TWS TO OWS - BUGGER OFF!

From the Rev Dr James H Cooper, rector of Trinity Wall Street:

We are saddened that OWS protestors chose to ignore yesterday’s messages from Archbishop Tutu, from the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Katharine Jefferts Schori, and from Bishop of New York Mark S. Sisk. Bishop Tutu said: “In a country where all people can vote and Trinity’s door to dialogue is open, it is not necessary to forcibly break into property.” The Presiding Bishop said: “Other facilities of Trinity continue to be open to support the Occupy movement, for which I give great thanks. It is regrettable that Occupy members feel it is necessary to provoke potential legal and police action by attempting to trespass on other parish property…I would urge all concerned to stand down and seek justice in ways that do not further alienate potential allies.” Bishop Sisk said: “The movement should not be used to justify breaking the law nor is it necessary to break into property for the movement to continue.”

OWS protestors call out for social and economic justice; Trinity has been supporting these goals for more than 300 years. The protestors say they want to improve housing and economic development; Trinity is actively engaged in such efforts in the poorest neighborhoods in New York City and indeed around the world. We do not, however, believe that erecting a tent city at Duarte Square enhances their mission or ours. The vacant lot has no facilities to sustain a winter encampment. In good conscience and faith, we strongly believe to do so would be wrong, unsafe, unhealthy, and potentially injurious. We will continue to provide places of refuge and the responsible use of our facilities in the Wall Street area. We are gratified by the support we have received from so many in the community.

-The Rev. Dr. James H. Cooper, Rector of Trinity Church

Now I probably should post the Rev Cooper's statement without editorial comment, but I can't resist adding my 2 cents. In my humble opinion, the statement is pretty lame. It appears to me that the rector asked for statements from the big guns ahead of time so he could quote them to back up his own words, as though his statement wouldn't stand on its own.

Are we truly 'a country where all people can vote'? I don't think so. Even now, evidence shows that Republican governors work overtime to make it difficult for certain certain citizens to vote.

Folks keep saying the protestors should be barred from this place or that place because of 'health and safety' concerns, or because 'it's complicated', but it's really not. OWS seeks a place of refuge, and why not let them have the barren plot of land until the spring? They may even decide to move along before spring. Isn't the church to be about offering refuge? I know the folks at Trinity are not bad guys, and I know Trinity does much good in the community and around the world, but they chose to take the safe side against OWS, which means that they lost the opportunity to stand in witness with them against power and corruption.

I think of the Magnificat:

And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

Don't blame me for the headline. Blame my friend who must not be named.

UPDATE: Since her husband is in jail, Brook Packard posted at Occupied Bishop, Bp. Packard's blog, giving an account of her day. Please follow the link in her post to Elizabeth Drescher's report at Religious Dispatches, which provides further information.

A POST AND A COMMENT ON OCCUPY WALL STREET AND TRINITY CHURCH

From Bishop George Packard this morning at Occupied Bishop:

Brook and I travel down to Duarte in a few minutes and what awaits us I do not know. I do know that for me and the OWS I know no violence is intended, only peaceful disobedience if it comes to that. You can follow the live stream from noon to five on WBAI radio.

And speaking of "coming to that" I am still baffled that the Episcopal Church of which I have been a member all my life could not--through Trinity--find some way to embrace these thousands of young people in our very diminishing ranks. (Every year for the last five years we have lost 14,000 members.) Just as we pioneered an awareness of the full membership for the LBGT community what's happening here? How hard would it have been for Trinity to convene legal counsel and say, "Give us some options so that a charter could be granted over the winter months?"

I had proposed that to the Rector and I still think it was a solution. Occupy Wall Street gets a home over the winter (one that would offer food for the Homeless and a clinic--truly bring alive dead space) and Trinity would have the assurance that the lease would return to them safe and sound come Spring. Everybody wins.

Which brings me to Archbishop Tutu's second statement. I see no conflict in anything he said with the first statement, really. As I've said to my Occupy friends, "Let's not delude ourselves in thinking the Archbishop would give you permission to break the law. However, he more than anyone knows what creative tension is brought to a cause for justice when you do." His first statement includes a plea for Trinity not to arrest. But the phrase in his statement--I can only assume it was Trinity which portrayed this to him--was that "their door to negotiation was always open."

Readers, that is plainly not true. Even when Occupy tried over the past three weeks to discuss other prophetic alternatives there was no answer. And that condition continues as we board transportation for Duarte Park now.

