"Occupy" Turns Violent

Peaceful Occupy protests degenerate into chaos

A day of demonstrations in Oakland that began as a significant step toward expanding the political and economic influence of the Occupy Wall Street movement, ended with police in riot gear arresting dozens of protesters who had marched through downtown to break into a vacant building, shattering windows, spraying graffiti and setting fires along the way.

The far-flung movement of protesters challenging the world's economic systems and distribution of wealth has gained momentum in recent weeks, capturing the world's attention by shutting down one of the nation's busiest shipping ports toward the end of a daylong "general strike" that prompted solidarity rallies across the U.S.

About 3,000 people converged on the Port of Oakland, the nation's fifth-busiest harbor, in a nearly five-hour protest Wednesday, swarming the area and blocking exits and streets with illegally parked vehicles and hastily-erected, chain-link fences.

And this occured later in the day:

"Oakland Police responded to a late night call that protesters had broken into and occupied a downtown building and set several simultaneous fires," the statement read. "The protesters began hurling rocks, explosives, bottles, and flaming objects at responding officers. Several private and municipal buildings sustained heavy vandalism. Dozens of protesters wielding shields were surrounded and arrested."

Riot police fire projectiles, arrest dozens of Occupy Oakland protesters

"Shut This City Down": Inside Occupy Wall Street's Anti-Police March

During Occupy Wall Street’s March for Racial Justice and Against Police Brutality march last night, the Occupiers gave me a glimpse into their game plan going forward, and it’s looks like things could get really ugly.

In strategic terms, the OWS next phase plan can be broken down into two parts:

The Occupiers will force a major confrontation with police.
They will attempt to effectively shut down a portion of New York City.

It is not clear to me in what order those events will occur, or when either will be attempted, but I do believe after hearing and seeing the marchers in action that both a confrontation and shutdown are now goals of the OWS movement.

The Occupiers are setting up the police as the enemy, and Occupiers are the so-called liberators. Whatever Occupiers have to do in the course of their revolution to end oppression will be justified in their minds, because the alternative is racism and murder at the hands of the police, or so the propaganda goes.

It is a deeply cynical premise that will be incredibly effective at inciting a mob.

Based upon what I saw, I think the protestors will purposefully flout the law at some point with a sit-in or street blockade, knowing that if the authorities use force in response, they will be skewered in the media. Once the message of “police brutality” is sufficiently embedded in the public discussion surrounding Occupy, the protestors will be able engage in direct action with impunity.

Then they can really “shut this city down.”

The article closes on this ominous note:

Assuming that happens, honest citizens will be left wondering how all the ensuing chaos and violence could ever be necessary. If the Occupiers really are the 99%, why couldn’t they just vote for leaders who would reform Wall Street? Wasn’t that the whole point?

But we already know the answer. The Occupiers have said it from the beginning:

‘It’s revolution, not reform.’

Riot police fire projectiles, arrest dozens of Occupy Oakland protesters

Occupy Oakland Protesters Tear Gassed by Police

Police have used tear gas and “flash bang” grenades on a large crowd of demonstrators that lit a massive bonfire in the streets of downtown Oakland, Calif., in a conflict following a day of action that saw the city’s port closed after demonstrators. blocked it

Dozens of police in riot gear advanced on protesters who had pushed together several large metal and plastic trash bins to start a fire that reached 15 feet in the air, according to The Associated Press. Police reportedly warned protesters to clear out before firing several rounds of tear gas and “flash bang” grenades.

Occupy Oakland General Strike Shuts Down Port of Oakland

Seattle: Street clashes, arrests as bank leader speaks

Officers launched pepper spray, shoved protesters out of the way and yanked others from under a police van during a tense 30-minute confrontation. Police said at least 10 officers were physically assaulted during the arrests, and at least two of them had minor injuries.

After the protesters inside the bank were arrested, youths surrounded the police van and started pounding on it. Others lay down in the street in front of it and behind it.

Police yanked protesters out of the way, a move that spurred other protesters to shove officers.

Soon, officers doused the crowd with pepper spray; one woman sat at Broadway Avenue and East Thomas Street while other people poured water in her eyes so she could see.

The fight between police and protesters continued south on Broadway, then back north. When protesters reached the corner of East Harrison Street they stood in a circle, some held hands and hugged. Then the group marched south, back to Seattle Central Community College with police following closely behind.

Oakland Liberation Front Leaflet: "How Dare You Even Ask For Non-Violence"

A pamphlet from a group calling itself the “Oakland Liberation Front” has surfaced that mocks any pacifists in the Occupy Oakland movement and calls for violence to achieve the “complete annihilation of capitalism.”

Given the past 24 hours in Oakland, which has seen destructive, violent riots and general chaos at the hands of the Occupiers, the underlying sentiments of the frightening flyer below seem completely in line with the goals of Occupy Oakland.

The Oakland Liberation Front goes on to demand that any and all pacifists in the movement stand aside, while the real Occupiers violently take on the police and work to bring our entire system down.

This 'movement' is guarenteed to become more and more violent in the future. The overall goal is yet to be achieved, whatever that may be. One would have to ask George Soros, and his powerful organizations what the overall goal of these protests are.