OCCUPY WALL STREET

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by persiphone

i think Obama recently passed a cap on student loan payments of 10% of your income maximum. i think the whole thing is now based on your current income, actually. i could be wrong. it's been a minute since i read about it and it was a buried story and i haven't seen anything about it since.

This is true in part, however, the student loan programs were taken from government administration and given to private banks (over the last few decades)! We need to go back to full government administration and re-payment. It used to be that the interest paid on these loans went back to the government agencies for reinvestment of student loans- now it is "profit" for banks. Thus, a huge amount of what used to "re-fill" the public coffers to keep granting student loans became part of a private profit margin- which brings us to Wall Street profits.

Also, some of the interest made was put back into educational systems other than the student loan programs, as in state education college funding. What happened (and even under Obama's plan) is that the "working" margin of interest profit is now going to the private incomes/bonuses of private bankers and is part of those dividends paid to stockholders of the private banks. Those are folks within the 1%!

Sound familiar? This was the direct work of Republican privatization political strategies. In effect, the student loan programs in the US were raped for the good of private and publically traded business on the backs of college students.

Obama's plan will help with having sane payments for students after graduation, that is true. But the banks will not have as high of a yield of profit from these loans. Probably they will add more loan fees in order to recover these losses (remember, the so called regulation safeguards we now have don't really have much bite at all- pretty bogus, really).

There are also many loan fees associated with these loans that were not charged when they were administered by the government. Not even close. The original government run student loans were a very good bargain for students and were not filled with initiation fees. In fact, a student paid about $15 to file a loan application and that was about it for them in terms of loan fees. And they paid a low inhterest rate when they began paying back these loans.

No, problems around student loans and the relationship to banks and Wall Street are not being fully addressed.

Even loans for our veterans that can give them good deals on buying a home are profit makers for banks and Wall Street via how they are intermingled and administered through private banking.

Personally, I want whatever taxes I pay that is earmarked for education and loans to vets to be part of government administration and put back into the programs so that the programs grow and more loans become available for both populations and the jobs that were available to government employees are brought back!

Have to add that "out-sourcing" happens within our geographical boundaries (public to private administration)!!!

[atomiczombie]

Mayor Bloomberg shuts Zuccotti Park as he reviews court order issued hours after police cleared the park of protesters

NEW YORK — Hours after police officers descended on Zuccotti Park in a surprise sweep of the Occupy Wall Street headquarters, protesters were locked in a standoff Tuesday morning with police over a court order that would allow them to return with their tents.

A hearing on the temporary restraining order, filed by a New York City judge, was under way Tuesday afternoon. The city filed court papers opposing the order and claiming that giving protesters free rein over the park would cause unsafe and unsanitary conditions. They also claimed occupiers were stockpiling makeshift weapons including metal-pipes inside cardboard tubes.
Earlier, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg told reporters Tuesday that he had not received the order and that the park would remain closed "until we can clarify the situation," he said.

Tuesday's court order, which was published on The New York Times website, said authorities were prohibited from "preventing protesters from re-entering the park with tents and other property previously utilized." But Bloomberg closed the park while lawyers reviewed the order.

PhotoBlog: Dispatches from the disputed streets

The park had become a health and fire safety hazard and that "unfortunately ... (it) became a place not to protest, but to break the law," Bloomberg said Tuesday.
"Inaction was not an option," he said. "We could not wait for someone in the park to get killed."
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said around 200 were arrested overnight, including dozens who tried to resist by linking arms at the center of Zuccotti Park or chaining themselves together with bicycle locks.

NBC New York's Jonathan Dienst, who was at the scene in Lower Manhattan, reported that he had counted a further 40 arrests along Broadway.
Jay-Z and others who are profiting from Occupy Wall Street
A few protesters, who appeared to resist and shove officers, were thrown to the ground and placed in handcuffs, he reported.

Ryan Peters, 29, from Chicago, who took a leave of absence from the advertising agency where he works to tour different Occupy protests, cried as he told msnbc.com's Miranda Leitsinger that about 30 people had chained themselves up inside the Occupy protest's kitchen area.
"People want to fight for something that's really important," he said. "It makes me cry every time I think of them (the people in the kitchen) getting locked down in the park … these guys are patriots."

Another protester, Luc Baillargeon, 29, told Leitsinger that "a few" people were treated for pepper burns and minor lacerations but he added there were no apparent signs of serious injuries. NYPD told WNBC three people were injured during the evacuations, one of whom was taken to Bellevue Hospital.
Meanwhile, a message on the @OccupyWallSt Twitter account said that city council member Ydanis Rodriguez was "beaten by nypd and bleeding from head."

