Excellent summary of the very significant civil liberties issues surrounding the Chicago NATO protests. This is very significant in that the proclamation of “success” means that similar police tactics will be used in Tampa and Charlotte.

Finally back home and at a computer. Will be catching up on posting stuff that has been delayed a week. Yeah. Yeah. It’ll be old news by the time I get it posted.

Thanks to the many FDLers who supported me during my trip to Chicago.

PS. The picture that Kevin has posted of “Mo” and “Gloves” shows the people who showed up at the apartment on the night of the raid. More significantly, the picture was taken at the Woodlawn Mental Health Movement occupation.

Note to friends here from TarheelDem. I was one of the persons arrested in an early morning police raid in the Bridgeport neighborhood early Thursday morning. I was release with no charges this morning (Friday). I am fine. There are still five or six in custody. (Tracking down where folks are held has been difficult for the NLG.) Calls to Rahm Emmanuels official voicemail would be helpful. The folks at Occupy Chicago and NLG worked rapidly and effectively to ensure our release. The whole charge is transparently bogus and meant for the media to reduce turnout to the march on Sunday. The permitted march will be relatively safe, providing you leave fairly soon at the end of the march (unless you want to risk arrest yourself by intentionally staying). A large turnout is crucial. Everyone who can make it to Chicago should; a larger crowd makes the entire effort safer.

Good morning folks. The People’s Summit was a symbolically important event in the Chicago Spring–more on that in a diary.

The tent that I took with me was incorporated into an installation in the plenary room by the Occupy Chicago Rebel Arts Collective. The other pieces of art were done by honest-to-goodness artists and kicked ass. Thanks to the folks here who helped me buy the tent to take to Chicago. Pics coming.

Ding. Ding. Also, throw in the National Security Act of 1947 and successor acts, the Central Intelligence Act of 1949 and successor acts. Our entire national security establishment is a worthless bunch of institutions that have morphed into an offensive, warmongering tool that should have been dissolved as Ike’s last act as president.

Here in Chicago, most of the action is preparations for events that begin this weekend and run through the NATO Summit the following weekend. Occupy Chicago has issued a call for NATO protesters to occupy the six closed mental health clinics as a continuing action toward reversing Rahm Emmanuel’s decision to cut services in order to pay for his NATO party.

Next week should be interesting. The City of Chicago has revoked the permit that National Nurse United had for marching May 18 from the Streeterville Shearaton (near Water Tower Place) to Daley Plaza in the Loop. The City wants the march to go directly east to Michigan Ave and down Michigan Ave to the Grant Park Band Shell, avoiding the Loop and its many hotels entirely. I really don’t see the City’s logic other than jerking around protest permits.

And then I see that several hundred folks are demonstrating against Bank of America in Charlotte today. A most impressive turnout.

Good morning, folks.

Everything is kinda quiet here for now e xcept for the run-up to the Peoples Summit. Cornel West spoke at the University of Chicago last night.

In other news, the Walkupy round-up.

The March to Paris arrived on the day of the first round of the French election about a month ago.

Walkupy MayDay arrived in Chicago last Monday, participated in MayDay Chicago, and have now gone their separate ways for the NATO Summit.

Occupy Walk USA reached Gallup NM before their scheduled break for the NATO Summit.

I am participating in a workshop at the People’s Summit as part of World Can’t Wait’s “We are not your soldiers” workshop on opposition to high school recruitment in an environment of high-stakes testing. My part will deal with the “65 years of war is enough” information about the origins of the politics of perpetual war. The workshop is Sunday May 13 2:15-3:45 at 500 West Cermak, Chicago.

Excellent analysis, Kevin.

But third parties have gotten the reputation of being “spoilers” because that is the strategy that they have taken because it does not require the effort of starting early in the election cycle, fighting to get the party on the ballots in all 50 states, building the public support and interest, and doing the required get-out-the-vote efforts to win.

Post-Citizens United, even the spoiler tactic is questionable given the effects of money and media on elections. The 2000 election was one in which the presence of a third-party candidate had an effect only because of severe disenfranchisement of former felons and the presence of a peculiar ballot in a key county of a key state.

Buddies and trusted groups of people are key to positioning yourself so that, if you are a low-risk person not wanting to get arrested, you are not picked off in a random snatch-and-grab.

Most of it was role play and training reactions so there is not a lot of verbal description that is really helpful.

Good morning, folks, from the Bridgeport Coffee Shop (and internet) in beautiful downtown Bridgeport, Chicago, Illinois.

About the TRNN piece about Chicago Latinos opposinga Arizona’s law, Latinos made up maybe half of the several thousand people who marched on May Day in Chicago. Their turnout more than labor unions, who had token representation from Teamsters, AFSCME, Teachers Union, and National Nurses United, made the march a success in terms of turnout.

In other news, I attended the non-violent direct action training session presented by Starhawk on Saturday. If you’ve never had this sort of training, especially in the last ten years, it is useful in thinking about how to participate in any march or demonstration that potentially could be suppressed.