It had to come to this: DC Police Confrontation

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Occupy | Photo 08

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uploaded by YankeeJim

Freedom's end

At this link is a fabulous photo documentary of the tearing down of Occupy DC at Freedom Plaza, McPherson Square. The photos capture and record some of the agony of the protest and artifacts from the movement that explain more what it is about.

A cross section of Americans did not actually participate in this. More it was people with some means to participate combined with the “regulars,” the street people who live in the hood near the White House. To be sure, some people have specific issues – a young couple sport a sign: “You foreclosed on our house, now you take our tent.” That is a theme with which 1 in 6 Americans may relate.

They are “victims” of system failure. Or, they are victims of their own misjudgment. While they are living in tents in the nation’s capital, who is working? Are they out of work? Most of the people in these tents are without jobs.

Are they without abilities? Many of the people in these tents are college graduates who are out of work.

Occupy is an expression of protest against the 1% wealthiest and most powerful who haven’t seen it as their duty and responsibility to create opportunities for people from the bottom up. Skewing wealth into the hands of a few scraped the means right from the Middle Class.

The wealthiest Americans accomplished this not on intellectual merit, invention, and innovation, but on ruthless exploitation of a flawed system and economic model.

So, the tents are empty today – gone from the landscape, where the name “Freedom” still applies to the plaza. You have the freedom to visit, but you cannot occupy it here in this place.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/occupy-wall-street-in-dc/2012/01/30/gIQAebz9cQ_gallery.html?=asdfdfd#photo=1