Police confirmed Rodriguez was part of a group arrested near Cortlandt Street and Broadway as they tried to push through a barricade around 1:45 a.m., NBC reported.

Josh Harkinson, writer for Mother Jones magazine and one of the few journalists present during the eviction, reported on Twitter that he heard from several sources that police felled a tree in the park in order to remove protesters who had climbed to safety.

John Minchillo / AP

Trash is piled high near Zuccotti Park, Occupy Wall Street's longtime encampment in New York, during the cleanup effort early Tuesday. AP Photo/John Minchillo
Regrouping?

After being evicted, several hundred demonstrators regrouped in nearby Foley Square to discuss their next move, setting up a new Twitter account.
Nicholas Frechette, 25, said he had been pepper sprayed during the eviction but was undeterred.

"We broke the night together doing something truly revolutionary," he said in Foley Square.

Protesters also grouped at Duarte Square, a city park at Canal Street and Avenue of the americas, about a mile north north of Zuccotti park. Two people with bolt cutters allegedly snipped a lock to a fenced-off lot at nearby Trinity Church aroud 11 a.m. EST. Police came in and cleared them out, arresting about two dozen people in the process, The New York Times reported.

After the church-lot was swept, a group of protesters marched back to Zuccotti Park, blocking Broadway traffic along the way. They circled the park while awaiting the outcome of the court hearing.

The police operation in the park — known by the demonstrators as Liberty Park or Liberty Square — comes just two days ahead of a massive planned demonstration Thursday marking the movement's two-month anniversary.
Earlier, Mayor Bloomberg defended the move to evict the protesters and tear down their tent city, saying in a statement that the park was "becoming a place where people came not to protest, but rather to break laws, and in some cases, to harm others."

"Protesters have had two months to occupy the park with tents and sleeping bags," he added. "Now they will have to occupy the space with the power of their arguments."

The park was cleared in less than three hours in what appeared to be a highly coordinated action, prompting firebrand left-wing film-maker and activist Michael Moore to ask on Twitter whether President Obama or federal agencies had been involved in planning the clearance and similar evictions of Occupy camps elsewhere in the US.

Letters to protesters

After the raid, thousands of dollars worth of computer and camera equipment, tents and sleeping bags could be seen piled in the center of the park by sanitation workers. Police said in a statement that the items would be brought to a sanitation garage where they could be collected later.
By 9 a.m. ET, the park had been power-washed clean by city workers and stood empty — as seen in this picture from msnbc.com's Jonathan Woods — as police in riot gear waited for orders to reopen it.

Police earlier handed out notices from Brookfield Office Properties, owner of Zuccotti Park, and the city saying that the park had to be cleared because it had become unsanitary and hazardous.

Justin Stone-Diaz, a member of the "Think Tank" policy group set up by the protesters, told msnbc.com that police had used a Long Range Acoustic Device — a powerful speaker that disperses crowds by producing an uncomfortable sound.

Story: Police dismantle Oakland camp, protesters on march
Another protester, Nan Terrie, an 18-year-old law student, told msnbc.com that a number of people had also chained themselves up in the women's tents.

"This is an illegal eviction (that) they are trying to do to us," she said.
Thorin Caristo, 37, whose eyes appeared red and swollen, told msnbc.com he felt stinging in his eyes for several minutes after being cleared from the camp.

"I feel like this (action) will be a catalyst for the movement," he said.

Mary Altaffer / AP
A demonstrator yells at police officers as they order Occupy Wall Street protesters to leave Zuccotti Park, their longtime encampment in New York, early Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2011. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

Protester John Murdock told msnbc.com he was arrested and held for four hours. "Shame on America, shame on the police," he said. "This is not okay. This is an embarassment for the country.

"We're just getting started. We changed the conversation of the nation. This is just another chapter."

Crowds chanted "The people united will never be divided" in Foley Square.
Protester Han Shan, 39, left his job to work on the movement full time. He was at the park helping get out media equipment and supplies as the eviction took place and then moved one block away to "bear witness."

PhotoBlog: Occupy Wall Street

"I think obviously people are angry. We see like thousands ... of police amassing around a peaceful protest," he told msnbc.com.

"It's one night in what is a growing movement ... this is a movement now that is much, much larger than one square in downtown Manhattan," Shan added. "We've seen sweeps of occupations in Oakland and Denver and other places, but I don't think that it's going to affect the momentum of this movement."

