DominoKid said:Consider me ignorant on the subject (because all I know is that cities are being occupied) but what's the actual goal for this?
Require it? No. Provoke it? Yes.timetokill said:Serious question -- does anybody think that enacting actual change will require bloodshed/violence, as seen elsewhere -- or can it still be done through a thoroughly corrupted political and economic system?
x Power Pad Death Stomp x said:Both parties have their boogeymen for leaving to support 3rd parties, "Perot voters gave us Clinton!" and "Nader supporters gave us W. Bush!".
Deku said:One is CLEARLY better than the other, even if you count for the fact that Clinton benefited from the 'peace dividend' of the Soviet collapse and the happenstance of presiding over the Internet bubble.
Which is why we need electoral reform. Seriously, the "vote for one" method is so flawed, it gives us barely any information about voter preferences. Just give us a preference ballot at least, and then we can debate about the method to decide the winner after that.x Power Pad Death Stomp x said:Both parties have their boogeymen for leaving to support 3rd parties, "Perot voters gave us Clinton!" and "Nader supporters gave us W. Bush!".
Better than the way they started out when they had no goals at all.beelzebozo said:way too many goals there!
alstein said:Do what the Teabaggers did and co-opt one of the existing parties then. We saw that in 2008 in the CT primary, which is why Lieberman's an independent.
Measley said:I'm well aware of the history of third parties. That doesn't mean that a third party can't win a congressional election in the U.S. ESPECIALLY if voters are energized and the campaign organization is run effectively.
And please stop saying "nearly impossible". Nearly impossible is surviving a mid-air colission over NYC. A third party candidate has a much better chance than that.
ErasureAcer said:You mean Bush Sr. gave us Perot and Gore gave us Nader.
Not necessarily. If they want as broad support as possible they need to focus their goals and distill the message down. This needs to be less "us vs. the man/corporation" boogeyman and more of a populist airing of grievances. Things like making Wall St. accountable for their financial crimes, increasing the tax burden on millionaires, reducing the influence of money in government, etc. are goals that are more easily embraced by a wide swath of the public than the angsty and vague claims they made in their original manifesto.El Sloth said:Better than the way they started out when they had no goals at all.
kame-sennin said:Party loyalists will never accept this. Nor will they ever accept the fact that Nader voters told pollsters they wouldn't have voted for Gore even if Nader wasn't in the race.
XMonkey said:Not necessarily. If they want as broad support as possible they need to focus their goals and distill the message down. This needs to less "us vs. the man/corporation" boogeyman and more of a populist airing of grievances. Things like making Wall St. accountable for their financial crimes, increasing the tax burden on millionaires, reducing the influence of money in government, etc. are goals that are more easily embraced by a wide swath of the public than the angsty and vague claims they made in their original manifesto.
It isn't easy to organize such a movement, especially when the police is constantly searching for 'the leader'.Clevinger said:Agreed. We need a movement like this, but the actual execution of this one is piss poor. You're never going to get broad support if you have even political enthusiasts scratching their heads as to what it's actually about.
"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. Already they have raised up a moneyed aristocracy that has set the government at defiance. The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs."
Thomas Jefferson
"God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all, and always, well informed. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty.... And what country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to the facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
Thomas Jefferson
Well I'm doing an internship for our government, if that counts.Shaheed79 said:I always wondered how many gaffers were under the direct employ of our nations wonderful government.
Shaheed79 said:I always wondered how many gaffers were under the direct employ of our nations wonderful government.
This topic should make a nice measuring stick.
So many posters poking fun at people who decided to get off their ass and exercise their Constitutional rights as an American Citizen.
Apparently sitting on your ass chastising those who actually give a damn about corruption in your government is the new e-cool.
Just because you are too afraid to stand up for your rights doesn't mean you have to ridicule those who are more than brave enough to fight for the things you yourself should be smart enough to fight for.
I'm just ecstatic that more and more potential voters are realizing that it was both the democrats and the republicans who are responsible for the state of our economy and country as a whole. Here are two of my favorite quotes from one of the founding fathers.
