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People Power is working OWS Wis Bagger GOP Gov Walker Fla Gov Scoitt Ohio Gov Kasich more to come Obama Reforms will improve- get stronger when GOP Baggers are gone And . I am a former GOP voter till Bush Reaganomics Bush 1-2 Cheney deregulation, Goldman run Fed boys- 5 con judges 1981 -2008 & beyond wealth favoring policies led US to 2008 Bush global Crash Paulson 700 billion TARP scam 2 long failed wars based on lies & profits- Iraq war was a huge gift to Al quada / Bin laden Bush Cheney did not- could not get Bin laden & Top AL Qaeda Obama -CIA & Seals did !
Thom,
We listen to your Radio Show daily and have since you started in Portland a few years back. I enjoy hearing your Common Sense commentary and especially your fine Knowledge of History. Recently on your show you mentioned re-inventing our government, amending the constitution in some ways.
My Wife Pat and I are Democrats and have been since we were able to cast our first votes in 1960. We feel that if something isn’t changed soon we may, as you have mentioned, end up a third world society. We are both retired, 72 years young, married 51 years, and we remember when we were youngsters, being told that voting was a special right and that we should always exercise that right as Americans. Nowadays, Politics have gotten so dirty that our vote is mostly ignored. Breaking promises seems to be the order of the day for Politicians. We really want for our kids and grandkids the good life we’ve enjoyed thus far.
We vote to elect (hire) a Senator and a Representative to actually represent us in Washington and, in too many instances, when they get the job they vote, according to how some lobbyist pays them to vote, in favor of Big Business (Corporate America). If our duly elected members of Congress are truly Public Servants then they should be required to serve us. In my opinion voting nowadays is like having some stranger come to our front door and asking us to hire them, paying them a big salary with great benefits and allowing them to decide, without any input from us, how we will live our future life. Not my idea of the American way of life I was taught about in School!
Lobbying should be abolished and the best way to do that is to amend our system to allow each and every American Citizen the right to vote on every piece of Legislation that is presented in Congress. I don't think Lobbyists could pay every qualified American Citizen to vote their way. Maybe it could be named something like the National Referendum System. I would be willing to pass around a few petitions and my first would be getting lobbyists out of Government. I’m no Lawyer Daggett but it seems to me that Constitutional Amendments are sort of a built-in safety measure to correct legislative mistakes and we need some course corrections because we are headed in a bad direction.
We have a "Vote-By-Mail" system here in Oregon and it works great! We get a Voter's Pamphlet prior to the election that explains the pros and cons of an issue and our Ballot is mailed directly to our home. We can look over the pros and cons of the proposals and decide how to vote in the privacy of our home then send our ballot back by mail or hand-deliver it to the polling place. No being turned away or taken off a list, strictly private and personal, which is how it should be. The State of Oregon does a good job of handling our voting system, there is no reason individual states could not handle a National system of petitioning and voting by mail. It would also be a win for the Postal Service…I’d buy some extra stamps for that purpose.
Our "Representatives" could present our petitions and they could argue the issues in Congress all they want but the FINAL vote would be cast by We the People. That would be a TRUE majority.
We don’t do politics on horseback anymore and, in this Digital Age, we could stand to do some streamlining of our System of Governing.
I better stop before I fall off this Soapbox!
Respectfully,
Wayne White
Salem, Oregon
Lwayne39@aol.com
CAPITALISM IS GOING TO BE THE END OF THE WORLD.2012 IS AROUND THE CORNER. BY THE WAY DID U KNOW THAT MITCH GOT A 2.4 MILLION LOAN FROM THE BANKS AND THE BANK BAILOUT WENT THROUGH.THIS NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT ON THE ELECTION CAMPAIN.I THINK THIS WILL HELP OBAMA,IN HIS ELECTION.2.4MILLION MAY NOT BE RIGHT BUT I THINK ITS CLOSE.I WONDER IF HE PAYED IT BACK.
