Flash grenades and rubber bullets at Occupy Oakland!

[Fuddnik]

Just reported as breaking on Democracy Now. Sourced to Mercury News.

Sounds like it's on.

[Fuddnik]

1. Legal observers and media being kept blocks away.

Police tearing down tents and at least 70 arrested so far.

[Zyzfyx]

21. "Liberty" is the Republicans' favorite word

Except when someone disagrees with them. What a joke.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

28. Do they even have GOPers in Oakland?

[occupyeverywhere]

2. Expect a flood of youtube videos and photos

should start to see reports from occupiers very soon.

[lunatica]

10. I truly hope you're right.

[deutsey]

3. KPFA also just reported arrests are being made

They broke into regular programming for the report and said someone was on their way to cover it.

www.kpfa.org

[eShirl]

4. LRAD sound weapon?? live video link globalrevolution

http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution

[handmade34]

5. news

http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_19188125

[Scuba]

6. Why? Why Oakland?

[lunatica]

9. They did it before when union workers marched at the shipping docs

And that was when Jerry Brown was the Mayor. It's the one thing I dislike about him.

I hope this time it backfires big time. I wish Shamar Thomas were in Oakland today.

I live in Oakland though I'm quite far from this and I work at UC Berkeley.

[Scuba]

12. Is there a racism element at play here?

[rhett o rick]

16. I dont think so. The 1% are only interested in power. This is about who has the power. nm

[lunatica]

30. I don't think so. The unions are mixed races.

The photos I saw from the old demonstration were all white men and women with huge welts from the rubber bullets.

[coalition_unwilling]

17. I live in LA. Just waking up with 1st cup of Joe this a.m. Thinking about

driving up to the Bay Area to provide reinforcements, possibly with others from Occupy Los Angeles.

[xchrom]

7. Recommend

[CanonRay]

8. If they do not allow peaceful protest

then the alternative is going to be ugly. I'm not sure the government wants to go there.

[formercia]

11. The Authorities are trying to provoke a violent confrontation

do not fall for it or they will shut it down for good.

[DemReadingDU]

13. or the violence could escalate

if the movement is shut down

[WinkyDink]

22. Yes, because a violent uprising of the people has failed so miserably in, say, the Middle East.

[formercia]

25. Are you willing to die for your beliefs

or are you just a left-wing chickenhawk who will watch it on TV?

Gratuitous promotion of violence is usually done by the last people to pick up a weapon.

I call bullshit. This is not anywhere near the same situation.

[rhett o rick]

15. Why not? The 1% certainly wants to "go there". The protestors are gaining popularity.

They need to be made to look like thugs. If there is violence then the police can use some of that military gear they have been accumulating in anticipation of just this.

[rhett o rick]

14. Maybe the Pres should send in the National Guard to protect the protestors. nm

[coalition_unwilling]

18. Oh noes1!!! Doing so, I've been told in the case of the Troy Davis

murder, would violate Posse Comitatus!!1!!1 (Obama admin reportedly spent a couple days thinking about what if anything could be done to stop the murder and concluded 'nothing could be done.' I advocated for Obama to order in the 101st Airborne and drew much scorn and derision.)

In case you were wondering, I agree 100% with your suggestion. Cue the authoritarians and police state advocates here in 3 ... 2 ... 1.

[rhett o rick]

27. Was Posse Comitatus violated when troops were used to protect the civil rights movement?

Seems to me that Posse Comitatus comes and goes at the whim of the President.

[coalition_unwilling]

33. OK, those who invoked Posse Comitatus in the matter of

sending in troops to stop the murder of Troy Davis tried to finesse that question by pointing out that Presidents who sent troops in to protect the civil rights movement did so to enforce court orders, whereas there was no such court order in the case of Troy Davis for Obama to enforce.

I do not accept that argument since, from my perspective, the President swears to uphold the Constitution and its core principle of the right of habeas corpus. Since there was reasonable doubt that Davis committed the crime for which he was sentenced, I felt that Obama would have been well within his rights to send in the 101st Airborne to uphold the right of habeas corpus and to stop the murder of Davis. I was met with scorn and derision then and suspect we would be now for the same reason, i.e., that Obama is powerless to use the military to ensure that the Constitution is protected. In the case of Oakland, it's the Constitutional rights of free speech and assembly that are at stake. Maybe not quite as serious as Davis' situation where his life hung in the balance, but deadly serious nonetheless.

[rhett o rick]

34. Yeah, or maybe Pres Obama doesnt give a shit. nm

[coalition_unwilling]

35. I can't believe I was schmucked so badly in 2008. I actually

bought that RW line about his being a 'Community Organizer' and thought it augured well for the future. Little did I know or suspect that he would be an agent for the 1% but remain deathly silent when the 99% are on the ropes.

Oh well, won't get fooled again.

[rhett o rick]

36. He was a community organizer but couldnt wait to screw Acorn. nm

[WinkyDink]

23. Nice irony, if it were to happen. But Obama do that? Not a chance.

[newspeak]

26. like that would happen

he's no FDR.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

29. National Guard is state-level

The president controls federal troops only unless an act of congress allows him to dip into state military resources.

Eisenhower sent federal troops to protect students during desegregation when state troops were sent by their governor to keep segregation in place. I don't know if that's a precedent but it is historical fact.

[14thColony]

19. A relevant quote comes to mind

"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable." - President John F. Kennedy, 1962

[Javaman]

20. The protesters will be back. nt

[nadinbrzezinski]

24. And msnbc in the morn reported NO VIOLENCE

And one pepper spray canister, probably used by protesters. Idiots, they forget these days there are more sides to story thank to you tube and other outlets.

[Fire Walk With Me]

31. Photos of police presence and aftermath:

http://jpdobrin.com/blog/2011/10/photography-of-police-dismantling-occupy-oakland/

[cliffordu]

32. Fucking Oakland.

Waste of space, in terms of "the authorities"

Met lots of fine people from there, though