Bloomberg orders NYPD to clear out OWS protestors.

[HuskyMan]

msnbc.com Video Player

NYPD clears Occupy Wall Street protesters out of Zuccotti Park | LakewoodLocal

[Stoney]

The OWS situation was getting extremely dangerous of late. I had friends in the park who repeatedly told me that they were encouraging women to leave for their own safety, the sanitary situation was way out of hand, TB carriers were found among the protestors (actually they weren't protesters just homeless who wanted free food and lodging), the increased use of candles, charcoal burners for cooking and some had smuggled Coleman lanters in to the encampment (serious fire issues here folks-have you ever seen plastic tarps and tents burn? Add white gas from a Coleman lantern and you are talking a major fire and burning plastic results in serious 3rd degree burns).

Some lawyers for OWS were trying to say tents/tarps are covered by free speech but at what cost? The OWS cannot even guarantee the safety of the women in the encampment, what makes you think they can ensure basic sanitation and fire safety (NYFD hasd already confiscated generators with gasoling stored in plastic jugs inside tents).

Notice a little pepper spray but no tear gas shells/grenades and no rubber bullets in NYC. NYPD is very good at this sort of thing. Most of the cops down at the park were same age as the protestors.

What got me were the whiners who were asked to leave with their **** and didn't and they got arrested and their **** got confiscated and now they are *****ing to any media whore who will listen.

The only thing I can agree with is they kicked Michael Moore out of the park for being a lying scumbag 1%er!


I understand their gripes but they have a weird idea of what constitutes freedom of speech rights. They had a good idea that became a spectacle and then a quagmire. When the junkies, skells and scumbags moved into their midst they welcomed them instead of keeping to their original aim.

This ain't the 1960's...it's 2011 and the vultures began to feed on eachj other and Mayor Mike said Cut the ****.

[spdrun]

Originally Posted by Stoney

Notice a little pepper spray but no tear gas shells/grenades and no rubber bullets in NYC. NYPD is very good at this sort of thing. Most of the cops down at the park were same age as the protestors.

Agreed -- if only cops in Oakland and other cities had acted as professionally as the NYPD. NYPD aren't perfect, but as far as big city cops, they could have acted a lot worse -- haven't heard of any gratuitous violence like deliberately shooting gas shells at unarmed people.

[Txjake]

dispersant gases, like CS (tear gas) are nonlethal ways used to break up mobs. The whole point is to use something that wont do permanent harm to the unarmed people being routed. If the OWS crowd were armed, there are other methods that would be used to disperse them, based on what they were doing, up to and including lethal force directed at those who are carrying weapons.

[Air&Road]

Originally Posted by HuskyMan

msnbc.com Video Player

NYPD clears Occupy Wall Street protesters out of Zuccotti Park | LakewoodLocal

Is he a little late?

[chilcutt]

Did them all a favor...come March, its gonna get mighty cold outside~

[Stoney]

I am a born New Yorker but was not raised here but have cjhosen to live here for 2/3rds of my life, from the bad days of the 1970's thru Gulliani and Mayor Mike. I worked as a TV news camerman/producer for some of that time and got to know many NYPD Officers, including the ESU crews that respond to the worst situations.
NYPD policy os NOT to use CS/Tear gas or Rubber bullets in a crowd situation. It serves no purpose other than to inflame an already bad scenario into a full blown riot. We haven't had too many of those of late.
The Emergency Services Unit has a bunch of ways to dissuade people before physical or chemical actions are taken. Sometimes merely soaking the crowd with a fire spray nozzle directed upward so as to create a drenching rain works on cold nights. Believe me that they have a serious monitoring capacity. Vidcams are installed in every lamppost and building entrance and can be accessed remotely from the ESU truck. they can photograph you, digitize, run you thru the database and know exactly who you are in less than 5 minutes. Same with license plates. In addition they have people inside the OWS crowd in street dress and have been stopping and searching folks who they ID as "smugglers" and a fair amount of "offensive" weaponry had already been confiscated before they moved in.

All in all, the Boys in Blue OTN NY's Finest did a damn good professional job. Minimal physical contact, all materials confiscated were available for retrival that afternoon at an Impound yard on the Westside piers.

Compared to Oakland, Atlanta and elsewhere, you are safer in NYC than almost any city of its size. Including London.