From Brook Packard in the comments at the Episcopal Café:

The irony that the church traditionally chants the O Wisdom Antiphon on December 17th is not lost on many.

Trinity's handling of this over the past 3 weeks has been a stunning exercise in assumption and rigidity. It has given OWS things OWS neither asked for or really needed. Having had the privilege of getting to know a core group of this "leaderless yet leaderful" (Cornel West) movement I can tell you they are not in need of pastoral care. OWS's structure is more like church than any parish I know.

The one thing this movement needs desperately is a home. And Trinity -with holdings of over 10 billion dollars-can provide that easily.

OWS has requested repeatedly for meetings with Trinity. Had the leadership stepped forward and negotiated OWS- a movement essential to the discussion of income inequality and a true democracy-could be supported in valid way rather than the cosmetic PR-oriented ways Trinity has concocted.

The irresponsibility of the misleading comments of Katharine Jefferts Schori and Mark Sisk indicate how out of touch The Episcopal Church has become and why it has lost one-third of its membership in a decade. Reading the bishops statements one hears the sound of a few more nails in TEC's coffin. It is limited for Jefferts-Schori and Sisk to parrot Trinity's talking points without looking at the plans or reading Occupy Theory. The past 3 weeks could have been an enormous opportunity for the dying TEC and Trinity to embrace the wind of passion and commitment OWS has brought with them.

My husband, Bishop George Packard will join the occupation of what is a "dead zone" in lower Manhattan. Of that I am enormously proud in the best sense of the word. OWS has plans to make this space a garden, to use it as a home for discussion of the occupy principles, and for actions that include occupying foreclosed homes for homeless families. The institutional church will be left behind. Although cynically, I suspect there will be some sort of OWS Lenten study published next year.

I pray that Trinity has a change of heart and opens the gates tomorrow. If not, I pray the NYPD will not be overly zealous with their clubs, sprays, and zip cuffs.

As for the bishops' comments...well, with 20,000 of us leaving TEC each year, is anyone really listening?

Posted by Brook Packard | December 16, 2011 7:18 PM

The post and comment speak for themselves. Pray for the the protestors and the law enforcement officers as they meet at Duarte Square.

UPDATE: Tweets say that Bishop Packard and a priest were arrested. The man in purple this TwitPic looks like the bishop.

UPDATE 2: Jim Naughton posted the picture below at The Lead of Bishop George Packard and the Rev. John Merz as they were arrested this afternoon at Duarte Square.

BISHOPS WRITE LETTERS

H/T to Ann Fontaine at The Lead:

Letters from The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori and The Rev. Mark Sisk:

Statements from the Rt. Rev Mark S. Sisk and the Presiding Bishop Concerning
Occupy Wall Street, Trinity Church and Duarte Square

From Bishop Sisk

December 16, 2011

As many of you know, Trinity Wall Street is being challenged to provide a small parcel of parish-owned land, Duarte Square, to the Occupy Wall Street movement for encampment or other undefined use.

Trinity has clearly shown its support for the wider goals of the Occupy Wall Street movement, and has aided protesters directly through pastoral care and extensive use of parish facilities. They have said "yes" to requests for meeting space, bathroom facilities, private conference rooms, housing referrals, and pastoral care, and continue to look for ways to provide direct support to those who identify with the movement in Lower Manhattan. Providing private land without facilities for indeterminate usage, however, poses significant health and safety concerns, and is beyond the scope of Trinity's mission. To this, the parish has reasonably said, "no."

In and of itself, a request for use of a parish space by an outside group would not necessitate a bishop's involvement. But alarmingly, some clergy and protesters have attempted to "take" or "liberate" the space without Trinity's consent, and have clearly indicated their intent to engage in other attempts to do so in the coming days.

While many tactics of the Occupy movement have proven effective and creative, I feel it necessary now to reiterate our Church-wide commitment to non-violence. The movement should not be used to justify breaking the law, nor is it necessary to break into property for the movement to continue.

Together, let us pray for peaceful articulation, in word and deed, of the issues of justice and fairness that have brought the Occupy movement into the national conversation.

+Mark

The Rt. Rev Mark S. Sisk, Bishop of New York

------------------------

From the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop and Primate

December 16, 2011

Trinity Church, Wall Street, has provided extensive practical and pastoral support to the Occupy Wall Street movement. The Trinity congregation has decided that the property known as Duarte Park is not appropriate for use by the Occupy movement, and that property remains closed. Other facilities of Trinity continue to be open to support the Occupy movement, for which I give great thanks. It is regrettable that Occupy members feel it necessary to provoke potential legal and police action by attempting to trespass on other parish property. Seekers after justice have more often achieved success through non-violent action, rather than acts of force or arms. I would urge all concerned to stand down and seek justice in ways that do not further alienate potential allies.

