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Thought for the Day (10/18/11)

". . . the rise of the social-welfare state was a response (often of market-oriented liberal democracies) to the threat of popular revolutions, socialism, and communism as the frequency and severity of economic and financial crises increased . . . Any economic model that does not properly address inequality will eventually face a crisis of legitimacy. Unless the relative economic roles of the market and the state are rebalanced, the protests of 2011 will become more severe, with social and political instability eventually harming long-term economic growth and welfare."
Nouriel Roubini writing at truth-out.org
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Talking About Occupy

Perhaps the single most important action you can take right now is to talk to someone about the Occupy movement. Two tactics come to mind. The first and the easiest is to find out if your friends, your political allies have heard about Occupy. If not then you must engage them with the facts, not the mass media message. Only about 50% of the population has heard of Occupy right now, so basic information needs to spread. Be the spreader.

The second conversation is more difficult but much more productive to everyone - have the conversation with someone who disagrees with you. Doesn't matter if you support Occupy or are against it. Doesn't matter if you don't have all the information, facts, figures and spin. Just begin the conversation.

I am engaged with several people. One card carrying liberal democrat, an ardent Obama supporter, who sees the Occupy demonstrations as helping the republicans. On the other side I trade long emails with a man whom I respect as open, honest and well informed. He is also an arch-conservative and is currently rereading Atlas Shrugged as a guide to everyday living. A third conversation is with an old college friend who actually has worked inside the Washington beltway for many years; his predictions in '08, '04 and '00 were right on the money, I value his insider observations. By the way, his prediction at this stage of the presidential scrum - Romney outwaits the republican fringe candidates, wins the nomination and defeats Obama for the job.

I learn from all of these conversations, that's why I started them. My arguments are both refined and tempered by engaging with a variety of opinions. I am still searching for a strong middle of the road friend to take up yet another back and forth exchange.

Please talk to someone, even a whole bunch of someones. And write, don't let the corporate media sway your opinion with their propaganda. It is not true that Occupy lacks a clear message; it is true that CNN, Fox, NYT and others don't want to hear that message because it puts them squarely in the crosshairs.

Talk about Occupy. Write to the sources of power and information. Engage in Your Democracy. It was the Arab Spring but we are entering the American Autumn and the American Winter and by next spring - everything could change.

Here's a link to what Occupy has accomplished in the first month.
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political cartoon from The New Yorker
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The Day After

Yesterday was October 15th - the first worldwide day of the Occupy Movement.

Rome, Italy: (100K-200K) Riots or near riots - tear gas, burned cars, smashed windows. Demonstration possibly hijacked by 'Black Bloc' instigators.

Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, London, Berlin, Moscow, Madrid: - peaceful.

New York City: the home of Occupy; lots of marchers, lots of marches. Yes, some arrests but one has to wonder when those are necessary and when its just the power structure flexing their old stereotypes.

San Francisco: bigger (10,000) and longer lasting protest with several marches still going on into the evening.

Berkeley: My first hand report from the streets of Berkeley, California. A couple of hundred for the noon rally. SF and Oakland drew much bigger crowds but this is Berkeley so I am a bit surprised that there were not more older protesters here to support Occupy. The crowd did grow as the afternoon wore on.

Thousands show up to Occupy Las Vegas

High estimates from the left: 951 cities in 82 countries
Low estimates from the right: a few dirty hippies with no coherent message
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thanks to Pauly for the graphic
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The Real Art of Protest

All of today's images come from 











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Open Letter to My Friends in the Center

You are the friends I am most concerned about. The middle class has taken a double edged beating in this financial meltdown. You lost homes, pensions, jobs, buying power and you paid for it. In the past this country has helped those at the bottom of the ladder; maybe not enough and always not soon enough but help was there. You, in the middle, have paid for that assistance and mostly you complained little or not at all.

Today, you need the help and Congress is fighting over whether emergency relief funds for flood and tornado victims is really a priority in this country. I know there are survivors of Katrina who will tell this this is not a new way for our government at act or lack action. But the help needed today is more basic, more at the core of what our national government has become. We are no longer looking out for the 99%. Those at the top are prospering, not breaking even, not hurting a bit like everyone else. They are increasing their fortunes each and every day; turn on any one of the market watching television channels - on Wall Street the recession is long over; profits are up, bonuses are up. And nothing is trickling down.

