Pro-tax Occupation Protests Held Across U.S. (O.W.S. Thread)

[PhilsFan]

Originally Posted by MrsSpringsteen

Tea Partier Or Occupy Wall Street Protester?

Can you tell them apart? It's not as easy as you'd think. Highlight the text under each photo for the answers.

I got every one right.

[yolland]

Washington Post, Oct. 25 (Greg Sargent)

Wow, this is going to be good: Occupy Wall Street is now officially an issue in what may be the highest-profile and most polarizing Senate race in the country. National Republicans are now attacking Elizabeth Warren for embracing the protests, seeking to make a liability out of the fact that Warren, a longtime critic of Wall Street excess, has now aligned herself with the movement’s intellectual underpinnings. What this means: The conservative effort to turn blue collar whites and independents against the protesters and their broader populist message—exploiting a traditional cultural fault line in our politics—will now unfold in the context of a high profile political campaign.

Warren was asked by the Daily Beast for a comment on the protests. She said: “I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they do. I support what they do.” Now the NRSC has opened fire on Warren for the comments, blasting out an email containing links to stories about protesters in Massachusetts battling with cops. Said NRSC spokesman Brian Walsh: “Warren’s decision to not only embrace, but take credit for this movement is notable considering the Boston Police Department was recently forced to arrest at least 141 of her Occupy acolytes in Boston the other day after they threatened to tie up traffic downtown and refused to abide by their protest permit limits.” The NRSC is also circulating that Doug Schoen op-ed [WSJ] painting protesters as wild-eyed extremists and arguing that Dems who embrace the protests risk driving away independents and moderates, even though it was subsequently proven that Schoen’s conclusions were not supported by his own data.

In other words, national Republicans are placing their bet. They are wagering that the cultural instincts of the working class whites and independents who will decide this race ensure that the excesses of the protesters will make them less inclined to listen to her populist economic message, which is also directed at those voters. This is an old story in American politics, of course. Conservatives have for decades been mining the tension between blue collar whites and liberal middle class activists who resort to outsized protest tactics and occasional violence. That’s why you hear conservatives constantly referring hopefully to today’s protesters as “McGovernites.” Warren, by contrast, is making the opposite bet. By unabashedly embracing the protests, she is placing a wager on the true mood of the country right now. She’s gambling that these voters will look past the theatrics of these protests; that they will see that she and the protesters are the ones who actually have their economic interests at heart; and that they will ultimately side with Warren’s and Occupy Wall Street’s general critique of the current system and explanation for what’s gone wrong in this country.

The early polling returns suggest that there’s no evidence that ordinary working-class and middle-class voters are being alienated by the protests. It still remains to be seen where public opinion will end up on the movement and whether there’s really any hope of tying it to a broader working class constituency.

[deep]

Tea Party is/was a net plus for the GOP, especially in the 2010 elections


OWS, at this point, I do not think it is a net plus for the Dems, and since we are talking about very close elections, the could end up being a negative.

[yolland]

Too early to tell IMO, but I agree Warren's statements were risky. That seems to be kinda her style though, go for broke. Not sure what I think about that.

[Jeannieco]

I love Elizabeth Warren. The woman has guts and courage to stand up for justice in the face of many threats. She is an American hero in my eyes and one of the few in politics that actually has integrity and a conscience to stand up for what's right.

[deep]

Originally Posted by yolland

Too early to tell IMO, but I agree Warren's statements were risky. That seems to be kinda her style though, go for broke. Not sure what I think about that.

I think the jury is in on the Tea Party - a net gain.
I will admit, I wrote them off at first, I thought the whole Tea Party thing was silly,
me - not being a big fan of glorifying the founding fathers, but at the end of the day, they got some results.

OWS, - there are very legitimate gripes about the system being slanted for the financiers. A better approach might have been:

" Fair play for the 99% that are working and struggling."

The camping out and making demands is like what happened in Israel, that's fine for a social - welfare state, which is a completely different from our system here in America.

[BVS]

Originally Posted by deep

I think the jury is in on the Tea Party - a net gain.

Well a short term gain, but will it be a long term gain or even a national gain?

[kramwest1]

Originally Posted by Jeannieco

I love Elizabeth Warren. The woman has guts and courage to stand up for justice in the face of many threats. She is an American hero in my eyes and one of the few in politics that actually has integrity and a conscience to stand up for what's right.

Klobuchar/Warren 2016?