Shaheed79 said:I always wondered how many gaffers were under the direct employ of our nations wonderful government.
This topic should make a nice measuring stick.
So many posters poking fun at people who decided to get off their ass and exercise their Constitutional rights as an American Citizen.
Apparently sitting on your ass chastising those who actually give a damn about corruption in your government is the new e-cool.
Just because you are too afraid to stand up for your rights doesn't mean you have to ridicule those who are more than brave enough to fight for the things you yourself should be smart enough to fight for.
I'm just ecstatic that more and more potential voters are realizing that it was both the democrats and the republicans who are responsible for the state of our economy and country as a whole. Here are two of my favorite quotes from one of the founding fathers.
Shaheed79 said:I always wondered how many gaffers were under the direct employ of our nations wonderful government.
This topic should make a nice measuring stick.
So many posters poking fun at people who decided to get off their ass and exercise their Constitutional rights as an American Citizen.
Apparently sitting on your ass chastising those who actually give a damn about corruption in your government is the new e-cool.
Just because you are too afraid to stand up for your rights doesn't mean you have to ridicule those who are more than brave enough to fight for the things you yourself should be smart enough to fight for.
I'm just ecstatic that more and more potential voters are realizing that it was both the democrats and the republicans who are responsible for the state of our economy and country as a whole. Here are two of my favorite quotes from one of the founding fathers.
Had he said every 200 years, would you be more likely to agree?onken said:A country can't be at liberty unless it has a violent revolution every 20 years? Uh yeah, ok.
Right on Relix.Relix said:I am a "cold blooded" Capitalist and I wholeheartedly agree with this. People just criticeze those who are out there trying to fix certain issues, and some idiots just call them "no lifers, no future, losers, be responsible, etc." Really? They feel like they are doing something and seeing the recent course of action... Hey! They are actually doing something! Even though small, at the end its a change.
And what are some of the dimwits here doing? Making fun of them. Really sad to be honest.
VALIS said:Man, I'm getting tired of reading people bellowing "what's the message?!" here, there and everywhere.
If you believe that corporations and the wealthy 1% own and control our political process and their rights to make obscene amounts of money are far more protected by the politicians and lawmakers in this country than the rights of a citizen to receive adequate health care, education and employment, how do you boil this down to one single message? If you can reduce that to the bumper sticker or soundbite-sized blurb everyone apparently needs to stave off their bewilderment, please do.
Also, some of the dumber members of the media and the blogosphere (ugh) have been comparing Occupy Wall St. with the Tea Party and saying Occupy Wall St. is muddled and ineffective in comparison because it doesn't have a clear message. But what is the Tea Party's clear message? Smaller government? Yeah, sure it is, except if it happens to involve gay marriage, or military action, or gays in the military, or immigration, or abortion, or so on, and so on. Then they want a big fat meddling sorta government. Their message is no more succinct or direct than Occupy Wall St's.
timetokill said:Serious question -- does anybody think that enacting actual change will require bloodshed/violence, as seen elsewhere -- or can it still be done through a thoroughly corrupted political and economic system?
@NYTimes Joseph Greenberg
Love this quote from Joseph Greenberg's NY Times article:
"So even as the members of Occupy Wall Street seem unorganized and, at times, uninformed, their continued presence creates a vexing problem for the Police Department."
Those that are taking a stand against rampant corruption are dismissed by this ass as "uninformed" police "problems."
Such transparent biased reporting illustrates the depths of the problem, and why we have fallen so far so fast. Frauds supporting frauds to strangle everyone else.
Thomas Jefferson is the last person you want to quote in this instance. I know that his quotes sound trendy, but they're not. His agrarian policies and distrust of manufacturing and a central bank were backwards, even at the beginning of the 19th century. And what he means by banking is nothing like the high finance and complex financial instruments of today.Shaheed79 said:I always wondered how many gaffers were under the direct employ of our nations wonderful government.
This topic should make a nice measuring stick.
So many posters poking fun at people who decided to get off their ass and exercise their Constitutional rights as an American Citizen.
Apparently sitting on your ass chastising those who actually give a damn about corruption in your government is the new e-cool.
