Not a day goes by without further proof that the specious comparisons between Occupy Wall Street and the Tea Party are utterly bogus. You may recall that the Tea Partiers were blasted as a threat to democracy because activists used congressional town hall meetings to assail members of Congress about Obamacare, the stimulus and debt. But though some of these confrontations resulted in the politicians being subjected to some pretty rough criticism, at no point did the Tea Partiers ever seek to shut down the meetings or deny the object of their wrath the right to speak. But today in South Carolina, we got another taste of what free speech means to the occupy crowd.
At an event in Charleston, South Carolina, at the USS Yorktown museum where she was to give a foreign policy speech, Rep. Michele Bachmann was shouted down by a crowd of occupy demonstrators and was forced to leave the stage.
Despite the sympathetic depiction of the occupiers in much of the mainstream press as an expression of ordinary Americans’ anger about Wall Street, the tone of these demonstrations is that of a radical leftist movement determined to silence all those who disagree with them. Such actions as the attack on Bachmann are not tangential to the spirit of the occupiers, as its apologists claim, but are the core expression of its anti-democratic spirit. Rather than a manifestation of grass roots America, the thuggery we have seen again and again at occupy events is reminiscent of the radical college protests of the 1960s.
Those who seek to shut down the voices of their opponents in this manner don’t represent 99 percent of America. Their credo is anarchism and nihilism, not democracy.
I thought it was pretty clear that the organizers are pretty much the same people who put on all Leftist theater productions, this behavior has long been standard with the anti-Israel crowd.
That's right, and well said.
America used to work. The people had work. The system worked. Hey, EVEN the Congress used to work…(sometimes). God knows, it was far, far, far from perfect – but at least we all had some share in the struggles AND the rewards. But somewhere along the way, we lost our way. And now we seem to have an economy and a political system that works only for the rich. What they call "trickle down economics"… just leaves most of us out in the cold cold rain. We need to get back to what America was, and what it should be, and what it can be. Occupy Wall Street is no longer just a place called Zuccotti Park - Zuccotti Park is everywhere. You can try to pen us in, you can beat us and arrest us, you can mace and tear-gas us , and you can try to "permit" us to death….but you can't kill an idea. You can't keep down a people’s hopes and dreams for a better life…..a life with dignity and freedom….for us… for our kids. More power to Occupy Wall Street, as it spreads to every town and city - because OWS is us, and for us, and by us. It comes up from the grassroots, and it lifts us up in turn. With OWS America has found it’s voice, and that voice demands fairness and justice. This land IS our land! AND WE WANT IT BACK! …We want our lives back!… We want our future back! ….So why not take some time, find a quiet place somewhere, and consider this: Each of us has only one brief life…one chance…and many choices. It’s time to choose…and to act. If not now…then when? If not you, then… who? You DO have the power my friend….and the choice is yours.
OWS reminds me of the original kool aid drinkers…the followers of Jim Jones. n nThey have no idea where they are going, but will follow an un-vetted leader to their destruction.
This country is in horrible shape when the Tea Party are considered "racist", "terrorists", "unAmerican" just because they want spending brought under control, but the OWS crowd are "spirited" protestors and looked on with respect by MSM when their goal is to take from others. They are not the "99%". They are the 47% who don't pay Federal taxes. I am part of the 53% who do and you will hear from us in 2012
The radical left have honed their skills of disrespect for democracy over decades in our colleges and universities. They are taught that their way is the only way and that they are above certain aspects of civilized discourse because their politics makes them "holy." If their actions started getting them arrested for violations of others civil rights that would show them that freedom of speech belongs to everyone not just those they agree with. Remember "you have a right to swing your fist, but your right to swing your fist ends at the tip of my nose…"
nOh Please! Thank God somebody has the courage to shut down these lying moronic politicians. The 99% OWS crowd is America. And like it or not, unlike the hypocritical Billionaire Koch sucking Brothers, Tea Party movement, this one is a real grass roots movement. One that had the nerve and audacity to stand up against the Banksters and other greedy morally bankrupt corporations and their bought and paid for politicians. The 2nd American Revolution has started and unfortunately, and as usual, a lot of you are too dumb to even realize what's really going on. If you are against the OWS movement, which by the way is a worldwide movement, then I venture to say you were probably against the Anti War and Civil rights movements of the 60s and you will be left behind sucking your thumb in a fetal position wondering what happened. n
Do, please, tell us about standing up to the "banksters" and "other greedy morally bankrupt corporations and their bought and paid for politicians." Have you shut down a bank? Have you shut down even one branch? Have you brought a greedy corporation to its knees? Have you effected any changes whatsoever in the way banks and corporations do business? Have you changed the pay of even one executive? Have you transferred one red cent from the 1% to the 99%? Have you even addressed the political process? The answers are: no, no, no, no, no, no and no. n nYour world-wide movement isn't expanding and gaining steam; it's being shut down and has lost whatever momentum it might once have had. You've become public nuisances and public health and safety hazards and the people of the cities you "occupy" are sick to death of you. Your camps are fetid swamps of lawlessness and abuse. You are not the second American Revolution; you are merely revolting. And, you and your buddy upthread are a couple of drama queens. n n n n
Man, why is there so much hating in here? Occupiers are RIGHT and so are the Tea Partiers (me). The parts where we agree are 90% or better, and the parts where we disagree so small. That's why the media are pounding the hate drums day and night, so we won't realize how close we are.