Are the protests spreading across the U.S. the sign of an 'American Spring'?

http://caffertyfile.blogs.cnn.com/

What I want to know is: why are we calling it an "American Spring" when it's Fall outside?

My prediction: these protests will turn more violent and more ugly as the stench of desperation, anger, resentment and powerlessness stoked by the masses spreads like a virus.

What are they protesting about?

Decent wages?
Work?
Healthcare?
Cost of two wars?

saint mark wrote:

What are they protesting about?

Decent wages?
Work?
Healthcare?
Cost of two wars?

They admit they don't have a specific cause. From what I've gathered from some of the people who have been interviewed, a few of them want more government regulation of Wall Street, including prosecutions for bank executives who helped drive the economy into the tank. A couple of problems with that scenario, though:

#1 I'm not sure the banks did anything illegal, and if they had one would assume that Attorney General Eric Holder would have filed charges by now, seeing as how the Obama administration is predominantly anti-business.

#2 Misguided government regulation was one of the single biggest reasons why the banks acted the way they did, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. If the government wants to prosecute people who had a hand in the economic collapse, they'd have to prosecute themselves, starting with Congressman Barney Frank, ex-Senator Christopher Dodd and Congresswoman Maxine Waters.

At a guess I'd say they want their honour restored.

Is this the US version of what happened in England a couple months ago?

Not enough arson yet.

Some fine arson in my face, Dog.

Mrs Aural Sects wrote:

Is this the US version of what happened in England a couple months ago?

Not remotely. This nonsense harks back to the US in the late 60s somewhat.

A noble cause, but I don't see anything changing because of it.

The acme of Occupier eloquence and intellect.

Yeah, they're doing a fantastic job of getting their point across.

I might head over tomorrow with a sign that says: I don't want to pay money for stuff and stuff like that.

That'll show those Wall Street guys.

You are right, they should torch some banks. I am quite sure that there would quite a few Americans who wouldn't mind seeing that.

From what I've seen a lot of the slogans appeared - with the same typos - at events of the Tea Party. Seems some concerns bother people in general, I surely can't tell a difference.

Kennon wrote:

From what I've seen a lot of the slogans appeared - with the same typos - at events of the Tea Party. Seems some concerns bother people in general, I surely can't tell a difference.

So they should protest against the level of education in the US. ;)

saint mark wrote:

Kennon wrote:

From what I've seen a lot of the slogans appeared - with the same typos - at events of the Tea Party. Seems some concerns bother people in general, I surely can't tell a difference.

So they should protest against the level of education in the US. ;)

Actually white Americans perform at a proficiency level slightly higher than whites in most European countries (although you'd never know it by looking at those Occupier clowns). It is black and Hispanic performance that drags down the US average.

Perilagu Khan wrote:

saint mark wrote:

Kennon wrote:

From what I've seen a lot of the slogans appeared - with the same typos - at events of the Tea Party. Seems some concerns bother people in general, I surely can't tell a difference.

So they should protest against the level of education in the US. ;)

Actually white Americans perform at a proficiency level slightly higher than whites in most European countries (although you'd never know it by looking at those Occupier clowns). It is black and Hispanic performance that drags down the US average.

I was actually joking since nobody can tell what these protesters want, and then somebody mentioned similar grammatical mistakes as the folks from the Teabag movement (ANd those folks are mostly white too).

Wasn't meant as a putdown of Americans just an observation of the slightly humorous variety. Most Amercans I meet are very well educated, but alas they live in Europe.

"Shit is fucked up and bullshit" speaks to a deficiency greater than mere grammar.

This is by far the weirdest and creepiest video I've seen in several years. It's mind-blowingly stupid and scary all at the same time. I saw the link to it on The Drudge Report. It's an "Occupy Atlanta" gathering, and the Atlanta part got my interest.

I honestly can't say I even understand what's going on. John Lewis, a long-term Congressman from Atlanta, is waiting to be allowed to speak at this rally, but the audience can't seem to come to any sort of consensus on whether he should speak or not. He's clearly agitated and finally walks away at the end of the video, but it's everything that comes before it that is astonishing. The chanting reminds me of an episode of ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS where Edina joined a hippie commune that wouldn't allow her to speak unless she was holding the "talking stick".

