Occupy Wall Street wins round one

In the midst of millions unemployed, unpopular wars, and plunging house prices, America's power structure - 'bout 1% of the population - is on edge. Nowhere has this been better evidenced than by the systematic oppression directed against folks from all walks of life who came together in New York City on 9/17/2011, declaring a dug-in-for-the-long-haul protest under the banner "Occupy Wall Street." A mainstream media blackout was thrown at 'em from the get go, and peaceful protesters were arrested, pepper sprayed, and thrown to the ground. But in this age of the Internet, social media exploded. News of the blackout, videos documenting the size of the protest, and shots of police misconduct spread like wildfire. One video even documented a cop attacking a protester for simply carrying a camera. Beaten at it own game, mainstream media limped in, conspicuously late to cover the event.

Fast forward a few weeks, and Occupy Wall Street has now elbowed its way into the international spotlight. With 99% of the planet facing ruin - financial and otherwise - at the hands of governments beholden to wealthy power brokers, the "occupy" theme is ushering in protests from New York to London. The hottest hashtags on Twitter are #OccupyWallStreet and #ows.   

So round one - a battle for recognition - goes to the occupiers. The government's heavyhandedness backfired, further inflaming passions against bailed out banksters, imperialistic wars, and the corporate sponsored politicians of America's two headed one party electoral system. This past weekend there were sizeable protests in U.S. cities coast to coast, with New York drawing the biggest crowd yet.

Not bad for a freewheelin', off the cuff effort.

I'm especially pleased that so many of the occupiers have caught on to the fact that Demagogues and Repukes are equally beholden to "Wall Street," and anti-voting sentiment is makin' headlines. I quit voting years ago. Wouldn't it be great if this corrupt, warmongerin' government and its corporate cronies gave an election and nobody came?

Update 10/10/2011 - Facebook has blocked this post from appearing in real-time Public Posts.