The indefinite detention clauses ( section 1021 and 1022) in the legislation are a direct attack upon the civil rights of all Americans and are in essence in breech of the US Constitution.  The detention closes represent yet another step taken towards an erosion of the freedoms which are the very foundation of American society. The detention sections of the NDAA give the Executive branch wide and unchecked powers to detain, via the US military, any person “who was part of/ or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.”

The law is ill defined and opened to interpretations. The provisions also target anyone who commits a belligerent act against the US or its coalition allies and aid enemy forces, under the “law of war without trial, until the end of the hostilities”. The text also authorizes trial by military tribunal, or transfer to the custody or control of the person’s country of origin, or the transfer to “any foreign country, or any other foreign entity.” The NDAA, if applied, would make legal the “rendition” program run in secret by the CIA during the Bush administration.

After signing the NDAA, President Obama made the clarification that his administration “will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens.” However, the only provision from which US citizens are exempted here is the “requirement” of military detention. For foreign nationals  accused of being members from al-Qaeda and other “terrorist” groups, military detention is mandatory. For US citizens it is optional. There is no exemption for US citizens from presidential power of detention, either by the military  or by civilian agencies such as the CIA, DHS or FBI, only from the requirement of military detention.

Civil rights organization such as the ACLU are vehemently opposed to the NDAA. In their view “The statute is particularly dangerous because it has no temporal or geographic limitations, and can be used by this or future presidents to militarily detain people captured from any battlefield.” The call for action by this coalition of activists concerned by freedom and civil liberties is “No more left, no more right, time to unite. Stand and fight”.

Joseph Snook, from Wake Up America Southern Oregon is one of the organizers of Monday’s protest. He made the following statement:” A group of conservatives, Libertarians, and Tea Party activists by the name of Wake Up America Southern Oregon is proud to unite with the Southern Oregon Occupy Movement to take a bold stand against the NDAA. Further, it is time that “We the People”, all of us unite!”

Emery Way from Occupy Ashland stated: “Occupy Ashland is standing with libertarians, progressives, conservatives and the Tea Party alike to speak out against the attack against our civil rights which is the NDAA. In times such as these, when the injustices of a system and a government become too large to ignore, it is vital that we stand together not as members of a political party but as fellow citizens and human beings to defend our precious freedoms.”

Indeed bills like the NDAA,  in combination with the Patriot Act, are “legal” slippery slopes giving the executive branch the legal tools to potentially impose  martial law and  crack down on political dissent in a similar repressive fashion than the one used in fascist states. Let’s hope that this type of protest and action-uniting citizens across the political spectrum- to defend basic civil rights enshrined in the US Constitution become the rule and not the exception.

Editor’s Note: All photographs by Justin Norman.

In the past thirty six hours, several stories have emerged to highlight a growing problem that threatens the continued effectiveness, and perhaps the very existence, of the Occupy movement.  Left-wing politicos have come out against radical tactics such as those of the Black Bloc.  Establishment activists involved in Occupy seek to end the actual occupations recently raided by police in favor of more traditional, less radical models. And, President Obama has decided that accepting Super-PAC money for his campaign machine is now acceptable.

That last reference may seem disconnected, but, once you understand the dynamic that has been developing within the Occupy movement, you will see how the possibility exists that Super-PAC money could find its way into supporting a kinder, gentler, more establishment friendly Occupy movement.

There has been a struggle within Occupy for the control of the leaderless, horizontally organized movement.  Professional activists, equipped with the resources of the establishment that employs them, offered structure to the chaotic beginnings of this fledgling populous uprising.  Everything from tents and sleeping bags to organizational structure, General Assembly facilitation, Internet platforms, and targets for the populous anger of Occupiers was readily provided by well-connected insiders.

This was not an insidious conspiracy perpetrated by evil people.  Many professional activists firmly believe that they are doing the right thing.  Many of them are doing very good things.  Unfortunately, for all their good intentions, many of them are a part of the very establishment that the Occupy movement is protesting, and the good work they do actually serves to legitimize that system.

These professional activists did not come with a malicious intent to co-opt and destroy Occupy.  Not all of them, anyway.  Some may have been seeking only to serve their resume, or their pay-check, but others came with sincere intent to do good.  This does not, however, change the fact that the establishment that they are a part of, and that they bring into the Occupy movement, is a serious danger.

