If you're dissing the General Strike call...you've surrendered to the rich.

[Ken Burch]

Occupy is calling for the general strike because they've realized that there's nothing else that they(or anyone else)could do that would be any more effective.

Those who claim to be on the "center-left" but diss Occupy haven't got any good alternatives to offer.

It's only pressure from below that leads to change...politely lobbying Congress always fails, and so does settling for increments.

The one chance we have now for any progressive future is to build the culture of resistance. Occupy, all around the world, is building that. Nobody else is.

If we don't build that culture, we can't build a culture of change, and if we can't build that, even re-electing Obama is meaningless.

It's not cool to attack those who are doing the only thing that CAN work.

And it's not cool to piss on the dreamers...because they're all we've got if we want to survive.

[daleanime]

1. No matter how this turns out...

it's only the beginning. Looking forward to a long and interesting summer.

[sabrina 1]

4. Exactly. They have had so much success in just six months.

Eg, I noticed when I watched PBS's documentary on Wall St. over the weekend, that their tags at the bottom of the page, include Occupy Wall Street. And it opens up with scenes from the Wall St. protests. Before this movement started, no one would have known that the people actually were paying attention to what went on after the economic meltdown. Occupy Wall Street was the appearance of the people on the scene, and the Wall Street Criminals never expected that.

When you see how they acted, how not once did they show one iota of concern for the American people, all they cared about was saving their own necks and their buddies. They actually do live in a totally different realm. As someone in that documentary said, they were completely unregulated, completely on their own, as if they were an exclusive, private club, gambling away and getting richer as they plunged this country into total disaster and never cared one bit, and still don't, about the millions of other people who they were affecting so negatively.

They bailed themselves out, with the help of the Government they have been buying over the decades, but did absolutely nothing for the people whose livelihoods and lives, they destroyed.

OWS at least got their attention and reminded them whether they wanted to be or not, that they owe millions of people some answers and even if their friends in Congress are not demanding those answers, the people are.

[Magoo48]

6. The movement has matured and evolved. Let's simply keep moving!

Any damn fool can sit back and heave virtual stones. Most of the negativity comes from people who are afraid they'll lose their victimhood.

[lunatica]

2. I mostly agree

Even incremental change is good, especially when it's well thought out and executed. But nothing will work unless the people want it to work and that's where Occupy comes in. The fact that it's non-violent and has this country's educated youth in it is very promising. These are not ignorant peasants storming the castle. These are the youthful brains this country thrives on, and dismisses at it's peril.

[sabrina 1]

3. Don't waste time on nay-sayers, it drains energy, Ken. Anyone who is truly interested in changing

the direction this country it going in, is not even talking to those who are not anymore. There is way too much to be done and not enough hours in a day.

Put it this way, nay-sayers are mostly on the right, and I know I gave up even reading what they have to say a long time ago.

Independents and Democratos, Liberals, Progressives and even intelligent Republicans, want the direction of this country to change. We have elected Democratic officials who have joined Occupy, they have not coopted it, they joined and some have even been arrested. Those are politicians worth supporting.

But to get things moving, we cannot waste time on those who are a part of the problem. Someone told me once, in college I believe, that if you are climbing a ladder and the wolves at your heels, just keep climbing, or something like that.

This movement will be around for years, just as other big Social Justice movements were before they finally succeeded. Here's how I feel about it, Occupy's goals are very much in line with the Democratic Party Platform. Therefore anyone who opposed Occupy, is probably not a Democrat, so why worry about them?

[chervilant]

8. + a gazillion million!

Early in the Movement, when MSNBC 'analyst' Donny Deutsch said that Occupy Wall Street needed a 'Kent State' Moment, here's what I said about #Occupy:

Consider the source, AND the venue within which he's given the opportunity to pontificate.

How easy it is for people like this to make evaluative statements about OWS, and the myriad groups protesting the radical income inequity that continues to undermine our democracy and our global economy. Has he devoted ANY time and energy to OWS or any other protest?

Here's what I think of when I contemplate the brave souls joining these protests daily:

~~these individuals are brave activists, exercising their constitutionally-protected right to assemble and to have their grievances heard.

~~these individuals are striving to embody a non-violent protest, AND to organically create a cohesion that can manifest an agenda, primarily using consensus decision making (an AWESOME effort, albeit difficult and time intensive).

~~these individuals are CLEARLY supporting our democracy, our nation, and our global economy.

~~these individuals, and their brave activism, are causing corporate sphincters across the globe to tighten up in fear and resentment, which means this activism is hitting the proverbial nail squarely on the head.

We the People are manifesting a commitment to our great democracy, a profound respect for the efficacy of non-violence, and a determination to BE THE CHANGE WE WANT TO SEE IN OUR WORLD.

Mr. Deutch--and all the other media moguls like him--would do well to pack up a tent and other relevant resources, and join ANY of the brave groups working to save our democracy.

