Panic of the Plutocrats

That's the title of an excellent article by the New York Times' Paul Krugman as he writes about the hysteria being elicited in the power elite over the implications of the Occupy Wall Street Movement.

From Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, describing the protesters as “mobs” and “the pitting of Americans against Americans” to Mitt Romney accusing the protesters of waging “class warfare", and Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain calling them "anti-American," it is clear that the ultra wealthy, those used to having their political agenda enacted unimpeded, and their minions are feeling deeply threatened by a movement of citizens who are finally paying attention to the man behind the curtain.

Please sign this petition urging Prime Minister Harper to stop threatening Michaela Keyserlingk and to stop exporting asbestos.

Chris Hedges From The Occupy D.C. Protest

In a very informative interview from Washington, Chris Hedges incisively and very articulately holds forth on the implication of the protests, the difference between the Occupy Movement and the Tea Party, and how Obama is no different from preceding American Presidents.

An Interview Fox News Refused To Air

I have to say that my life has been immeasurably enriched since becoming a regular visitor to truthdig.org. In addition to providing important perspectives on issues that are either largely ignored or heavily filtered by the mainstream media, the site features well-known writers such as Chris Hedges, who has a focus in his work that we can ill-afford to ignore.

Truthdig's value, I think, is evident in the following video that has gone viral, featuring an interview by Fox news with a very articulate Occupy Wall Street protester Jesse LaGreca. In the piece, LaGreca launches into a skillful criticism of the kind of journalism practiced by Fox. For reasons that will become apparent, the interview was never aired.

Republican Eric Cantor Concerned About Growing 'Mobs' On Wall Street

In a shameless but hardly surprising display of partisan hypocrisy, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) referred to the Occupy Wall Street protests as “growing mobs.”

Why is this hypocritical? Well it has something to do with his enthusiastic support of Tea Party protests back in 2009.

You can hear his almost 3:00 minute peroration here, and you will note that very few American platitudes are overlooked, including reference to American exceptionalism and what a giving and generous people Americans are. Few emptier speeches have I recently heard.

Chris Hedges Vs. Kevin O'Leary

Many thanks to Dr. Dawg and Let Freedom Rain for the link to this video, in which Chris Hedges demonstrates amply his disdain for that bombastic cipher, Kevin O'Leary.

Noam Chomsky on the Occupation Movement

Largely shunned these days by the corporate-driven mainstream media, Noam Chomsky expresses some optimism about the Occupy Wall Street Movement that has spread to several cities:

Please sign this petition urging Prime Minister Harper to stop threatening Michaela Keyserlingk and to stop exporting asbestos.

‘If you don’t have a job and you’re not rich, blame yourself’

So says Republican Presidential nomination hopeful Herman Cain. Expressing his disdain for the Occupy Wall Street movement, Cain seems at a loss to understand the anger people feel over the failure of the United States Federal Government to reign in the reckless practices of Wall Street, its thralldom to the corporate sector that cares nothing for environmental depredation, housing crises, financial meltdowns from which it is largely insulated due to taxpayer-funded bailouts, etc. etc.

When pressed by the host on whether the banks played a role in the 2008 meltdown, Cain allowed that they did "in 2008. But we're not in 2008, we're in 2011,"

Such incisive analysis by a Republican Presidential hopeful takes my breath away.

An Aerobic Workout While On The Job

The NYPD shows us how its done with only one simple piece of equipment, a baton:

Has This NYPD Officer Been Watching Video of Toronto's G20?

You decide.

Please sign this petition urging Prime Minister Harper to stop threatening Michaela Keyserlingk and to stop exporting asbestos.

A Powerful Indictment of NYPD Brutality During The Occupy Wall Street Protest

While the following video may seem tame by the standards of brutality set by the police last year in Toronto during the G20 Summit, it is heartening to see mainstream coverage of unwarranted police actions on Wall Street during the ongoing Occupy Wall Street protest.

The host of the MSNBC show, Lawrence O'Donnell, has strong condemnation, as you will see, of what the police did to non-violent young protesters, and offers a realistic assertion that police abuse of citizens happens all too frequently, and that all too infrequently are they held to account. Not once do I recall this kind of condemnation by any mainstream media sources over the terrible things done in Toronto last year.

Please sign this petition urging Prime Minister Harper to stop threatening Michaela Keyserlingk and to stop exporting asbestos.

Velcro Ripper On The Occupy Wall Street Movement

A young black man named Hero, who had just been released from jail after being arrested at the September 24th march, shared his experience with me, "Someone pushed a little red button and the police turned into adrenaline packed zombies. I found myself in the middle, I saw my friend go down, and when I tried to help her a cop punched me in the face, then dragged me over the barrier and threw me to the ground and told me to stop resisting arrest, as I lay there. It was a crazy experience. But I'm here today, and I'm blessed. And I'm back, stronger than ever."

So writes well-known Canadian documentary filmmaker Velcro Ripper as he describes one man's experience of police violence which included the use of mace last Saturday during the ongoing Wall Street Occupation. In an article entitled The revolution will be tweeted, written for rabble.ca, Ripper offers his impressions of the movement and includes a short video, which can be seen below, following the video of the apparently unprovoked macing of young women BEHIND a barricade:

The Guardian Writes About The Occupy Wall Street Movement

For those interested, there is a thoughtful article on the implications of the Occupy Wall Street Protest found, not in an American newspaper, but in The Guardian. Entitled Occupy Wall Street rediscovers the radical imagination, it provides both the context of the movement and its implications for the future.

For anyone fed up with the status quo and the fact that nothing substantive changed after the 2008 meltdown, it is well-worth reading.

Chris Hedges On The Wall Street Occupation

Chris Hedges, whose purity of vision and integrity I deeply admire, has an interview posted in a series of parts on You Tube regarding the Occupy Wall Street Protest and why he is part of it. Below is the first part of that interview:

The Occupy Wall Street Protest

The Occupy Wall Street Protest, now in its 12th day, has received very little coverage in the mainstream press, for reasons that seem too obvious to state. As usual, The Real News Network informs us where corporate media fears to tread. The following video offers a useful primer on the movement which, despite the fact that it is a demonstration against the excesses of American capitalism, has equal application to our country. Other video links will follow soon.