Greetings from OWS PR! Let's Clear the Air.
Posted 12 years ago on Jan. 25, 2012, 9:57 a.m. EST by OccupyWallSt
Greetings from the Occupy Wall Street Public Relations Working Group, sometimes called the OWS Press Team, which goes back to the earliest days of the Occupation in New York City. Many of you may have met us at the Press Table in Liberty Square and many more of you media-makers have continued to reach out and tell the stories of the 99%.
<p> Yesterday a press release went around that gave many the impression that Occupy Wall Street (OWS) is represented by a public relations firm. There are many talented people who are part of the OWS Press Team and the press relations endeavor, including PR professionals, but we are NOT and never will be represented by private PR firms or agents.
<p> The subject of the press release, a response to the President’s State of the Union address, was not an OWS endeavor but an ad-hoc project of some occupiers from different states.
<p> The OWS Press Team is ready, willing and able to respond to queries from media outlets. Have a question (i.e. "What is this press release all about? Did it come from you all?")? Drop us a line at Press [at] occupywallst.org or call us at 347-292-1444. Our press releases are always sent from that address and have that email and phone number as a main point of contact.
<p> Thanks for listening! Onward!
<p>
OWS Press Team
press.nycga.net
Press On!
Prepare for Spring!
Let's have an American Spring. :-)
let's have a GLOBAL SPRING! The Australian Aborigines are leading the way in direct action against the puppets of the Whore of Babylon who rules corporate america and corporate globalisation. the sub prime derivatives fraud was global and no one has been charged. there will be DANCING IN THE STREET all around the planet. let's make this the END OF GLOBAL TYRANNY YEAR!!!
politicians should support occupy,not the other way round
It shouldn't be either/or. It should be both.
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Today's politicians are eyeing the 2012 / 2014 elections so be wary.
Politicians who do not use OWS to support any candidates and have an honest public record should be welcome, few and far between perhaps but hopefully still out there.
Hello America
Whilst I am some 3459 miles away in London, I have sat here this morning watching and reading about 'Occupy Wall Street' and I am in ore of the unity that is shown amongst the American people. Making a stand for what you believe and more importantly what is right. Here in the UK we are suffering too, fuel prices are out of control, unemployment is at 8.4% and rising, it's the highest rate since 1996, the housing market is depressed to say the least, support for the small business is almost non existent. Unlike Amercia we have just laid down and said well that's just the way it is 'what can we do about it anyway'. America you are an inspiration and my thoughts go out to every man, women and child, who has found the inspiration to stand up and make themselves heard. You have inspired me today!
America I wish you all the best!
Barry (just one guy, sat at his desk in London)
Thanks Barry, strange in that many Americans and even our own POTUS say we should be more like europe. Let's hope not.
I love Occupy! You have brilliant watchdogs for misinterpretations! You are all wonderful! Tracy Everitt
I'm 46 years old. my first time card job.I was 14 working in a packing shed palletizing from 7 am to 11 pm. I've been a baker,a beekeeper a electrician ,mechanic ,clerk ,janitor ,logger ,printer ,driver single father of 3 ,put in some time at the end of a shovel ,probly more I forgotten that I can remember .never did I make more than 30,000 dollars a year .never was able to afford to buy a house .I work right now graveyards from 10 pm to 6 am .5 days a week are you 2 days of not consecutively I wish I did but I just don't have time to go to occupy rally .I have something very important to say so this is the only place I'll be able to say it .I will only say it once in this posting .I leave it to you whoever reads this to pass it on .soon I'll be gone .cancer . I've heard some of the things you occupy movement want .lower tuition .better health care .the disbanded meant of the federal reserve .you got too many things on the table .you need to pick your battles 1 by 1 .to win a war .if I could I would like to suggest .battling taxes first .and then healthcare . the first thing I noticed after I started working .was that if I did a little overtime my check would be more .but if I did too much overtime .it didn't seem like I got as much as I should it was explained to me that if I got too much overtime .it throws a person into a different tax bracket .so the way I understand it the more person makes .the more there taxed.with 1 giant catch .once you start making big money millions then you start paying less .as I understand it this came about over 100 years ago .rich people went whining to the president .with this argument .I take adams avenue to work I drive 15 miles .lots of people in town take adams avenue to work .99 percent of those