Spocko's Brain

If it bleeds it leads.

– Old TV news saying

Say this weekend you turn on the TV and there is a teaser headline. “Occupy Wall Street Protests Turn Violent!” You tune in to hear the details. An anchorman says something like, “As with the protests in Greece and Egypt, it was only a matter of time before the protests in America turned violent. Today Occupy Wall Street protesters began throwing rocks and bottles at police. ”

Now what do you do?

Do you drop to your knees, like Charlton Heston in Planet of the Apes and scream at the TV? “You Maniacs! You blew it up! Damn you!”

Do you cynically shake your head and think, “That’s it, the movement has been discredited with violence just like back in the old days. Now the police will have an excuse to shut down all the Occupy protests with this as an excuse.”

I’m going to suggest another approach when you hear of reports of violence at an Occupy Wall Street protests.

Photo by DavidyDave, Flickr Creative Commons

1) Challenge the assumption that the violent protester(s) are actually Occupy Wall Street protesters.

The media . . . → Read More: What To Do When The Media Says a Protester Attacked A Cop

Apparently the simple act of closing your account at a CitiBank can get you arrested. Watch as this nice woman in the business suit is manhandled and hauled away as she and some friends decided to close their CitiBank accounts at the same time.

My friends at New York Communities for Change have been behind a lot of actions like this. I don’t know if they are behind this one, but they have been convincing villages, towns and cities to remove their funds from Chase because of their poor response to the mortgage crisis.

I’m surprised CitiBank doesn’t just charge them a 50 dollar, “Closing your account fee.”

“Hello this is CitiBank, your business is important to us. If you would like to close your account press one and you will be transferred to our Account Closure specialist Helen Wate. At CitiBank when you talk, we listen and when you want to close your account you can go to Helen Wate.”

Personally I keep all my quatloos in a box under my bed. BTW, the quatloo is pegged to the Loonie, the world’s most elegant currency.

UPDATE 8:30 PM From the Guardian in the UK Earlier, 24 . . . → Read More: Closing Your CitiBank Account Can Get You Arrested

“Remember, the guy who suggests getting the dynamite is usually the Fed.”

– Old hippie saying

Yesterday morning a retired military officer friend (RMOF) and I were conversing about what might happen next with the Occupy Wall Street movement. Since Michael Westen of Burn Notice or Annie Walker from Covert Affairs weren’t available, he offered some thoughts from the point of view of a non-fictional character who studies this stuff. I, as a media watcher and activist wanted to talk about how the media and power players will deal with the various actions and what we can do to predict the media’s actions so we can get ahead of news and prepare. I also have delusions of influencing the narrative, but I’m afraid that shuttle craft might have left the ship.

Here are a few of his thoughts and some of my questions, predictions and suggestions.

RMOF:

I expect “trouble” soon. I don’t expect it from the protestors, but plants put in by the plutocrats or by violent individuals.

Spocko:

Definitely. The media LOVE plants because they will create the kind of action that makes for good TV. What they are not good . . . → Read More: The Guy who Suggests Getting Dynamite is Usually the Fed. Who will escalate violence at OWS?