Thanks, Thom, you're always way ahead of the curve. "Unequal Protection" was like 15 years ahead of the game. Here we are with the Citizens United disease spreading like wildfire -- like a contagion in a horror movie. And most people, even many in the media, don't see it coming. Until it's too late.
In a way, they're figuring out a way to "privatize" the courts. And all this privatizing isn't really the old private sector, its power and profiteering being transferred to a new aristocracy who are still maneuvering amongst themselves to take over their competition, monopolizing until one monopolist -- or group of them -- comes out on top. And the bigger they are, the harder they fall. But who cares about that? What is hard to take is that this insanity, historically, never ends. And all this when it could be better. When those who accumulate could share and actually lift the boats of the world's peoples. Alas, only a few do. Instead they plunder the poor.
"To whom much is given, much is required." -- Jesus.
Obviously, they don't believe that. And it wasn't given to them, anyway. They stole it.
"We're doing God's work." -- Lloyd Blankfein, 2007
My husband and I have driven to Occupy Detroit for the third time today and I talked to one of the coordiinators there and it sure sounds to me like they are taking cues from the whole movement in order to "do the right thing". Working on making sure there are no issues with their kitchen, and he told me they have access to a building 5 Miles up Woodward Ave. to store food and the possibilty they will have a refrigerated cooler. They are using a local night club near the park for bathroom facilities and even allowing them to sleep in warm quarters at night. That part came out of the Free Press. We are in our elder years at 67 and 72 and they all treat me so nice when I go down there. We have ended up down there to bring a few donations after appointments we had, and I told the coordinator if they find some things say on Craig's list like printers or copiers he can give us a call and we would be able to pick it up for them. THey are well organized and they are having no problem with the police in Detroit. The last two times we were down there, there were two police cars parked on opposite sides of the site and we had no problem pulling off to drop our stuff off and move on. I hope it will continue this way, and feel certain it will here in Detroit.
If there were people throwing anything at the police, where is that footage? Its not like they dont have cameras filming, we have footage of them filming, So to say its "alleged" is just a way of saying, we can do what we want to who we want, and its your fault
Thanks to Dr. Stephen Larsen for correcting the pronunciation of "Halloween". There's a difference between "hallow" and "hollow", just like there's a difference between "fallow" and "follow". "Hallow", by the way is a cognate of "holy" and is therefore equivalent to the title "saint", derived from the Latin word "sanctus".
"Celtic", meanwhile, should be pronounced with an /s/ sound (as it is for the Boston basketball team), because that's what happens when a "c" is followed by an "e", an "i" or a "y"--it stops sounding like a "k". In fact, the word comes the French "celtique", which is pronounced /sel-teek/. I'm guessing the pronunciation has been changed by "wiccans" or some similar group that is aware that the letter "c" used to always sound like "k", but is ignorant of the last 1200 years of linguistic evolution, and has no respect for linguistic rules.
thanks for video and it is true. Most are used to change the chemical balance in the brain so that depression and other conditions aren’t given the chance to occur. anti depressants medication
The worst struggle for people suffering from post traumatic stress disorder is reliving their memories in their various forms. xanax
Right on, Cygnus1!!!
Palindromedary, your posts are very informative. As far as "Americans Elect" is concerned, you are right, do not let the name fool the American public. Let us look at a quote from......:
"The United States supports Israel in a variety of ways. We give them all sorts of military and economic support, roughly 3 billion dollars a year. Israel, despite the fact, it is a relatively rich country, receives more foreign aid than any other other country in the world. We veto resolutions in the United Nations all the time that are critical to Israel. Is one allowed to question that reality, or is the pro-Israel lobby so strong, financially and politically, that the relationship with Israel is taboo and therefore unmentionable? And what happens to those who dare expose the unmentionable?