The leaderless nature of Occupy left an unintentional vacuum that these organized and structured activists filled.  Now, almost five months later, the movement is starting to look more like the lame attempts of the past than the agent of courageous and radical change it promised. Except perhaps Oakland. The problem gets compounded when these establishment activists not only monopolize the agenda and choose the targets of the populous movement, but dictate its strategy and tactics as well.  After decades of campaigns that have failed to move the political dial in any direction other than against the 99%, professional arrogance still drives them to insist that they should play a leading role.

Occupy Wall Street’s on-line discussions have worried over how to solve the problem of ‘disruptive outsiders’ for the ‘connected insiders.’  Many of those that actually occupied the public spaces were referred to as if unworthy, bothersome, and too full of dissent and challenges to a preordained agenda to associate with the pompous authors of these missives whose words made them seem more intent on earning their place in society as the next generation of bleeding heart Liberals, sipping their lattes, dreaming of limousines.

Seemingly towards that same end, OccupyDC has instituted an ironically controlling model of facilitation and consensus building that uses strict process to tightly control the groups deliberations and limit any dissension, thus allowing little resistance to proposed agenda items.  Similar problems exist in most of the major city occupations.  The General Assemblies in many cities experienced near, if not outright mutinies because of these controlling tactics only to, all too often, fall victim to the same problems once again.  The Occupy movement seems to have its own internal 1%, and, in this microcosm, success will only come when the 99% finds emancipation here as well.

As a result, in America, a populous uprising in solidarity with the 99% around the globe is rapidly becoming the play-thing of privileged white kids, in one of the worlds most privileged countries, using the Occupy movement to further their career goals and/or narrow its focus to domestic, and even partisan issues.  What started out as our best last chance for revolutionary change, true emancipation, and a sustainable future, is devolving into just another vehicle for doing good deeds for the unwashed masses while leaving the system that enslaves them intact.  Their rhetoric says “empower all,” but their underlying methods ensure that they maintain control.

Occupy, or at least that portion of it that has come under the spell of the establishment, seems to have forgotten its end game.  Five months ago, protesters occupied public spaces across the country in order to take their democracy back from the 1% that purchased it.  Now, they have declarations that include every social issue imaginable, and are so long that you can forget why you came there before you get half way through them.  Rather than stay on point and emancipate themselves from the appropriating class that lords over them so that they can reclaim their democracy and deal with these issues, they’ve been tricked into bringing all the issues in with them.  And… it’s about to get a whole lot worse.

After the past weeks rash of police raids, leveling the last and longest standing occupations in the country, establishment activists are pushing to forget about occupying the public spaces and focus on issue related goals.  This will divide the movement and bring it completely inside the establishment activist structure.  Rather than take to the streets and fight as a united 99% against the 1%, as part of a GLOBAL movement, occupiers are being asked to choose among the many existing domestic social campaigns and work for reform within the current establishment that wants to capitalize in the Occupy brand.  Good programs, but not what Occupy, and the global movement it claims to be part of, represents.

Last month I wrote a post about an employee of the Democratic Party campaign machine within Occupy DC.    The post focused on an employee of NGP VAN (the consulting firm that runs the Democratic campaigning machine), who was very active within OccupyDc, and hosted a meeting at Change.org headquarters in Washington, DC, to discuss ‘coalition building’ between ‘like-minded’ organizations and the Occupy movement across America.  I was immediately attacked by establishment activists and those within Occupy DC that see them as friends.  I was summarily removed from all OccupyDC listservs and committees that I sat on, targeted with a barrage of obscenities, and threatened with physical removal if I returned to McPherson Square.

This was not done through the General Assembly.  Nor by the Spokes Council.  Neither was it done by the majority of those that actually occupied McPherson Square.  It was not the result of any restorative justice meeting or due process of any sort.  It was the arbitrary actions of the establishment activists that were enraged by my exposee’, and some others that they’ve convinced to do their bidding, who decided that they alone could grant themselves the power to do such things.  Apparently the 1% within Occupy will cling to its power as firmly, and act no less unjustly to protect their interests, as the global 1%.