+Katharine
The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church

Well, now we hear from the bishops on the matter of the use of Duarte Square. Why? What is the purpose of the Presiding Bishop and the Bishop of the Diocese of New York in writing the letters? Why is the national office of the Episcopal Church involved? Why is the Diocese of New York involved? Did Trinity Church ask them to write letters on their behalf, or did the two bishops take it upon themselves to write the letters?

I can't say they make me proud. That Bishop Sisk and Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori encourage non-violence is absolutely right and proper, but what does the Presiding Bishop mean by her caution against 'acts of force or arms'? The only persons armed are the police. The bishops ask non-violence of the Occupiers, and now that they've involved themselves, perhaps they might use the moral force of their words to ask the police to use restraint. The great majority of incidents of violence that I've heard about and seen on video were from unnecessary use of force by the police.

But alarmingly, some clergy and protesters have attempted to "take" or "liberate" the space without Trinity's consent, and have clearly indicated their intent to engage in other attempts to do so in the coming days.

Are the bishops, in their alarm, advising 'some clergy' or all clergy that they are not to side with the Occupiers? What about the rest of us?

Solutions are available for the health and safety concerns. Why not allow the Occupiers to use the small plot of land? Or, if the Occupiers settle, look the other way and ask the police to stand down.

Or, in the spirit of radical justice, Trinity might consider returning Duarte Square to Native Americans, and then the property would no longer be Trinity's nor the Episcopal Church's problem.

The more I read the bishops' letters, the angrier I get. In the end, I think they are shameful.

UPDATE: The New York Times has a story on Trinity Church and the Occupiers.

A MESSAGE FROM ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU TO OCCUPYWALLSTREET

From OccupyWallStreet:

Sisters and Brothers, I greet you in the Name of Our Lord and in the bonds of common friendship and struggle from my homeland of South Africa. I know of your own challenges and of this appeal to Trinity Church for the shelter of a new home and I am with you! May God bless this appeal of yours and may the good people of that noble parish heed your plea, if not for ease of access, then at least for a stay on any violence or arrests.

Yours is a voice for the world not just the neighborhood of Duarte Park. Injustice, unfairness, and the strangle hold of greed which has beset humanity in our times must be answered with a resounding, "No!" You are that answer. I write this to you not many miles away from the houses of the poor in my country. It pains me despite all the progress we have made. You see, the heartbeat of what you are asking for--that those who have too much must wake up to the cries of their brothers and sisters who have so little--beats in me and all South Africans who believe in justice.

Trinity Church is an esteemed and valued old friend of mine; from the earliest days when I was a young Deacon. Theirs was the consistent and supportive voice I heard when no one else supported me or our beloved brother Nelson Mandela. That is why it is especially painful for me to hear of the impasse you are experiencing with the parish. I appeal to them to find a way to help you. I appeal to them to embrace the higher calling of Our Lord Jesus Christ--which they live so well in all other ways--but now to do so in this instance...can we not rearrange our affairs for justice sake? Just as history watched as South Africa was reborn in promise and fairness so it is watching you now.

In closing, be assured of my thoughts and prayers, they are with you at this very hour.

God bless you,

+Desmond Tutu

Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town”

H/T to Occupied Bishop.

UPDATE: A clarification from Archbishop Tutu.

I’ve challenged my friends at Trinity on this issue just as I’ve challenged Trinity for the past 35 years in our ongoing friendship. I do this in love, not to harm.

I also now challenge those who disagree with Trinity. My statement is not to be used to justify breaking the law. In a country where all people can vote and Trinity's door to dialogue is open, it is not necessary to forcibly break into property. Nor is it to reinforce or build higher the barriers between people of faith who seek peace and justice. My deep prayer is that people can work together and I look forward to that conversation.

WHAT IS A CHURCH TO DO?

From the comments at Occupied Bishop, the blog of Bishop George E. Packard.

Tim Schreier has left a new comment on the post "Trinity's Compassion":

As one of the reporters/photographers arrested at Duarte Square last month, I have some very mixed thoughts about the role of Trinity Church in Occupy Wall Street. These thoughts led me to penning a letter to Father Cooper urging him to reconsider prosecuting (not necessarily me) but the people who were caught up in the middle of Duarte Square Interfaith service.

