Class Warfare Reaches West Coast: 'Occupy L.A.' Demonstrations Over The Weekend

Horse Sense America

I heard on the news an interview with a protester who was an out-of-work cook. He was an American. He was protesting against Wall Street. A few questions: (1) Did he have an issue with Wall Street during the boom years it made where he got to cook for a living?(2) Does he realize that he is out of work because illegal immigrants are doing the cooking he is not? In the great state of CA where an illegal alien can get State Tuition grants?

People, he should have been marching on the Governor's mansion in Sacramento- that's where the problem is. It is easy to blame and follow the crowd.

Maria Elena Fernandez

Your numbers seem way off. Your colleague at this paper says there were 750 people, Please double check. 750 in our megalopolis isn't amazing or anything, but it's hopeful. No reason to break our hearts yet again, when there may actually be a reason to feel encouraged. Oh yeah, and then there's the accuracy in reporting issue. I got the impression you weren't there and relied on an unreliable source. Pinche blogging sucks.

Emily

I read this write-up last week and found it to be extremely snarky - especially this sentence "So look out Wall Street rich folk: 70 people 2,500 miles away don't like you." Way to make a coolness-contest out of something very far from it. You sound like you are reviewing a band and I don't see the use in it here.

Peanut

P.S.The Facebook page for the event starting this weekend already has almost 2,000 RSVPs.

http://www.facebook.com/event....

Peanut

Dennis, it's disappointing to know that you have the job of writing for the LA Weekly when clearly there are thousands of other people out there who would be far better qualified than you. Moreover, they'd be grateful to be employed. Did you go to public school?

You and this "article" (if you can call a few snarky, self-indulgent lines an article) are an indication that jobs aren't given to people based on their skill. This should be all the more reason for people without jobs to be pissed off. Six sentences (including 2 quotes) do not a writer make, sweetheart. You are what we commonly refer to as a HACK.

Regarding the protests, it is quite possible that the 70 you are referring to are from the general assembly meetings, which are essentially strategising sessions that are held before the actual protest. They are open to the public, but aren't the official event. It's foolish to presume that nobody cares. The fact is that nobody knows. Our media is censored to a degree that is similar to Iran or China even. Blow that comment off if you wish, but it's absolutely true. We're just fooled into thinking we have open media because of all the trash, tits, and violence on TV. The only reason we think we have open media is because the troglodytes who get their world view from youtube have been able to watch "2 Girls, One Cup" and Justin TImberlake on SNL doing "Dick in a Box." This should not be the gauge we use! It's just sad.

As long as people *hear* about this movement, they will show up. Not everyone is so cynical to believe that we should just give up.

jk2001

I would not blame the media brother. Meetings don't get coverage. Meetings are meetings - and adding a march to the meeting was creative. As they say, there's no such thing as bad publicity, and while there were negatives in this article, there were positives too.

For example, I think the people involved have gotten a lot more serious and intent about getting good press. A lot of smart people, and a good number of wise people, are participating. Perhaps as Occupy LA improves its game, the LA press will also follow suit and give them better, more informed coverage.

Roesco

How much did you get paid for this article? Did you get a bonus to spin it into an insult? You should get an extra one for sounding like a big prick.

Amy

Screw you Dennis Romero...nice condescending tone you have for 99% of this country.

Be_nice

What happened dennis no more witty comments in your arsenal?

johndenton46

Occupy Wall Street I think will produce an enduring mark. The depression has penetrated a cultural demographic that has the tools to fight back and a more than ready population of the unemployed. It will grow.

Lucas John

A revelation needs to happen to awaken the suppressed people in this country. They are confused, discouraged, and unhappy and they don't understand why. There is plenty of information that you might not know, please hear the protestors and try to understand the situation.

eri

trader joe's VS whole foods?! i don't think so. TRY: hundreds of LA children going to sleep with hungry little bellies while FAT CATS on wallstreet use dollar bills to wipe their asses while they LAUGH at the working class....

Chzwiz007 (under cover)

The people that work in the financial industry are for the most part good people. The anarchists and other people protesting are the scum bags. I have seen enough of delusional and envious partisans. I am outa here.

clvngodess

The Trader Joe's VS Whole Foods "joke" wasn't. It was snark. But I guess psuedo journalists with a regular paycheck can afford snark. Oh and 70 people 2,500 miles away? Really, man. What ever you are drinking and smoking or popping, I want. I could use a little vacation from the reality I'm living... fucking jackass.

Lokifreeman

70 people who care is more than enough to make a difference, but there are many, many more who will be joining us. Dennis has done a good job of portraying himself in a negative light, so I will refrain from calling him names.

jk2001

Well, it's not enough to make a difference, but it's enough to start something.

