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"You Have No Authority Here"

Why Do We Say That?

When I was in St. Louis this weekend for Occupy the Midwest, one of our actions was against Peabody Coal. This is a company that hasn't paid any federal taxes in three years, and that has demanded and received a whole host of tax breaks from the city as well. Peabody Coal is a corporate parasite, contributing nothing to the community while doing everything in its power to suck every dime it can out of that same community. Among their many other offenses, they are currently tearing up the Navajo Nation and draining away its water supply to extract more coal. When Peabody is done, the Navajo Nation will have been drained dry and left without water in the middle of a vast desert.

Yet who was there to defend them? The St Louis Police Department, the same men and women who viciously assaulted the OMW encampment the night before. Freedom of assembly is met with savagery, while corporate criminals are protected and coddled. Peabody's executives were actually standing there behind the cops with their hands in their pockets, smirking at us from their safe little perch.

I'm not so naïve as to think we can do without the police. But those who attack protesters while protecting corporate parasites are not truly police, not if the job of the police is to protect and serve. So when you hear Occupiers chanting “you have no authority here,” it's not because we don't respect the rule of law. It's because the police don't.

Free Tibet

Colonialism Is Always Wrong

Most people know colonialism when they see it. Most people know imperialism when they see it. But some on the left- those with Maoist sympathies, to be specific- think only capitalist countries can be colonialist or imperialist, regardless of the actual circumstances.

Such is the case with Tibet. They'll try to tell you that Tibet has always been part of China- as if the grandiose claims of past Chinese emperors to rule over all their neighbors can be taken literally. They'll try to tell you that Tibet under the Buddhist theocracy was not the Shangri-La many Western liberals would like to imagine. While it is certainly true that some people would like to see pre-invasion Tibet through rose-colored glasses, that really doesn't matter. No, Tibet was not a utopia before the Chinese invaded. That does absolutely nothing to excuse or justify the invasion, or the brutal repression of Tibetan religion, or the colonialist resettling of Han Chinese in Tibet.

African societies were also not utopian, but that doesn't justify the French, Belgian, German or British colonies there. Indian society was not utopian, but that doesn't make the British conquest of India any better. Colonialism and imperialism is always wrong- a criminal act on a global scale- and it doesn't matter whether the perpetrators of that crime call their system a monarchy or a democracy or a “people's republic.” China's crime against Tibet continues, and the Tibetan people continue to resist to the best of their ability. Those who attempt to defend this crime are in some measure responsible for it.

"What Happened To Occupy?"

Mainstream Media Asks Disingenuous Question

How clueless can some people be? The LA Times just ran an editorial asking “what happened to Occupy,” and repeating the tired canard that we'll be ineffective until we “get organized” and “embrace electoral politics” (read: “help get Democrats elected.”)

So, in answer to the faux-ignorant question “what happened to Occupy,” my answer to the mainstream media is this:

1- Armies of storm troopers broke our encampments up, largely on the orders of Democratic mayors. Remember that?

2- You folks in the mainstream media did everything you could to slander us, while ignoring everything good we were actually doing. Remember that?

3- We're still incredibly active, you're just choosing to ignore that fact in order to discredit us and help destroy us. Now you have the nerve to ask what happened to us? What happened to you?

The LA Times goes on to say:

“2012 is an election year that presents a sharp contrast between candidates who aim to help level the playing field dominated by the 1% and those who don't. If the Occupy movement is to have much influence over that contest, it will probably have to do something its leaders have so far resisted: get organized.”

If the Democrats wanted our support, their mayors wouldn't have sent armies of riot police after us. They wouldn't have had those riot police tear gas us and beat us and shoot things at us. Their senators wouldn't have voted for the military detention of American citizens. Their Congressmen wouldn't have voted for HR 347, the “anti-Occupy” bill. The only three Congressmen with the moral courage and respect for democracy to reject this bill were all Republicans! So don't try to tell us we should be embracing electoral politics- politicians, across the board, have become the enemies of democracy and the American people and the servants of corporate power.

The only reason some people want us to “get organized” is so we have a structure centralized enough for them to co-opt, corrupt, and if they deem it necessary, destroy. It's not going to happen. We're not here to get Democrats elected, and we never were. We're here to end corporate rule and restore democracy- with the help of any honest citizen or politician who has the courage to stand with us, whether that person is a Republican or a Democrat or neither.