#Occupy has given me much hope, for the FIRST TIME since St. Ronnie ran our Ship of State onto the razor-sharp rocks of Corporate Hedonism.

[randome]

9. 'Brave' does not equate to camping out in public parks and calling it a 'protest'.

If OWS had put less effort into these kind of 'actions', or if they had any kind of coherent leadership, I think more people would have been on board with it.

[Fumesucker]

13. Any "leader" who stands up for OWS is going to have a huge target on them..

Both literal and figurative, there will be attacks both physical and in the manner of character assassination on anyone who stands out.

[randome]

16. So there is no one within the movement who is THAT brave.

[Fumesucker]

17. There's no one in the movement that stupid is more like it..

Do you remember the "Dean Scream"?

The press took out a candidate from the presidential race just by repeating one stupid moment over for quite literally hundreds of times. It's possible to make anyone look bad if you put a camera on them all the time and carefully edit.

OWS is operating in an almost totally hostile press environment, giving the press a specific target to go after would be remarkably poor strategy. Clausewitz stated that war is just a continuation of politics and the overriding strategy of the US military is decapitation of leadership.

[randome]

18. The vast majority of time, the press ignores Occupy.

That's not a very hostile environment. Dean's little 'scream' sounded sophomoric. It's not right that the media repeated it, as you said, but it made him look inauthentic.

We can't keep blaming everyone else for a lack of success. The press does not control us. I thought Occupy was about standing up to entrenched interests and now you're telling me everyone is afraid of what the press might say.

Get some authentic, fearless leaders out there and I bet Occupy would have better screen time.

[Fumesucker]

20. Remember seeing the massive protests during the first Bush inaugural?

After the SCOTUS decided the 2000 election?

[socialist_n_TN]

21. Fearless leaders like Malcolm X, MLK, the Kennedys.........

numerous Black Panthers, a plethora of un and under known labor leaders throughout the years, Allende, etc.

What do all of these folks have in common? They stood up to the capitalists and they died at the hands of the capitalists.

Leaders will emerge (and probably ARE emerging), but hopefully not until there are enough of them so that losing one will not destroy the movement. Not having known leaders is part of learning from the past IMO.

As an above poster said, being a leader of a left economic populist movement is having a LITERAL target on your back. Until we have a BUNCH of targets, there's no sense pointing out the "leaders" to the assassins of the ruling class.

[chervilant]

15. Wow,

someone from my Ignore List replied to my reply to you, Sabrina. Wonder if that's another nay-sayer?

[xchrom]

5. Du rec. Nt

[mmonk]

7. Agreed.

Even if they don't realize it.

[greytdemocrat]

10. Well...

You kids have fun today and try not to hurt anyone.

[Ken Burch]

23. You won't be doing anything that's any MORE effective in bringing change.

At most, you might waste your time POLITELY lobbying a legislator or something useless like that.

[33Greeper]

11. Don't waste your time trying to win over the haters......

You are not the Jerk Whisperer.

[NS2012]

12. The Occupy Movement is Refreshing...

...but I'm not going to risk losing my job to "strike" on its behalf. If that makes me any less "center-left" or a wimp, that's fine, but I wouldn't be helping anyone by having to receive assistance from the government when I otherwise would not.

[Ken Burch]

28. Youre position is not what I was talking about, though.

You aren't one of the people saying that OWS or the General Strike idea were useless. Have a nice day.

[myrna minx]

14. The anti-occupy folks get so worked up over something that, according to them, doesn't matter,

doesn't work and is just hippies wandering around a park. They sure waste a lot of energy on ridicule for something that's so insignificant.

Pay them no heed. They're happy with the status quo. We move forward with out them, even if we work to make things better for them too.

[slackmaster]

19. I have a job in which I am working toward improved cardiac health care

I just started less than two months ago, and I feel motivated to prove myself to the company so I can keep the job, stay employed, and keep working for the good of humanity.

[Ken Burch]

22. Neither I nor Occupy would quarrel with you on doing that.

Essential medical services are pretty much always exempt from general strike calls. What you are doing is not "dissing", and I apologize if this read that way to you. My bad on that.

[Johnny Rico]

25. As I look around today...*what* general strike?

May Day is just another day...

[Ken Burch]

26. It's just the beginning.

Calling a general strike was the only way to start it up again. Something lame like voter registration wouldn't have been anything anyone would have cared about. And nothing else would have got any attention at all.

What the hell has 99% Spring done that's any better? All they've been so far was a couple of tv ads.

[kenny blankenship]

24. I love how some are spending this May Day

ignoring labor and its struggle for a decent life, and instead cheering their War Preznint as he tours our far flung possessions, and basks in the musky barracks atmosphere and red glory of the American Death Machine. Yes, they are surrendering to the rich, and he is leading their charge.

[PufPuf23]

27. I noticed the juxtaposition of "surprise, POTUS Obama in Afghanistan" and OWS May 1 plans.

Very sad and cynical politics but normal for the 21st century USA.