"In March 2006 the American political scientists John Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) and Steve Walt (Harvard) published the controversial article ‘The Israel Lobby and US foreign policy’. In it they state that it is not, or no longer, expedient for the US to support and protect present-day Israel. Together with the power shifts in Congress and the increasing doubts about the current Middle-East policy, this could become the fuse in the powder keg. Backlight talks to the people concerned in this ‘new realism’ debate.
The documentary sheds light on both parties involved in the discussion: those who wish to maintain the strong tie between the US and Israel (Neocon Richard Perle, televangelist John Hagee, and lobby organization AIPAC), and those who were critical of it and not infrequently became ‘victims’ of the lobby." end quote from a group who speaks about AIPAC. I will keep their name and paper confidential. - Cygnus1
I would say to the people of these United States, that as the Israeli Lobby AIPAC works for the exclusive benefit of Israel, using the monetary and material resources of the United States, including all U.S. Military for their agenda (to fight nations whom Israel deems, or wishes to be "the enemy of Israel") so do Americans Elect work as one with them.
What is AIPAC who surrounds the American Presidents and spies on Congress and the Senate, and other layers of government?
AIPAC is a "100,000-member grassroots movement of activists committed to ensuring Israel’s security" (and American interests for the benefit of Israel.) - Cygnus1
"For Peace in the Middle East, STOP AIPAC
Tears in Occupied Basra, Iraq. AIPAC had played a key role in fomenting support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq. It is playing an even greater role in supporting a future military strike against the people of Iran." end quote
Israel can put in any man or woman in the White House letting the people think the next President actually placed in the White House was put there by the people. But he or she is definitely not placed in the White House by the people of these United States of America.
Americans Elect wants you, the people, to believe you put the Presidents in power. Nothing could be further from the truth. They wish to pre-empt any possibility of ever seeing the White House occupied by a President who is a true reflection of American patriotic sentiments. The Americans Elect tell the people to forget voting for a party, to vote only for a President. Whereas, We the People, of these United States of America will dissolve the party system, Americans Elect will retain them for they have already been "cultivated" by Israel.
We have been speaking of dissolving the party system. Americans Elect speak now of the same thing. Do not be fooled, for Americans Elect is not working for you, the people, neither are they "American Patriots" as you, the people are. Their destination is ISRAEL. As long as Israel controls the U.S. President, the Military and the Monetary system, they control YOU, THE PEOPLE, OF THESE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!
If a majority of American people remain in ignorance by supporting such philosophy and groups, the American people will continue to die in wars run by foreign powers, and will continue to die in the streets of their own nation, these United States of America, and to die of lack of medical care, medicine, education, and starvation. - Cygnus1
"Ackerman made his fortune working alongside junk-bond king Michael Milken. His “Prada parka and winter tan remind you that you’re not in tattered NGO-land anymore. You’re in the presence of wealth.”[61]
After graduating from Colgate, he joined the graduate program at Tufts University Fletcher School, where he met Gene Sharp. “Ackerman spent eight on-and-off years at Tuft’s refining Sharp’s thesis.”[62]
After obtaining a PhD in 1976, he joined investment bank Drexel Burnham Lambert, where, according to James B. Stewart’s Den of Thieves, he had his head so far up his boss’s ass, he was known as “the Sniff”.[63]
Recruited by Milken to work as one of Drexel’s traders, Ackerman soon became the junk bond king’s highest-paid subordinate. In 1988, he made $165 million, after putting together the $26 billion KKR leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. One year later, his net worth having soared to about $500 million, he quit finance and turned to whittling down his 1,100 page PhD dissertation into a book, Strategic Nonviolent Conflict.[64]
It should come as no surprise that a man who reeks of wealth, heads a private investment firm, and sits on the board of the premier U.S. establishment think-tank, defines a central element of democracy as protecting “property rights.” [65] Indeed, the promotion of this central tenet of capitalist ideology is the reason Freedom House, the organization he formerly headed, exists. “You can’t,” Ackerman insists, “have government constantly expropriating the fruits of the labor of its citizens.” [66] Which citizens? Since property rights, in the words of Ackerman and other owners of productive property, are the rights of ownership to what other people have produced, Ackerman equates democracy with capitalism. What he really wants to protect is the right of investors (himself included) to expropriate the fruits of other peoples’ labor. That might explain why he thinks the United States, the world’s premier champion of capitalist exploitation, “has an awful lot to teach people around the world.”[67]
Conclusion
The destabilizers are clever marketers. They choose their words carefully. They draw on the reputation of nonviolent resistance, popularized in the United States by the civil rights struggle led by Martin Luther King Jr. And they repeat the words “democracy” and “dictator” endlessly. It’s all part of a clever marketing campaign, one that has deceived more than a few leftists in the Western countries whose financial and corporate elite profit from NVR. But then, you have to be clever to take on the former CIA function of destabilizing foreign governments, make it seem progressive, and get away with it.