The NYPD is far better trained and equipped than 99% of the PD's around the country. They are professionals at work.

I've seen the same guys who were in the squads the orther morning, jump into a freezing river with a fast current to save a street skell and we have one of the most diverse forces in the nation. They speak 27 languages, They even speak ASL.

Amongst the 38,000 NYPD Officers there are certainly some scumbags and miscreants but in general Thuggery is a thing of the past at the NYPD.

Originally Posted by Txjake

dispersant gases, like CS (tear gas) are nonlethal ways used to break up mobs. The whole point is to use something that wont do permanent harm to the unarmed people being routed. If the OWS crowd were armed, there are other methods that would be used to disperse them, based on what they were doing, up to and including lethal force directed at those who are carrying weapons.

[elchivito]

Unless I'm mistaken they're already back.

[JollyRoger]

It's amazing how much time you have on your hands when you don't have a job. Perhaps the mega banks, who got trillions in TARP money and are still getting interest-free mega loans from the Fed, need to pay back the money they ripped us all off for by setting up an Infrastructure Bank or perhaps pay a nice tax to fund jobs programs in return for screwing us all out of national prosperity. Prostitutes don't do it for free.

[Air&Road]

Originally Posted by JollyRoger

It's amazing how much time you have on your hands when you don't have a job. Perhaps the mega banks, who got trillions in TARP money and are still getting interest-free mega loans from the Fed, need to pay back the money they ripped us all off for by setting up an Infrastructure Bank or perhaps pay a nice tax to fund jobs programs in return for screwing us all out of national prosperity. Prostitutes don't do it for free.

I absolutely agree with the banks paying back the TARP money as should ALL businesses that have received our extorted tax money. GM and Chrysler come to mind.

BO needs to take back the bonuses he gave to the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac boys and give it to them AFTER they clean up the mess. They get over $100 Billion due to their failings and THEN they expect BONUSES? These guys work for BO. He could fix this today if he would decide to do the right thing. When and IF they clean up the mess, THEN they can get bonuses. In case there's someone who doesn't understand, bonuses are supposed to be awards for good performance, not for driving the organization into the ground.

[Stoney]

Yes there are a few occupants BUT:

1) Private security is searching ALL bags, backpacks, duffles, etc and no plastic tarps, sleeping bags, etc are being allowed in

2) When in the park seated on a bench, one MUST remain in an elevated seated position. No leaning or prone resting is permitted.

3) No bottles, cans or food permitted.

4) They have a 3 ring binder full of security pix and they scan it when they are "assessing" the entrants acceptability. If you are in the book, No Entry Permitted.

The park is, after all, Private Property and the owner is establishing his rights/rules for entry.

Originally Posted by elchivito

Unless I'm mistaken they're already back.

[spdrun]

Brookfield Properties Security Calls Me a ****** at Zuccotti Park - YouTube

The protesters also have pics/video of the private security goons, and have already succeeded into goading one of the sons of whores into getting himself fired. More to follow!

[Air&Road]

Originally Posted by spdrun

Brookfield Properties Security Calls Me a ****** at Zuccotti Park - YouTube

The protesters also have pics/video of the private security goons, and have already succeeded into goading one of the sons of Tijuana whores into getting himself fired. More to follow!

Yep, that's a good example of your basic American protestor. They have nothing positive to contribute to society so their goal in life is to get someone who IS doing something worthwhile, fired! Great people these!

[JMela]

Amongst the 38,000 NYPD Officers there are certainly some scumbags and miscreants but in general Thuggery is a thing of the past at the NYPD.

"In general", sure, but the last six months have had a number of NYPD cases involving corrupt/ criminal activity by officers. They do as they please with seemingly zero accountability.

Then again, I suppose when your cat is in a tree, who else are you going to call?

Back to the topic at hand - I'm work downtown as well and it's cop central down here today.

[spdrun]

Originally Posted by LarryBible

Yep, that's a good example of your basic American protestor. They have nothing positive to contribute to society so their goal in life is to get someone who IS doing something worthwhile, fired! Great people these!

Fair is fair. Block people from exercising their civil rights in a public forum (privately owned, but has to be public by city law since the builder got a zoning exemption), lose your job and have your life ruined. Oh, and "just doing my job/just following orders" aren't excuses in my book.