LINK: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45299622.../#.TsLG8WDmHWk

[Corkey]

Update: Zuccotti park reopened through a bottleneck, barricades still in place.

[atomiczombie]

This is from Occupy News on FB:

DEFEAT: OWS is no longer allowed to camp at Zucotti Park. Now it is up to see if Mayor Bloomberg keeps his promise and opens the park up for protests during the day. The restraining order protecting the protesters has been repealed.

[SoNotHer]

Oh yeah. Even if you've seen this, it's the inspiration we need right now:

[atomiczombie]

http://current.com/shows/countdown/v...campment-raids

He says the Obama administration has helped mayors coordinate the raids against encampments in NY, Oakland, Denver, etc.

[Toughy]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

http://current.com/shows/countdown/v...campment-raids

He says the Obama administration has helped mayors coordinate the raids against encampments in NY, Oakland, Denver, etc.

Can he back that up? I didn't hear anything about where he got this info.

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by Toughy

Can he back that up? I didn't hear anything about where he got this info.

All I saw is his interview with Keith. I haven't seen anything else about this either.

[atomiczombie]

Go Keith! Go!

[Cin]

Originally Posted by Toughy

Can he back that up? I didn't hear anything about where he got this info.

It appears all references to this comes from this reporter Rick Ellis and his conversations with a source in the Justice Department. Perhaps the reincarnation of Deep Throat? Most all other articles talking about the federally coordinated crackdowns refer to this article as their source. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan mentioned a conference call with 18 cities regarding the Occupy movement during an interview with BBC, but has since refused comment.

I believe it is true. But without an admission from the federal government or from sources willing to go on record there really isn't 'beyond a shadow of a doubt' proof here. And even if there were, Obama certainly has plausible deniability and six degrees of separation to boot. I'm sure it is in his best political interest to have his effort to help get rid of the protestors be understood by the 1% while being seen by the rest of us as probably misinformation or mere speculation. Sounds like the same old, same old to me.

Occupy' crackdowns coordinated with federal law enforcement officials

Rick Ellis
Minneapolis Top News Examiner

Over the past ten days, more than a dozen cities have moved to evict "Occupy" protesters from city parks and other public spaces. As was the case in last night's move in New York City, each of the police actions shares a number of characteristics. And according to one Justice official, each of those actions was coordinated with help from Homeland Security, the FBI and other federal police agencies.

The official, who spoke on background to me late Monday evening, said that while local police agencies had received tactical and planning advice from national agencies, the ultimate decision on how each jurisdiction handles the Occupy protests ultimately rests with local law enforcement.

According to this official, in several recent conference calls and briefings, local police agencies were advised to seek a legal reason to evict residents of tent cities, focusing on zoning laws and existing curfew rules. Agencies were also advised to demonstrate a massive show of police force, including large numbers in riot gear. In particular, the FBI reportedly advised on press relations, with one presentation suggesting that any moves to evict protesters be coordinated for a time when the press was the least likely to be present.

The FBI has so far failed to respond to requests for an official response, and of the 14 local police agencies contacted in the past 24 hours, all have declined to respond to questions on this issue.

But in a recent interview with the BBC," Oakland Mayor Jean Quan mentioned she was on a conference call just before the recent wave of crackdowns began.

"I was recently on a conference call of 18 cities who had the same situation, where what had started as a political movement and a political encampment ended up being an encampment that was no longer in control of the people who started them."

At the time this story was updated, Mayor Quan's office had declined to discuss her comments.

http://www.examiner.com/top-news-in-...ement-agencies

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/1...nd,-Berkeley,-

http://redgreenandblue.org/2011/11/1...al-government/

[Cin]

6 Burning Questions About the Violent Crackdowns on Occupations Around the Country
By Lynn Parramore
November 15, 2011
Alternet

In the aftermath of a city-by-city crackdown featuring hundreds of arrests and evictions of Occupy encampments, plenty of questions demand answers.


Occurring without provocation, the Occupy crackdown gives the appearance of an orchestrated effort to thwart an emerging protest movement. Early morning Tuesday, in New York City, hundreds of police officers, many in riot gear, swept down on Zuccotti Park, throwing away private property, restricting press and using aggressive tactics to remove protesters and supporters. Here are some things we’d really like to know.

