For My Father.--"I don't want to see any homeless people on the streets, and I don't want to see a veteran or elderly people struggle. We all should have our fair share. We all vote, pay taxes. Tax the rich."
NEW YORK — Protests against Wall Street entered their 18th day Tuesday as demonstrators across the country show their anger over the wobbly economy and what they see as corporate greed by marching on Federal Reserve banks and camping out in parks from Los Angeles to Portland, Maine.Demonstrations are expected to continue throughout the week as more groups hold organizational meetings and air their concerns on websites and through streaming video.
In Manhattan on Monday, hundreds of protesters dressed as corporate zombies in white face paint lurched past the New York Stock Exchange clutching fistfuls of fake money. In Chicago, demonstrators pounded drums in the city's financial district. Others pitched tents or waved protest signs at passing cars in Boston, St. Louis, Kansas City, Mo., and Los Angeles.
A slice of America's discontented, from college students worried about their job prospects to middle-age workers who have been recently laid off, were galvanized after the arrests of 700 protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge over the weekend.
The Occupy Wall Street protests started on Sept. 17 with a few dozen demonstrators who tried to pitch tents in front of the New York Stock Exchange. Since then, hundreds have set up camp in a park nearby and have become increasingly organized, lining up medical aid and legal help and printing their own newspaper, the Occupied Wall Street Journal.
About 100 demonstrators were arrested on Sept. 24 and some were pepper-sprayed. On Saturday police arrested 700 on charges of disorderly conduct and blocking a public street as they tried to march over the Brooklyn Bridge. Police said they took five more protesters into custody on Monday, though it was unclear whether they had been charged with any crime.
"At this point, we don't anticipate wider unrest," said Tim Flannelly, an FBI spokesman in New York, "but should it occur the city, including the NYPD and the FBI, will deploy any and all resources necessary to control any developments."
Flannelly said he does not expect the New York protests to develop into the often-violent demonstrations that have rocked cities in the United Kingdom since the summer. But he said the FBI is "monitoring the situation and will respond accordingly."
Wiljago Cook, of Oakland, Calif., who joined the New York protest on the first day, said she was shocked by the arrests.
"Exposing police brutality wasn't even really on my agenda, but my eyes have been opened," she said. She vowed to stay in New York "as long as it seems useful."
City bus drivers sued the New York Police Department on Monday for commandeering their buses and making them drive to the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday to pick up detained protesters.
"We're down with these protesters. We support the notion that rich folk are not paying their fair share," said Transport Workers Union President John Samuelsen. "Our bus operators are not going to be pressed into service to arrest protesters anywhere."The city's Law Department said the NYPD's actions were proper.
On Monday, the zombies stayed on the sidewalks as they wound through Manhattan's financial district chanting, "How to fix the deficit: End the war, tax the rich!" They lurched along with their arms in front of them. Some yelled, "I smell money!"
Some protesters planned to travel to other cities to organize similar events.
John Hildebrand, a protester in New York from Norman, Okla., hoped to mount a protest there after returning home Tuesday. Julie Levine, a protester in Los Angeles, planned to go to Washington on Thursday.
"Our beautiful system of American checks and balances has been thoroughly trashed by the influence of banks and big finance that have made it impossible for the people to speak," said protester Marisa Engerstrom, of Somerville, Mass., a Harvard doctoral student.Demonstrators decorated their tents with hand-written signs reading, "Fight the rich, not their wars" and "Human need, not corporate greed."Just like 99% of Americans"We don't have voices, we don't have lobbyists, so we've been pretty much neglected by Washington," he said.
Protesters stood on a street corner a few blocks from the shimmering Gateway Arch, carrying signs that read, "How Did The Cat Get So Fat?," "You're a Pawn in Their Game" and "We Want The Sacks Of Gold Goldman Sachs Stole From Us."
"Money talks, and it seems like money has all the power," said Apollonia Childs. "I don't want to see any homeless people on the streets, and I don't want to see a veteran or elderly people struggle. We all should have our fair share. We all vote, pay taxes. Tax the rich."
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Isis #4 - The Sound of Silenceby TheWizardShazam1,234 views
Why the corporate media are mute on Occupy Wall St
Diane Sawyer ABC...net worth $40 million, salary per year $12 million
Katie Couric CBS....net worth $55 million, salary per year $15 million
Brian Williams NBC....net worth $40 million, salary per year $12.5 million
Dan Rather... estimated net worth $70 million
Tom Brokaw....estimated net worth $70 million
Bill O'Reilly...Fox, personal net worth $50 million
FOR DOING NOTHING--EDIT: FOR BEING DECEPTIVE TO AMERICA
salsabilbalasi 4 months ago
@0past Specially that big mouth scum-bag bill o'reilly. Can you believe what a racket this guy is? What makes me sad that he has co-authered a book about Abraham Lincoln! I think that is a big insult to America and Abraham Lincoln for a media pimp like bill o'(fucking)reilly to write about Lincoln and praise him. One of these days coming soon somebody is going to thank him for it mechanically.
salsabilbalasi 4 months ago
@salsabilbalasi Those in the media who peddle lies for profit.
0past 4 months ago
@0past Which side you are talking about?
salsabilbalasi 4 months ago
@salsabilbalasi I prefer silence to the lies.
They will be remembered for being on the wrong side of history.
Then they will be forgotten forever.
0past 4 months ago
Why the corporate media are mute on Occupy Wall St
Diane Sawyer ABC...net worth $40 million, salary per year $12 million
Katie Couric CBS....net worth $55 million, salary per year $15 million
Brian Williams NBC....net worth $40 million, salary per year $12.5 million
Dan Rather... estimated net worth $70 million
Tom Brokaw....estimated net worth $70 million
Bill O'Reilly...Fox, personal net worth $50 million
FOR DOING NOTHING--EDIT: FOR BEING DECEPTIVE TO AMERICA
salsabilbalasi 5 months ago