(or vice versa?)

[PhilsFan]

Originally Posted by BVS

Well a short term gain, but will it be a long term gain or even a national gain?

It's absolutely a political gain: it rebounded the GOP from no man's land after the Bush years.

There's a massive difference between political gains and gains for the country though. The GOP has been sacrificing our nation's interests for their political interests for nearly three years now.

[deep]

Patience Tested Over Waste, Crime at Protest Sites - ABC News

Occupying is just a wrong idea.

[BVS]

Originally Posted by PhilsFan

It's absolutely a political gain: it rebounded the GOP from no man's land after the Bush years.

There's a massive difference between political gains and gains for the country though. The GOP has been sacrificing our nation's interests for their political interests for nearly three years now.

I was talking about political gains. It helped get people out in 2010, but beyond that has it really helped them all that much?

They lost public support during the deficit debacle, the GOP still seems somewhat divided on platform, and will the tea party help or hurt gain independents in the presidential race?

So beyond a quick rebound, has it been a gain?

[Jeannieco]

Originally Posted by kramwest1

Klobuchar/Warren 2016?



(or vice versa?)

Not too famililar with Amy Klobuchar, but if she has the integrity of Elizabeth, sure!

[kramwest1]

Originally Posted by Jeannieco

Not too famililar with Amy Klobuchar, but if she has the integrity of Elizabeth, sure!

You'll love her.

She will keep her Senate seat in MN next year with one of the highest reelection margins we've seen in decades.

[PhilsFan]

Originally Posted by BVS

I was talking about political gains. It helped get people out in 2010, but beyond that has it really helped them all that much?

They lost public support during the deficit debacle, the GOP still seems somewhat divided on platform, and will the tea party help or hurt gain independents in the presidential race?

So beyond a quick rebound, has it been a gain?

If people didn't come out in 2010, the GOP would have had to do an insane amount of rebuilding. That fact alone is a long term gain.

They lost public support? I think the deficit debacle just reinforced whatever people already thought.

[BVS]

Originally Posted by PhilsFan

If people didn't come out in 2010, the GOP would have had to do an insane amount of rebuilding. That fact alone is a long term gain.

This may be true, but what if the Tea Party had gotten the based fired up, but hadn't gained as much actual power in the GOP and Congress? I think the GOP race for president would have been much easier. As of now, no matter what canidate they have to cater to the TP and still find a way to gain independents, I don't think that's an easy task. The GOPs biggest fear this round is that independents will stay home and that that loud minorty tea party group may not actually have the numbers needed. I don't know, I think the long term gain is still yet to be determined.

Originally Posted by PhilsFan

They lost public support? I think the deficit debacle just reinforced whatever people already thought.

If there were a "normal" Republican seating during that time, the Republicans would have come out smelling like roses, and probably big winners. They would have been able to make the right cuts but still be able to compromise, we would have probably kept our credit rating and a lot of that would gone to their favor. But as we know that didn't happen and they shot themselves in the foot big time.

[Jeannieco]

Originally Posted by kramwest1

You'll love her.

She will keep her Senate seat in MN next year with one of the highest reelection margins we've seen in decades.

That's great! Even though the system is broken we need all the Dem. seats we can get!
Don't want a repeat of 2010.

[MrsSpringsteen]

Income More Than Doubles for Top 1 Percent From 1979 - ABC News

[Irvine511]

wealth is redistributed up.

[Jeannieco]

Originally Posted by MrsSpringsteen

Income More Than Doubles for Top 1 Percent From 1979 - ABC News

Ahh yes, the beginning of the wonderful Reagan era.

Thanks Ron for nothing!

[Muldfeld]

Charlie Rose - A discussion about Occupy Wall Street

I'm thrilled Charlie interviewed Chris Hedges and Amy Goodman, unlike the increasingly right wing PBS Newshour and the shameless coverage conducted by the Harper controlled, pro-business Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. CBC News is to the right of CTV, nowadays. It's disgusting.

Anyway, enjoy. I've visited the Occupy movement in Toronto and I've met old men all the way from New Brunswick whose paper company employer was taken over by Brookfield, which bankrupted the company and cheated them 35% of their pensions, which continuing to make millions. I've also met old women upset their hospital system was privatized, which shut down essential forms of care in their area so they have to travel an hour to get help. It's not just light-hearted bongo players. There are real people hurting and I'm proud of these folks for taking non-violent action.