1. Who convened the mayors call? In an interview with the BBC, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan alluded to her participation in a conference call with leaders of 18 US cities just prior to the raids on encampments across the country. Mayors' associations do exist, but they do not typically organize police interventions or local decision-making in such detail. Given the abuses of the past, such as the notorious COINTELPRO and other intervention programs that the U.S. government organized during the Vietnam protests, the public has a right to know the details of who organized that call.

2. Was there an attempt to control press coverage? New Yorkers awoke to front-page stories and photographs in both the New York Post and the New York Daily News. Coverage by the two papers was supportive of the mayor and the police actions but disparaging toward the protesters. An AlterNet reporter, arriving on the scene at 1:30am, shortly after the raid began, could get nowhere near Zuccotti Park due to police barricades (and was subjected to pepper spray while attempting to report on events). How did the friendly reporters gain their access? Was there advance coordination to allow certain media outlets access and block the rest? Why was press access restricted? Were some reporters' credentials confiscated? How will reports of unwarranted force on the part of police toward the press be addressed?

3. What, if any, was the role of the White House? Who was in charge of following the nationwide Occupy crackdown at the White House? What does President Obama, the man who celebrated the uprisings in Egypt (and who is currently out of the US, in Asia), think about the raids and the encroachments on the civil liberties of peacefully protesting Americans? As a constitutional scholar, what is his view of the restrictions of the press and the arrests of journalists?

4. Was the Department of Homeland Security involved in the raids? Filmmaker Michael Moore tweeted this question, asking if the Department may have given the green-light to the raid. The DHS has been reportedly following Occupy Wall Street Twitter feeds and other social media networks. Did it play any role in the crackdown?

5. What, if any, was the role of the FBI? Suggestions are circulating that the FBI and other federal agencies may have advised local law enforcement agencies on how to conduct the raids and even how to handle press relations. Did this happen? Was there any coordinating of arrests across the country on the part of the FBI?

6. Where are the libertarians? In the face of all the clamor about “states' rights,” local government and the Constitution, we want to know where all the libertarians have suddenly gone. It’s enough to drive you to drink an emergency cup of tea.

[Dominique]

Well, dare I say FINALLY (?) Occupy Pittsburgh made a statement
last night. They we demonstrating outside the convention center where a huge meeting of Haliburton exec's and like people where congregating.

They were asked to move off of Covention center property. Convetion center was funded with tax payer dollars (according to OPgh) there fore they felt they had a right to be there. Police asked them several times to move across the street. Most did. A few did not (5) and they were all arrested for tresspassing.

According to the morning news, It never got out of hand, (noisy) but that's all. The morning news also ran a film clip from one of the Opgh folks of the convention atendee's pressed up against the glass watching the whole thing.

[SoNotHer]

Great shot and go Pittsburgh :-)

Originally Posted by Yellow band

Well, dare I say FINALLY (?) Occupy Pittsburgh made a statement
last night. They we demonstrating outside the convention center where a huge meeting of Haliburton exec's and like people where congregating.

They were asked to move off of Covention center property. Convetion center was funded with tax payer dollars (according to OPgh) there fore they felt they had a right to be there. Police asked them several times to move across the street. Most did. A few did not (5) and they were all arrested for tresspassing.

According to the morning news, It never got out of hand, (noisy) but that's all. The morning news also ran a film clip from one of the Opgh folks of the convention atendee's pressed up against the glass watching the whole thing.

[SoNotHer]

Some amazing things are coming out of Monday's 2 a.m. raid, and I love Brodsky's message -

"Mike Bloomberg is nothing if not consistent. He's America's leading apologist for the 1%. His recent defense of banks and Wall Street as blameless for the financial meltdown the Great Recession was New York chutzpah in extremis. It was obvious he sensed the long-term dangers that OWS poses to his vision of American. Clearly, the use of cops to sweep Zuccotti Park was always where he was headed.

History works itself out in unexpected ways. The initial beauty and effectiveness of OWS was its non-hierarchical, amoeba-like incarnation. It replicated across the world based on two insights: Technology, properly used, can swiftly create organizations of gigantic proportions, and most people understand that wealth and power are now more concentrated that ever before and that's a bad thing for all of us. It didn't need leaders and spokespeople.

Bloomberg's sweep of Zuccotti Park changed all that and forces OWS to examine its future. The challenge to OWS is real. Can it turn its' technological genius and simple message into an organization that makes real, practical change in people's lives? We've worked out a democratic system that permits aggregations of human beings to challenge aggregations of money. The civil rights movement, the women's movement, labor, anti-war, environmental, etc. et. al., all found ways to make politics, government and daily life better for the great majority. Now it's OWS' turn. Can it transform, develop an agenda, participate in conventional politics and change the power arrangements in America and elsewhere. Can it do all that without losing its' integrity, transparency and openness? Yes, it can, but it won't be easy.

