly though, waving as we walked by, calmly conversing with random protesters, interspersed within the crowds as if they were protesting with us, though without joining the chants or holding signs.

Milwaukee police are generally a good bunch though.  Not like Waukesha, New Berlin, or Greenfield police.

[Hoser McRhizzy]

Shit.  I thought Erik Erikson was a joke name.  Whole blog looked fake.   But it makes sense knowing it comes from a thinktank man type.

cain - thank you for the amount you put into sharing what you know.  It's appreciated.

I fit right in!  Unfortunately.

You were hoping to be the odd one out?

Either way, good on you for going.  Stay warm & dry (and greetings my fellow n00b).

EDIT:  2 hours later, I think this sounds ridiculously douchy of me and apologise sincerely to trix.  I wish I could be at the protests here, but the new apartment I've moved into has bedbugs, I'm covered in lovely evil welts, slightly off my bean from 2 weeks of bites, cleaning, move-in, etc. and don't want my contribution to new tent city to be these evil buggers.

The 'odd one out' comment was meant to be a question about tactics, but I see people in this thread have been talking about that already for awhile.  Much respect to people outside tonight.

rhiz,
- out for the night. 

[Laughin Jude]

Occupy Portland organized a feeder march to join the Veterans For Peace march marking the ten-year anniversary of the Afghanistan War today. The media estimates put the whole group between 3,000 and 4,000 people, which sounds about right. After the march was over, most of the group decided to just keep marching back to the Occupation, and we had plenty of newcomers at the GA tonight.

[Telarus]

[kingyak]

I think we had 32 people at the high point of the Occupy Paducah rally. I realize that's a small group, but it's a hell of a lot more than I thought would show up (it is, after all, Paducah), especially with just 4 days warning. Lots of people honking and voicing support as they drove by and only a handful of people yelling "get a job." Fairly diverse group, too, based on the ones I talked to (I had my "local alternative rag reporter" hat on today): a few hippie types, several wage slaves, some students, a farmer, a chemical engineer, a retired airline pilot, a social worker, an iron worker, and an old hippie Ron Paul supporter who thinks the government's going to round us all up and put us in FEMA camps.

One cop stopped and ask if we had a permit (we didn't), but it turned out he was just driving by and stopped to let us know that without a permit the police would have to try to make us leave if anyone complained. I got the impression that if he weren't on duty he'd have been holding a sign with us.

[The Wizard Joseph]

I have assembled a batch of audio taken from the Occupy Milwaukee protests.  They are entirely "Copyleft" I hope you enjoy them!

You can find them here--->    PD.com-Occupy Milwaukee: Interviews, Commentary, and More!