people pay an average amount of tax .because they have average jobs .but I make millions and I'm taxed much more than the average .therefore it's almost like I'm being punished 4 making so much money I'm paying more than my fair share .this wasn't a good argument back then and it sure isn't today.after all while making all that money they were destroying the earth .much more then their neighbors . the president of the time .gave into is rich buddies .I remember hearing somewhere that benjamin franklin 1 said this currency of ours is a curious tool .money is a tool and we're using the tool wrong .I've also heard somewhere that the richest 1 percent pay 99 percent of the taxes .I don't agree with this however if it was true then just let 'em take on my other 1 percent and give us all a break .but it's not true and I don't think like that anymore not because I'm rich .but because all I want now is for everything to be fair .so how about this .everyone should pay the same for each dollar they make 10 cents out of every dollar or 50 cents out of every dollar would go to taxes what do you mean 1,000,000 dollars or 10,000 dollars .overtime dollars should be taxed the same as regular time hours .that's very important .we need to use our dollars as a tool to dig ourselves out of the ditch we put ourselves in with a new sense of what's fair and fair is fair even last week n o bama state of the union .he said why is it out rageous to ask a millionaire to pay the same taxes as secretary this is a winnable battle right now no more subsidies for rich people no more loopholes and handouts to rich people who don't need it everybody needs to pay their fair share let's get a mathematician for president or at least put wanna work in the white house no tax break for billionaires either everybody pays the same a percent on every dollar made
From what I can gather there are no official demands for OWS, and this forum's rules does not allow platform. As a newcomer to OWS, where do I find the movements official platforms/goals. I hope it is more than just the statements found in the NYC General Assembly website. Can OWS PR guide me in the right direction? Any assistance would be appreciated inorder to see where I will use my voice.
Go into the NYCGA site by clicking on the NYCGA button on top of this page.
I believe the most important thing for OWS to do is help educate people. There are many people in this country who have no clue to what is going on. Until more people wake up to the realities of a corporate-controlled system in which greed is rewarded, we will not be able to make much progress in changing the status quo. We've been successful in getting a message out there. I believe we need to continue in adding to the political discourse in this country.
The Axia (ak-see-a) Public Relations firm is one of the country's fastest-growing boutique national public relations firms http://www.axia.net, with 18 associates working in eight states. Our expert media relations staff has earned positive national coverage for clients like Dave & Busters, Verizon and Miller Beer, making us one of the top public relations firms in the United States. PRWeek called us “Rising Stars of Public Relations.” Our clients have been covered by USA Today, Fox News, CNN, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and many other national media outlets.
The Axia (ak-see-a) Public Relations firm is one of the country's fastest-growing boutique national public relations firms http://www.axia.net, with 18 associates working in eight states. Our expert media relations staff has earned positive national coverage for clients like Dave & Busters, Verizon and Miller Beer, making us one of the top public relations firms in the United States. PRWeek called us “Rising Stars of Public Relations.” Our clients have been covered by USA Today, Fox News, CNN, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and many other national media outlets.
http://www.axia.net
The Axia (ak-see-a) Public Relations firm is one of the country's fastest-growing boutique national public relations firms, with 18 associates working in eight states. Our expert media relations staff has earned positive national coverage for clients like Dave & Busters, Verizon and Miller Beer, making us one of the top public relations firms in the United States. PRWeek called us “Rising Stars of Public Relations.” Our clients have been covered by USA Today, Fox News, CNN, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and many other national media outlets.
http://www.axia.net/
The Axia (ak-see-a) Public Relations firm is one of the country's fastest-growing boutique national public relations firms, with 18 associates working in eight states. Our expert media relations staff has earned positive national coverage for clients like Dave & Busters, Verizon and Miller Beer, making us one of the top public relations firms in the United States. PRWeek called us “Rising Stars of Public Relations.” Our clients have been covered by USA Today, Fox News, CNN, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and many other national media outlets.