It was a cold Tuesday morning. Zuccotti Park had been cleared only hours before. The OWS people had walked up to Duarte Square seeking a place to count heads, regroup and shelter from the chaos of the early morning raid. Many people had scattered, many arrested, some left wandering the streets of Lower Manhattan. They need sanctuary. They chose Duarte Square. An Interfaith service had been arranged with Catholic, Episcopal, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist and other representatives.

After the service some had chosen to go over a wall. For some reason, someone had cut the chain link fence, why? I do not know, as there was an open gate too. The police chose to pen the people in this area and offered no warning of arrests. They moved in on force.

This caused me a crisis in faith. A crisis I took to my neighborhood church. They had conversations with Father Cooper. The bottom line is that Father Cooper and Trinity are listening to the wishes of the Vestry. A wealthy Vestry. People from the finance community, one person who works every day with Mayor Bloomberg. People who are seemingly in direct opposition of the general nature of Occupy Wall Street.

My personal conflict is in the teaching of Christ and Trinity's reaction. What would Matthew say to this? Trinity Real Estate is one of, if not the, largest single land owner in Manhattan. Duarte Square is a gravel lot and quite frankly an eye sore in my neighborhood. It's stated intention is to bring art and thought to the community. Trinity has fortified this area since that Tuesday with additional chain linked fencing and a police van 24/7.

I feel sorry for Father Cooper. Truly I do. He is caught between the teaching of Christ and the wishes of his Vestry. Trinity could choose to offer a sanctuary for peaceful gathering. A place for discussion. But it seems that they are insisting on further isolating themselves as if to pretend to pay empathy while appeasing it's mighty Vestry.

Occupy Wall Street has given the United States a gift. It is a living and breathing civics lesson, not only for the adult citizens of our nation but for the Children who are the future of our world. It is a clear example that the world is getting smaller and smaller in thought, word and deed. We, as a nation, hail the protests in Egypt, Tunisia, Moscow, Greece but when it happens on our soil, we turn the other cheek. Occupy Wall Street has opened our dialogue. No longer are we bickering over birth certificates, death panels and other non-sense, we are talking about civil justice, economic justice, immigration justice, taxation justice, health justice... "99%" and "1%" are a part of our collective vernacular. Voices are being heard.

I find it odd that Trinity would want to sit this moment out. If ever there was a case to be made for the importance of the teachings of Christ, this is certainly one of them. Trinity Wall Street can hide behind it's press releases but the rubber hits the road when actions speak and words are silent. Just consult Matthew.
Tim Schreier
Soho, NYC

Tim Schreier's comment speaks for itself.

UPDATE: Schreier is a contributor to the The Local East Village.

'I PLAN TO BE WITH THE MARCHERS ON SATURDAY...'

From Bishop George Packard at Occupied Bishop:

I plan to be with the marchers on Saturday (December 17th) not because I don't like and respect the Rector, the staff, and all the work of this historic parish. I believe they are making a profoundly wrong decision in this matter. Certainly they could record what they think is a trespass on the property with a note to the Occupiers but then have the grace to look the other way.

Read the rest at the link.

I don't see the standoff as between the good guys and the bad guys, but I agree that the staff at Trinity come down on the wrong side. I respect and admire Bishop George for his statement that he will be with the marchers.

TRINITY CHURCH AND THE OCCUPIERS - THE STORY IS NOT OVER

From Bishop George Packard at Occupied Bishop:

The story of Occupy Wall Street wanting to occupy the Duarte property and Trinity Church--seemingly with arms folded--saying "no way" has all the juiciness of the film, "It's a Wonderful Life." The Rector as the mean Mr. Potter and the Occupiers as George Bailey and the good people of Bedford Falls would be the too-easy castings. Well, discard that rendition because it doesn't work and herein is the real pain of the situation we're in.

Late Saturday night by Fr. Jim Cooper's initiative an impromptu meeting was arranged with the hunger strikers--Brian, Diego, Mallory, and Shae in a quiet place, under a full moon. It was very cold and they talked for over an hour. The Rector and his wife had walked to this location on their own initiative. This is the same couple, Jim and Tay Cooper, I might add, who worked at St. Paul's Chapel--having come up from Florida to do so--in those early, raw days after 9/11.

I'm not saying anymore about this meeting out of respect and privacy for the time they had. But it was a classy thing that the Coopers did to come out a cold night, alone, to meet with these young people in their hunger strike for justice. Keep in mind the point of strikers' action was to convince Trinity to let Occupy Wall Street use land encumbered by Trinity.
....