The fact that 70 people who aren't organized, but showed up to protest, is pretty huge. That doesn't really happen for things like this. It's very rare. Usually, you need a war or some acute crisis before people show up. And this all happened without the help of any media except online social networking.

Anonymous Coward

70 activists isn't a protest, it's an strategy meeting of community organizers. Good thing there aren't any bank-owned foreclosed properties in LA they could occupy...

Kaleb Singleton

Class warfare has always been in LA. Taking a drivethrough the city and you will see this. One moment you can be in low income housingand the next in a neighborhood full of mansions. That is what I call psychological class warfare. Nobody gets rich on their own that is just propaganda spread by the rich.

BlooAnon

Me wonders if this goon is really a journalist, or a well-placed government worker....either way, you're part of the problem

Stan Lee

LOL - take brains and organization to form a protest of any means - something LA lacks in spades. Oh I know why don't we organize a boycott of everything from Arizona to show support for immigration laws - oh we get our power from Arizona...? Oh well everything else from Arizona...IDIOTS!!Yes there are real issues but please - get the fools out of the way so others can lead...

jk2001

You don't understand why that boycott was raised. There has been huge organizing in LA to support immigration reform. The City Council calling a boycott was their way to play to the coalition of organizations of poor and working class people who are themselves, or have relatives or friends, who are living in the shadows. The coalition hates SB1070. It's a private prison scam to drum up business by jailing more people. It was written by the private prison lobby. No civil libertarian should stand for this.

Yes, the City of LA couldn't pull through with the results, but it's all a process. It's about building political pressure. Their big demand now is to end (in)Secure Communities, which sends all FBI suspects' fingerprints to ICE, for easier deportation.

The coalition(s) have demonstrations that draw thousands of people. Sometimes, it's tens of thousands, like the one before SB1070. In these big marches, there are people who could be picked up by ICE and deported if they were in Arizona. But that doesn't happen because this is Los Angeles. So, I suggest that this city Occupation movement of the 99% really look to the immigration reform movement and start studying.

Kids are United

So you are following the New York timeswriters' bad decision to insult this growing movement? bad idea. Youth are watching. The public is watching. (big A) Anonymous is watching. People are less tolerant of this kind of hackery than they were even 5 years ago. Degrade the people and your job is at risk.

The fact that even 70 showed up this far away from Wall Street and DC is a testament to the anger that is felt here in LA and all across the country. Maybe 70 in person, but thousands more on Twitter (do you even check that, or are you "old school"). Many more that have not yet taken the streets sympathize with the movement. It is gaining steam and supporters. More action will follow.

One of the 99%

FAIL - as a journalist, you are a disgrace. Clearly you have no idea what's going on. Mock all you want but we'll see what's up this Saturday.

OjaiBill

What will matter is the long-term results. The US political system actually does a better job of stifling dissent than the Mideast countries, although the methods aren't as brutal, so it's not surprising that it's a struggle to grow large numbers for these events. If the underlying frustration is great enough, though, these demonstrations will grow. I will be watching with great interest.

Virginia Garcia Fleming

"So look out Wall Street rich folk: 70 people 2,500 miles away don't like you." Is this supposed to be funny? #FAIL This movement is growing, this idea is spreading. Careful which side you land on. ~Fellow Anon

Anon

Forgive us for being too broke and jobless, courtesy of Wall Street, to make it to New York. Forgive our slow growth in numbers because the mainstream media is blocking awareness of these movements. Forgive our effort to bring about the change we need and the change we deserve when people like you want to heighten class difference and keep your underlings suffering. Clearly we are not worthy of your self-appointed greatness, oh he who fears to get his hands dirty or show consideration for his fellow man.

JohnM

Ok, you're forgiven for all of that. I'm having a harder time though with the part where your lack of understanding of policy and your fondness for scapegoating leads you to protest in 2011 instead of using your time to, oh I don't know... maybe find a job so you're not broke?

Where was your rallying cry to protest when lending was out of control in 2007? Ah, that's right, you were too busy reaping the rewards of a market flush with credit like the rest of us (hmm, I guess we normal "little guys" had a hand in the crash too). Last I checked, Wall Streeters weren't out in the Inland Empire gobbling up homes they couldn't afford.

But I suppose it's easier to just blame "the man" for keeping you down. It's not as though your affectation for pinning blame rather than taking the time to make yourself marketable in a shifting economy could possibly be behind why you can't afford a plane ticket...

Trudi

Your comments are rude, unfair and lies. Tell me again, how many people have not been able to find jobs? I think it's over 9% and something like 18% in the 18-24 yr. old range.To me, and I'm 63, I whole heartedly support their movement. It's reminscent of the enrgy & commitment of the antiwar movement in the 60's & 70's which was successful in turning the tide of opinion against the war.This is their future and they have evry right to protest.What no one is saying isthat there is class warfare against the workers, young, aged, poor and disabled.