With Obama’s announcement that he will now be accepting Super-PAC money, the result of the coalitions proposed in this meeting and vehemently defended by establishment activists and their naive, unwitting accomplices could very easily result in these monies filtering down to the Occupy movement.  The organizations that want to ‘build coalitions’ with Occupy are part of the Democratic Party Machine.  Their efforts and programs to support Democratic Party candidates could, and very likely would, receive funding from these super-PACs. Money raised as a direct result of the Citizens United decision could end up funding, or being used to support, the movement that should be back in the streets and public spaces fighting against it.  This is pathetic.  Where did things go wrong?

Co-option does not come like the police executing a raid.  It doesn’t twist your arm and push you into obviously compromising positions. It comes as a helpful friend, and a trusted ally.  It often comes offering needed support, material sustenance, guidance, and promises of more. Sometimes it even comes without realizing that what it intends is co-option.  You only realize that you’re in a compromised position after the damage is done.

Many of the establishment activists can honestly be described as good people trying to do things that they believe will bring improvement to the lives of many.  That doesn’t change that they are part of the establishment that the Occupy movement is supposed to be fighting against and that the improvements they offer do nothing to change the status quo or crush the power of the ruling class.   All those that offer such support are not necessarily doing so with ulterior motives, either.  Occupy is wading into deep waters, full of dolphins and sharks, and they’re wearing Lady Gaga’s meat bikini.  They need to be careful who they’re swimming with.

Not all establishment activists are necessarily a threat.  There is a big difference between activists that have been working to feed and shelter the homeless, fight for living wages and safe work places, or protect women from domestic violence, and political  ‘activists’ whose only goal is to elect a candidate deemed acceptable by a corporate owned political party.  There’s the real danger… and that’s where the deep pockets wanting to help – and ‘build coalitions with Occupy’ – are coming from.

Oakland, with its long history of direct action activism, and relative lack of establishment politicos and partisan ‘activists’, has avoided the domestication that is plaguing the Occupy movement across the country.  They’ve become the ‘wild-child’ of the Occupy movement and perhaps its only hope for a future.  They’re also scaring the living shit out of those that want a kinder, gentler Occupy movement to see them through this election year.  Occupy can, and should, learn a lot from Oakland.  Those that hold power will not give it up without a fight.  They will not be shamed into submission.

Even Gandhi’s non-violent civil disobedience was active, not passive.  Gandhi did not comply with the police, or the military.  He did not retreat.  He did not back down.  Gandhi was a shrewd strategist.  The Black Bloc only breaks windows and other material objects that symbolize the wealth of the 1% and the oppression of the rest of us.  This is not violence.   Gandhi had more in common with the Black Bloc than with obedient protesters who comply with police and watch their encampments razed right in front of them, as if it were a spectator sport, while they whine for the loss of the rights and freedoms for which they’re unwilling to take a stand.

Establishment activists, that have elevated themselves to positions of authority, have put so much emphasis on protesting with only the appearance of defiance that many protesters  have forgotten why they are protesting in the first place.  The problem has become so extreme that when I’ve asked some what their goal is, many protesters responded with “to protest peacefully.”  They’ve allowed their singular goal of emancipation from rule by the appropriating class to become so convoluted that they’ve forgotten it.  They’ve allowed a tactic imposed by those that work within the establishment to become the goal.

Being arrested as one of those protesters ‘willing to be arrested’ during a protest has become a strange ritual.  First, it is not a tactic, it is a statement, and often a statement that only serves the ego of the arrested through the retelling.  A real statement might be doing something meaningful for which you really might risk arrest, and a great tactic would be to avoid that arrest so that you can do it again.

Peaceful civil disobedience is a very strong tactic, but it is not the only one.  Rather than fight within the movement for a singular tactic against a myriad of goals, the movement should be working towards a myriad of tactics against a singular goal.  The Black Bloc, Anonymous, establishment social service advocates, the rank and file along with the entire army of workers, and peacefully civil-DISOBEDIENT occupiers should be working in concert to destabilize the system that enslaves them all, not fighting against each other about whose tactic is more correct, or more valid, while accepting money and support – even indirectly – from the establishment they purportedly seek to depose.

• Peaceful protesters sleeping in the parks will not make the bankers and politicians run out of their offices, apologize, recommit to democracy, and return all of their ill-gotten gains.

• A groundswell of activism within domestic social services alone will not destabilize the status quo.

• The rank and file, and workers in general, have been suffering decline for over thirty years and urgently need to join their efforts in solidarity with more diverse and radical tactics against the corporate juggernaut seeking to wipe them out altogether.