Just because you are too afraid to stand up for your rights doesn't mean you have to ridicule those who are more than brave enough to fight for the things you yourself should be smart enough to fight for.
I'm just ecstatic that more and more potential voters are realizing that it was both the democrats and the republicans who are responsible for the state of our economy and country as a whole. Here are two of my favorite quotes from one of the founding fathers.
Because you think there doesn't need to be a cohesive message (or messages) for a protest to work, doesn't mean that such a protest wouldn't be more effective if they had such a message. I also take issue with your last point. This is very different from the Arab Spring. The US is not a dictatorship and many of our citizens live under the impression that we've already achieved a functional democracy full of freedom and rights. This is a whole world apart from those in Egypt and the Middle East who, in many cases, had not even basic rights or freedoms. The problems in our country are not so readily apparent on the surface.Unknown Soldier said:There wasn't a cohesive message in Spain. There isn't one in Greece, or in Israel. What we're seeing here is just the street protests in other countries in this country. People are just generally discontented and they see the same pervasive governmental corruption that the Spanish, Greeks, and Israelis saw. The whole Arab Spring started out as just a general opposition to the current (usually despotic) government in power. This is no different.
timetokill said:Had he said every 200 years, would you be more likely to agree?
jamesinclair said:Someone needs to start an "occupy NYPD" protest.
I dont get it. They arrest 500 people for "blocking traffic" on the bridge?
You know what 500 people in line is called? A traffic jam. Maybe NYPD should arrest drivers on the bridge every day for "blocking traffic".
I had to deal with a broken traffic signal today. It was "blocking traffic". Why wasnt the taxi that was double parked arrested for "blocking traffic"?
Why is "cruising for fast food" worthy of the bridge but "protesting injustice" arrestable?
Sounds like shit straight out of NK.
You need a permit to protest? You can't inconvenience anyone when protesting? GTFO. The founding fathers would shit bricks if they knew the country had turned into this.
Karma Kramer said:for real! Come on GAF, this thread is slowing down and it saddens me
VALIS said:Well, it is 5:30 in the morning east coast US. Only reason I'm up is I'm a hopeless night owl.
Large protests that close down parts of the city does serious economic harm to the businesses affected. Not everyone in new York is a part of this, and just because you are a "protestor" doesn't give you the right to fuck them over.jamesinclair said:Someone needs to start an "occupy NYPD" protest.
I dont get it. They arrest 500 people for "blocking traffic" on the bridge?
You know what 500 people in line is called? A traffic jam. Maybe NYPD should arrest drivers on the bridge every day for "blocking traffic".
I had to deal with a broken traffic signal today. It was "blocking traffic". Why wasnt the taxi that was double parked arrested for "blocking traffic"?
Why is "cruising for fast food" worthy of the bridge but "protesting injustice" arrestable?
Sounds like shit straight out of NK.
You need a permit to protest? You can't inconvenience anyone when protesting? GTFO. The founding fathers would shit bricks if they knew the country had turned into this.
I am reaching as far as what you said.Flying_Phoenix said:Really? I mean REALLY? You're going to reach that far?
and therefore the argument that government must give loans to specific solar companies to maintain the industry is weak at best, or flat out a lie.Flying_Phoenix said:And?
They got 500 million dollars. The largest sum by far to any one green tech company and it was solely due to their manufacturing ability. Manufacturing ability mind you that was so risky the fed had already predicted the company would fail. Do research please.Flying_Phoenix said:Exactly. Which is why Solayndra was such a tiny part of the green energy fund.
So how much money can the fed lose before it becomes a story. A billion? 2 billion?Flying_Phoenix said:Being angry? Yes.
Making it a colossal front page scandal in nearly every magazine? No.
remnant said:Large protests that close down parts of the city does serious economic harm to the businesses affected. Not everyone in new York is a part of this, and just because you are a "protestor" doesn't give you the right to fuck them over.
Don't be stupid. This entire protest is built on the logic that it is meant to disruptive and chaotic. Chances are you will be arrested. There is no comparison between this and being shot and killed in the streets or sent to a gulag in NK.