http://axia.net/
if the president makes 400,000 per year plus 100,000 travel expenses plus 50 for something else and 19 more for entertainment totaling 669,000 dollars every year why are there people in government to learn more there should be a pay curve school superintendent government scientist police chiefs none of these people should make more than 4,000,000 dollars year 36,000 dollars year should be minimum wage anything less is just scraping by 52,000 a year is 1000 a week this sounds like a good salary for anybody shouldn't cost so much to fix teeth dentist your charging way too much how much do you think a dentist make a year ?
our system is too broke to be fixed ? wrong wrong wrong if it can be fixed it should be fixed our forefathers war fluffy white wigs and lace collars. but in a contest for bigger pussies some of your posters would win some posts even sound communist you're over complicating issues there are a few handfuls of basic things that is gone wrong in america ( new world order ). but all of them to be fixed the world is not perfect we need good man in these offices ( elected officials ) not man ruled by greed changing the system in putting other people in charge off new system won't get rid of greedy people trying to rule who gets to live in the big nice houses who gets to live in the little shitty ones you're gonna end up a structured classes like communism I don't vote because of the flaws in the system (electoral college ) but I would hate to see america changes system in lose the vote isn't that what you talking about the system so broke I can't be fixed ahchue excuse me I'm allergic to bullshit let's just fix what we got .change what we want keep the basics. toss out the trash .recycle ( if applies ) out of touch but slightly relevant ideas( bills) namaste day
stop all this stupid studies effects of rock and roll on field mice government studys that waste money need to stop .all of these physics experiments supercollider's cost 5,000,000,000 dollars each billion with a b are we paying for these things ?
okay the way I see it.government employees police fireman postal employees fishing game and all the others let's use fish& game 4 example how much do you think it cost to run the fish& game how much do they take in with park passes camping passes hunting license fishing license fines for people caught fishing without fishing licenses they should be bringing in more money then it takes to run the department I don't think they do so they do need to be paid less .or a certain percent need to be let go I'm sure some of the bosses to take a cut in pay some of these people are making over a half 1,000,000 dollars yearly the same with the police the same of the post office fireman don't really making money but thats what taxes are 4 but do they need to be making so much money how much does the chief make .are firemen paid more than 150,000 a year don't think I'm bashing firemen and I was gonna b 1 I studied wildfire but something else came up wayne fireman get a cut in pay they say on tv response time r gonna be cut in half if a fire man gets paid 100,000 dollars a year says response I might be effected buy cuts I wonder if they realized there's 2 guys out there unemployed .that are willing to be fire man for 50,000 dollars year I only make about 28,000 a year I'd love to be a fireman for 50,000 dollars year all medical benefits paid 100 percent pretty sweet retirement everyone's getting too greedy school principles in superintendent making millions of dollars a year what the f is going on teachers make enough money as it is if they ask for anymore I think I'm gonna puke
could you just imagine .in america I would know more h&r blocks .or liberty tax service .no more confusion and disappointment the feeling that you're being ripped off . and knowing that rich people are ripping the government off. and the government is us the people .I hate those tax people almost as much as I hate lawyers I mean can you imagine a world without lawyers .we may me not able to achieve that right now .the let's get rid of all these tax people make me go find real jobs.( TAX $ NOT PEOPLE )
stop tax returns. tax returns placate the poor and middle class .with a measly 1000 dollars or couple 1000 dollars .wow if you're rich tax returns mean be big bucks .big loop holes .the government should take what is need and keep it .wouldn't that mean they could take less to start with .leaving people with more of their money each week .tax dollars not people tax dollars not people
tax dollars not people .tax dollars not people .tax dollars not people. the dollar is the same whether I make it or you make it. it's the same dollar if a millionaire make it or a poor man makes it . so why should 1 man's dollar be taxed more than another man's. why is the dollar is the end of the day taxed more than the dollar made at the beginning of the day .tax each dollar the same .weather you have 1 dollar or a truckload of dollars .tax them all the same .does this sound fair ?
would help if NYGA did something but talk.