• While an assault on the digital records of all financial and capital holdings of the 1% would have an impact,  without physical support it will result in little more than a glitch in the system, even if it’s a serious glitch.

• And, although warriors in the street may provide fodder for corporate media while they work to both weaken and expose an oppressive police state that serves the 1%, those with the means to support, articulate, and contextualize their struggles should do precisely that.

Occupy is in danger of being redefined, divided, and domesticated as part of the establishment that provoked its genesis.  Through naivety, and a gross misunderstanding of the enemy it faces, it’s in jeopardy of being purchased by the same corporate dollars used to deny the emancipation it craves.  This cannot be allowed.

If there is a coalition to be explored, it is between Occupy, Black Bloc, Anonymous, non-partisan social activists, all workers of the country including the rank and file, and the many others who make up the 99%, without establishment strings attached, that can bring a diversity of tactics to a singular goal.  Not the other way around.  Right now, some within Occupy are building bridges with the establishment and walls between the 99%.   This tactic to destroy Occupy must be stopped.   The 99%, in all its forms, with all its diversity of tactics, must come together and focus on a singular goal against the establishment that supports the 1%, rather than be divided against each other and dispersed among a myriad of goals by that establishment.

On Saturday, February 4, the Federal Parks Police raided the Occupy DC encampment at McPherson Square.  Less than 24 hours later they are at it again at Freedom Plaza.  Live streaming video of the violation of protesters rights can be viewed here.

Equipped with riot gear, mounted troops, and hazmat suits, the police executed a twelve hour clearing of McPherson Square that culminated with the violent assault of peaceful protesters and a total of nine arrests.  Despite recent forewarning of the potential assault on the camp, protesters seemed disorganized and unprepared to mount any effective defense.

After the initial assault on McPherson Square, when an attack against Freedom Plaza was imminent, protesters still seemed either unable, or unwilling, to offer any resistance to police violation of their First Amendment rights.  Considering the 24 hour warning of the Freedom Plaza raid, protester numbers were extremely low.  Rather than offer obstruction or disobedience, protesters seemed easily managed by police and behaved more as spectators than victims of an assault on their inalienable rights.

The only concrete plans that have been publicly shared by Occupy protesters in DC is to convene a General Assembly at 4pm EST in McPherson Square.  The main focus of the upcoming conversation seems to be whether or not they will continue the Occupy movement without actually occupying anything.

The idea of surrendering the actual occupations in favor of simply using the brand ‘Occupy’ in a manner compliant with establishment laws, consistent with traditional establishment activism, is being championed by several establishment activists who have taken the roles of facilitator or organizer within the movement while spending little or no time supporting or maintaining the actual occupations.  How this conversation is conducted, and the outcome of this conversation, should be interesting.  It can be viewed LIVE here beginning at 4pm EST.

In their daily publication, Union City, the Metro Washington Council, AFL-CIO, issued a strong statement to their 20,000+ readership in support of Occupy DC, calling on the rank and file to join the protesters in fighting for the rights of the 99%.  The statement reads as follows:

Occupy DC to Resist Eviction at Twin Noontime Actions Today: Occupy DC protesters are urging area supporters to join them at noon today as they resist eviction threats by the National Park Service (NPS). “Occupy DC has been on the frontlines for working people,” said Metro Council President Jos Williams. “They’ve been fearless in standing up and marching in the streets for the 99%, now it’s our turn to stand with them.”

Day long actions are planned for both the McPherson Square and Freedom Plaza locations. Click here for a brief video invitation to today’s actions (also shown below).

The NPS last Friday began notifying Occupy DC that they plan to begin strict enforcement of the prohibition of camping in the squares; earlier in the week a GOP-led House committee had pushed the NPS to evict the 4-month-old protests, which are among the only ones left in the country.

Undaunted, some 200 Occupy DC activists and supporters organized a lively protest of “the 1% of the 1%” at the annual Alfalfa Club gathering Saturday night at which notables were forced to walk a gauntlet of chanting protesters after police blocked off several blocks around the club.

Protect Occupy DC – Jan 30/2012

For more information follow the Council on our website and twitter at @dclabor or check out @OccupyKSt and @occupy_DC on twitter. – screenshot from Occupy DC video about Monday’s action

Even though the revolution in Egypt is still at an uncertain, fluid stage, they’ve already made an irreversible geopolitical impact in the Middle-East, and beyond. If 9/11/2001 marked the start of a dark chapter in world history, 2/11/2011 may have been the beginning of a new era of positive global systemic changes challenging a worldwide unsustainable course of development.