It's what happened the next day that I can narrate because with my wife Brook I accompanied the strikers to the 9 AM service at Trinity the next morning. It was Advent III and the rose candle in the Advent wreath was lighted as we all arrived to hear Fr. Cooper preach and Fr. Matt Heyd celebrate. Brook was on one end of the pew and I was on the other--bookending the strikers, orienting them to the liturgy and hoping they might consider ending their fast with the Holy Eucharist. Mind you, all this wouldn't have happened if Fr. Jim and the strikers hadn't connected on such a human level the night before. Nobody was around then just the five of them talking.

Please read Bishop Packard's entire eloquent and moving post titled 'Trinity's Compassion'. The story of Trinity Church and the Occupiers is not over. Waiting, expecting...in the spirit of Advent.

The word "advent," from the Latin adventus (Greek parousia), means "coming" or "arrival."

H/T to Ann Fontaine at The Lead.

Image of Trinity Church from Wikipedia.

WRONG SIDE OF HISTORY?

From Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori's sermon at Christ Church Cathedral in St. Louis:

I am profoundly struck, however, by the parallels between the Occupy movement and Jesus’ band of homeless wanderers.

“Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’” It seems to me that most of these bands of campers have done just that. “Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house.” The Occupiers have shared food, cared for each other, and challenged the rest of us about justice in the size of paychecks. Now those who have been evicted are struggling with how to continue their global demonstration.

From Bishop George Packard at his blog Occupied Bishop:

I've been doing reluctant shuttle diplomacy between the Occupiers and Trinity Church and in a moment of pique I posted this on Trinity's Facebook page:

I have this great worry that this venerable parish will be on the wrong side of history in a few weeks. Surely there's some consummate wisdom in the leadership that can offer Occupiers a chance to express their prophetic destiny in these days. It's a matter of record that the church is good with the provision of service and succor for the neighborhood; they are unable, it seems, to understand their dynamic needs. Plainly said, this means looking afresh at lease arrangements for a season regarding the Duarte property. Think of it as offering hospitality to travelers from our future who bring the message of "no injustice, no more." If we really saw OWS for who they are rather than putting up roadblocks in their path we'd truly delight in their coming!

I thought it was fairly innocuous but apparently they didn't think so and deleted it an hour later. I'm actually sympathetic because who wants a rabble rouser in the system? But actually, I thought, wouldn't this kind of conversation be active in the parish?

As I said in the comments at The Lead, I agree with the bishop. What I'd suggest is that Trinity negotiate with the Manhattan Cultural Council, which owns the lease for Duarte Square, for the Occupiers to use the square until spring when the council installs their exhibit, a suggestion which I'm certain is not original.

That Bishop Packard's comment was deleted at Trinity's Facebook page is surprising and disturbing to me. Whatever side you take in the debate, squelching dissent does not seem wise.

George E. Packard retired as Episcopal Bishop to the Armed Forces and Chaplaincies in May 2010.

Image from the Occupy Wall Street Facebook page.

H/T to Torey Lightcap at The Lead for the link to Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori's sermon.

H/T to Nicholas Knisely at The Lead for the link to Bishop Packard's blog.

WHAT ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION?

 

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.

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.

Read the rest at the link above.

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.

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.

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.

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.)

OCCUPY WALL STREET - THE NO-SPIN ZONE

From Dahlia Lithwick at Slate:

I confess to being driven insane this past month by the spectacle of television pundits professing to be baffled by the meaning of Occupy Wall Street. Good grief. Isn’t the ability to read still a job requirement for a career in journalism? And as last week’s inane “What Do They Want?” meme morphs into this week’s craven “They Want Your Stuff” meme, I feel it’s time to explain something: Occupy Wall Street may not have laid out all of its demands in a perfectly cogent one-sentence bumper sticker for you, Mr. Pundit, but it knows precisely what it doesn’t want. It doesn’t want you.

What the movement clearly doesn’t want is to have to explain itself through corporate television. To which I answer, Hallelujah. You can’t talk down to a movement that won’t talk back to you.
....

Occupy Wall Street is not a movement without a message. It’s a movement that has wisely shunned the one-note, pre-chewed, simple-minded messaging required for cable television as it now exists. It’s a movement that feels no need to explain anything to the powers that be, although it is deftly changing the way we explain ourselves to one another.