One of the lasting progressive images from the beginning of the labor movement is the moments before the execution of a labor organizer named Joe Hill, on trumped-up charges. His last words, "don't mourn for me, organize" became part of a song written by Alfred Hayes and Earl Robinson that Pete Seeger and many others made famous. Now the OWS movement has arrived at its defining moment, thanks to a phalanx of cops and a mayor by, of, and for the 1%.

Now, we can begin."

[Sachita]

I absolutely love this. It's long but so worth watching.

Marianne Williamson Speaking About the Occupy Movement, Berkeley, CA November 2011

[VintageFemme]

via twitter:

SalmanRushdie Salman Rushdie Nazis destroyed books to "purify" German culture. Bigots do it in the name of God, or Allah. What's Bloomberg's excuse? "Hygiene"? #ows


...a little smirky but he says what he thinks and makes no excuses. i'm ok with that.

[dykeumentary]

Occupy Phiadelphia this afternoon

[dykeumentary]

Originally Posted by VintageFemme

via twitter:

SalmanRushdie Salman Rushdie Nazis destroyed books to "purify" German culture. Bigots do it in the name of God, or Allah. What's Bloomberg's excuse? "Hygiene"? #ows


...a little smirky but he says what he thinks and makes no excuses. i'm ok with that.

I can't get behind that.
A reasonable and fair discussion/response to what is happening requires that people use language that is NOT a wild exaggeration to provoke a reaction.

Since this thing started I've had to point out how outlandish and fear-based the claims of "who the protectors are" and "what their goals are" that were being spread by the media. I'm surrounded by people who don't have an analysis about OWS that shows them it is in their interest.

Comparing Bloomberg to a Nazi is as useless and counterproductive as comparing "the 99%" to wild anarchists who just want free marijuana.

We have to do better. Rushdie should know better.

[theoddz]

I looked and looked, but there's no way I can see to share this on social media (Facebook). It's too good not to share, so I'm going to cut and paste the text of the article/blog here and then paste the link to the blog page at the bottom. Thanks for your patience. I know it's a long read, but I think it's worth it.
-------------------------------------------

Saturday 19 February 2011

by: George Lakoff, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed

What Conservatives Really Want
(Photo: Patrick Feller / The New York Times)

Dedicated to the peaceful protestors in Wisconsin, February 19, 2011.

----------

The central issue in our political life is not being discussed. At stake is the moral basis of American democracy.

The individual issues are all too real: assaults on unions, public employees, women's rights, immigrants, the environment, health care, voting rights, food safety, pensions, prenatal care, science, public broadcasting and on and on.

Budget deficits are a ruse, as we've seen in Wisconsin, where the Governor turned a surplus into a deficit by providing corporate tax breaks, and then used the deficit as a ploy to break the unions, not just in Wisconsin, but seeking to be the first domino in a nationwide conservative movement.

Deficits can be addressed by raising revenue, plugging tax loopholes, putting people to work and developing the economy long-term in all the ways the president has discussed. But deficits are not what really matter to conservatives.

Conservatives really want to change the basis of American life, to make America run according to the conservative moral worldview in all areas of life.

In the 2008 campaign, candidate Obama accurately described the basis of American democracy: empathy — citizens caring for each other, both social and personal responsibility — acting on that care, and an ethic of excellence. From these, our freedoms and our way of life follow, as does the role of government: to protect and empower everyone equally. Protection includes safety, health, the environment, pensions. Empowerment starts with education and infrastructure. No one can be free without these, and without a commitment to care and act on that care by one's fellow citizens.
The conservative worldview rejects all of that.

Conservatives believe in individual responsibility alone, not social responsibility. They don't think government should help its citizens. That is, they don't think citizens should help each other. The part of government they want to cut is not the military (we have 174 bases around the world), not government subsidies to corporations, not the aspect of government that fits their worldview. They want to cut the part that helps people. Why? Because that violates individual responsibility.

But where does that view of individual responsibility alone come from?

The way to understand the conservative moral system is to consider a strict father family. The father is The Decider, the ultimate moral authority in the family. His authority must not be challenged. His job is to protect the family, to support the family (by winning competitions in the marketplace), and to teach his kids right from wrong by disciplining them physically when they do wrong. The use of force is necessary and required. Only then will children develop the internal discipline to become moral beings. And only with such discipline will they be able to prosper. And what of people who are not prosperous? They don't have discipline, and without discipline they cannot be moral, so they deserve their poverty. The good people are hence the prosperous people. Helping others takes away their discipline, and hence makes them both unable to prosper on their own and function morally.