Its progeny, the Occupy movement in America, is only four months old.  Taking root in the labor uprising in Madison, Wisconsin, the movement has spread across the country.  Occupy camps have sprung up one after the other, and, one after the other, have been struck down by the authorities.  The 99 percent are struggling to gain a foothold, but, so far, they’ve achieved little more than providing new slogans to be exploited by political campaigns and establishment activists.

Ben Ali in Tunisia, and Mubarak in Egypt, were pawns in the global game of transnational predatory capitalism. The fact that they were both toppled means that this imperialist world order can be challenged. Despite their different specifics, both revolutions were fueled by what are the universal desires of  every human beings: social justice, economic justice, freedom of speech, and the right to define our destiny through a  fair democratic process.

In America, there is a danger that this has been forgotten.  Compromise and co-option by establishment ‘activists’, and political operatives, have clouded the fundamental issues that drove people to leave the lives they knew and Occupy the nations public spaces.  The untamed fire that brought them to the squares has been domesticated and articulated in a voice not their own.  Their simple call for equality, and emancipation from the rule of the 1 percent – the global financial elite – has been turned into a convoluted diatribe encompassing the goals of every special interest wishing to ride the coattails of their momentum.

Abuse of power is not unique to countries dominated by charismatic figures, ‘strong-men’ dictators, or military regimes.  Even Western Democracies suffer from the same social and economic inequalities (America’s wealth inequality is far greater than Egypt’s), repression of dissent (the U.S. Patriot Act, Espionage Act, SOPA, PIPA, and ACTA), challenges to freedom of speech (the campaign against Julian Assange, WikiLeaks, and journalists covering Occupy), and the exploitation of the many for the profit of the few (austerity measures and loss of services to maintain the profits of global financiers).

The fundamental mechanisms that collect wealth in the hands of the few are universal to global capitalism.  Regardless of the outward appearance of any existing political system, the impact on the citizens of the planet, their livelihood, and their environment, is the same.

In North Africa and the Middle-East, the domino effect generated by the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt is already on its way.  Despite the new narrative coming from Washington, pushing its vassals states for superficial reforms to quell the uprising, it seems that the wave is too powerful to be stopped or even contained. Former Secretary of State Henri Kissinger once said that “power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.” This statement not only defines the psychology of men like Ben Ali, Mubarak, and Putin, it proves revealing of the global elite and their pursuit of empire.

Kissinger, who had his hands in US foreign policy for 40 years, was a so called ‘pragmatist.’  In other words, he was in favor of supporting autocrats as long as the interests of the empire were not challenged. Even until recently, a common school of thought in Washington was that “Arabs were not ready for democracy.” Not only are they ready, but Tunisians and Egyptians are giving us all a lesson in courage and  democracy in its ultimate form. The Arab world is defining its own history over issues that concern all of us, and the sheer emotion of it will ignore national borders.

The American Occupy movement is still struggling with unity between cities, and developing a clarity of the message it allowed to be diluted by others, to challenge the more important question of nationalism.  A society that has been long divided by prejudice, racism, and fear of ‘the other’ is having difficulty coordinating a unified voice that overcomes these historic barriers and joins the global chorus.

It is the Empire that has been established by global capitalism that is not ready for democracy in Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Syria, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain or America.  It’s the global capitalist empire that needs to maintain a strangle-hold on our global resources divided by region, just as it needs to maintain control of its industrial workforces and profitable consumer economies throughout the European Union and America.  Elements of democracy have been rationed at the minimum necessary to gain the cooperation of those under the control of the system.

When the greed of the elite supersedes the tolerance of the people, and the crumbs are spread too thin, the people rise up. This seems to be happening, but to what end?  What is the end game?

Superficial changes may be offered, such as what we saw when Ben Ali and Mubarak offered simple shuffling within their regimes, or the subsequent replacement of them as stewards of the status quo by their country’s generals.  In more sophisticated situations, like the pseudo-democracies of Europe and America, the citizens of a ‘democratic republic’ may be allowed to argue amongst themselves, and even vote, on how they will meet the financial demands of the global elite, or establish a sense of equality, among themselves.  Not a true equality mind you.  The elite are not factored into the equation.  Their status and profits remain fixed, as we have learned with the financial crash of 2007-2008.  Who will be taxed more and who will work longer, and harder, is the most that citizens are allowed to fight over.  And, if we’re loud enough, as the people in Egypt have learned, we may be offered a few more crumbs from the table.