The media and a good many other folks want simple explanations from the protestors for why they are there, sound bites for those with short attention spans...sort of like a political campaign that stays on message. Of course, the protestors at OWC have the sound bites on their signs. But wait! The signs are often amateur jobs, obviously not paid for by the Koch brothers and their ilk, and they don't all say the same thing. Oooh, it's so confusing. People there have lost their jobs; others have lost their homes to the banks and mortgage companies; young people coming out of school or university can't find jobs. The homeless are present. The miseries are many. And to confuse the situation even further, there are those who are fairly well off themselves but wish to join in solidarity with the dispossessed, because, as Archbishop Óscar Romero, the martyr and advocate for the poor in San Salvador, said, “Let those who have a voice, speak out for the voiceless.” And who knows? They/we could be next.

Hey, occupiers: You’re the new news. And even better, by refusing to explain yourselves, you’re actually changing what’s reported as news. Because it takes a tremendous mental effort to refuse to see that the rich are getting richer in America while the rest of us are struggling. Maybe the days of explaining the patently obvious to the transparently compromised are finally behind us.

By refusing to take a ragtag, complicated, and leaderless movement seriously, the mainstream media has succeeded only in ensuring its own irrelevance.

The media pundits look sillier and sillier - as if they didn't look silly enough already.

See the splendid cartoon titled 'The Silent Majority'.

MEANWHILE HERE IN THE US - SHAME!

Oakland, California



From the Marine Times:

An uncle of an Iraq War veteran injured when anti-Wall Street protesters clashed with police in Oakland, Calif., said he was appalled by officers’ action.

A hospital spokesman says the 24-year-old veteran and Wisconsin native, Scott Olsen, was upgraded to fair condition and moved into an intensive care unit on Thursday.
Related reading

His uncle, George Nygaard, tells The Associated Press from Wisconsin that Olsen’s parents were heading to California on Thursday morning.

Olsen apparently suffered a fractured skull Tuesday in a march with other protesters toward Oakland City Hall. The demonstrators were trying to re-establish a presence in the area of a disbanded protesters’ camp when they were met by officers.

It’s not known exactly what type of object struck Olsen or who might have thrown it, although the group Iraq Veterans Against the War said officers were responsible for his injury.

Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said officials will investigate whether officers used excessive force.

Atlanta, Georgia



My hands are not clean. We own investments. Still, my sympathy lies with the Occupy Wall Street protestors. The injustices are too great to brush away. The disparities in income between the rich and the working poor are too monstrous to ignore. That's not to speak of those who have no work, those who are stuck in part-time jobs, and those who are underemployed.

Why can't the protestors occupy public space and show themselves? None of the people with the power to change the sorry situation are listening. Can they close their eyes, too? Why can't the police let the protestors be, so long as they're peaceful?

"The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It's the monster. Men made it, but they can't control it." John Stinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath

H/T to Counterlight for the videos.

SAYS IT ALL - OCCUPY WALL STREET

Click on the image for the larger view.

The young man speaks for me, although I am an indolent, retired person with, fortunately, enough money not to have to choose between food and medicine. I don't want to live in a country like the young man describes, either.

From a friend of a friend of Doug (Counterlight) on Facebook. I hope he doesn't mind. I cropped off the part of his face that showed.

OUR MAN DOUG AT OCCUPY WALL STREET

Doug reports from Times Square.

David Kaplan, Paul Lane, and I met at the Public Library on 5th and 42nd to go to the big Occupy Wall Street rally in Times Square this evening.
....

The weather was perfect, a cool breezy autumn evening. The crowd was immense, much larger than we expected. From our vantage point, it looked like Broadway was packed all the way to 34th street. Far from pot smoking hippies, the crowd struck me as very middle class, and very diverse in terms of age and ethnicity. The mood was determined and very happy and festive. I'm a great believer in the political power of a good time had by all.

Read the rest at Counterlight's Peculiars, and see his pictures from the rally.

ABOUT THOSE DEMONSTRATIONS....

Occupy New Orleans

If you're in the neighborhood and want to be in that number tomorrow, check out their Facebook page for the details.

Rush Limbaugh called the demonstrators 'a parade of human debris'.

And for lagniappe...



'Baby, Please Make a Change' performed by Hugh Laurie with Tom Jones and Irma Thomas from the album 'Let Them Talk'.

