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Well, there have only been four new diaries since the last Occupy the Blog on Wednesday. Fortunately for us, all four of these are excellent reports from all over. (That’s a hint folks. In a perfect world we would receive a dozen or more reports every couple of days that have so much content and pictures and videos that I have to struggle to decide what to leave out – if anything!)
First up today is this diary from RFSHunt from late Wednesday on the court hearing on Occupy Pittsburgh’s eviction notice.
Arguments concluded today in the hearing to determine whether or not Bank of New York/Mellon should get an emergency injunction to immediately evict Occupy Pittsburgh from property owned by the bank but zoned as open public space. The outcome will not be known for at least two weeks.
Proceedings at times occupied unusual ground of their own – with Rick Astley rolling into the testimony and plaintiffs’ high-powered attorneys extensively quoting snarky tweets and requesting the definition of an “OccuCuddle Puddle”
…snip…
The BNY lawyer concluded his questioning by reading from a tweet that mentioned the OccuCuddle Puddle.
“i know this is not relevant, but I just have to ask – what is an OccuCuddle Puddle?”
Mr Carpenter went on to describe the phenomenon of people gathering in one tent on cold evenings to talk and laugh and keep each other warm – then eventually falling asleep.
“The OccuCuddle Puddle, is that a good thing or a bad thing?” asked the lawyer.
Oooo, Oooo, pick me. I have an answer. It might be the best thing in court all day.
This diary from sagesse is a pictorial representation of the Occupy Boise folks in the Idaho Statehouse:
On January 9th, Occupy Boise took a message about Citizen’s United and the general scuttling of Democracy in the U. S. to the Idaho Statehouse. It was the day of Idaho Governor C. L. “Butch” Otter’s State of the State address. This marks the official start of the Idaho Legislature – which meets in Boise for 3 or so months in winter.
Susan Marie gave us a report on Occupy OC peacefully shutting down at one location and negotiating a move to another.
Last weekend, the OC Occupation in Irvine came to a peaceful and respectful conclusion after a 3 month engagement. This was a planned departure under pre-negotiated terms with the City. Occupy OC member Andrew “Web” Weber emphasized the planned aspect – which he believes resulted in a highly successful and effective occupation. Moving on was the plan all along.
In discussing their strategy Web insisted “there’s no value in over-staying” which makes perfectly good sense if you think about it. Taking responsibility to set the terms of the occupation is proactive, positive, and powerful in terms of the end result. By meeting the agreed upon terms you build credibility and good-will for everyone involved.
…snip…
Web, an Irvine CA native, informed me that they had already opened negotiations with Fullerton City Council members in an effort to secure a site and outline terms for the occupation. “It’s not a matter of if – but where” he informed them. Building on their recent track record in Irvine, I am convinced that this is a winning strategy for all – including the city council, the Occupiers, and the community.
Finally we have this report on Occupy Nashville from kyushukev:
Stopping by FedEx to pick up my welcoming Occupy Supply box of goodies, I proceeded to Legislative Plaza, site of Occupy Nashville to meet with and learn about the little community that could. Occupy Supply was a (very welcome) revelation to most there, as was FDL itself.
After a rough beginning, ON has managed to become the longest continuous 24/7 occupation of a single site in the country. They’ve managed to accomplish this with grit, determination, and a very remarkable group of people.
One recent activity involved the “People’s Bribe,” in which Tennessee’s “people” friendly legislature made it much easier for those “people” to speak to them. Occupiers, some foreclosed on themselves, have also stepped up to help out some of those facing foreclosure and eviction, including camping out, holding a potluck dinner, and confronting the lawyers representing Chase bank, who are trying to put a 78 year old woman out on the street.
Support breeds support, and ON has earned positive community backing, but they still could use some help. Consisting of about 40-50 total sleepers in approximately 60 tents spread across the plaza, they also have a library, media and medical tents, a tent for guests, and a kitchen. Power is supplied by a generator (which costs about $85 a week to operate, and can only run between 5:30 to 6:00 am), and a collection of auto batteries. Food is mainly cooked with propane (open flame fires are illegal) and sometimes kerosene. They could use some decent cookware, as I was told what they have isn’t heavy enough and will burn easily and then ruin the taste of the food.