Despite the enormous impact of what has been accomplished in Egypt, it is only the beginning.  A few wise individuals chose to remain in Tahrir square until a true, democratic, civilian government is established.  They faced pressure from the military, as well as from their fellow countrymen who were fooled by the removal of Mubarak.  The uprising has proven that the empire can be challenged, but real change will require prolonged commitment and great sacrifice. Only the appearance of change has been offered in the Middle-East, Europe, and America.  The strength of the movement must continue until the demands of the people are realized in full.

The motivation of this movement rises above petty nationalism.  The roots of the unrest go deeper than the specifics of a city, a district, a state, a region, a language, a religion or a culture.  The roots of this unrest can be found in the principles borne out of the age of enlightenment and continued in the current writings of Alain Badiou and Slavoj Zizek, among others.  The roots of this revolution are universal in principle and global in their impact.

The struggle throughout the Arab world is part and parcel with the anti-austerity struggle in Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, and America.  The global empire built on predatory capitalism has victimized the people of the world and relegated individuals to the status of serfs.  Regional exploitation has resulted in third world countries, banana republics, industrialized nations, and consumer societies… all neatly compartmentalized to service a global economy that increasingly benefits the few, the elite, the modern global nobility.

What we can learn from Egypt is that a single punch will not win this fight.  The empire has taken the this glancing blow and is shaking it off, smiling, firmly planted on its feet.  Loosing Mubarak doesn’t even qualify as a black eye.  Real change can only be accomplished with a full follow-through resulting in complete destabilization.  A protracted general strike and reclaiming of natural resources may be the only thing that can truly bring about a just, sustainable, world order.  And, a new world order will require a global effort.

A shared goal and alternative system must be established.  The force of the Egyptian people stopped the old guard in its tracks, but there was nothing prepared to replace it.  The Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides a framework of principles to organize a global movement around.  These are neither regional concerns nor issues that can be dealt with by regional remedies.  The principles enshrined in the declaration must be applied to all humans regardless of geography or current status in the global hierarchical empire.  A new system of government must be explored and an alternative, sustainable, non-exploitive, economic system must be implemented to realize these principles and ideals.  In order to ensure our own rights and freedoms, we must stand for the rights and freedoms of all.

Egypt’s struggle has just begun.  It is more than symbolic.  It has demonstrated the real potential for change.  It is the same struggle as in Greece, Ireland, Yemen, China, America, and Saudi Arabia, and suffers from the same barriers… the greatest barrier being self imposed through the lack of unity, combination, and cooperation.  It is the struggle of the many against the few.  It is the struggle of the expendable class against the global elite.  It is the struggle of those who strive for true universal equality and emancipation.

Will we finally reach across borders to lift each other up rather than exploit?  Will we finally achieve shared prosperity rather than fight for table-scraps while the elite hoard our resources and profit from our labor?  Will we join in a global struggle for universal equality?  Will we build a global movement that can provide the follow-through to Egypt’s glorious first punch?  Will the many finally triumph over the few?

When Occupations face the fury of State; when tear-gas and tasers are the answer to your petitions; when your choices are to fold or to fight, what will be the reason that you remember for coming in the first place?  Will you think of reforms to the existing establishment, like the ones offered the Egyptians?  Will you think of a new candidate to perform their role in a system that has been sold to the highest bidder?  Will you wish for ways to make your enslavement to this system more palatable at the continued cost to your brothers and sisters around the world?  Or, will you remember emancipation?

Emancipation.  Emancipation from an unjust, unequal, and unsustainable system.  Emancipation and equality, unconditionally, for you, and for all. Is this the goal you’ll remember?  Will you seek to end the 1% or beg them for a few more crumbs by throwing temper tantrums in parks.

Don’t be distracted by the myriad of issues that have been placed, like land-mines, in your way.  You are not there to solve all of societies ills.  You are there to reclaim your planet, and a truly democratic system, so that we can all, together, work at solving societies ills without the interference of a self-serving financial elite controlling our politics and keeping us divided.