THE MESSAGE: WE ARE HERE, AND WE ARE SINGING OUR SONG

My blogger friends 'got it' before I did. it's margaret, Counterlight, and Rmj at Adventus understood Occupy Wall Street well before I did. My heart was with the demonstrators because I believe the big banks and the finance marketeers do real evil. They manipulate the economies of entire countries and virtually the entire world so they get theirs now and to hell with the consequences for anyone else. And Wall Street symbolizes not only the bankers and financiers, but also the greedy, global corporation giants, who put the bottom line before real people. But, to be honest, when I thought about whether I'd be out there with the demonstrators, I thought I'd have to be clearer about goals. There it rested. I still wondered what would get me there if I were nearer to a demonstration.

Occupy Wall Street has now released an official statement which is posted below.

From PlutocracyFiles at Daily Kos:

Declaration of the Occupation of New York City

As we gather together in solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose sight of what brought us together. We write so that all people who feel wronged by the corporate forces of the world can know that we are your allies.

As one people, united, we acknowledge the reality: that the future of the human race requires the cooperation of its members; that our system must protect our rights, and upon corruption of that system, it is up to the individuals to protect their own rights, and those of their neighbors; that a democratic government derives its just power from the people, but corporations do not seek consent to extract wealth from the people and the Earth; and that no true democracy is attainable when the process is determined by economic power. We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments. We have peaceably assembled here, as is our right, to let these facts be known.

They have taken our houses through an illegal foreclosure process, despite not having the original mortgage.

They have taken bailouts from taxpayers with impunity, and continue to give Executives exorbitant bonuses.

They have perpetuated inequality and discrimination in the workplace based on age, the color of one’s skin, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation.

They have poisoned the food supply through negligence, and undermined the farming system through monopolization.

They have profited off of the torture, confinement, and cruel treatment of countless nonhuman animals, and actively hide these practices.

They have continuously sought to strip employees of the right to negotiate for better pay and safer working conditions.

They have held students hostage with tens of thousands of dollars of debt on education, which is itself a human right.

They have consistently outsourced labor and used that outsourcing as leverage to cut workers’ healthcare and pay.

They have influenced the courts to achieve the same rights as people, with none of the culpability or responsibility.

They have spent millions of dollars on legal teams that look for ways to get them out of contracts in regards to health insurance.

They have sold our privacy as a commodity.

They have used the military and police force to prevent freedom of the press.

They have deliberately declined to recall faulty products endangering lives in pursuit of profit.

They determine economic policy, despite the catastrophic failures their policies have produced and continue to produce.

They have donated large sums of money to politicians supposed to be regulating them.

They continue to block alternate forms of energy to keep us dependent on oil.

They continue to block generic forms of medicine that could save people’s lives in order to protect investments that have already turned a substantive profit.

They have purposely covered up oil spills, accidents, faulty bookkeeping, and inactive ingredients in pursuit of profit.

They purposefully keep people misinformed and fearful through their control of the media.

They have accepted private contracts to murder prisoners even when presented with serious doubts about their guilt.

They have perpetuated colonialism at home and abroad.

They have participated in the torture and murder of innocent civilians overseas.

They continue to create weapons of mass destruction in order to receive government contracts.*

To the people of the world,

We, the New York City General Assembly occupying Wall Street in Liberty Square, urge you to assert your power.

Exercise your right to peaceably assemble; occupy public space; create a process to address the problems we face, and generate solutions accessible to everyone.

To all communities that take action and form groups in the spirit of direct democracy, we offer support, documentation, and all of the resources at our disposal.

Join us and make your voices heard!

*These grievances are not all-inclusive.

There it is, what I asked for, and I was not overly enthusiastic about the statement, even though it's based on the splendid 'Declaration of Independence'. It's so 18th century. It's long. The 21st century folks with their short attention spans won't get the message. The demands must be expressed in easy-to-understand language, briefly and punchily, to get the point across today.

Sadly, I still did not 'get it'.

And then I read the op-ed by Richard Eskow at The Huffington Post, and the scales fell from my eyes.

Even the sympathizers don't always get it. I'm sure I get a lot of things wrong too, but here's one thing I do understand: Change doesn't begin with policy. It begins with perception. And you don't change things by asking. You change them by acting.

But it begins with perception. "All money is a matter of belief," as someone once said.

In the New York Times, Nick Kristof shows that he understands the #OccupyWallStreet movement more than most of his peers. "The protesters are dazzling in their Internet skills," he writes, "and impressive in their organization."

But like many other sympathetic observers, he misses their most important point when he says "the movement falters in its demands" because "it doesn't really have any."

As movement participant Nelini Stamp told the Take Back the American Dream conference this morning, "We don't have demands. If we make demands of Wall Street, we're saying that Wall Street has the power."

