Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: OWS' need to connect...and how? [View all]pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)4. OWS IS connecting
This is a real populist movement--against our financial and political plutocracy
From Occupy Wall Street to Occupy Nation in just two months
Americans who flew bombing missions in World War II had a saying: "You know you're on target when you start getting a lot of flak." The protesters in today's nascent "Occupy Wall Street" movement must really be on target, then, because--boy!--they're enduring an unrelenting barrage of rhetorical flak from political and media defenders of America's plutocracy.
At first, the Loyal Defenders of the Plutocratic Order simply tried to ignore the youthful protest that had sprouted on September 17 in a plaza next door to Wall Street. But the occupiers, who were remarkably proficient in social media, spread their story and the visuals of their occupation to millions who tuned in on the web. This generated support from all over, and many more people began trekking to New York to join them. Surprised and alarmed by this inflow, the L.D.P.O. tried to cut it off by firing rounds of mockery at the protesters to make them look frivolous--a September 23 New York Times piece, for example, snickered that this "fractured and airy" movement was just a "carnival" of bored kids adrift in an "intellectual vacuum." Their cause, opined the writer, was "virtually impossible to decipher." Already, she declared, the movement is "dwindling."
Sheesh, so snarky. And so wrong. In fact, the group's core message of "enough is enough"--a call to rebel against rampaging economic injustice and rampant political corruption foisted on us by the richest one percent--was resonating among young and old, the poor and middle class, and it was spreading like wildfire throughout the country. Occupy Boston took root on September 30; Occupy Denver, Miami, Portland (Maine), and Seattle on October 1; Occupy Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Portland (Oregon) , and San Francisco popped up simultaneously on October 6. Within three weeks, there were more than 200 Occupy cities and towns, ranging in size from Philadelphia to McAllen, Texas.
Suddenly, with thousands of fed up Americans in the streets, linking together through a network named OccupyTogether.org, the principals of the Plutocratic Order were getting antsy. "Is this a big deal?" an anxious Wall Street CEO asked a reporter. "We're trying to figure out how much we should be worried about all of this. Is this going to turn into a personal safety problem?" (You see, it's always about them.) As the jitters of the elite edged toward panic, the L.D.P.O. rushed out its big guns, firing volley after volley of flak at the occupiers, most of it comically absurd:
...
http://www.hightowerlowdown.org/node/2822
Edit history
Please sign in to view edit histories.
48 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
RecommendedHighlight replies with 5 or more recommendations
It's a "même" reinforced by "the facts". After that it's all a matter of confirmation bias.
The Doctor.
Dec 2011
#5
Invite them to attend a local General Assembly. I can almost 100% guarantee
coalition_unwilling
Dec 2011
#11
there was a story on the radio yesterday about how Occupy Portland closed down some port terminals
renate
Dec 2011
#13
Victories are seldom won without sacrifice and a willingness to fight for better.
mmonk
Dec 2011
#17
The protests at the docks are trying to point out the fact that dock workers
JDPriestly
Dec 2011
#20
When someone says that OWS is using the wrong tactics, just ask the person what tactics
JDPriestly
Dec 2011
#19
The civil rights movement got the same type of commentary...in the beginning.
U4ikLefty
Dec 2011
#39