Abolish all death tax's
whoever sufinaga is your post about the world economy and the aborigines is the kind of thinking we need .I wholeheartedly agree this is going to be a global issue every country has a wall street .and hopefully it's not too long to we hear about occupy london minimum wages need to go upan d house prices need to come down and gas and food andhealthca re you know there's a box you can check on your taxes reserve mainly for rich people if you feel you haven't given enough you can give more .and rich people don't do it then when they get old they decided should of given more back so they end up donating to bill and melinda gates fund then all that money that should of gone to the states ends up going to africa .what the hell is going on
then let's work on healthcare anyone want to contact me anvilhead01@gmail.com may take a while to reply
good job 99 percent you're still at the beginning don't be getting tired out this moving to go on for years just like wars
OWS can learn from this guy:
IN DEPTH: Who The Hell Is Saul Alinsky? He's not the man Newt Gingrich - and many of the right-wing extremists - think he was.
Read more: http://www.randirhodes.com/pages/rrnews.html?feed=393046&article=9687222#ixzz1l5Z67AkC
I think the Occupy movement needs to take an unequivical stance on non-violence, now. It is clear that to not do so leaves us open to having our image tainted by provocaturs.
That's a "PR" concern if there ever was one.
But not the people.
OccupyWallSt "The OWS Press Team is ready, willing and able to respond to queries from media outlets."
Thank you for all of your efforts and thanks to the courage and deeds of Occupiers.
http://occupywallst.org/forum/state-of-the-union-are-the-gloves-gonna-come-off/
I believe the most important thing OWS can do right now is educate the masses about what's happening in this country. It's difficult to believe, but many people have no clue. Until more people become aware, there is little value in fielding potential candidates to run in elections at this time. Having said that, we do need to address many different problems simultaneously.
occupy the courts. i like it. lets flood up the court system to make them stop operating for at list one day! word up!
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If society gets the politicians it deserves,then we have been lax in our judgement in the past.For political change to occur OWS needs to field candidates.For it will only happen when political change is garnered that the reign of Corporate Plutocracy is ended.With ACTA and SOPA/PIPA on the corporate agenda our freedoms are being curtailed further with the blessing of puppet governments.
have you checked out what these folks are doing? http://www.the-99-declaration.org/the-plan-for-the-99-declaration/
Thank you for the link bklynbyrd,being from Australia I have not kept up as much as I should have.But no longer!Once again,thanks.
Wow bklynbyrd,I am now fully up to speed with the goings on.Excellent and correct.The same applications need applying in Australia in some of the areas.Our healthcare and education are fairly socialised but the other is the same.The electorate became so sick of our two major parties corporate collusion that we voted in a hung parliament in 2010.This needs to go far far further.Thank you again for your kind response to the uneducated.
I urge you to check www..peoplescongress.org. They are a more inclusive group trying to build bridges between all groups involved with social justice, for a stronger movement.
I thank you so much for the link and have gained much more insight.Yes this is the right procedure.Keith Olbermann is a shining light with his commentary and a credit to society.Here in Australia"Occupy" still flourishes but more is needed.I
ll make sure to do my bit again.I protested and marched in the moratorium against the Vietnam war here.I also protested and marched against Apartheid in South Africa in my old home state of Queensland.That time I was arrested by undercover operatives as we had a"State Of Emergency"declared.We were baton charged by over 700 heavily armed police and brutalised.This was repeated 3 days later without the attack but a lot more arrests.As Ghandi said,"Prepare to have your head cracked"."Or I wont even come to your funeral".IT`S TIME and that TIME IS NOW.Thank you betsydoula,will do.
who will speak to us? who put them in their position? who is running the show? who is instructing the police? who is authirising the budget for the police actions? where has our money gone? why aren't the police chasing the real criminals who ripped us off? we want our piece of the pie right here right NOW
The very things we seek are before us... Politics will also be cleansed
Solidarity
Politics and politicians are no longer relevant to the human race, and in my humble opinion, and many others believe,it and they should be completely ignored by Occupy at this point. They are now "The Powers That Were" (formerly known at the powers that be).
