Zuccotti Park-October 30

30 October, 2011
Zuccotti Park, NYC

A couple of blog corrections about the "Occupy Wall Street" movement.

First, the best website to contact, get information from, and make donations to the Occupy Wall Street movement is:

http://www.occupywallst.org/

not "occupytogether.org" that I listed in the earlier posting.

Second, as I mentioned below, the weather in New York City has turned very wintry and the need has increased for the items below.  This list can also be found on the occupywallst.org website.

Needs

• insulated gloves, wool hats, scarves
• long underwear / smart wool thermal socks
• 300 hand warmers, 300 foot warmers
• waterproof boots in all sizes
• disposable shoe covers
• winter coats
• hot beverages
• thermal heaters
• all weather sub-thermal sleeping bags
• tarps
• all-weather tents
• foam padding / insulation for inside of tents
• wooden pallets to get tents off the ground
• cots to get people off the ground (don't currently have any - could really use these)

Dropping Off In Person In NYC

Daily until 9pm at the OWS storage space at 52 Broadway Ave, ground floor.
After 9pm at the OWS Comfort Station on the east side of Liberty Square (aka Zuccotti Park)

Where To Ship

Occupy Wall Street
118a Fulton St
PO Box 205
New York, NY 10038


Third, I again want to encourage you to send this blog information to one or two other people.  The national conversation has changed because of the Occupy Wall Street movement.  We are the 99%.

Thanks
jt





29 October, 2011
Zuccoti Park, NYC

I am going to write a couple of short blog entries about the "Occupy Wall Street" protest and what we can do in support.

A few things that you can do is forward this blog to one or two other people so we can expand the information,  visit the "occupytogether.org" website to stay informed about actions taking place,  and make any kind of donations that you can to further the spirit of the protesters.

In the midst of this stormy Saturday the protester's spirits are very high.  The rain, snow, and wind of this early winter storm has not dampened their resolve.  It is a lesson for us all.  The city has taken away the electric generators that the protesers were using to keep warm citing safety reasons. As you can imagine, this has made things pretty desperate.  

Gloves, socks, sweaters and other winter gear (and espeically money) would be a great contribution.  The 99%  movement is our movement.  More to come.
jt

Zuccotti Park, NYC

29 October, 2011
Zuccoti Park, NYC

I am going to write a couple of short blog entries about the "Occupy Wall Street"  protest and what we can do in support.

A few  things that you can do is forward this blog to one or two other people so we can expand the information,  visit the "occupytogether.org" website to stay informed about actions taking place,  and make any kind of donations that you can to further the spirit of the protesters.

In the midst of this stormy Saturday the protester's spirits are very high.  The rain, snow, and wind of this early winter storm has not dampened their resolve.  It is a lesson for us all.  The city has taken away the electric generators, that the protesers were using, to keep warm, citing saftey reasons. As you can imagine this has made things pretty desperate.  

Gloves, socks, sweaters and other winter gear (and espeically money) would be a great contribution.  The 99%  movement is our movement.  More to come.
jt

What do people want?

11 October, 2011

I saw a letter to the editor in a local newspaper entitled "Obama, you heartbreaker" on September 19th and I said to myself  "Don't read it, it will only make you angry".  I read it anyway and it did make me angry.

The letter was written by a person calling himself a "progressive" and he details all the things that have made him unhappy with the Obama administration. The writer spoke about how hopeful he was with Obama's election and how many progressive changes would happen now  that he was in the White House.  Then the writer began to talk about his disappointments with Obama and listed some of his unfulfilled promises. He concluded by saying he may need to put his support behind a different candidate in the future.

Come on people! 

The reality is that this administration has accomplished more "progressive" initiatives in three years than  anything we've seen for a long long while  coming out of Washington. Healthcare Reform, two women on the Supreme Court,  lower taxes, repeal of Don't Ask-Don't Tell,  saved the American Auto Industry, is ending the war in Iraq, saved the country from a debt crisis, is a positive example for millions of African-Americans,  killed Osama Bin Laden, and is now traveling the country unfolding his "Jobs for America"  proposal.

Could his administration have done more for the country?  YES!  Has Congress been at all helpful?  NO!  Have some "blue-dog"  democrats subverted progressive initiatives?  YES!  Could any one of us have done more in the face of this congressional obstructionism?  I don't think so.

My point is this.  Rather than liberals, independents, and progressives lamenting in public what Obama has not been able to accomplish, which only serves the interests of the conservative right-wing, it would be better if we were all writing letters (and taking other actions) pointing out the real enemies of social and economic change; the obstructionists, the racists, the extreme right-wing, the "oh-poor-me"  1%, and the current Republican controlled House of Representatives. 

Barack Obama is not the enemy.  His administration's policies have turned left much more than they have leaned right.  Instead of  casting doubt on his leadership  to an already misinformed electorate  thanks to Fox News and other media groups, we should be constantly focusing our energy on exposing the lies that these so called "news" organizations and their minions dish out every day.

To me it is better to support, and then struggle with, someone whose policies are generally in the right place than it is to wait  for the opposition to win and see all of our accomplishments disappear.

jt

Occupy Wall Street-Who will join in?

5 October, 2011
Beginning with a handful of people, The Occupy Wall Street demonstrations now can be measured in the thousands.  When will "any" politician acknowledge this movement?

Begining with a demonstration in one city, now demonstrators are in the streets of numerous cities.  When will the media explain this story in a way that everybody can understand.  That this movement is an expression of the way Americans are feeling about being kicked to the side by the greed of the rich.

Begining with a small group of  young people angry that no one on Wall St has been held accountable for the economic crisis they created.  Angry that the rich whine about the small amount of taxes they have to pay.  Angry that the lower-class and the middle-class have shouldered the brunt of this crisis in terms of lost jobs, homes, pensions, education, healthcare, and a future.  This movement now has the support of unions, teachers, students, and ordinary citizens standing up for their rights.

When will you join them?
jt