What If Occupiers Armed Themselves?

And because the tea party are pro-deregulation, which would significantly aid their profiteering.

Weapons? You must be kidding me. Why would #occupy want to look like the 1%'s thugs? #Occupy have no weapons so you can tell the difference between us, and them, and what they most clearly want:



What would you like more of? Us or them? Follow the group most clearly representing your goals.

However, if right wingers did the same thing, they would be branded heroes and patriots.

which is not much better. however, most of the public does not agree w/ that characterization of the occupiers.

government, even nonviolently, well, you’re dangerous."

They don't fear Occupy -- physically. They fear the movement because it challenges the status quo.

It's the reverse for the Tea Party.

in the Tea Party might start siding with OWS.

Remember what America said after May 4th, 1970? That they "deserved to die" and "there should have been more"?

Remember in 2007, when The Gathering of the Eagles participants beat up a Gold-Star dad in full view of the cops . . . not ONE arrest? I was at that protests. Police pretty much left them alone despite continued threats of bodily harm and assaults.

And now all of the OWS arrests and Police-brutality-related injuries . . .

America does not like the left, nor do they like what we stand for. They just plain don't like us. The wealthy think "we don't know how the world works" (Stephen Moore) and that "we're babies in adult bodies" (Ken Langone) and "Imbeciles" (Bernie Marcus). The police hate us even more; either that or they're more comfortable identifying with fascists than they are peaceful people. Middle America's conditioned by the purchased media to love wealth and hate equality.

How do you combat that?

A bunch of citizens assembling peacefully in a public space... or highly militarized law enforcement units?

The difference between what we have seen these past few months and an actual, hostile takeover and military occupation of the US gets smaller every day.

Occasionally there were attendees who were agile enough to hold up misspelled signs and rig an effigy lynching. But their problem was that 20 people manufacturing faux misplaced outrage, had little impact.

In comparison, the OWS shut down ports, generated bank transfer day, and massive crowds and creative demonstrations. The message of the 99% vs. the 1% ruling class resonated deep into American psyches uniting the middle and lower classes in a way that transcended party lines. We the 99% became united ... and the powers that be view that as more threatening than a couple armed seniors tooling around in their rascals.

If the OWS starts to shift from peaceful demonstrating and protesting to arming themselves like the teabaggers, they will make it easier for the those with militant minds to label the protesters as terrorists - and that label will justify the authorities to use even more violent methods to suppress the 99%. Its not right that the feds are involving themselves, or that cops are injuring peaceful protestors and abusing their power. Whats happening now is we as a country are coming out of denial, as we witness the fascist aspects of our nature of our country turning on its own citizens.

The bottom line is that powers that be are not threatened by a few old racists in rascals, in fact they like that kind of misdirection, but they are threatened by democracy in action and first amendment rights being exercised.

same ol, same ol...unfortunately.