But the fact that the movement doesn't make demands of Wall Street - or Washington, for that matter - doesn't mean it doesn't have demands. It does, but they're not directed at Wall Street, or K Street, or Pennsylvania Avenue. They're directed at you. And at me, and at every other citizen in this country.
....

But the "one demand" that matters most is directed at our society, not our policymakers, and it's much more fundamental than these excellent ideas. The demand is this: "Come back to sanity." That's the underlying demand that unifies all those items on the #OccupyWallSt website. Our culture is insane today, and they recognize that. Create a transactions tax, and they'll simply rob us another way - until we restore our society to sanity.
....

But the main point is: This is a song, not a policy platform, and there's no one composer. Everybody's making it up as they go along, and everyone else is welcome to join - as long as they don't lose the beat.

Please read the entire long, splendid op-ed.

The demand: 'Come back to sanity.' The main point: 'This is a song.'

Yes, I see. Or rather, I think I see, although I could still be getting it wrong. I hope not. What took me so long?

OCCUPY WALL STREET - AN INTERVIEW NEVER AIRED

From Daily Kos:

Fellow Kossack Jesse LaGreca (a/k/a MinistryofTruth) Destroys Fox News Reporter

TRANSCRIPT (ht middleagedhousewife)

Fox: Jesse, so Ray, your partner here, colleague, your commerade, she got, ya know, receieved a protest [unintelligible] here and elsewhere did you guys take your cue from that? Are you hungry to incite ya know certainly what is a lot of attention if not police activity? I know over the weekend, there was over 100 arrests you guys got things fired up. Are you taking your cues from international events in …
How do you want to see this end? What do you what do you if you could have it end in a perfect way, how would that be?

Jesse: Well, I don’t know, it’s really difficult to kind of answer questions leading to those conclusions. I’d say we didn’t take our cues from anybody really, it became more of a spontaneous movement. As far as seeing this end, I wouldn’t like to see this end. I’d like to see the conversation continue. This is what we should have been talking about in 2008 after the economy collapsed. We basically patched a hole on the tire and said, yeah, let the car keep rolling. Unfortunately, it’s fun to talk to the propaganda machine in the media, especially conservative media such as yourself, because we find that we can’t get conversations on the Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation of NewsCorporation for which you are an employee, but we can certainly, you know, ask questions such as why are the poor engaging in class warfare. After 30 years of having our living standards decrease while the wealthiest 1% have had it better than ever, I think it’s time for, I don’t know, some participation in our Democracy that isn’t funded by news cameras and gentlemen such as yourself.

Fox:OK, but let me give you this challenge, Jesse,

Jesse: Sure

Fox: We’re here giving you an opportunity on the record with (unintelligible) to put any message you want out there, and give you fair coverage and I’m not going to in any way

Jesse: That’s awesome

Fox: give advice about it. So here’s an exception to the case, because you wouldn’t be able to get your message out without us. [I just have to say, I could not type this without laughing!]

Jesse: No, certainly! I mean, take for instance, when Glenn Beck was doing his protests, and he called the President a person who hates white people and white culture. That was a low moment in America’s history, and you guys kinda had a big part in it. So I’m glad to see you coming around and paying attention to what the other 99% of America is paying attention to, as opposed to just the far right fringe who would love to just destroy the middle class entirely.

Fox: Alright. Fair enough. You have a voice, and an important reason to criticize myself and my company and anyone else. But let me ask you this. In fairness, does this administration, Pres. Obama, have any criticism as to the the financial situation in the country and the … [he sticks the mike in Jesse’s face]

Jesse: I think that myself as well as many other people would like to see a little bit more economic justice or social justice, Jesus stuff as far as feeding the poor, health care for the sick. You know, I find it really entertaining that people like to hold the Bill of Rights up while they’re screaming at gay soldiers, but they just can’t wrap their heads around the idea that a for profit health care system doesn’t work. So, let’s just look at it like this: if we want the president to do more, let’s talk to him on a level that actually reaches people, instead of asking for his birth certificate and wasting time with total nonsense like Solyndra (sp).

Cross-posted at Plutocracy Files.

12:37 PM PT: I've been informed by the New York Observer that the reporter who uploaded the video was Drew Grant. She worked super hard to get that information out there. So PLEASE make sure to link to her story:

http://www.observer.com/...

I hope the video goes viral, and I'm doing my small part to make it happen. Thanks to ann v for the link.