"In Oakland, 400 held after violent day; Occupy protesters damage City Hall" by Terry Collins | Associated Press, January 30, 2012
OAKLAND, Calif. - For weeks the protests had waned, with only a smattering of people taking to Oakland’s streets for occasional marches that bore little resemblance to the headline-grabbing Occupy demonstrations of last fall.
Then came Saturday, which started peacefully enough - a midday rally at City Hall and a march. But hours later, the scene near downtown Oakland had dramatically deteriorated: clashes punctuated by rock and bottle throwing by protesters and volleys of tear gas from police. A City Hall break-in that left glass cases smashed, graffiti spray-painted on walls, and an American flag burned.
Looks like agent provocateur plants to me.
More than 400 people were arrested on charges ranging from failure to disperse to vandalism, said a police spokesman, Sergeant Jeff Thomason. At least three officers and one protester were injured.
Mayor Jean Quan inspected damage caused by dozens of people who broke into City Hall. She said she wants a court order to keep Occupy protesters who have been arrested several times out of Oakland, which has been hit repeatedly by demonstrations that have cost the financially troubled city about $5 million.
Quan called on the loosely organized movement to “stop using Oakland as its playground.’’
“People in the community and people in the Occupy movement have to stop making excuses for this behavior,’’ she said.
Saturday’s protests - the most turbulent since Oakland police forcefully dismantled an Occupy encampment in November - came just days after the group announced a new round of actions. The group said it planned to use a vacant building as a social center and political hub and threatened to try to shut down the Port of Oakland for a third time, occupy the airport, and take over City Hall.
After the mass arrests, the Occupy Oakland Media Committee criticized the police’s conduct, saying that most of the arrests were made illegally because police failed to allow protesters to disperse, and they threatened legal action....
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"Violence in Oakland divides Occupy movement; D.C. protesters are told to leave two park sites" by Terry Collins | Associated Press, January 31, 2012
OAKLAND, Calif. - Many in the crowd outside Oakland City Hall shouted “Burn it! Burn it!’’ as masked protesters prepared to set fire to an American flag.
Oh, STINKO PROVOCATEURS!
That’s when a woman emerged from the scrum, screaming for them to stop, that it would hurt the cause.
Yes, that is what you have to do: CALL THEM OUT ON IT!
Now everyone, repeat after me: ASSHOLES, ASSHOLES, ASSHOLES, ASSHOLES!!!!!!!
I don't want to set fire to a flag, dear readers. I want that flag to live up to the values I believe in and defend, not be the 21st-century version of the swastika like it is to most of the planet.
Moments later, the flames began, and suddenly a movement that seemingly vanished weeks ago was back in the spotlight, this time for an act of protest that has long divided the nation and now the movement itself.
And CUI BONO?
The images of the flag-burning went viral in the hours after Saturday’s demonstrations on Oakland’s streets, with Occupy supporters denouncing the act as unpatriotic and a black mark on the movement. Others called it justified.
And CUI BONO?
Occupy member Sean Palmer, who served in the Marines, said he opposed flag-burning. “I think they should’ve hung it upside down, because that’s the international call for distress and that’s what we are, in distress,’’ Palmer said....
YUP!!
Violent clashes between police and Occupy demonstrators in Oakland and the potential for confrontations in other cities have divided supporters of the movement.
Saturday’s protest in Oakland culminated in rock- and bottle-throwing and volleys of tear gas from the police, as well as the City Hall break-in that left glass cases smashed, graffiti spray-painted on the walls and, finally, the flag-burning.
In Washington yesterday, the US Park Police began enforcing a no-camping ban at the two Washington park sites where Occupy protesters have been demonstrating for four months....
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"Police clear some tents from Occupy site in D.C." by Eric Tucker | Associated Press, February 05, 2012
WASHINGTON - Dozens of US Park Police officers in riot gear and on horseback converged before dawn yesterday on one of the nation’s last remaining Occupy sites, with police clearing away tents they said were banned under park rules.
That move left large swaths of open space and raised questions about exactly what would remain of the encampment.
Still, police said they were not evicting the protesters. Those whose tents conformed to regulations were allowed to stay, and protesters can stay 24 hours a day as long as they do not camp with blankets or other bedding. Police threatened to seize tents that broke the rules and arrest the owners.
If they are so worried about rats why aren't they cleaning out the tenements?
By midday, police has arrested four people who refused to move from beneath a statute and two who crossed a police line.
The National Park Service, which has allowed the protesters to remain in the park for months, has said it will give protesters notice if police decide to clear the park. Police yesterday were careful to say they were not evicting anyone or closing the park, but were instead stepping up enforcement of an existing ban on camping.
Protesters had braced for a confrontation when the park service said it would start enforcing the ban Monday, though no crackdown happened until yesterday.
Despite what police said, some protesters said the crackdown amounted to eviction.
“This is a slow, media-friendly eviction,’’ said protester Melissa Byrne. “We’re on federal property, so they have to make it look good.’’
The officers poured into McPherson Square just before 6 a.m. They initially turned their focus to dragging out wood, metal, and other items stored beneath a massive blue tarp - which protesters call the “Tent of Dreams’’ - that had been draped around a statue of a Union general in the Civil War. Protesters agreed to remove the tent.
The Washington demonstration is among the last remaining Occupy sites, enjoying First Amendment protections by virtue of its location on federal park service property.
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"11 arrested at Occupy protest campsite in D.C." by Associated Press | February 06, 2012
WASHINGTON - Eleven people have been arrested in Washington’s McPherson Square since Park Police began clearing tents from one of the nation’s last remaining Occupy protest sites, authorities said yesterday.
David Schlosser, a spokesman for the US Park Police, the site was mostly peaceful yesterday and officials were continuing to clear the park of tents and restore sanitary conditions.
The protesters vowed to continue their demonstration and urged followers to remain nonviolent....
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"Romney's problems did not end in Minnesota. Just as he was taking the stage, several protesters from Occupy Minneapolis and Glitterati, a group of gay-rights activists, poured glitter on Romney’s head. Several other Republican candidates - including Gingrich, Michele Bachmann, and Tim Pawlenty - have also been “glitter-bombed.’’
Romney tried to take it in stride. “This is confetti!’’ Romney exclaimed to his supporters at Freightmasters, a shipment warehouse that was filled with golf carts....
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