"The Police Aren't The Real Enemy"

No, But They Do All The Dirty Work For The Real Enemy

“The police are not the real enemy”- people who have never seen what the police are capable of are very fond of saying this, because to them the police are the people who save you if you're in danger. They don't come from the neighborhoods where people are most likely to be in danger, where the police take forty-five minutes to even show up, where the police behave like an occupying army at the best of times. They haven't experienced what happens when you try to exercise your right to protest, and the police show up with their tear gas and shotguns to unleash violence and terror.

If the police just did their job- including arresting us when we're engaging in civil disobedience- no reasonable person in the Occupy movement or outside of it would think of them as the enemy. But that's not the reality. The reality is that they will pepper spray people right in the face just for sitting down on the sidewalk. They will shoot people in the head with tear-gas canisters just for marching. They will beat people with batons just for standing in a crowd. They will use tear gas and rubber bullets and every other weapon short of live ammunition (so far!) because their real job is not to “protect and serve” you and I- it's to protect and serve the 1%, to be the iron fist of corporate rule, to terrify and brutalize the population into submissive compliance.

When they conduct themselves in this manner, the police are not “part of the 99%” as the chant would have it. They are nothing but the paid goons of corporate power, and they have no more legitimate authority than any other gangster. I don't agree with the “F*** the Police” marches some Occupations have engaged in- even the very worst policeman is a human being, and human beings don't tend to improve their behavior when they're degraded and disrespected. That's how they treat us,so we ought to do better than that. But I don't condemn those marches either. If you find them shocking and repellant, as many do, just show up to a big Occupy protest in Oakland or Atlanta or Portland someday. You'll see the real face of Officer Friendly- and what you see will open your eyes.

Should We Help Elect The Democrats?

No, They Should Help Us Resist!

Some Occupiers are socialists and some are anarchists, some are communists and some are Democrats. Some of them even believe that the goal of Occupy should be to ensure the electoral success of the Democratic Party, on the grounds that the Democrats would do any number of wonderful things, if only they weren't held back by the Republicans. This view is a fallacy, and it serves to drain away energy from the only thing that has any hope of saving American democracy, which is direct action in the streets. Why do I say this? Consider these facts:

1- Jean Quan, the Mayor of Oakland, is a Democratic politician. She ordered the brutal assault by riot police on the Occupy Oakland camp, resulting in the shooting of Scott Olsen.

2- Rahm Emmanuel, the Mayor of Chicago, is also a Democrat. He just tried to pass an entire package of oppressive laws, specifically designed to make it too expensive, too complicated and too dangerous for anyone to exercise the First Amendment right to freedom of assembly in the city of Chicago.

3- Chicago's city council is entirely controlled by Democrats, including some who are considered “progressive” Democrats. They removed a few of the very worst provisions from Rahm Emmanuel's proposal, but they still gave him most of what he wanted.

4- Democrats and Republicans joined together to draft the NDAA, giving the President the authority to use the military on American soil, detaining American citizens without trial. The vast majority of Democrats in both the Senate and the House supported this law.

5- President Obama, a Democrat, signed the NDAA into law. While many Democrats would like to believe he did so reluctantly, the Senators who drafted the legislation have stated in no uncertain terms that the President personally requested them to include the provisions on military detention.

6- We currently have a Democratic President, yet our Department of Defense is still using training materials that describe protests- any kind of protests- as a form of “low-level terrorism.” The President, as the Commander in Chief, could change this with a single memo, yet he has not.

7- Our Democratic President just signed a new set of FAA regulations giving law enforcement agencies permission to fly surveillance drones almost anywhere in the US in order to monitor Americans from above.

8- Our Democratic President has neither closed Guantanamo as he promised to do, nor rolled back any of the oppressive powers of the Patriot Act. Even when Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate, they did nothing to change this act.

9- Our Democratic President just pushed through a settlement with the banks that gives them extensive immunity from criminal prosecution over the robosigning scandal, while requiring them to pay back a tiny fraction of what they stole from the American people.

