Topic: Occupy Wall Street (Read 37879 times)

Thad · « **Reply #280 on:** November 21, 2011, 08:13:59 AM »

Boingboing's all over the UC Davis story.

Original story, which links to an open letter from Asst Prof Nathan Brown calling for Chancellor Linda Katehi's resignation (she's the one who called the police in to break up the protest)
Protesters confront Katehi; she hides in her press conference room for hours rather than face them.
Interview with one of the victims; disgustingly, he says that they were friendly with Lt. Pike earlier in the evening, offering him food and coffee. There's a Right of Hospitality reference here somewhere.
Katehi's official statement. It is, as you might expect, less than satisfying.

I heard the President of the UC System is going to call a meeting of all the chancellors and, presumably, tell them that calling in police to pepper-spray nonviolent protesters in the face at close range is inappropriate.

Royal☭ · « **Reply #281 on:** November 21, 2011, 10:32:32 AM »

Downwardly Mobile Whites Meet the Police

An excellent article that says a lot of what Norondor and I have been trying to say about cops, vis-a-vis their role in the Occupy movement. Good quotes in there.

Quote

But intentions and personal character are not what are called upon when a superior officer demands they suit up and crack heads. If police do not perform their job as commanded, their peers will not trust them, they will not back them up in violent situations and they risk getting sacked. These are facts every cop understands all too well.

Quote

Think about this: what are most laws? They are tools for protecting private property. So we have laws against stealing food, but none against starving. We have laws to protect homes from burglary, but none against homelessness. The police exist to enforce these laws, they are a goon squad for those with property to defend, the 1%.

And I'll finish with a quote from Banksy before recommending a split into a police brutality thread, as the subject is much denser and filled with historical significance, especially depending on your economic or racial background.

Quote

“My main problem with cops is that they do what they're told. They say 'Sorry mate, I'm just doing my job' all the fucking time.”

Thad · « **Reply #282 on:** November 21, 2011, 11:31:05 AM »

More from Xeni Jardin at BoingBoing:

Quote from: http://boingboing.net/2011/11/21/nypd-press-credentialling-proc.html

Elizabeth Spiers on the laughably complex, self-contradicting series of rules and policies for reporters who want to obtain a press pass to cover OWS. You know, so they won't be beaten by police. "You have to demonstrate coverage as an uncredentialed reporter in order to get credentialed. So the only way to comply with the law is to have previously broken the law repeatedly." That ain't the half of it.

Quote from: http://boingboing.net/2011/11/21/in-nyc-kafka-licious-policies.html

I then tried to make the case that issuing press passes to legitimate reporters might help prevent arrests and prevent police from beating reporters, as happened to two journalists for the conservative Daily Caller on Thursday, and that the lack of spots until January seemed odd, and Sarubbi got angry.

“Don’t tell me how to do my job and I won’t tell you how to do yours,” she said.

Sarubbi then hung up without even a goodbye.

I suspect that if they keep beating conservative journalists, we'll start to see a shift in conservative coverage of the protests.

Or they could just, you know, stop beating people. But I'd hate to tell them how to do their job.

Royal☭ · « **Reply #283 on:** November 22, 2011, 11:18:11 AM »

In response, Fox begins campaign to characterize pepper spray as "a food product, essentially".

This is, of course, one of those things that's easily disproved by simply challenging the host to either A) Eat the product on her food or B) Be pepper sprayed in the face. Since neither will happen, Fox news will continue to reiterate this statement and soon it will become the dominant Republican talking point. And since the Dems don't really care about the protesters, they won't fight back, and it'll become the dominant narrative. And suddenly a brutal act of sadistic policing will turn into a food fight.

Brentai · « **Reply #284 on:** November 22, 2011, 11:27:37 AM »

At which point it's perfectly okay for every one of those protesters to carry and use their own cans. It's still nonviolent protest!

Mongrel · « **Reply #285 on:** November 22, 2011, 12:54:44 PM »

"HAVESOMEFREEFOOD! HAVESOMEFREEFOOD!" *pchssssstttt*

Büge · « **Reply #286 on:** November 22, 2011, 03:19:44 PM »

By that logic, throwing a flaming bottle of cooking oil at the police can't count as armed resistance since it's a food product.

Ziiro · « **Reply #287 on:** November 22, 2011, 03:23:12 PM »

I'd like some pepper spray on my hot wings. It sounds delicious.

Büge · « **Reply #288 on:** November 22, 2011, 03:26:12 PM »

Hey, why not blowdarts coated with nightshade? It's used in medicine and related to tomatoes, so it's practically food!

Zach · « **Reply #289 on:** November 22, 2011, 05:06:09 PM »

To say nothing of 80 lbs. of delicious bull testicles.

McDohl · « **Reply #290 on:** November 22, 2011, 08:17:53 PM »

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/11/22/occupy-protesters-disrupt-obama-speech/

Some people try to Mic Check Obama, get shushed up by the crowd.

Thad · « **Reply #291 on:** November 22, 2011, 09:05:19 PM »

Quote

"I appreciate you guys making your point," Obama said. "Let me go ahead and make mine."

Okay, that's pretty classy.

Norondor · « **Reply #292 on:** November 23, 2011, 01:04:58 AM »

cop attacks pregnant woman with chemical weapons and physical violence, murders unborn child

i was gonna be shitty about this but i'll let the news do it for me, honestly.

Brentai · « **Reply #293 on:** November 23, 2011, 01:27:17 AM »

Original source is trying to follow up and unfortunately signs are starting to point to her hamming it up horribly. If that's the case, well... I don't want to be her either way.

Meanwhile, loving the rolling pile of "what was a pregnant woman doing at a protest where cops are beating people?" comments. We're unironically at the point where speaking freely and expecting to not have a surprise abortion performed on you is considered naive.

Bal · « **Reply #294 on:** November 23, 2011, 02:25:17 AM »

It's not really police violence without dogs and hoses.

Zaratustra · « **Reply #295 on:** November 23, 2011, 09:00:34 AM »

People seem to confuse "predictable" with "just". A Gallup poll run right after the Ohio State murders said 55% of americans thought the students were asking for it.

Thad · « **Reply #296 on:** November 23, 2011, 10:08:54 AM »

Ninety-Nine Weeks: A Fairy Tale, by Ursula K Le Guin

Büge · « **Reply #297 on:** November 25, 2011, 08:02:49 PM »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/nov/25/shocking-truth-about-crackdown-occupy?CMP=twt_gu

Norondor · « **Reply #298 on:** November 25, 2011, 08:56:25 PM »

oh, would you look at that.

Brentai · « **Reply #299 on:** November 25, 2011, 08:59:47 PM »

Aaand there goes my sympathy again.

News:

Author Topic: Occupy Wall Street (Read 37879 times)