"Don't raise their taxes" we are told, "they won't create jobs if we raise their taxes".... Well we haven't raised their taxes, where exactly are the jobs? Where are the bank loans to small businesses? You want to see this 'trickle down" economics in action - take a look at the cartoon on my last blog post.

Sorry, I got off on a bit of a rant there. So let me ask, do you honestly feel your government cares about you? Right, I agree. So get yourself a twitter account, listen to what is being said in those Occupy encampments. Those aren't all kids out there. It's you, it's me, it's everyone who wants America to be what it once promised to be. With Liberty and Justice for All, there shouldn't be a price tag on Freedom.

Occupy America! 
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Open Letter to My Conservative Friends

To my many conservative friends - take a good look at those cartoon birds - you are not on the top rung. The game has always been rigged - a bit. But now those at the top are criminals, not high achievers or entrepreneurs or small business owners - criminals. And yes you are downstream, downwind and downhill from their greed. Don't believe that? Well then the top birds have you right where they want you.

No, I don't want to destroy the system and neither do most of the Occupy protesters. What we want is a fair system that doesn't favor the obscenely rich. Do you really think that you could, if you really wanted to, and tried hard enough, really get on that top rung. Well, you can't. You don't have the secret decoder ring with the IRS codes or the lobbyist or enough stolen money to get there. And besides they don't want you up top with them. You see you're not white enough or male enough or already rich enough; and you're just not self-centered and greedy enough or you wouldn't be reading my blog.

Yes the TARP bailout got a lot of the money back into the U.S. Treaury. Indeed if you don't count AIG and GM, there was a profit of sorts. Meaning if you jigger the numbers enough, TARP (or the Bush bailout) worked. That is, of course, if you forget the tens of thousands of families who lost their homes in foreclosure and the tens of billions of dollars in lost pension fund capital. Yes, your retirement fund was decimated by those Wall Street crooks who got their butts bailed out.

So coming around the big circle of economic policy from your side, you are going to be meeting a lot of us coming around from the other side. I hope you will take some time to talk and to listen because all the Occupy demonstrations are saying is - 

"The American Dream should be available to everyone, to whatever extent they want to participate and work for their own personal piece of the dream. And, oh by the way, those who have it all don't want you to have any of it."

Let's talk - How about we meet at the independent coffee shop nearest to the Occupy encampment.

Link to the Open Letter to My Liberal Friends
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Open Letter to My Liberal Friends

If you remember the Civil Rights marches and have wondered would that ever happen again -- it's happening now.

If you remember the Vietnam War protests and have wanted to influence the course of the nation that strongly again -- you can do it now.

If you have been frustrated by the WTO opposition -- this is different.

If you have ever wanted to get involved or get involved again in a cause that really had the chance to change the world and not simply support another worn politician -- the time is now!

The Occupy movement has taken hold but it will need your support to sustain itself and grow. Feeling too old to camp out in a park, that's OK those who do need your support. They need food, clothing, a place to shower, books and ideas.

Yes, I know you really don't want to bring down the entire system like they do. Does this sound at all familiar? We didn't crash the system when we ended a war but many of those in the streets did want revolution.

Revolution today for many of us means bringing back a fair chance for everyone to achieve whatever part of the dream they desire to go after. A level living field. Sure the kids in the tents are already wary of being co-opted by MoveOn and "other liberal politicians." So what. That's no reason not to get involved, get engaged, get out there if only on the weekends for the big protests like this coming Saturday October 15th.

Read: Think Occupy Wall Street is a phase? You don't get it

Read: Occupy Wall Street: The Most Important Thing in the World Now

Remember the day Nixon quit.
The day the troops left Saigon.
Not that old. OK remember when the G8 protests didn't work. Remember the frustration that nothing was within our control

Well it's a new day, the Middle East has had it's Arab Spring. Get on the bandwagon for the American Autumn and Winter, those kids are going to need mittens.

Email CNN and MSNBC and the Journal, the Times - let the media know they cannot ignore this story. Rupert Murdoch does not control the news. Social Media is making this all happen much faster.

One final thing, if you don't have a Twitter account, get one. It takes three minutes and you will be in touch with what is happening in the streets again.
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