I am reaching as far as what you said.
remnant said:Large protests that close down parts of the city does serious economic harm to the businesses affected. Not everyone in new York is a part of this, and just because you are a "protestor" doesn't give you the right to fuck them over.
Don't be stupid. This entire protest is built on the logic that it is meant to disruptive and chaotic. Chances are you will be arrested. There is no comparison between this and being shot and killed in the streets or sent to a gulag in NK.
remnant said:They got 500 million dollars. The largest sum by far to any one green tech company and it was solely due to their manufacturing ability. Manufacturing ability mind you that was so risky the fed had already predicted the company would fail. Do research please.
So how much money can the fed lose before it becomes a story. A billion? 2 billion?
1.) So? People work on saturdays.jamesinclair said:1) It's saturday.
2) No shit a protest is disruptive. Thats what the fuck a protest is.
3) Its not the only bridge. Traffic on the brooklyn bridge? Take the tunnel. Or ride the fucking subway, or are those people being "disrupted" to good for mass transit?
Maybe the egyptian army should have gone into the square, because those protesters were disrupting traffic.
If the protestors are vandalizing property and setting fires....arrest them.
But arresting someone for "blocking traffic" or "disrupting business" is the same thing as making protests illegal.
How do you propose 10,000 people march without "disrupting traffic"?
Remember those civil right marches in the 1960s? Remember how they arrested the black people because they were breaking rules like "disrupting traffic" and such?
Good times.
If there is a SINGLE point of access to an area, then yes, blocking it is an issue. But Manhattan has dozens of bridges and tunnels. Drive an extra mile and take the next one.
Canada says 'no'. You tried to drag us into your last bloody revolution, but we've gotten along just fine without one. We'll skip this one too.timetokill said:Had he said every 200 years, would you be more likely to agree?
Campaign contribution limits. The movement's motto was "One person. One dollar. One vote." IIRC.VALIS said:Man, I'm getting tired of reading people bellowing "what's the message?!" here, there and everywhere.
If you believe that corporations and the wealthy 1% own and control our political process and their rights to make obscene amounts of money are far more protected by the politicians and lawmakers in this country than the rights of a citizen to receive adequate health care, education and employment, how do you boil this down to one single message? If you can reduce that to the bumper sticker or soundbite-sized blurb everyone apparently needs to stave off their bewilderment, please do.
remnant said:1.) So? People work on saturdays.
2.) And the Police's job is to maintain some order for the citizens who don't want to disrupted by you.
3.) It's not all about you. Those people pay the same taxes everyone else does. If they want to take the bridge, they should be allowed to take the fucking bridge.
and for the last time you are not an Egyptian rebel. No matter how badly you want to believe you are.
if 10k people want to disrupt traffic, go right the fuck ahead. Just don't act surprised when you are arrested. Also don't act like you are fighting for freedom in North Korea.
Not comparable at all. The military explicitly states they have a research budget. We expect to lose some money there. The DCGS-A project has been long running before the war in Afghanistan, and was intended to be a fully military counterpart to Palantir. Not funded in any way by private sector institutions.Karma Kramer said:How about the 2.7 billion dollars spent by the military on a computer that ended up not working at all... where are the headline stories about that?
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/...on-on-a-battlefield-computer-that-doesnt-work
So paying taxes exempt you from a crime? Did the NYPD force the protestors onto the bridge like cattle, or did they jut march there like they own the city. Something tells me the latter.Karma Kramer said:You know who else pays taxes? Those protestors that were arrested. Well aside from I guess that 13 or something little girl. Do you not see the illogic in conducting arrests on the bridge? Shouldn't you be just as upset at the NYPD for handling the situation so poorly and letting (or leading) the protestors walk on the main road of the brooklyn bridge?
remnant said:Not comparable at all. The military explicitly states they have a research budget. We expect to lose some money there. The DCGS-A project has been long running before the war in Afghanistan, and was intended to be a fully military counterpart to Palantir. Not funded in any way by private sector institutions.
The DoE loans were not loans to see if Solyndra products would work. It was to give them a cash infusion to expand manufacturing of a product that they hoped would beat the market.