The market itself is seen in this way. The slogan, "Let the market decide" assumes the market itself is The Decider. The market is seen as both natural (since it is assumed that people naturally seek their self-interest) and moral (if everyone seeks their own profit, the profit of all will be maximized by the invisible hand). As the ultimate moral authority, there should be no power higher than the market that might go against market values. Thus the government can spend money to protect the market and promote market values, but should not rule over it either through (1) regulation, (2) taxation, (3) unions and worker rights, (4) environmental protection or food safety laws, and (5) tort cases. Moreover, government should not do public service. The market has service industries for that.

Thus, it would be wrong for the government to provide health care, education, public broadcasting, public parks and so on. The very idea of these things is at odds with the conservative moral system. No one should be paying for anyone else. It is individual responsibility in all arenas. Taxation is thus seen as taking money away from those who have earned it and giving it to people who don't deserve it. Taxation cannot be seen as providing the necessities of life for a civilized society, and, as necessary, for business to prosper.

In conservative family life, the strict father rules. Fathers and husbands should have control over reproduction; hence, parental and spousal notification laws and opposition to abortion. In conservative religion, God is seen as the strict father, the Lord, who rewards and punishes according to individual responsibility in following his Biblical word.

Above all, the authority of conservatism itself must be maintained. The country should be ruled by conservative values, and progressive values are seen as evil. Science should have authority over the market, and so the science of global warming and evolution must be denied. Facts that are inconsistent with the authority of conservatism must be ignored or denied or explained away. To protect and extend conservative values themselves, the devil's own means can be used against conservatism's immoral enemies, whether lies, intimidation, torture or even death, say, for women's doctors.

Freedom is defined as being your own strict father - with individual, not social, responsibility, and without any government authority telling you what you can and cannot do. To defend that freedom as an individual, you will, of course, need a gun.

This is the America that conservatives really want. Budget deficits are convenient ruses for destroying American democracy and replacing it with conservative rule in all areas of life.

What is saddest of all is to see Democrats helping them.

Democrats help radical conservatives by accepting the deficit frame and arguing about what to cut. Even arguing against specific "cuts" is working within the conservative frame. What is the alternative? Pointing out what conservatives really want. Point out that there is plenty of money in America, and in Wisconsin. It is at the top. The disparity in financial assets is un-American - the top one percent has more financial assets than the bottom 95 percent. Middle-class wages have been flat for 30 years, while the wealth has floated to the top. This fits the conservative way of life, but not the American way of life.

Democrats help conservatives by not shouting out loud, over and over, that it was conservative values that caused the global economic collapse: lack of regulation and a greed-is-good ethic.

Democrats also help conservatives by what a friend has called "Democratic Communication Disorder." Republican conservatives have constructed a vast and effective communication system, with think tanks, framing experts, training institutes, a system of trained speakers, vast holdings of media and booking agents. Eighty percent of the talking heads on TV are conservatives. Talk matters, because language heard over and over changes brains. Democrats have not built the communication system they need, and many are relatively clueless about how to frame their deepest values and complex truths.

And Democrats help conservatives when they function as policy wonks — talking policy without communicating the moral values behind the policies. They help conservatives when they neglect to remind us that pensions are deferred payments for work done. "Benefits" are pay for work, not a handout. Pensions and benefits are arranged by contract. If there is not enough money for them, it is because the contracted funds have been taken by conservative officials and given to wealthy people and corporations instead of to the people who have earned them.

Democrats help conservatives when they use conservative words like "entitlements" instead of "earnings" and speak of government as providing "services" instead of "necessities."

Is there hope?

I see it in Wisconsin, where tens of thousands citizens see through the conservative frames and are willing to flood the streets of their capital to stand up for their rights. They understand that democracy is about citizens uniting to take care of each other, about social responsibility as well as individual responsibility, and about work - not just for your own profit, but to help create a civilized society. They appreciate their teachers, nurses, firemen, police and other public servants. They are flooding the streets to demand real democracy - the democracy of caring, of social responsibility and of excellence, where prosperity is to be shared by those who work and those who serve.
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http://www.spiritualprogressives.org...10219190836960

~Theo~

[persiphone]

cross posted from the politics and law forum.....skeery!


http://vimeo.com/31100268