Out of the Woods

The 1% are trying very hard 

to change the topic

For a few weeks after the Occupy Wall Street Movement first began, the media ignored it completely. 'Wall Street enriches itself at the expense of the rest of us' That's obviously silly. 'The government is in the pockets of the global corporations' What could be more idiotic!

But then 700 people were arrested crossing over to Brooklyn and the media sat up. Since then the movement has spread all around the globe. There have been protests in Egypt, South Africa, and Tunisia. Close to twenty Canadian cities have Occupy protest groups. Protests and occupations in Argentina and Brazil and thirteen other South American countries, as well as in 33 countries in Europe. And on and on. The world is erupting in protests against global capitalism, against the corrupting of democracy, against the overweening power of global corporations and their international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Mayor Bloomberg in New York, a card carrying member of the 1%, of course, does not want to talk about the issues, about unemployment and poverty, about injustice and the suffering of many of the 99%. He does not want to talk about how the median income of working people in the US is about $26,000.00 a year, $4,000.00 above the poverty line.

Mayor Bloomberg wants to talk about keeping Zucotti Square CLEAN, he wants to talk about garbage, about security because he is so concerned about the safety of the protesters. That's why he sends in his cops in riot gear to smash their tents. That does a perfect job of muddying up the conversation. The police actions make the news. It fills the papers but the media still ignore what is really happening here.

Had he lived then, Mayor Bloomberg would certainly have had his police arrest Paul Revere for disturbing the peace. You can't have people clattering over the cobble stones in the middle of the night yelling :”The British are coming!” For heavens sake, people are trying to sleep.

Other mayors have followed that example. The Occupy movements are getting involved in legalistic discussions about where it is permitted to pitch tents. The city fathers and mothers insist that they must enforce the law about loitering, camping on the city green and other such weighty measures.

But all the while the issues raised by the protesters are ignored. They, however, patiently keep reminding us of the Preamble of the US Constitution: “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, . . .” They want to talk about JUSTICE in America, while Mayor Bloomberg and his many colleagues around the world talk about garbage.

Its a clever attempt to avoid the issues. But it only fools the few who do not want to listen.