Occupy's Rose Parade float: 70-foot octopus of corporate greed

[cal04]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/12/occupys-rose-parade-float-70-foot-octopus-of-corporate-greed.html

Occupy protesters are busy finishing their float that will run at the end of the Rose Parade: a 70-by-40-foot octopus made of recycled plastic bags.

The octopus, said activist Mark Lipman of Los Angeles, represents Wall Street's stranglehold on political, cultural and social life, with tentacles "that reach into your pocket to get your money and a tentacle to get your house."

"This is the real Rose Parade, and the other is the Rose Charade," said Pete Thottam, 40, an Occupy activist.

(snip)
During the rehearsal Thursday, activists were assigned roles, such as working with an Occupy peacekeeping team or carrying the plastic pipes that will support two large replicas of the preamble to the Constitution. Each replica — one with the words "We the People," one with "We the Corporations" — requires dozens of people to hold up. Maneuvering the octopus "human float" took some practice in coordination. Protesters spun in circles, moving it through the park. Each tentacle will have several protesters lifting it.

video at link

[Hepburn]

1. I would love to see an American Flyer Wagon in the Rose Parade from a corporation...

...with a sign reading, "Instead of spending money on a huge, expensive float, we gave our employees a bigger bonus."

[Fire Walk With Me]

2. Occupy will have 50 self-policing "peacekeepers" in bright lime green "99%" vests.

OTRP BREAKING NEWS UPDATE :

Dec. 24th --> OTRP Wells Fargo Summit in January 2012? After an ABC News Report on OTRP's upcoming Jan 2nd Parade actions, WELLS FARGO's TOP REGIONAL OFFICIAL, JOHN SOTOODEH (Regional Head of Community Banking), called OTRP volunteers several times during their OTRP Friday Dec. 23rd 1 - 3pn pm Dress Rehearsal while at Pasadena's Singer Park. WELLS FARGO REQUESTED A FORMAL MEETING TO ADDRESS THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT'S "PRIMARY" CONCERNS WITH RESPECT TO U.S. AND CALIFORNIA MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES. OTRP is arranging a meeting with him within the next two weeks and exploring a possible "Occupy Foreclosure" action in Pasadena for December 31st. Stay tuned to the OTRP website for details.

http://www.occupytheroseparade.org/

[gkhouston]

3. What, are they going to pepper spray themselves?

[AtomicKitten]

4. That's great. I hope they include the pepper spray in their design.

My friends and I used to work on the floats about a thousand years ago in Pasadena. Good times.

[frazzled]

5. I hope none of those plastic bags finds its way into the ocean

We all recall how much damage even a single plastic bag can do to the marine life in that environment. There's a great video somewhere, but I can't remember where.