Let’s be clear on what NVR is, what its goals are, and who’s behind it. It’s not nonviolence as a moral or ethical position; it’s a form of warfare, aimed at taking political power in other people’s countries. And while it’s based on nonviolence, it has, in its reliance on sanctions and financial isolation as an integral part of alienating people from target governments, devastating consequences, as real as those violence produces. It’s not used by grassroots organizations in the West to force their own governments to change reactionary policies, or to take political power at home. Instead, it is invariably aimed at foreign governments that have resisted integration into the U.S. imperial orbit. The major proponents of NVR are not independent grassroots organizers, socialists or anarchists. They are, instead, members of the U.S. financial and foreign policy establishment, or are linked to them in subordinate roles through organizational and funding ties. NVR is hardly progressive; it is an imperialist project whose only redeeming feature is the possibility that it may stimulate Western leftists to think about how they too might use the destabilizers’ techniques to take power in their own country to win the authentic battle for democracy.
http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_56604.shtml
Is it any wonder, then, that Peter Ackerman has apparently tried to distance himself from Americans Elect and giving his son, the reigns? Don't be fooled by Americans Elect!
"Ackerman defines NVR as “the shrewd use of strikes, boycotts, civil disobedience”[7] in addition to mass protests[8] and even nonviolent sabotage, to disrupt the functioning of government[9] and make “a country ungovernable.”[10] Since strikes, boycotts and civil disobedience are traditional leftist techniques, NVR campaigns often garner the support of a large number of left-leaning people. But NVR isn’t holding a demonstration, listening to speakers, and then heading home for supper. Neither is it doing what most Western leftists set as the limit of their political activism: pressuring elites. And it certainly isn’t pacifism based on moral or religious principle. Former Harvard researcher Sharp, Ackerman and Helvey’s docent, explains that NVR and principled nonviolence are not the same. Principled nonviolence is “abstention from violence based on ethical or religious beliefs.” NVR is a political technique for overthrowing foreign governments.[11] “It’s not about making a point, it’s about taking power,” explain Ackerman and a college buddy, Jack DuVall.[12]"
"Sharp’s contribution to the peace movement is showing the U.S. ruling class it can achieve its imperialist goals by nonmilitary means. Sharp and his disciples Ackerman and Helvey aren’t progressives at all. Nor are they advocates of the moral superiority of nonviolence. They’re imperialists who believe violence isn’t always the best policy in achieving imperial goals. The antiwar activists who have been misled by this trio, and by their publicist within the progressive community, Stephen Zunes, should be clear that NVR is a military technique yoked to political goals that serve the ruling class interests of the United States. It is not a moral position. It is a form of warfare with imperial political content. Helvey calls it “nonviolent war.”[31]"
http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_56604.shtml
Don't be fooled...don't support Americans Elect!