The only way true, monumental change will occur is by creating a new system from anew, just as Occupy has been birthing since September. I always laugh when people still ask, "What do you people want/What are your demands". Perhaps the most beautiful answer I have EVER heard was when it was said that, "We aren't asking for or demanding anything from them because they are no longer relevant to the citizens of the world". TRUE POWER comes from that - we are asking NOTHING from a system which does nothing but create misery and foster corruption. We are rather taking upon ourselves as free citizens to create a better world for ALL, not just the 1%. They are more than welcome to join us, however, and we hope they do. After all, it's a better world we want for all, not just the 99% or the 1%.
The devil's in the details. How do plan to do that, and what do you propose will be the replacement to the current system? What make you believe you can achieve it in your lifetime if at all?
Being against one thing is not the same as trying to build something else. So the most beautiful answer you ever heard is hollow. It is a null answer. It is not enough to say what you don't find relevant. You must articulate what you DO find relevant. What are you FOR? What do you FAVOR?
Forget the rhetoric. Forget the grand declarations. Get to the mechanics. Get to what, exactly, you want.
An idea on the basic mechanics of where things should go:
Force/turn all corporations into non-profit organizations/positive entities. Corporations are at the very heart of all the problems, complaints, and divisions brought up in the protests so far. Get to the direct source of what everyone has been whining about and change their purpose so that THEY SERVE THE PEOPLE, THEIR WORKERS, AND BROAD PUBLIC GOALS instead of the shallow interests of investors, CEO's and other shadowy figures.
This first goal is grand enough to focus on solely and will require layers of details, plans, and sub goals. Forget about the happy hippie ideals of doing yoga daily and dancing in front of banks and do some real work on this first mission.
This idea will be reposted in the future until something better is proposed or it catches on. Starting to get tired and worried about how all of this energy and organization is being wasted on disjointed actions that cannot be sustained over time and in multiple locations.
How do you plan to force/turn a corporation into anything other than it is? What kind of force? Literal/physical or legal/legislative? Will you need broad based popular support for either scenario? If so, who do you proposed getting it. If not, how do you justify it?
Well it's quite clear that you wouldn't be able to legislate this type of thing considering the types of leaders that are in power at the national and even state level. Broad base support would be needed to make this type of change but it could start small to get the ball rolling. As the economy continues to falter and grow worse by the day (sorry, the belief that things are improving overall is simply a false hope to make people content with their grisly situation) the negative actions by corporations and their self interests will become more apparent to more people making the case an easier one to sell. A continually deteriorating economy and standard of living would grow this idea among the people. It's not that far fetched or far off. Remember that it was Mr. Romney who got heckled by conservative supporters when he talked about corporate personhood. In any event, This idea could start in a small town or county that creates a law that prevents for profit corporations from operating in their town. After a while the idea could spread to other towns. Start small, and grow from there. Look at California and their air quality standards and how they are used by other states as benchmarks. Things don't happen over night, but one moving gear can turn the next.
You realize that a town cannot prevent a company from making a profit unless you change federal law, don't you? As of now the Federal law guarantees the rights of property owners (owners of businesses, factories, etc) control of their property, and that means using it for profit. Local statutes don't trump that. So it can't be done simply on a local level. It has to national.
Because of that, I don't see how your plan is viable. I think the closest one can achieve under current law is having strong unions.
A town has a say in what types of corporations operate within their boundaries (especially when you have a charged up group of citizens). This is often done through creative applications of zoning laws. Wal-Mart has been blocked this way in many communities. New non profit organizations could be created in this type of receptive environment and the citizens could shun the larger corporations through new legislative policies that could make operating there inconvenient and avoiding the products of the larger companies in general. With will power this plan could work at a very local level through local legislation and more importantly creative techniques to support the already described non profits (and other orgs). The key would be spreading the message to create this charged up citizenry in the first place. This is more grass roots activism than changing a long standing federal law overnight.
Underdogs don't win by fighting the battle by the rules of the opponent. They win by setting the field so that it favors their assets and strengths.
I hope you're right. I don't believe I will see it in my lifetime. While I would give anything to see us become more like, say, Sweden or Norway, those countries have a very different history, with very different cultural attitudes. There are so many false myths operating in this country, with such a nearly unshakable hold on the imaginations of the people, that the kind of transformation you and I would like to see, even on the local level, will take a distant future generation, if any, to implement.
