Michael Moore encourages the Occupy Oakland protesters Friday
Crucified on a cross of greenbacks
Michael Moore draws media to Occupy Oakland
Between a visit to Occupy Oakland (=OO) on October 17 and Friday, October 28, the nature of that particular protest site changed and it seemed that a new visit would provide the basis for a subjective report on a comparison of the before and after phases of the cutting edge installment of the OWS movement.
The first visit had reminded this columnist of a camp out inside a delivery van visit to the 1965 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glenn, New York. The atmosphere there had been a preview of the "in this together" spirit later exemplified by the musical concert at Woodstock, New York. The non-violent community spirit prevails and everyone seems to make a concerted effort to provide a living example of the philosophy of the brotherhood of man. That was the same impression we got at the first visit to Occupy Oakland.
By Friday, October 28, 2011, the atmosphere at "Oscar Grant" park in Oakland was much more somber and serious as epitomized by the tribute to Scott Olsen the Marine who had been hit by a teargas canister during Tuesday's camp clearing effort by authorities.
On Friday, the port-a-potties were gone. The free library was gone. The food cooking facilities were gone but there was one large new factor, a massive media presence.
On October 17, this columnist observed one TV news van and about three digital photographers. On Friday, October 28, we counted 13 TV vans during our visit.
After arriving and noting the large number of journalists there, we learned that film maker Michael Moore was scheduled to address the protesters later in the afternoon.
On the day that John Wayne received his Oscar - , California Governor Ronald Reagan had said at an impromptu news conference: "If it takes a bloodbath to end this dissention on campus, let's get it over." His spin doctors immediately amended the pronouncement but about four weeks later when four students at Kent State were shot, conservatives breathed a collective sigh of relief. It seems that the conservatives' tolerance level for dissention has remained constant.
The former actor/governor used his harsh response to anti-war demonstrations to establish his credentials as a conservative and then launch a campaign that he was able to parlay into gaining the Republican nomination for the Presidency.
Will the harsh response to Occupy Oakland provide the mayor of that city with a launch pad for a Presidential bid? We'll have to wait and see how that works out. One thing for sure, the folks at the Amalgamated Conspiracy Theory Factory's product development division have, in Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, a poster child for criticism of the first high profile winner of the instant runoff voting process.
Could Michelle Bachman exploit the recent turmoil in Oakland? Why doesn't the design department at the Amalgamated Conspiracy Theory Factory whip up a whacky prediction that Bachman might assert that Police Brutality is a variation of the right to free speech and therefore it is guaranteed by the First Amendment? She could publicize the thought by urging the Conservative dominated United States Supreme Court to legislate from the bench on that possible legal loophole. Would Governor Reagan have hesitated to do that?
We were out of Northern California when the Police cleared out the Occupy Oakland protesters and camp site earlier this week, but we noticed that in a photo caption on page one of the UCB student newspaper, The Daily Californian, on Friday October 28, 2011, that stated: "Violence on Tuesday at Occupy Oakland provoked police intervention." The online liberal media sites had convinced us that it was unprovoked. Is the UC Berkeley Journalism School being funded by Rupert Murdoch?
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