Remember why you’re there.  Remember the 99 percent. Focus on the 1 percent.  Remember emancipation.  Take no substitute.  Settle for nothing less.

Also SOPA’s justification is to block mainly foreign websites providing illegal content, the vaguely defined provisions of the bill would allow the removal of  content including political and other speech from the Internet, which are, in principle, protected by the US constitution as freedom of speech. SOPA would allow the Attorney General to create a blacklist to censor sites even if no court has found any infringement of copyright or any other law.

“If we let that happen, that would mean they would be barring access to content that is protected under the First Amendment of the Constitution. And who knows how far the censorship would go after that. We can’t let that stand. This is a matter of protecting everyone’s constitutional right to freedom of speech. The bill as it stands now infringes on our constitutional rights,” said ACLU’s Executive Director Anthony Romero. The ACLU is adamantly opposed to the SOPA bill, and on November 16, 2011 the organization submitted a detailed statement to Congress.

If you don’t want to be left in the dark, and live in a neo-fascist Orwellian society which curtails civil liberties, free speech and the freedom of the press take ACTION NOW to stop SOPA or it might be too late.

On the tenth anniversary of the arrival of the first illegal detainees at Guantanamo Bay, hundreds of protesters tolerated DC’s winter rain to express their disappointment, and anger, at President Obama and the most despised and ineffective congress that Americans have ever had to tolerate.

A ninety minute rally that educated the large crowd that gathered on the subject of America’s human rights and international law violations was followed by a march past the White House to the Capitol building.  Protesters dressed as detainees, complete with the all too familiar black hood, were paraded past in a line that continued for almost a quarter mile.

While some ‘detainees’ showed markings that emulated the documented abuses carried out by American military service personnel stationed at GITMO, such as cigarette burns and human feces, others were locked in cages, like animals.

Hundreds of detainees have been the victims of the human rights violations perpetrated by the American military at Guantanamo Bay prison.  The United Nations, Amnesty International, and a growing number of Americans, have all condemned this illegal and immoral practice.

The illegal invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, combined with the illegal detention of those country’s citizens, should result in the prosecution of, at least, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Donald Rumsfeld.  Additional charges should be pursued against anyone on their staff, or in their cabinet, that participated in, or facilitated, the execution of these illegal acts of international belligerence, the war crimes that ensued – including illegal imprisonment, torture, and murder – as well as the personal profiteering from these crimes for which they are all guilty.

President Obama, the 111th congress, and the current 112th, now have the onerous distinction of joining the Bush gang as conspirators after the fact.  And, the American people are not innocent in these charges.  Too much time has passed without taking responsibility for the actions of their representatives. This government is designed to be of, by, and for the people.  With that great honor comes great responsibility.

America is already gearing up for yet another war, this one against Iran.  Will the cells at Guantanamo once again fill up?  Will more people be caged like animals, without due process?  Will more people be mistreated, abused, tortured, and murdered?  Will America’s elected leaders once again tempt reprisals from those who would visit on America’s citizens the terror that the American government visits on them?

It’s time to end the madness.  The 10th anniversary of GITMO is no less disgusting than the 10th anniversary of 9/11.  Unless we wish to add to these sad memorials, and testaments to our brutality, we need to take responsibility for our actions, and our reactions.

Editor’s Note: All photographs by Liam Fox

Of all the contenders in the GOP line up, Mitt Romney is getting the most support from the Republican establishment – Senator McCain today- and has strong support from big businesses. The real problem for Mitt Romney-in the likely case that, ultimately, it will be a contest between Obama and Romney in November-will be the evasive Christian conservative voting block. For conservative voters Romney is too “liberal” on “value” issues, but the real sticking point is, of course Romney’s “Mormon church problem”. Romney’s “Mormon problem” is likely to keep Evangelist voters from casting their votes for him in his likely contest with President Obama.

American politic is usually a spectacle, a meaningless ego driven charade, a circus similar to a poorly scripted  TV reality show, but meanwhile, the real decisions are made behind closed doors by non-elected players. American citizens have never been more dissatisfied with politicians, and rightly feel that an overwhelming majority of politicians, Democrats and Republicans combined, are more concerned about maintaining the status quo of their oligarchy than serving the interests of the people. This is precisely why a candidate like Ron Paul could be the wild card in this election. Ron Paul is a  political odd ball vocal about what he thinks and sticking to it.

