From Juan Cole at Informed Comment:
Not only did the police, at the orders of billionaire mayor Michael Bloomberg, abruptly move on the protesters, they are alleged to have deliberately kept the press away, which is clearly unconstitutional if true.Read the rest at the link above.
The US constitution prohibits Congress from restricting the right of citizens to assemble peacefully and to petition for redress of grievances. For a history of the relevant US Supreme Court cases, see this link.
The government is also forbidden to interfere with the workings of the free press, so that the NYPD’s attempt to keep reporters away from the scene of their unprovoked attack on the demonstrators compounds the unconstitutionality of it all.
The Republicans bang on about their reverence for the Constitution, but when it comes to ousting OWS demonstrators, well, the Constitution be damned.
Further, in another post at Informed Comment, Cole says:
Oakland Mayor Jean Quan let slip in an interview with the BBC that she had been on a conference call with the mayors of 18 cities about how to deal with the Occupy Wall Street movement. That is, municipal authorities appear to have been conspiring to deprive Americans of their first amendment rights to freedom of assembly and freedom to petition the government for redress of grievances.Why the panicky response to OWS? The heavy-handedness of the police as they attack, drive out, and arrest the protestors will only add to the list of grievances and will likely draw more supporters to stand in solidarity with them and more protestors to join them.
Likewise, A Homeland Security official let it slip in a phone interview that the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had been strategizing with cities on how to shut down OWS protests. The FBI is said to have advised using zoning ordinances and curfew regulations, and to stage the crackdown with massive police force at a time when the press was not around to cover the crackdown.
UPDATE: And what about you, Democrats? Last time I heard Obama was a Democrat. What about the Constitution?
(Added in response to comments to the post pointing out my error in not calling the president to account.)
So, which of the people you identify as violating the constitution are Republicans?
ReplyDeleteKevin K
Kevin K., why aren't Republicans protesting the violations of constitutional rights?
ReplyDeleteDear Mimi,
ReplyDeleteYou are answering a question with a question so I will take the liberty as well. Why are you commenting about Republicans talking about constitutional rights when you are complaining about Democrats violating persons constitutional rights?
Kevin K.
Not part of the political party alleged to be violating the constitutional rights of ows members.
Dear Kevin, I never miss an opportunity to have a go at Republicans.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, but I don't understand your question.
Dear Mimi,
ReplyDeleteMy question was why are you blaming Republicans for what Democrats are doing?
You answered that question.
Kevin K
Kevin is right. The Dept. of Homeland Security is under the control of Obama appointees.
ReplyDeleteSo tell me again how the President is so much different from his predecessor?
(Not aimed at you, Mimi. Just my bitter musing....)
Kevin and Doxy, you are both right. I edited my post with an update pointing the finger at Democrats, too. My main object was to get Juan Cole's words up, and I did not pay enough attention to my commentary. My mistake! Thanks for pointing out the error.
ReplyDeleteGrandmere --Joel and I are sitting here --outraged that the mayors et als are working together (something I suspected when the news was full of oustings --get it all done at once so the awful ousting news doesn't drag on) --and we are outraged that they are getting advice from the FBI and Homeland Security.
ReplyDeleteAdministrations be damned --those are parts of the government that are near autonomous no matter who is "appointed"...
This kind of action will conclude in two ways --citizens that just withdraw and give up --or citizens that plan a revolution....
margaret, I guess, in a way, we could call the attention of all the government agencies progress. Before the protests NO ONE was paying attention.
ReplyDeleteI hope and pray that the protestors are committed to non-violence. The moral force behind a non-violent movement is beyond measure.
Thanks for the head's up Grandmere.
ReplyDelete"A pox on both their Houses." My question is why do we professed, confirmed Christians, who have pledged our full allegiance, "our lives and fortunes" (to quote revolutionary allegiance and vow breakers,) our souls to the blessed Trinity still put so much faith in human government and human "goodness?"
As members of the very incarnate and resurrected Body of Christ, and hence, One with God in Christ, SIGN by our lives and actions as his Body before the world that Christ, i.e., God, puts His trust in human government?
Stoic morality and Roman "Vir"-tues and humanistic Liberal (virtually meaning human/without God) sound so "nice," and indeed are patriotic, but the only way to maintain them is human force and power and politics and in the end war and finally Death. Politics is a way of human dealings without ever acknowledging what we call "sin." Again, "A pox on both their Houses." And "Voting" for one house or the other "is opium for the" 99%. Has it mattered at all in any of this for the last umpteen decades? Thanks for posting the post you did Grandmere. I am outraged! Neither the Elephant in the middle or the room not the Ass impress me, or even their money or police/military power. "In the Spirit, Blessed are the Poor! ...Woe to the rich!" Not my words-- Christ's, for we Christians, God-in-(t)his-world's.
My question is why do we professed, confirmed Christians, who have pledged our full allegiance, "our lives and fortunes" (to quote revolutionary allegiance and vow breakers,) our souls to the blessed Trinity still put so much faith in human government and human "goodness?"
ReplyDeleteJoel, I don't count on politicians to 'fix' the situation in our country and establish the Kingdom. I'm as cynical about politics today as I've ever been in my life.
"In the Spirit, Blessed are the Poor! ...Woe to the rich!"
"Only the destitute are innocent."
What Joy you are! And thank you for introducing me to those you read. What a resource for hope you are.
ReplyDeleteJoel, my old blog friend Rmj has taught me so much. I'm very grateful to him. (I mean old in blogger years. He's years younger than I.)
ReplyDeleteWell, you know, the ruling elites have their cake, so we can all eat ours as well, right.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid it's going to take a similar response to the last ruling elite with that opinion to change this country.
In my experience of OWS rallies, Democrats and Republicans are conspicuously absent as either heroes or villains. The villains are always the plutocrats in the financial industry and in others like oil & gas. The heroes are always ordinary people confronting the villains directly. The real centers of power in the USA, in this narrative, are corporate boardrooms across the country. Washington, and the local and state governments who send in the cops, are all just middlemen.
ReplyDeleteThe Republicans do the bidding of the plutocrats, and Obama and the rest of the Dems get Wall Street funds and patronage.
All the constitutional piety is just a smokescreen. If they (Repubs and Dems) really revered the constitution, the Iraq invasion would never have happened, Nixon would have been impeached for invading Cambodia in 1970, and the power to make war and peace would reside with Congress again, not the President.
Money talks, and the more money you have, the more talk you get.
This country is going to kill me yet - not that they'll shoot me - but from stress. I watched the news last night (many nights I don't). Oh boy.
ReplyDeleteDoug, thanks for doing the walk across the Brooklyn Bridge last night.