When people actually get out, organize, & try to do something about it, there are inevitably critics who feel like the status quo is better than actually trying to make major changes.
I think the Occupy protests are, overall, an effective force to initiate social and political change. I'm old enough to fondly remember the massive Iraq War protests during the Bush Dark Ages. The broad, sustained nature of the current Occupy protests are now having a large impact on the nation & the world.
Although the movement is fueled by future debt slaves, aka. "college students", there's also alot of labor unions & public workers involved, too. It's more than just a bunch of kids sleeping out in tents in parks. Like any large movement, there are bound to be wackos along with the people who are trying to do the right thing...
What should be the focus, are the stated goals of the movement-at-large:
The basic ideals that the people want to address are: democracy, justice, & freedom from oppression in it's many forms.
Most people don't expect a free ride in life, but we should all expect to have some protection against being exploited or preyed upon.
So, it's very disturbing to see the bizarro world we live in- where the forces that are supposed to protect the people are violently used against peaceful citizens & students who are trying to assert their rights as citizens and human beings.
Why are the victims (The protesting, debt-saddled American people) being criminalized instead of the perpetrators- (the financial & corporate players who have defrauded the country)?
To have any credibility with people interested in the nation-wide movement, President Obama needs to emphatically condemn violence against peaceful protesters. He's publicly sympathized with the sentiments of the protesters, even if he is a partial Wall St. beneficiary. Regardless, he should take action, or at least speak out, to prevent this kind of extreme assholery. It should not be tolerated from any law enforcement in this country, especially against unarmed students & innocent civilians.
This officer is basically a grown-up version of South Park's Eric Cartman- "Respect Mah Authoritah!!!!!"
Later on, the chancellor of the school finally emerged to a creepy walk of shame by a silent mass of students staring her down.
It was a powerful, silent reaction to a petty, violent action:
Of course, nothing is sacred... so anything that causes outrage is now also a target for all the ridicule that The Internet has to offer:
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