Will Ron Paul Run as a 3rd Party Candidate?

It is almost certain that President Obama will be reelected for a second term, by easily defeating Mitt Romney. But Ron Paul could be the game changer if he becomes the leading figure of a 3rd party coalition ticket. Paul’s  pro-legalization of marijuana, anti-war and anti-US interventionism  positions are getting him support from the left. It is not a coincidence that Ron Paul’s campaign supporters were canvasing Occupy camps across the country. Paul is in many regards a “blast from the past” within the Republican party. From his stand on going back to the gold standard, his non-interventionist position, and his concern about privacy and liberty, Paul is one of the exceptions in the American political landscape.

If Ron Paul decides to run as a third party candidate, with a Libertarian undertone, he is likely to win votes from both Republican and Democrat registered voters. Many Democrats on the left are dissatisfied with President Obama, and could end up voting for Paul in a three way contest between Obama, Romney and Paul. In order for Ron Paul to become a credible national challenger, he will have to explore soon a run as an independent 3rd party candidate. If Paul makes this decision, his most critical decision will be then to pick a running mate. Needless to say, the decision which would get a Paul candidacy a lot more traction would be to pick someone with credibility on the real left such as Representative Kucinich, Senator Sanders or Alan Grayson.

The global demonstrations of May Day have long been ignored in America.  A day set  aside for the voice of workers has been replaced by a day, recognized four months later on the calendar, of sales, BBQ’s, and a time to stop wearing white pants.  The Occupy Movement, along with many others fighting on behalf of the 99%, seems bent on changing that in 2012.

Growing awareness of the plight of the workforce, decimated by the outsourcing of predatory capitalism, devalued by the union-busting of corporations, and impoverished by Wall Street greed, has awakened a sleeping giant.  When the fastest growing sector of the workforce is the unemployed and underemployed, Americans are waking up to the nightmare that has become their reality.

May Day provides a time for workers, and the middle class, to reflect on the common cause they share, and the combined power they have.  The vast majority of our planet has been convinced of their need to struggle, and to have to earn their right to survive, while creating profit for a very small, non-productive, elite minority.  This social conditioning, reinforced through our communities, schools, places of worship, and places of employment, needs to be challenged.  The power of the 99%, in solidarity, needs to be realized.

The greatest barrier to the emancipation of the workforce has always been the individual worker’s fear of acting solitary, rather than in solidarity, and being vulnerable as a result.  The courage to act is often insufficient to assuage the fear of acting alone.  Being alone, or part of a small number, creates the very real possibility of losing ones livelihood and failing to affect any change.  However, modern social media, instant communication, and the ability to organize en masse, has changed the rules of the game and shifted the odds in our favor.

The over-reach of the global financial elite; the increasing debt burden heaped on the shoulders of the middle and working class; the rising unemployment and underemployment; the lack of confidence in our corrupt government and corporate politicians; and the privatization of global resources, necessary services, and utilities, has created a very angry majority… and provided them with an undeniable, desperate motivation.  The advent of social media; the ability to organize across any distance; and the access to immediate communication, have provided the means to act on that motivation.

From Tahrir Square in Egypt, and the uprisings in Spain and Italy, to Madison, Wisconsin, Occupy Wall Street, and the subsequent global phenomenon of the Occupy Movement, internet organizing and communication has been the catalyst for growth, and success. Spontaneous actions have quickly organized into mass demonstrations, and organized actions have developed the ability to have a substantial impact.  As citizens learn to use these tools more effectively, future actions are developing the potential to make real – more than just a campaign slogan – fundamental change.

May Day 2012 is shaping up to be such an action.  A day without the 99% is becoming a reality.

National conference calls, internet discussions, and planning meetings among labor activists, community organizers, Occupiers, student organizations, advocates for the unemployed, immigrant rights groups, fair housing supporters, as well as a host of other civil rights and human rights defenders, have sparked a campaign to mobilize Americans, and join the rest of the world in raising their voices against the injustice imposed on all of us.  Global events now include almost two dozen scheduled for major American cities.

We enable and legitimize the system that exploits us through our daily acquiescence and  participation.  We give it power.  We have surrendered to economic apartheid.  It’s time to fight back.  It’s time to realize our collective strength.  It’s time to exercise that power.  It’s time to move forward, and, in order to do that, it means that we have to stop, even for just one day.