I hope I'm wrong. But I have seen this idea fail more than once in my lifetime. Indeed, i was a part of a anarco-libertarian community for several years. It was shut down for lack of community support. It broke my heart, and the hearts of several hundred others. I am old enough to remember the Communes of the Sixties and Seventies. They effected nothing and are mostly gone. My father, too, way back in the 1930s was among the founders of a very large Kibbutz. My older brother was born on it. It, and the overwhelming numbers of collective communities in Israel, no longer exist. Partly it was the forces of capitalism than put too much pressure on them. Partly, they were just too damned much work (direct democracy is incredibly time intensive) and folks simply burned out.
Over here, I think the best we can hope for is reform, not genuine revolution. But, as enough reforms stack up one on top of the other, it can lead to structural, systemic change. It is the path Noam Chomsky recommends, and I agree.
Anyway, I sincerely wish you the very very best of luck. And I hope to someday see a community like to one you describe right here in the States, with my own eyes. Little would make me happier.
Yes the self made man myths are deeply rooted, especially in my parent's generation. I can say that to me and many in my generation they seem archaic and backwards which of course brings hope. I also see hope in the public spaces when random people get together to discuss their frustrations over current events. Many are actually well off but are tiring of the old routines and are seeing that if you don't have 50 million in the bank you just don't count. The farmers markets are another positive step to break away from total corporate control of the food distribution process. I think there is a lot of heavy frustration just beneath the surface and this movement is helping to express it and create a national conversation. It looks like this struggle will continue because the problems will only compound in the near future. I don't have a major love for any political system, only for common sense and a disdain for absolute corruption. I think others can appreciate that too which can perhaps strengthen the movement. In my opinion, we have to expect victory as belief is power. The problems today exist because most people believe (or did believe) in our current system, without that belief it crashes quickly. The challenges are long, but I do believe things are changing at a very quick pace which will bring even more changes. It will be interesting to see.
I've enjoyed the conversation!
Yes, now that people have recognized that we want this we must begin experimenting and building a system that works so that we can tweak it over generations into something functional and fair.
First, thank you for responding.
How would you do that? Are we talking about a small community (or communities) that grows, attracting more people as it goes along? in the meantime, what happens to the current system that rules America?
epa: In a few words you summed it up, about precisely as one can to describe a system that doesn't currently exist. This is my belief about how it will come about. It's about small communities that begin to share with one another, expecting nothing in return, which then evolve into larger and larger communities and then . . it's about a resource-based economy and gifting communities. (note: this is where those who oppose Occupy begin to laugh at us, demean us, etc., kind of like, "Oh yea, that'll ever happen, right!" or "Good luck with your Utopian dreams (said with a good dose of sarcasm)).
So, as I see it, that's where we begin to go on our merry "Utopian" way and build our new world side by side, as the existing world they hold on to (the money world) crumbles. This alludes to my comment above: If we make the mistake of "asking" for their permission or blessing, of course it will never happen, because they will never let it happen. But if we decide to do it "without their permission" (and just think of that - aren't we free citizens of the world? We need don't need anyone's permission to do anything that betters the world, particularly when their system is completely corrupt) then they no longer become relevant to us, and we then hold the power.Didn't Occupy do this months ago on a smaller scale when thousands removed their money from banks? This is non-cooperation at it's simplest level - you banks are no longer relevant to us, so we are choosing not to participate with you anymore.
Regarding your earlier comment above to me, which I appreciate, tried to give some thoughts here, but it's not so simple to elaborate on big ideas like this in a comment thread like this. Again, really like your comment to OKC about beginning to experiment - this is key - we cannot find a better world without experimentation, and along with that, some failures along the way. From Andre Gide: “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”
I am so glad you asked this question. This discussion is so important to me! I think it should be a forum post of its own, really.
For your questions on community, this would be just like how the Occupies popped up across the country, meaning they will form if the people decide to do it, or won't form if they just want to participate in a group already in existence. So whether there is a "NYC" or a "NYC" and a "Brooklyn" or what have you is simply up to the people.
As far as what happens to the current system, it remains in place while we build our own community to coexist and replace it when everything collapses. It is still important to try to change our current system for the better (see the-99-declaration .org) and maybe in the future we will have changed America so much that the two systems can fuse! Who knows.