10- To date, more than 6,000 Occupiers have been arrested. Many have been beaten. Many have been tear-gassed and pepper-sprayed. Some have been shot with so-called less-lethal rounds. On this President's watch, no bankers have been convicted for their role in destroying the world economy. They continue to operate with virtual impunity. The Democratic Party says nothing.

Many local Democratic activists and politicians are honorable, idealistic and hard-working people. If we are to save this country from corporate rule, we need their help. The answer is not for Occupy to work within the system. The answer is for real Democrats to abandon it, and to join us in the streets.

The Chicago PD

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

This week, an influential blog for Chicago police officers ran an article encouraging the use of black electric tape to illegally cover up name tags at the G8 protests, allowing them to engage in acts of violent criminality with impunity. Many Chicago police officers commented on the blog entry. Some voiced their intention to do exactly what the blog suggested. To these men, law enforcement officers in name only, I have this to say: may you be held accountable for your actions, stripped of the badges you have dishonored, and imprisoned for your crimes, because that is exactly what you deserve.

Some expressed fear that extremist protesters would attack them with Molotov cocktails, as has happened at other G8 demonstrations in other countries. This kind of fear tends to provoke more violence from the police, and that violence isn't always directed at those who might actually deserve it. Escalation begets escalation! I have this to say to any extremists who might be thinking of doing such a thing: please don't! Please remember that the police are human beings, and that if you put them in fear of their lives they will lash out in anger. You are endangering all of us if you engage in such reckless and violent actions. More importantly, it is just plain wrong. Yes, there are circumstances where force might be justified, but this is not one of them. However, my honest belief is that no one is planning to do anything like that in Chicago.

Others voiced some form of support for the right to peacefully protest as guaranteed by the Constitution, but also expressed hostility toward violent and confrontational protesters. To these men, I have this to say: thank you for your reasonable and measured attitudes, and your respect for the foundations of democracy. But you should ask yourself this question. When your fellow officers conspire to conceal their identities so they can rampage and bully those who are peacefully exercising their First Amendment rights, is it any wonder that some of the protesters don't turn out to have the patience and forgiveness of a Martin Luther King or a Gandhi? Escalation begets escalation.

One officer had this to say:

“Why is it our duty to hold back the hoards of people they've angered when nothing on their agenda is for the benefit of us or our families? I say if we don't join them, we move the barricades aside and let the cowering fools defend themselves from the crowd. I got into law enforcement because my grandmother was shot in the crossfire of two drug dealers battling it out as she walked home from the grocery store. I didn't sign up to protect evil men from getting a dose of karma.”

To this officer, I have this to say: you have not forgotten who you “protect and serve,” and I want to thank you for it. If the police actually did join the protesters, the system would be shaken to its core. Real change would become inevitable. But it's not going to happen that way. As you can see from the other comments, many of your fellow officers have every intention of using criminal violence to protect the status quo. You are on the wrong side. Quit the police department, and join the movement. You will be welcomed!

Worldwide Revolution For Direct Democracy

Occupy Is Only Part Of It

15M, Real Democracy Now, the Occupy Movement, Take the Square- these are all different names for the same thing, which is the global revolution to put an end to corporate rule and build direct democracy in it place. American liberals- if there is such a thing, in a country with two right-wing political parties and no functional third option- want the Occupy Movement to be reformist. They want it to focus on restoring America's dysfunctional representative democracy to a more functional state of being, while leaving the essential power structures firmly in place.

To the extent that all Occupiers share a common goal of reducing corporate influence over American politics and combating income inequality, we can make common cause. However, Occupiers who see themselves as part of a much bigger global movement will never be satisfied with liberal reforms. The liberal reformist mentality is one of compromise. It is defined by an urgent desire to be seen as a “nice guy” and to “work within the system.” It is utterly and completely ineffective, as witnessed by the repeated collapse in willpower on the part of Democratic politicians. They compromise, and then they compromise again, and then they compromise again, and in the end the other side still won't play ball. And from their perspective, why should they? The Democrats have no understanding of the one essential prerequisite for successful negotiation, which is to only negotiate from a position of strength. It's as if liberals are much more attached to the need to be seen as “reasonable” than they are to actually winning and achieving their goals.

