I had been deceived - My visit to an OWS protest

Its good to see someone take the time to check something out for themselves instead of being brainwashed by the media.

Originally posted by Fractured.Facade

Originally posted by tothetenthpower

Let's hope they continue to gain momentum and this leads to real change.

Careful what you wish for... You may not like it.

Everyone who voted for "change" can tell you how well that has worked out for them.

Every change is not negative, and because the most obvious 'change' lies came out and are now obvious, any positive change seems to also get that rap.
Don't look at change as anything, look at if it is positive or negative. If it is undefined - run away!!

Originally posted by ThirdEyeofHorus
reply to post by Jean Paul Zodeaux

 

People even in the ATS forum are starting to call people fascist when they don't support the OWS protest. I asked for a definition of fascism and provided one myself but all I got in response was whining about how much I protest socialism. I guess more people read my stuff than I thought.

Yes sadly the lines are being drawn here on the ATS as well. Gone are the days of "Deny Ignorance"...it seems that we only deny ignorance on the things we don't believe in. I feel the ATS is no longer a neutral ground of free thought...the winds even here have chosen their direction.

reply to post by AMereCaratGirl


I wonder why comments as such are not starred enough, damn maybe this movement on the this site isn't as productive as I would like. Star for you buddy!

Originally posted by Misoir
There were no drum circle hippies, tie dye pot hits, barefoot guitarists, face painting stands, orgies, or even any real hostility between participants.

I think this really only happens in the larger cities with large homeless populations... the "gypsies" if you will.

As I wandered through the crowd I listened to the chatter of college kids about the high cost of tuition or to my satisfaction, Ron Paul and ending the Fed, to talk of the two party duopoly and its control over us all.

There was a nice older man there in a wheel chair that [...] told me that there was nothing left for him just sitting at home, the government has repeatedly denied him Social Security Disability even after the documentation by his doctor of his serious seizure problems (forgot the name of the disease/disorder). At the same time he said that his neighbor is receiving government assistance but is perfectly healthy, the man just complains about his knee, anxiety, and anger issues.

Just to be very clear - the two biggest complains you found were students mad about high tuition for optional higher education and a handicapped man who wanted money from the government to live on? I'm trying to be very unemotional and logical about this.

After all, isn't the idea behind the Libertarian movement that the handicapped man should visit a non-profit charity for assistance instead of the government? Shouldn't the students be organizing boycotts to the universities that charge high tuition instead of Wall Street? And even further - if the cost of higher education is too high, then devote yourself to learn a trade ("blue collar") - or do like many many American immigrants do and work 2 jobs while going to school... it won't leave a lot of time to party and have the "college experience"... but you will get finished in a lot less debt.

Just as you would tell a liberal to visit a Tea Party rally to understand who they are and what they believe, you should do the same with OWS.

If it's not a Rep/Dem thing, or a Lib/Cons thing... why would you have to equate it to a self-declared conservative movement?

Seems that we're already conceding this a Democrat/Liberal movement while at the same time claiming it has no party or political affiliation or leanings.

If they show an interview of a OWS’er turn off the TV, it is not worth rotting your brain with.

Telling everyone to ignore the media's coverage because it's all wrong is tantamount to telling everyone to trust the official White House press conferences but don't pay attention to things like ATS...

One should always ingest as much info as possible and use their brain to separate the wheat from the chaff... Closing yourself off from an outlet of information is only inviting ignorance.

All this is obviously just my opinion, but I've already stated my opinion of this charade...

If people only people realized more that society is driven by themselves not the greed and power of others they can only influence it...people need to participate in it's evolution and support the ones who are trying to make the proper changes happen by listening and believing that better changes are possible

Global currancy does not equate to NWO folks....
NWO is Type 1 Civilization, MIC essentially, running the ballgame from a centralized world banking system using US as a slaveclass for production.
NWO is not citizens of earth uniting and trying to wipe out TPTB and their money pits. Don't confuse the two.
OWS does not, in any way, equate to NWO. They are opposed.
A global movement will, of necessity, unite the world in ways we can not yet formulate in any degree of detail, but it will do so under personal empowerment, not personal slavery.