These people are one glass of Kool Aid away from another Jonestown massacre. One thing that is clear is that Democrats such as John Lewis (a long term fixture on the "civil rights" scene) are trying to get on the "right side" of this movement for fear of being targeted and swallowed up by it, but if this rally is indicative of things to come, the Democrats need not worry; this thing falls into chaos by the end of the 10 minutes, as some in the group get tired of being forced to repeat and chant like a bunch of sheep or robots. These people can't agree on whether John Lewis should speak; how can they come to agreement on bigger issues concerning Wall Street?

This is a MUST SEE video, especially at the 3:42 minute mark, when the fat ugly chick stands up in front of the crowd to assure the audience of mental infants that allowing John Lewis to speak in no way infers that he is a better person or smarter than the rest of the crowd (having been exposed to John Lewis for decades, I can vouch for his intellectual inferiority and attest to Bond and Beyond readers that the fat ugly chick is correct).

Les extrêmes se touchent.

The GOP has the Tea Party, and the Dems have these retards.

"Yes, we are all individuals!" More evidence of democracy's complete uselessness when faced with making decisions.

Reminds me of the left's marches in 1980s Britain where political correctness would demand that a tiny woman lead the massed male chanting so that a typical rant would go

Maggie!

OUT!

Maggie!

OUT!

Maggie! Maggie! Maggie!

OUT! OUT !OUT!

As for The Tea Party, they just want to know who stole their money. A very good question.

Indeed. Well, who stole it???

The government.

Erica Ambler wrote:

"Yes, we are all individuals!" More evidence of democracy's complete uselessness when faced with making decisions.

Reminds me of the left's marches in 1980s Britain where political correctness would demand that a tiny woman lead the massed male chanting so that a typical rant would go

Maggie!

OUT!

Maggie!

OUT!

Maggie! Maggie! Maggie!

OUT! OUT !OUT!

As for The Tea Party, they just want to know who stole their money. A very good question.

I had read that in some of the other Occupy protests around the U.S. that the crowd was urged to let blacks and women speak and for white males to voluntarily sit down and say nothing.

Here's the link:

http://biggovernment.com/publius/2011/10/07/occupywallstreets-racist-speech-rule-white-men-last/

According to Occupy Wall Street supporter/observer “Lori“:

Occupy Wall Street’s General Assembly operates under a revolutionary “progressive stack.” A normal “stack” means those who wish to speak get in line. A progressive stack encourages women and traditionally marginalized groups speak before men, especially white men. This is something that has been in place since the beginning, it is necessary, and it is important.

“Step up, step back” was a common phrase of the first week, encouraging white men to acknowledge the privilege they have lived in their entire lives and to step back from continually speaking. This progressive stack has been inspiring and mind-boggling in its effectiveness.

When I read that the other day I thought it somewhat hard to believe. Now having seen the Occupy Atlanta protests, it's all too clear that it is real

I would like to suggest that, in order to make this board more, like, fair and stuff, that white males voluntarily commit to posting only one day of the week, and let traditionally marginalized minority groups such as women (who make up the a 51% majority of the world's population), Native American, Black Americans, Latinos, Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgendered-Confused, Asians, Pacific-Islanders, Eskimo, Jewish, Muslims, and anyone under 18 post the other 6 days of the week. Straight white males, you need to acknowledge you have lived a life of privilege and voluntarily step back from dominating the conversation. So what if white males created the combustible engine, learned to fly, went to the moon, split the atom, developed the Internet, the Ipod, the PC, the Mac, the television, the radio, modern medicine, etc....that helped advance civilization and make all our lives more comfortable? We are everything that is wrong with the planet, and I for one can't wait to let the responsibility of ensuring that our societies continue at a level of comfort we've become used to rest upon the shoulders of these wonderful, caring hippies protesters such as these:











I will now pass the talking stick over to Sharky. I am not allowed to talk again until the talking stick has been passed back to me. Because Sharky is going to speak doesn't mean that he is better than anybody else. It doesn't mean his life has more value than anybody else. We value the life's work Sharky has given to Bond and Beyond.

* grabs talking stick from Sharky in an act of calculated White Male Violence*

I went to see Tony Benn on one of his book tours. It was a packed hall of angry young men, but he insisted he would only take questions from women. Cue 10 minutes of embarrassed silence.

I'd just like to say thank you to Lord Anthony Wedgwood Benn for a wonderful evening. It confirmed everything I believed.

*throws talking stick at Sharky*

Thank you Erica Ambler, but I refuse to speak. I will give my stick to Mrs. Aural Sects, who from her perfectly formed tandoori-coloured arse, is evidently from a mixed racial background, a hot climate, or a tanning salon.