But be careful of wolves in sheep's clothing, which may be among you. You will recognize these ones by their corporate powers of "influence" within, dividing you, the people, from yourselves and your cause, in the most subtle of ways. - Cygnus1
Excellent advice, Cygnus1!! There are also wolves in sheep's clothing posing as an "alternative" to the current corrupt two-party system...which would possibly be even more right-wing than what we now have. I think that if people really looked into this business about Americans Elect they will be just as ticked off as I am about being tricked.
Mzsafiya: Americans Elect? Are you kidding me? Have you looked into who founded Americans Elect? Peter Ackerman! Do you know how he got rich? Do you know what kind of other organizations he is very active in? That so-called "Non-Violence" organization also "SOUNDS" nice but look deeper into what that is all about...overthrowing other governments...the cheap way...by fomenting internal dissent...like what the CIA does! And did you know that Peter Ackerman is part of a think tank that has a goal of destroying Social Security and other social programs. Don't be fooled...I admit I was when I foolishly signed a petition put out by Americans Elect at a shopping mall. When I found out just what this Americans Elect organization was and who was behind it I was shocked. The idea of seeking a suitable candidate to run for President by using the internet sounds like it might be a good idea except that if you believe that our election system is corrupt with electronic voting machines that can be hacked and that they are manufactured by large corporations that have a vested interest in making sure right wingers are made President and the CEOs of these corporations are on public record making such statements that help prove that we cannot trust electronic voting machines, then you should distrust an organization like Americans Elect because of who is behind it. Don't trust Americans Elect! Do a little research and see who founded it and what he...or they really stand for. There is another guy from Americans Elect that has made it very clear that he backs Cain. So don't think that Americans Elect is a liberal or progressive organization...they claim they are not of any particular political affiliation...but look at which way they bend...and you will see that it is to the right. I think Peter Ackerman probably realized that he needed to step away from that organization so his son now runs it. An Americans Elect pollster has said: "Americans Elect Pollster takes to Media and Praises Herman Cain, Violating Neutrality Policy in Bylaws" http://irregulartimes.com/index.php/archives/2011/10/19/americans-elect-... And this: Overthrow Inc.: Peter Ackerman’s quest to do what the CIA used to do, and make it seem progressive By Stephen Gowans "One of the methods of guerrilla warfare is that of entering the enemy camp, taking their weapons for use against them. Ackerman's "non-violent resistance" could be just such a weapon." "Peter Ackerman, an immensely wealthy investor and board member of the premier U.S. foreign policy think-tank, the Council on Foreign Relations,[2] and Robert Helvey, a 30 year veteran of the U.S. Army[3] who served two tours of duty in Vietnam[4], are the principal proponents of a nonviolent alternative to military intervention in the pursuit of U.S. foreign policy goals." "NVR (Non Violent Resistance) is not about pursuing social, economic and political justice at home. It’s about taking power overseas, in order to bring resistant countries into the U.S. imperial fold. To make itself APPEAR to be squeaky clean, NVR explicitly rejects overt CIA and U.S. military sponsorship. As Helvey explains, “The easiest way to destroy a movement is for the CIA to taint it.”[6] That, however, doesn’t make NVR any different in its aims and content from the destabilization campaigns the CIA used to plan, sponsor and implement. Indeed, Ackerman and Helvey have simply taken over a CIA function, made it semi-overt, and created the illusion that it’s progressive." http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_56604.shtml
"People of these United States of America, we are sad to say this organization has now been infiltrated by some of those worker eyes, and is being threatened by those at the top, which would be the Pentagon itself. The 1% have long known that to freeze the people out and starve them out will gain them the upper hand. We will discuss this issue more tomorrow, but for now, YOU, THE PEOPLE, MUST CO-ORDINATE YOUR OWN GROUPS TO HANDLE THIS SERIOUS ISSUE FOR THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF THESE UNITED STATES MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO FAIL NOR TO FALL. - Cygnus1
A sister of these United States has asked for tents and warm clothing from the ones who had previously stated the following:
“Lisa Wilson says:
HELP! We are in the midst of our very first snowstorm, expecting 12 or more inches. The camp was not very prepared and needs to be winterized ASAP. How can we get a hold of military tents, supplies to ensure our occupation can continue???