I will also include a very broad spirituality that transcendes religion, so be prepared for that. Religion, as an institution, has long been the spiritual spear of TPTB, especially the fundamentalist movements in EVERY theology. Religion will become more personal and less institutionalized, as will government. It will, however, be voluntary and not compulsory as presently constituted.

It is funny to me, when the tea party was protesting, they were considered bigots, homophobes, etc. I wonder, did any of you go to those protests and see that they were saying the same themes as OWS? But because they were conservative and religious, they were dumb zealots? OWS vs. Teaparty is just another way to divide us, and keep us from uniting and making serious change.

Yeah, you'll find a lot of people down there giving a #, but hasn't it been proven that the movement was hijacked? This is all part of the plan to rally people against the government and then implement Martial Law and reduce us to nothing.

Originally posted by Deflagration
Yeah, you'll find a lot of people down there giving a #, but hasn't it been proven that the movement was hijacked? This is all part of the plan to rally people against the government and then implement Martial Law and reduce us to nothing.

This is where the citizens of the US are different from any other country on earth, many of these people are armed, some quite heavily, and they are not beyond fighting back, in other countries the citizens have nothing except sticks and stones to retaliate with but the gun makes Americans much more difficult to defeat, the elite lords know this fact and this is why they have been trying to disarm them for decades now. It hasn't worked and I believe if the dictators running the US gov't try and impose martial law THEY will be ejected from power....finally.

MOST IMPORTANTLY OUR CONSTITUTION GIVES THE CITIZENS THE RIGHT TO REMOVE A TYRANNICAL GOV'T FROM POWER. The situation we have now in the US goes BEYOND that definition of tyranny. All you have to do is look at how our constitution rights and bill of rights have been massively violated by these thuggish rulers. No rigged vote, or protest is going to dislodge these tyrants from power, this is a historical fact.

NYPD Assaulting/Ramming Peaceful Protesters with Scooters (slow mo' action)
www.youtube.com...


The same situation , different camera , different police dude dude
www.youtube.com...

reply to post by Deflagration


This movement cannot, by its very nature, be hijacked. I have seen it attempted and it is INSTANTLY evaporated by consensus. this generation is too savy and tech smart, they have heard all of the rhetoric and are wide awake. They understand the false left-right paradigm and they cannot be defined by TPTB...that is the saving grace here. You, my friend, really need to go see for yourself. It's in a city near you.....

reply to post by Misoir


OWs nothing to see - global spread? whatever!

Political plant to win points with the common voters. Politicians are going to nod and agree then idiots will vote for them as they do then no change will come and the voters will be left looking stupid.

Back it all you want, sit in the cold and "protest" but your laughing if you think change is going to happen like this. Keep on moving - we'll see as winter rolls along how "hardcore" this wannabe protest is. POLITICAL SCAM / REHEARSED EVENT!!

I would agree that some of the event may be scripted BUT the MAJORITY of people attending the OWS are just that ordinary, run of the mill common folks that are fed up with the tyranny and corruption in our gov't and business community.

Indeed when winter comes I think many protesters will go home, BUT this is the learning curve for these ordinary people, then they will learn that since the rigged vote and protests do NOT change the criminal conduct or the tyranny of our institutions it will be time for the use of the 2nd Amendment to force the tyrants out . It is coming.

Luckily since the tyrannical occupation gov't is being drained on so many fronts (wars, unrest here, ect) that they are weak and ripe for defeat now. Good, very good, looking forward to seeing the elite arrested and tried for crimes against the people. The elite feudal psychopaths are heading for the fall they so absolutely deserve.

Most importantly DO NOT FEAR, ignore the fear mongering in the controlled mass media, this has been one of the tyrants biggest tools for making the ordinary people refrain from action.

reply to post by jimnuggits


You got it, jimnuggits. That's the "good" kind of greed I was referring to, not the other one that corporations can legally do under the current system because our politicians are their puppets.

Albeit controversial, Ayn Rand wrote some damn good stuff. I don't know anyone else who can define greed in such a beautiful and powerful way. :-D

reply to post by Amanda5


Amanda5, I beg to differ. If you'd read THE FOUNTAINHEAD or ATLAS SHRUGGED by Ayn Rand, you'll see that there are good types of greed... and that greed is necessary (As someone who escaped communist USSR, she really had a great way of defining it). Also, good greed is a part of life in every organism that survives.