As far as what this system looks like, it will vary, but one thing that all communities will have in common is an online component. This allows for people with disabilities to participate, and for those of us with busy lives to participate more than when we must physically meet somewhere to discuss things.
Imagine a website that is a cloud for the local community. It logs IP addresses, and those who do not own a computer can register at a public library. This ensures that local people are the ones involved in the decision making process.
At the top of the webpage are links like: recent proposals, how to write a proposal, time-sensitive proposals, and then categories of proposals such as housing, food, education, etc. Any local person can submit a proposal on anything. There is a moderator who deletes proposals only if they contain profanity or are clearly trolling, and even then there is a link containing what has been deleted, for transparency.
The difference between a website like this and a live GA is the timing. A proposal is posted to the site with no deadline. Through the coming days and weeks, as people get the time, they view the proposal and post adjustments and amendments in the comments. Each proposal and comment has a "like" and "dislike" ability, and a way to reply. The proposal is refined in this way as a living document. It is never considered final if there are still comments voicing concern: this is rule by consensus.
If the proposal is caught in a gridlock of debate, it can be cut down to address a more specific issue upon which everyone can agree. Where it goes from there is up to the community. Maybe it evolves into a petition like those on change.org or a community action of some kind. In this way even those who cannot reasonably make it to GAs can still participate in the process.
If you want, I can give a mock example of what a site like this might contain (from my background I would pick OKC).
The IP check isn't solid. You'll need another way to verify where the users of the site reside. Perhaps you can use something like a national security number, or other piece of information to prove who a person is. This is tricky.
I see that politics are soon to become drowned in logistics.
Ah, I see. This is indeed a problem, because currently at voting polls there is a level of anonymity, but a clearly identifying alias online could result in people being hunted for their words.
You are right. I agree. The system is broken beyond repair.
Absolutely. Keep talking!
"Cleansed"?
Brought to justice and rebirth by the awakened majority
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Who are your wonderful writers? Do they have names? I never saw a news article that was signed. Why the Chinese style secrecy? Is that an inherent part of communism?
It would also be cool if this news reporting was more anarchic. Why not let protesters from all over the country write news reports. There's no reason why a single writer should write more than one article. There are millions of occupiers. Let's spread the power and give everyone a voice.
What does it matter who wrote it judge it by it's content not the author. I actually cut the name of authors on threads here to because of all the ad hominem. but i guess this is a bit different since they claim to be OWS PR.
I would like to know how the donations are being used.
I don't want to donate money if there are only a few people in the powerful positions of Occupy. I find it problematic that we don't know the names of news article writers and forum moderators because this gives us no idea of how many there are and/or if they ever change seats.
If it's only a bunch of people running the important Occupy engines like this website and the news press releases, then it's more totalitarian than anarchic.
My hope would be that protesters from all around the country have a chance to write Occupy news article and that this official forum gets different moderators from time to time. In a republic there are term limits. I think this is very good.
I wrote more about this here:
http://occupywallst.org/forum/improving-occupy-anarchism-with-the-old-switcharoo/
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If you want to deiced if you will donate go to NYCGA and read about how the spend it. http://www.nycga.net/category/assemblies/proposals-past/ I personally have distanced myself from the GA's as they have a trend of not really speaking for everybody but those that flock to them for particulate causes.
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What difference does it make, as long as we agree on the ideals and motives of OWS?
Have you volunteered and been turned away?
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yo, I'm one of the authors/editors. the main reason we don't sign it, is because there is a big collective of us who all collaborate on making articles and whatnot, and honestly there's not many pieces here that have been the work of just one individual. we go through and edit stuff as we see issues, etc., and people do submit stuff for us to post all the time. also, it's not written by "a few good men", but this site is volunteer-based, and the majority of us actively working on this site (like, 3 (including myself) of the main authors/editors who regularly actually write shit, and the person who started it in the first place) are trans women. we also do a lot of other activism within occupy, and many of us are actively involved in DA. we're an affinity group that runs this site, but it's entirely volunteer based and we're typically open to people who want to help out (obvious exceptions aside, like people with oppressive views).
