You are hereForums / Daybreak by David Swanson / Citizen Power / America's Police State in Action in Pittsburgh, Oakland

America's Police State in Action in Pittsburgh, Oakland


Sent: Saturday, September 26, 2009
Subject: G20: Summit, Protests, Police, Videos, Pictures

America's Police State in Action in Pittsburgh, Oakland
by Arn Specter, Phila. (Twitter and Op Ed News )

KDKA, Ch2 in Pittsburgh has extensive coverage of activities before and during
the G20 Summit, which ended today. Protesters set up tent cities in Pittsburgh and
rallied too in Oakland, Calif. facing hundreds of fully armed police and swat teams
from America's Police State.

Over 100 were arrested, some injured. Many were there protesting for the need for
jobs, protections for their homes against foreclosures, changes in the banking system
and the way the U.S. government fails to protect the public; the corrupt giving of
billions of dollars as bailouts to large financial corporations; the villainous role of the
Federal Reserve System (not a gov;t agency!); to call for "regulations" of the financial
institutions to prevent a recurrence of this financial meltdown and all it's destructiveness
and related issues.

The website covers many aspects of the protests and the summit. It is obvious that
the cities of Pittsburgh and Oakland overreacted by bringing in so many armed police,
even from other cities and states. I maintain that the people have the right of freedom of assembly, free speech and the right to protest. By denying the people these civil rights the "state' is in violation of those democratic rights as given (and fought for) in the Constitution of the United States. Hopefully there will be follow-up to these police actions to hold them accountable and serve justice for the people.

Too, activists would be well served by having a national 'Activist Bill of Rights'
to spell out just what those rights are and grant us protection under the law for any future
demonstrations. Perhaps the ACLU or National Lawyers Guild would sponsor such an
Activists Bill of Rights.
Peace in the progressive struggle,
arn specter, phila. (Twitter and Op Ed News )

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bailout People

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.

The incidents of violence against protesters, along with vicious police-state tactics which accompanied the protests over the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, as well as protests held in Oakland, are but a merest foretaste of what could be coming in the next couple of weeks as the Federal fiscal year comes to an end on Sept. 30th, the point at which the U.S. Federal government must attempt to settle its accounts, and prepare for the new fiscal year, which begins on Oct. 1st. Just settling those accounts will be difficult due to something which none can ignore -- the Federal government is hopelessly bankrupt, having destroyed the nation through a nearly three-decade long process of steady deregulation, a deregulation which opened the door to the greatest looting and pillaging the world has ever seen.

In addition to the financial crisis which has already bankrupted 49 of our 50 states, and bankrupted countless cities, counties, and other local governments, a large swath of the population is also hopelessly bankrupted due to almost four decades of rapidly eroding incomes, accompanied by shrinking standards of living, and an enormously destructive addiction to consumer debt. Our nation, once the most productive industrial power in the world, has been reduced to a shadow, run by financier parasites with neither the slightest clue about how economies actually function, nor the slightest interest in the welfare of the citizenry.

Another key event to note as the financial crisis increases is the advent of the mass-strike phenomenon which has broken out in the United States. Many have compared the current U.S. mass strike with the German Revolution of 1989 which succeeded in toppling the East German government, and causing the infamous Berlin Wall to comer crashing down. There is a broad popular disenchantment and disbelief in the institutions of government, and a willingness to act against the constraints of "public opinion." After many decades of passivity and apathy, American citizens are determined to assert their rights as citizens against those who would disregard, or threaten, their lives and their future.

The mood of revolt among the American people is growing, and unlike the East German government who, despite threats made against the East German population and plans for a violent crackdown, could not find the will to shoot their citizens, the U.S. government certainly can (and probably will) find the will to shoot American citizens, as demonstrated by the violence which was perpetrated against Americans who protested against Obama's policies -- both domestic and international -- along with the impotence of both houses of Congress to fight against those policies at the G20 summit.

Keep in mind that Obama never rescinded those secret Presidential Homeland Security Directives which G.W. Bush sneaked in behind the back of Congress and the American people two years ago, and those Homeland Security Presidential Directives are ready to be put into action at a moment's notice, and the non-linear movement of the mass strike lends itself a little too well to getting crushed at every turn by armed military force operating under the cover of a "national emergency" and permanent martial law.

So, as we move into the month of October, if emergency action is not taken by the second week in October to put the entire world financial system through bankruptcy reorganization, mankind is facing a living Hell, in which world population will rapidly plunge — through sudden outbreaks of diseases, famine and the chaos generated by regional wars and massive violent social upheavals which will be brutally put down by military forces as well as privately-run mercenary armies — to below 2 billion people.

Stay tuned ... because there may not even be a United States, much less a recognizable form of Western civilization, left by Halloween.

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.

Speaking Events

2017

 

August 2-6: Peace and Democracy Conference at Democracy Convention in Minneapolis, Minn.

 

September 22-24: No War 2017 at American University in Washington, D.C.

 

October 28: Peace and Justice Studies Association Conference



Find more events here.

CHOOSE LANGUAGE

Support This Site

Donate.

Get free books and gear when you become a supporter.

 

Sponsors:

Speaking Truth to Empire

***

Families United

***

Ray McGovern

***

Julie Varughese

***

Financial supporters of this site can choose to be listed here.

 

Ads:

Ca-Dress Long Prom Dresses Canada
Ca Dress Long Prom Dresses on Ca-Dress.com

Buy Books

Get Gear

The log-in box below is only for bloggers. Nobody else will be able to log in because we have not figured out how to stop voluminous spam ruining the site. If you would like us to have the resources to figure that out please donate. If you would like to receive occasional emails please sign up. If you would like to be a blogger here please send your resume.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.