Occupy Wall Street: November 5, 2011

All photos taken today, Saturday November 5, 2011 between 7:10-7:40AM. Resized and resampled to VGA, click any to enlarge. Photos appear in the order they were taken.

I took one-hundred and forty-three photos. We’re at the ass-end of Daylight Saving Time, so at this time of morning it’s still twilight. I didn’t want to disturb people with flash, so I tried to take pictures without flash. After many, I saw they were coming out too blurry to be useful. And even though being there as the only person taking flash photos would be a giveaway, I decided to use the damn flash anyway. Not only that, this time I ventured into Liberty Plaza and took pictures too — with flash. I doubt anyone there reads this blog, so they probably think I’m a narc for Brookfield or Mayor Prickberg or NYPD or even DHS. Zero chance of that.

Of the one-hundred and forty-three, I’m running the most useful of them, which number sixty-three.

Minor scattered commentary.

Despite all the tents, there are still people only in sleeping bags:

The corner where that American flag was two weeks ago:

They really have devastated the plant life there, as will be seen. The plants are a total loss now.

Here is the damned truth:

Reagan thought his revisions would liberate people. All they did was set loose the sociopaths of finance. And it hasn’t stopped since!

Dig these next photos:

Generator bikes! Apparently they go to batteries that store the power. And then to… I don’t know. But there are clues in later photos. Science! Hey, all you people who are clever, get down there and help out. You don’t have to agree, but you can at least help. Make it harder for Brookfield and Prickerg and the rest of them to complain about the wiring and set-up.

Someone in a sleeping bag between tents:

A row of people in only sleeping bags:

The rear-end barricade remains, but it’s clear NYPD has no intention of doing a siege:

Apparently they don’t want people to sleep far out onto the sidewalk.

See that sign? I’m going to …

… crop-zoom in on it:

I have no idea.

I should have used flash on this one:

The plant life is fucked. If you can’t see it, what’s happening there is that they’ve tied up the shrubs now. Probably so they can stomp through the dirt without stepping on them. A lack of respect that I find offensive.

And they compound it with this:

Just throwing their shit onto the plants, crushing them!

I wouldn’t advise this:

The rich are fatty and filled with cholesterol. And their bloodstream is probably filled with sedatives and antidepressants and cocaine and speed.

Hmph:

I now venture into Liberty Plaza:

The flower bed has been totally destroyed:

Notice the electrical cord and what seems to be a huge frikkin stone carving (I didn’t touch it to confirm it was stone; I should have):

Look at the taped-down electrical cord:

OK, this cracked me up:

Cropped zoom-in:

You can disagree with him, but you can’t say he didn’t have guts and didn’t stand for something! Here he is on liberty. The thing about people from that era is that they were ensconced in a totally different world than the one we are in today. Had they all been alive today, they would not have written what they did. It would be very different. Obeisance to past cant based on transient conditions that no longer exist is foolish.

I don’t know:

When the weather was warmer, I saw at least two dogs there. Maybe they’ve joined in.

The seemingly-obligatory Anarchist flag that shows up at nearly every protest:

Heh:

I wonder if anyone from Anonymous is actually there or if that’s in tribute?

Now this pisses me off:

You do not spray paint in the Plaza, dammit! That won’t come off with a power wash. That requires powerful chemicals to remove. Stop it!

I saw a rack of coats I guess are available for people who don’t have any. I didn’t photograph that because there were people in front of it.

More people only in sleeping bags …

… and it was cold this morning. And it’s going to be even colder tonight and Sunday night, with temperatures hitting the low-30s. This is the pattern I’ve noticed in New York City: the weekend nights are always colder than the weekday nights.

More people only in sleeping bags:

Another damned Art Project:

I wish they’d stop that shit.

Notice the electrical cord leading into the tent. And this sign is interesting …

… let me crop-zoom into it:

A hint of some thinking and order entering the Plaza. But it was the only sign of that type I saw.

All of the TV trucks are gone:

I overheard some snippets of conversation as I moved through the few people who were awake and active. I still think they’re delusional, but I’ve concluded this now:

LET THEM STAY!

The damage to the Plaza has been done. The plants are unsalvageable. And for the Plaza to be properly cleaned will require more than a power wash. The Plaza will need to be closed for several weeks. There’s not much worse they can do, short of cutting down the trees for firewood and ripping up the surface to use as weapons (a prospect I think is unlikely, even by the Anarchists).

Also: It’s our goddammed right to protest when we don’t like what those in power are doing to us.

Do I think this is the best possible protest? No.

But at least it’s a protest, dammit.

Let them irritate the shit out of Mayor Prickberg and everyone else. They all brought it down on their own heads by not representing our interests since the 1980s.

And I hope today’s Bank Transfer Day scares the hell out of Bank of America, CitiCorp, Wells Fargo and all the rest.

Apparently all those in power understand these days is money.

What they forget is that we have money too.

So while I might still criticize them in posts to come, rail against their boneheaded “de-colonize” statements (get real; no one is going to let that happen!), and other things, I now think it’s better that we have this than not have this.

And Mayor Prickberg and the rest better it get out of their heads right now, any idea of eviction. Because I’ll hie my ass down there in solidarity to prevent it. Have my bail money standing by.

Previously in the Protest Category

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