May I suggest the common definition of 'greed' is insufficient to the deeper meanings and necessity of it. But just because there is a good type of greed, that doesn't mean the corporations who've passed federal laws to make them wealthier and do away with the small business shouldn't be repealed. I don't recall the exact number, but it's something like each lobbyist spends about $20,000,000 per Congress person each year to get their bills passed as they want it. (That number is probably off, but the real number was equally astounding and disgusting. I should've wrote that statistic down.)

So, there is definitely a clear difference between greed and corruption. One can existing without the others, even though the common definition merges to the two. Thanks for your feedback.

reply to post by ShadowZion


The corruption-free greed is a virtue. Sometimes it helps to dig deeper into the etymology and historical references in what the Bible presents as law.

'Greed' can be defined as wanting the best for oneself (to be one's best) so that he/she can also have something to give others and advance society. This applies to 11 of the 12 Apostles who were greedily absorbed as much as they could about the Messiah. This deep spiritual appetite then fed generations after generations of believers.

Likewise, if you're greedily managing your talons/talents properly, then you have more blessings to bestow upon others and society. It is what we are commanded to do. Be greedy to be the best you can be without blame... and have charity.

reply to post by twoandthree


Thank you - you are the reason I enjoy writing as a beautiful and powerful craft. It is also why I am a passionate English Teacher. People do not really know the power of their written words until they are the source of critical thinking.

With all the push button devices we are giving our Children I am not surprised that so few of them seem truly interested in writing at length - with depth - with personal reflection ...

Maybe this is why there are so many people at Occupy Wall Street, they need to gather together and communicate without pushing buttons that will give them an instant reply. The mere fact that the people are still Occupying Wall Street shows that they are not completely reliant on push button devices for answers - deep down inside they want long term solutions.

Just my thoughts.

Much Peace...

I do think that there’s one secret that members of this movement need to learn.

What’s this secret? The power of one.

You see, right now this movement is a disjointed mess. Between inarticulate speakers filled with socialist rhetoric and a dress code reminiscent of Woodstock, there’s one thing missing.

The protesters need one clear, specific course of action, not general outrage at some vague villain named “Wall Street.”

I can think of plenty of changes that need to happen to get the economy on firmer ground. Two, in particular, are ideas that this group of protesters, along with the general public, could rally around.

First, bring back some form of Glass-Steagall. This Depression-Era legislation was designed to separate traditional banking from investment banking. Its repeal in the late 1990s allowed banks to increase the amount of leverage they could use. Given this power, banks set out to create and employ products like derivatives that substantially increased the use of leverage.

While I’m not a fan of government interventions in the market, limiting leverage will do more good than harm. The original law worked. Its repeal allowed for the housing bubble. In your personal life, you separate the cash you need to pay your bills from your investments. If bankers are held to the same standard, we’d likely see less wild booms and busts.

Second, it’s time to impose term limits on members of Congress. The longest-serving members get top committee assignments, and huge corporate donations. It’s also the reason why a lifelong renter like Barney Frank could end up running a committee on housing, where he could claim that one of his top donors, Fannie Mae, was in sound financial condition right before it went bankrupt.

History doesn’t record much of the reason behind the twenty-second amendment, which imposed term limits on the presidency. But it passed Congress in 1947, just as America was starting to emerge from a Great Depression whose depth and severity was caused, in part, by the economic policies of a willful president with a poor understanding of market incentives.

I can understand the frustration of protesters. But blaming Wall Street or a weak economy for the results of your own choices isn’t the answer.

It’s easier to create change from within.

So, pick one change to rally around, then pack it up and go find work. I didn’t say find a job, because there might not be one. Create your own. Innovate.

Call me a protester protester, but spending your time outraged that someone has it better than you doesn’t make your life better. It just makes you look petty and jealous. It detracts you from living your life to the fullest.

If only a small fraction of the protesters created their own jobs and businesses through entrepreneurial derring-do, we’d all be too busy enjoying the fruits of a robust economy to care about those who have managed to do better.


Read more: The Power of One
Important: Can you afford to Retire? Shocking Poll Results