Please help us! Reply to blacksoftailharley@yahoo.com”
Quote: "OccupyOMC will support the movement. We will support demonstrators with organization, direction, supply and logistics, and leadership."
OccupyOMC Donations
OccupyOMC Have Indefinitely Suspended Monetary Donations. We Believe Asking American Supporters Of The Occupy Movement To Deplete Their Already Over Depleted Coffers Diminishes The Purity Of Our Message, And That Of OWS.
We Ask If You Are Willing To Donate To Us, To OWS, And To The Demonstrators That You Donate Your Time, Knowledge, Experience, And Individual Expertise To ‘Occupy’ Groups Within Your Region.
(these people know full well without winter supplies for the Occupiers, there will be no Occupy groups this winter - Cygnus1)
With Our Collective Knowledge Base And Expertise Combined Will Be More Than Adequate To Meet The Needs Of OWS And Our Mission.
All Donations To Date Are Currently Being Refunded.
Keep Pushing Forward America We Support You (what a joke. - Cygnus1)
OccupyOMC
Semper Occupare"
THE TRUE MARINES OF THESE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION WILL NOT LET THE PEOPLES OF THESE UNITED STATES, DOWN, AND WILL NEVER PUT UP WITH THIS ATROCITY. - Cygnus1
RoseMary King says:
Dear Occupy OMC,
It is with great sadness that I read your organization is not accepting donations. Most of us Americans want to do something to help and most of us can afford to send you a couple of dollars. Please reconsider you stance on this subject and give all of us a chance to help. $5.00 per person can go a long way. $2.00 can go a long way. We just want to be able to find a way to help those who will be needing socks, long underwear for the cold months ahead. Thank you for all that you are doing and just tell us how we can be of service.
Sincerely,
RoseMary King
October 30, 2011 at 5:39 pm"
Alice says:
I agree with RoseMary, If you would accept donations you could use those monies to help protesters w/gear. It’s getting cold, wet-they need warm bedding, food, clothes etc.
You are probably going to get tired of me saying “Thank you”.
Your noble acts are restoring an America I once knew.
Many of us are older, disabled etc and can’t be there in person. This can be another means for many, many more who want to participate be able to in this great movement.
October 30, 2011 at 8:00 pm"
I'm with the Marine Veteran(s) who stood up to the police using those reactive tactics. We all know that there are outside agitators in any social movement of this kind. These agitators deliberately provoke police, in order to discredit the movement (for justice). I'm also in strong support of the Occupy Wallstreet movement. We need an Occupy Congress movement now...
Palindromedary, you are absolutely correct in saying there should be people taking down badge numbers (if they can get close enough to read them), along with all other pertinent information. What the 1% and their worker eyes are doing to the people, the people must reverse. Coordinating with one another is definitely the beginning of this effort.
One group needs to collect the names, badges and details of the police in their sector, and another group needs to collect the names, badges and details of the police in another sector, and this needs to be coordinated and done throughout the country.
People! Encourage your protecters, the Marines, the Army, the Navy, and the Airforce. These men and women need to know their importance to you, and they need to know how they are to survive and pay their bills as they support and protect the Occupation protesters and become one with them.
This is where you, the people, must tell them of the quantitative easing which will be put into effect temporarily just as soon as the workers of the 1% have been thrown out of their offices and no longer have the control of the U.S. Military and all of its branches.The Military does this in other nations when they follow the orders of the 1% who want to change governments.
What has been done in other nations can also be done at home, in the United States of America whose government and Pentagon is foreign controlled.
Though the Military know about quantitative easing, it is good for you, the people, whom they protect, to constantly remind them so they never lose sight of that which they are protecting the people from, and that is: tyranny which has come into their nation and destroyed the Constitution, the people, and the nation. That tyrannical force which has divided and continues in trying to divide that which is to remain undivisable.