That's why representative democracy in America has become a broken system. And it's also why all of the appeals for Occupy to “work within the system” are going to continue to fall on deaf ears. The worldwide movement for direct democracy is not here to work within the system or reform it or fix it. Instead the goal is to create something better.

Torture In Oakland?

Unconfirmed, But Disturbing Reports

Reports coming out of Oakland are sketchy at best, given the inherent tendency of eyewitness accounts to get mixed up with rumors and speculation. But the reports coming out are very disturbing. One Occupier arrested in Oakland claims that his cell was tear gassed. There are reports of Occupiers tear-gassed in the hallways. There are reports of beatings.

Occupiers have been crowded in large numbers into tiny cells, forced to remain standing for lack of room to lie down, for up to twenty-four hours at a time. They've been denied access to medications, sometimes with life-threatening results. Jail guards have directly stated that they did not care if somebody died as a result.

I'm not sure that all of this is true. Some of it might be unfounded or even malicious rumor. What's really disturbing, though, is conservative support for it. “If you can't do the time, don't do the crime,” as one of the comments read.

“The time” for any criminal act is determined by a judge and jury, not by jail guards with an ax to grind. It consists of having your freedom curtailed through confinement. In a country operating under the rule of law, “the time” does not consist of chemical gas attacks, beatings or any other form of torture. If you support any of those things, you may think of yourself as a supporter of law and order, but you are no such thing. You are a supporter of the rule of force, unconstrained and arbitrary. You are a supporter of fascism.

Socialism and Capitalism Both Discredited

Direct Democracy Is A Better Way

Socialism, like capitalism, is an outmoded concept. I know that's an odd thing to say on a “socialist” blog, but it's not that I'm against the basic premise of socialism when you boil it all down. It's a matter of moral principle that a community should always take care of all of its members, and societies that don't make that a priority have gone astray. I don't disagree with the basic premise of capitalism either, though, if you define it like this- a community should always give all of its members the greatest possible room to grow and develop as individuals, to pursue happiness as they see fit as long they don't abuse or exploit others, to create new things, and to work hard and receive the benefits of that hard work.

The problem is this. Institutionalized socialism doesn't provide these benefits, and neither does institutionalized capitalism. “Socialist” politicians now serve as decision-making members of the International Monetary Fund or IMF, imposing destructive and exploitative policies on countries around the world for the benefit of a wealthy few. So-called Communist China is the home of Apple factories where the conditions are so miserable that the workers have threatened to commit mass suicide. Here in the capitalist United States, you can work like a dog at the Walmart, the Dunkin Donuts or the Target, and you won't make enough money to feed your family and keep a roof over your head no matter how hard you work.

The promise of socialism turned out to be a lie. So did the promise of capitalism. All systems of top-down power structure, whether communist or capitalist, dictatorial or representative so-called democracy, end up serving the interests of an elite few. The answer isn't to change which group of criminals is in charge of the big scam. The answer is to change our entire concept of how society can and should function. The answer is Direct Democracy.

The Internet On Strike

Protest Against SOPA

Wikipedia, Craigslist and many other important internet sites are down today, but not because of any technical problems. They're down to protest the attempted power grab of the big corporations behind SOPA and PIPA, two pieces of legislation that would give private companies legalized vigilante powers to kill websites that displease them.

These acts, in theory, are to prevent the piracy of copyrighted content. The reality is, though, that the powers SOPA would give to private companies are sweeping and arbitrary. All the company would have to do is to complain that something on your website violated their copyright, and they could have the entire site shut down.

Considering the recent actions by SOPA supporter NBC, which used its clout to temporarily get Business Insider journalist David Seaman fired because he kept telling the truth about their cover-up of the NDAA story, it's obvious that the law will be abused almost as soon as it goes into effect.

Write an essay about Occupy Wall Street, and include a Youtube video of a news story. Oops! The network turns out to be part of a big conglomerate that includes investment banks, and that's not the kind of essay they want to see. They prefer the news to have their spin, not yours, and putting your own interpretation on whatever pablum they've put together is just a little too cheeky of you. They file a SOPA complaint, and your article is history, along with whatever site you hosted it on. It's the privatization of Big Brother.

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