Rabbitholemedia

I am one of the Occupy LA movement. Just so you know, John M, I was laid off two weeks ago from my job as a corporate cook for B of A because the people up top decided that they wanted to keep their 3-4 day work weeks and Sunday golf at the club. (Trust me, honey, they REALLY don't give a rat's tutu about anything else, I can tell you from firsthand knowledge) Fortunately, through my continuous job search I was able to get TWO jobs that I am currently working. (There goes your theory that we are jobless hippies. Hippies, perhaps. Jobless, no.) In my spare time, I help the Occupy LA movement. We are professionals who are tired of corporate interests being put first in Washington. Many of the 911 first responders (Law enforcement and Fire officials) have joined our movement and we have received positive response from LAPD as well because of the fact that their pensions and benefits are being taken away. How likely do you think any of those people will want to save your life if you are on board with taking away their benefits and pay? This is why we are doing the demonstrations. Did you know that GM just signed a deal to ship thousands of Jobs away from Detroit to China? Did you also know that as of September 3rd the banker bailout has cost us OVER 12.8 trillion dollars? Yes, people must take responsibility for the mess that they put themselves in when they take loans that they cannot afford, however, the corporate fat cats must also be held responsible for their part in this meltdown. I find it reprehensible that our dear Mr. President hosts a campaign fundraiser here in LA that costs 35 grand to attend when so most people in the US do not even make HALF of that as their annual income. FYI, my rallying cry was just as strong in 2007 as it is today. I don't buy things that I cannot afford. I also work in an industry where I must compete with people who are here illegally. If employers were held responsible for hiring American workers, it would make life much easier for Americans. We need to stop shipping jobs overseas

jk2001

People took zero-down mortgages because banks were offering them.

It's the bank that designs the debt and writes the contract. It's not like borrowers go in and negotiate a deal, especially not the high-risk borrowers. The only people who can negotiate loans are the wealthy.

The banks helped people "afford" those IE timebombs. They were in a kind of partnership, where the borrower would bear the costs of paying for the investment over 30 years, and the bank would provide the cash to purchase the house.

Banks should be happy that the borrowers didn't default in greater numbers!

clvngodess

How soon you forget that it was unfettered banksters and wall street fucks that put the economy where it is. They aren't the victims, jerkalope, they are the predators who used slick marketing speak to coerce people who couldn't afford credit or loans. Remember that cute little thing called derivatives? How about Wells Fargo? Bank of America? Countrywide? Remember THAT? Hey and how's that outsourcing working? Lemme guess, you got a cushy 6 fig gig that keeps you in the suburbs with a swimming pool and movie stars.... Oh wait that was a sitcom based on bullshit.

Jbwest123

Spot on!!!!

Jmille90

Hey John, Follow the money. Who, after all of this, is still sitting pretty and who is without a house, job, health insurance, retirement, etc. Those are the ones who gamed the system and ripped off the rest of us to the tune of billions if not trillions.

JohnM

MiddleMolly -- you're right. Protesting 3,000 miles away from Wall Street will not only reform how competing corporate interests and Washington hyper-partisanship currently stymies any meaningful, job-creating fiscal policy from being enacted (the actual reason why we're in a jobless recovery)... it will also get these people hired so they're no longer struggling. Some wealthy employer is going to find them at the protest, take them aside, and say "hey, nevermind the fact that you're not brushing up your skills in this competitive environment, sign this employment agreement and life will be dandy!" Shame on me for suggesting they pick themselves up by the bootstraps to get hired indeed. ------------------------Clvngodess -- no, I totally know where you're coming from. I was only making $60k, but then this Wells Fargo guy said that was enough to afford a mortgage of $3M. And I said "getouttahere Wells Fargo guy! The math on that doesn't work, even on a balloon ARM with an assumed refi!" But then he took out this slick marketing piece. This brochure was dazzling, let me tell you... glossy print and all. And at that point, I decided to say "f--- what basic math says! This slick marketing has convinced me otherwise."

So then when my hypothetical (for the purposes of this comment) self defaulted on that loan and my house was foreclosed on, along with the hundreds of thousands of others who were foreclosed on for taking on loans they couldn't afford (sending housing prices into a freefall, and rendering the mortgage-backed securities they were linked to worthless, which then made the major banks who owned these MBSs insolvent)... well, it's not our fault because those banksters, man, they had some slick marketing.

And that is the heart of my point. Perhaps we're all in this mess because, collectively, there's a staggering dearth of personal responsibility. But go ahead, point the finger -- that's easier.

Middle Molly

It's unfortunate that you know so little about people who are hurting out there. It's unfortunate that you have so little compassion. I applaud these 70 people and my heart is with them. Your assumptions about people who are struggling, frustrated, and just plain angry are completely wrong. Shame on you.