Money has always been the root of the problem, and now it is time to turn the tables on the 1% and their worker eyes who constantly report back to them in one way or another. Many many of these worker eyes occupy the places in offices on Wall Street, the White House, the Pentagon and all other Government departments throughout the country. Then there are the worker eyes throughout the layers of the lower levels. You will know them by their responses to you and moreover, their "actions" toward you.
But be careful of wolves in sheep's clothing, which may be among you. You will recognize these ones by their corporate powers of "influence" within, dividing you, the people, from yourselves and your cause, in the most subtle of ways. - Cygnus1
Quote: "
militarymama says:
You have made me so proud (and hopeful) to be an American! It is wonderful that you honorable vets use your training and commitment to protect our country from our country. Thank you … we’re watching, learning and counting on you!"
Quote:
John Coster says:
Thank you guys from the bottom of my heart. I’ve long thought we still have a chance to save our country as long as the armed forces don’t forget their oath to the Constitution. Semper Fidelis! God bless you."
Power of money and power of Military has always been the strength of the 1%. So you, the people, must take that strength BACK, and whilst that STRENGTH is being coordinated and built up, you, the people, must assist them in every way possible, beginning with collecting names and details, of the police and any other sector of worker eyes, Videos are also an excellent idea for here we have proof in the pictures. The Marines will tell the American people, whom they will protect, in the oneness of unity, undivided, what they need and what they need them to do. - Cygnus1
Quote: "OccupyOMC will support the movement. We will support demonstrators with organization, direction, supply and logistics, and leadership."
Document these videos for a time when you will need them.- Cygnus1
mzsafiya and the video links:
"You can be a witness. The world is watching. Check out: www.livestream.com/globalrevolution for live coverage of many of the major occupations. Also try: www.ustream.com/channel/occupy and add (without a space) the location you want to witness, like occupyoakland. There is also a streaming chat on both sites where more information is available, like Governor, Mayor, Police Chief phone numbers, facebook, and email. If you are observing police violence towards peaceful protesters you can make use of that information and respectfully request a change in policy. http://pastebin.com/ is also a place to check where people can list the badge numbers of police officers. If you can't be there, then please witness. Don't get angry-get active!"
You can be a witness. The world is watching. Check out: www.livestream.com/globalrevolution for live coverage of many of the major occupations. Also try: www.ustream.com/channel/occupy and add (without a space) the location you want to witness, like occupyoakland. There is also a streaming chat on both sites where more information is available, like Governor, Mayor, Police Chief phone numbers, facebook, and email. If you are observing police violence towards peaceful protesters you can make use of that information and respectfully request a change in policy. http://pastebin.com/ is also a place to check where people can list the badge numbers of police officers. If you can't be there, then please witness. Don't get angry-get active!
I wonder why there has not been a lawsuity to decide whether abuse of the filibuster is unconstitutional. If the constitution says 51 votes but Republicans use a Senate rule to make it 60 then that is in direct opposition to the Constitution. I know the Constitution also allows the Senate to make it's opwn rules but at some point, if we can never get below 60 votes on substantive matters, then citizens are deprived of majority rule.
I agree with many of your sentiments. Until the national conversation changed with Occupy Wall Street, I think the economic and social justice picture in this country was bleak.
I am 62 years old and I have been fighting (non-violently, of course) all of these issues for 45 years. I spent three weeks at Occupy Wall Street starting September 17th. Then, I spent a week in Washington, DC at the "Stop the Machine" event. After many disappointing years, this has given me hope. Americans have been exhibiting years of some kind of dissociative disorder. Like a rape vicitm, we have been in a trance of denial. It's time to confront our abuser and embark on the journey of becoming whole again. This is what the Occupy movement is about.