Your whole reply is a flurry of red herrings. I have no idea what being part of a collective, being transgendered, being women, being volunteers, being open to help, etc... as to do with keeping Occupy's news article authorship anonymous.
Serious writing collectives like teams of writers who create dictionaries or scientific essays always publish the names of those on their teams. This ensures transparency and breeds confidence. The Internet makes it easy for you to edit the names of the collective when members leave and new ones arrive. Use this power. Tear down the curtain and tell us who you are. This isn't 1950 communist China.
I believe in teaching by example. If you want a transparent government, then be transparent yourselves. From an outsider's point of view, it looks like you created some form of hierarchic organization in which the people in powerful positions remain nameless and have no term limits. To me this is a step backwards from representative government. Knowing who my representatives are and knowing that they are limited to a term limit is something I find very important. The change up in personnel ensures the constant flow of new ideas, and knowing who is who keeps corruption one inch further away.
TIP: You represent Occupy's team of writers. You should thus take the time to write properly when commenting on this forum. Use capitals, proper sentence structure, paragraphs, proper punctuation, and avoid telling us that you write shit. I never before heard a serious journalist or artist refer to their work as shit. The only people I know who demean their own work are teenagers lacking confidence. Have a little bit of respect for yourself.
Please be aware, this is not a personal critique. If you think I'm being harsh it's only because I don't wear white gloves and beat around the bush. I write what's on my mind without holding back. My hope is that you understand I only mean to better Occupy by providing constructive criticism.
Right on!
Maybe you haven't noticed that this website is not a dictionary or a scientific essay. It's revolutionary news and agit/prop. The forum is fairly open to all more or less, the hard news and editorials are not, though they can be commented upon. OWS is a revolutionary movement. It's not unusual for revolutionaries to use pseudonyms or anonymity. Beside, it was explained that the articles are collective works. You just can't seem to hold yourself in, you juast have to have the last word and you just need to prove that you are smarter and better read than the people who are doing the work of OWS- work which you oppose in priciple anyhow.
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Glad to hear the moderators catch your stuff from time to time. You are not a friend of OWS.
It's a matter of opinion. I offer criticism, support, and solutions depending on the discussion. Most people here believe criticism is equal to trolling. I don't. I think criticism is one of the most important aspects of intellectual thought. It keeps things in check, it keeps things healthy. I would shutter at the thought of having a government without investigative journalists. When you do withuot critiques, you're left with an unchallenged authoritarian structure. That's not healthy. I think René Descartes was pretty radical when he invited critiques to comment on his work, and then published their thoughts after his essays. That's cool.
However, I understand your point. Most occupiers I have spoken to are looking for high fives, and not constructive criticism. If the moderators agree with you, they'll ban my speech. They do this in indonesia where I live. Nobody can criticism the government without being heavily monitored and censored. I don't think it's the best system.
Probably "most occupiers" are not interested in the bitching and moaning of a backseat driver who is hostile to revolution and who is mainly interested in showing the world how very clever he is.
I have been working on the transparency issue; however, the inner circle is very closed. They want the US Govt and the banks to be transparent, but not themselves.
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i feel weird about having a "press team." you don't speak for us, lets make that fucking clear.
I find this troubling too. I will look into this and find out how they got their positions.
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Why not identify yourselves and your backgrounds? What do you do for a living? Come out from behind the curtain.
I'm not hiding fuckwad
http://zendogblog.net
perhaps it is incidents like this that induce people to hide who they are . . .
I say those who would use accidental engineering and other forms of manipulation to instill fear are cowards
who lack the courage of their convictions
here's to you
Nope, you're not hiding, you're just a crazy person that should be hiding.
I just imagine what your family thinks. "Yeah, even as a child you could see the signs." "No one's spoken to him in years." "He looks so dirty, I wonder if he lives outside." "Do you suppose he'd do something stupid like that uni-bomber guy?"
Ya never know do ya . . .
Speaking of Ted Kazinsky - he never did get any justice for the experiments that were done on him while he was in college . . ..
but he sure did get plenty, didn't he . . . .
Obviously you have never protested Scientology?
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