As always, you can check over at The Dissenter for Kevin Gosztola’s most recent Live Blog.
If you miss anything Occupy related, please check the Occupy Supply Headquarters page where you can find links to the most recent top Occupy related posts and diaries from the last few days, the links to the slideshow of pictures we’ve received, videos on Occupy Wall Street from around the web and the FDL Occupy Wall Street archives.
This link is to a HowTo: FDL Citizen Journalism in case you want to write a diary for your local efforts (or just wish to write a diary at MyFDL for whatever topic you choose). Keep us informed as you fight the power!
11 Comments
Give me stories! Give me pictures! Give me videos!
I like these updates because invariably I’ve missed seeing one.
And I lurrv the diaries so I’ll amplify what dak said
GIVE HIM STORIES!! GIVE HIM PICTURES!! GIVE HIM VIDEOS!!
It’s wonderful to hear all the tales from all over.
And that is precisely why I write the Occupy the Blog! posts as it is so very easy to miss some of these wonderful stories
Thank you so much for this, D.
I thought Occupy Nashville was well done.
Also, listened to Moyers tonight & he did a nice job at the end on OWS.
For as low key and as harassed as Occupies have been, I continue to be impressed by how they are changing the national dialogue.
Forcing Romney to admit that he thinks of 99ers as just jealous is one of my faves so far. That’ll get him a long way toward election, /s
I have nothing to report. However, I am curious as to what anyone might be anticipating for a resurgence of Occupy when spring starts to break. I’m hoping for a strong crescendo, preferably with a certain modicum of focus and direction embedded within it. Nor does structure need to imply any kind of co-option. What I personally believe would be most effective is very strategic decision-making about the timing and targeting of demonstrations. IMO, such an approach stands a far better chance to positively impact in terms of messaging. It is also important that the MSM be provided essentially nothing that can be used to paint the movement in a negative light – which is obviously its primary directive and/or motivation. Frankly, the more “Apple Pie, Main Street USA” the imaging (specifically, for television purposes), the more power it will have. (And in fact, such a movement IS fundamentally American and patriotic – if I may use that overworked term).
Obviously, representation from across the spectrum is vital – students, laid-off workers from both the public and private sectors, people who have lost homes, pensions, medical benefits…individuals just returning from war zones who cannot find employment, cops, firefighters, medical personnel, and so forth. This is a VERY large population that can wield a tremendous amount of power if the approach is judicious and measured. And on the eve of the King holiday, it bears repeating that all actions must be strictly non-violent. No exceptions.
Apologies for the Sermonette.
Your concerns are why I do like to highlight the stories from Occupations that have a good relationship with the local authorities. There are many of them but because they are getting along with authorities, it isn’t fulfilling the desire of the TradMed to discredit the movement
I think there is going to be a lot more happening – starting this week. Both in association with MLK day/week, Occupy the Courts, etc. Winter and the holidays are hard on the camps, it just takes a whole lot of energy to deal with daily life (which is why cuddly fleece scarves and long johns and all the FDL cold weather gear support is so important), short days make connecting with the broader public harder because it is dark by 5 o’clock or earlier in some areas, and the public too is pretty much in survival mode outside holiday activities – and also actions that can engage Occupy movement folks with jobs, are harder, too.
I am in awe of Occupies during the winter.
Will take some more stuff into OWS when I can and when I figure out how aggressive NYC cops will be. I have some camping gear and ski outfits that should help.
Just getting out of your sleeping bag in the morning when it is below freezing at night — chances are there is ice coating all the inside of the tent from condensation from your breathing during night. And you invariably brush against it, and the ice rains down … So been though it has been a mild winter, “mild” is a relative term. One of the complaints whenever there is a story in the paper here here, too, is “I drove by the other day, and hardly saw anyone”. Well, except for the 4 or so sunniest hours a day, just standing around not moving much outside is not great fun …
And for the non-camping Occupies – it’s not the easiest thing to hang out in the cold not moving around much and stay cheery for several hours …
Apologies for all the typos – fingers must have tensed up and brain quit working as I envisioned the experience of non-stop winter camping.