I feel that every dissatisfied citizen owes it to themselves, and their country, to go down to their local Occupation and hang out for at least one day. Especially powerful is the General Assembly decision making process. Find your voice and feel empowered by participating. It feels good to be among like-minded citizens; it is gratifying to state your case. And, above all, you will be influencing others who haven't yet emerged from their post traumatic fog.
I was exhausted after years of having to choose the lesser of two questionable candidates in every election. In addition to participating in the Occupy movement, I found out about an experiment in Direct Democracy called Americans Elect and joined as a Delegate. I urge all of Thom's listeners to look into it. The more who participate, the better the result! Who knows? We could create real and lasting change! We are the 99% Don't get angry-get active! Check it out at: http://bit.ly/sCc6v5
Thank you for this break down of our current state of wage-slavery in the United States. Add to this the increasing shearing of our rights through the Patriot Act; the empowering of corporations with Citizens United; the beginning of the end of Women's Rights with anti-abortion legislation; throwing up legal obstacles to voting in the states; increased spending on the Military Industrial Complex, while diminished spending on the social safety net...This is all a recipe for revolution. Time to Occupy.
Did anyone in the crowd witness these things..take down the badge numbers of the cops? Or are the cops even wearing badges to hide their identity? There needs to be an eyewitness central where eyewitnesses can report these abuses...so these cops can be held accountable later. Maybe if more demonstrators had camcorders and cameras to have a better chance of recording who did what to whom. And these photos or videos posted on a web site. This will put more pressure on those bullyboys from using violence, maybe.
Right on, Cygnus1!!! I bet those cops would start to rethink about being so violent if people began to find out where the cops live and the cops had to worry about angry mobs attacking them in their sleep. Not that I would advocate such a thing, of course! But it is obvious that this internal war that the rich has waged against us for 30 years, and now using their fascist bully boys to crack heads and ribs, who seem to be very much into sadism, don't seem to be thinking about any potential retribution they may receive for their irresponsible actions. Or maybe, the people, with the help of the marines and army, start to crack a few heads themselves. There are so few of them and so many of us...if the mob got really ticked off they could do some real damage to those fascist sadists. Or, on a less violent note, if we ever do get back to a civilized society where the criminals no longer rule our government, some cops or other "officials" could be sued big time for their violent behavior.
Just a quick mention of this for the purpose which you all need to know. - Cygnus1
Romney promises to abdicate American foreign policy towards Israel . . . to Israel
Quote:
"Now it seems that a President Romney will allow the Israeli government to decide American policy toward that country. The free daily newspaper Israel Hayom — a media outlet closely associated with right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — asked Romney if, as president, he would ever consider moving the American Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. In his answer, Romney made some astonishing claims. First, that his policy toward Israel will be guided by Israeli leaders; second, on the Jerusalem issue, he’d do whatever Israel tells him to do; and third, he does not think the United States should take a leadership role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
ROMNEY: The actions that I will take will be actions recommended and supported by Israeli leaders. I don’t seek to take actions independent of what our allies think is best, and if Israel’s leaders thought that a move of that nature would be helpful to their efforts, then that’s something I’ll be inclined to do. But again, that’s a decision which I would look to the Israeli leadership to help guide. I don’t think America should play the role of the leader of the peace process, instead we should stand by our ally. Again, my inclination is to follow the guidance of our ally Israel, as to where our facilities and embassies would exist." end quote
I have news for you, the people of the United States of America: Your U.S. government is already being ruled by Israel. They uphold Israeli foreign policy; they pay Israel 3 billion a year of your tax money whilst you are thrown out of your homes and starve; they supply Israel with unlimited weaponry including deadly chemical weapons. Israel dictates the policy and demands your soldiers. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has open access to the Pentagon, and enters without escort whenever he wishes to visit the United States to read the riot act to the U.S. President behind closed doors. (Election time is coming up, you know, and anyone who wishes to be elected MUST tow the Israeli line. There are no if's or but's.. - Cygnus1