Wednesday, October 26, 2011

The angry music hour presents...

One of my favorite songs... great video too
DEAD PREZ : RADIO FREQ

Hard Knock Radio 10/26/11

If you have not heard of Hard Knock Radio, well, now you have. HKR is a daily news show out of Berkeley, CA. At this link, you can listen to an archived stream of the show that aired today, 10/26/11. It contains on the street interviews with citizens as they are being attacked by the state. It is a must listen. This is the future, the near future, for each and everyone of us.
So is this:







And this:


We are all Scott Olsen

Video of attempted murder of Scott Olsen

Below is video of the Oakland, CA., Terrorist Force throwing a concussion grenade into a group of protesters attepting to assist Iraq War veteran Scott Olsen after he was shot in the head with a "non-lethal" projectile. Scott Olsen is now in critical condition.

The angry music hour presents...

Dedicated to the fascist, violent Mayor of Oakland, attempted murderer Jean Quan.
Be safe, Oakland...
Fuck You!
D.O.A.


POLICE RIOT IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

What is happening, right now, in Oakland, is a POLICE RIOT. The POLICE have attacked innocent citizens without provocation. In a "liberal" city, with a "liberal" mayor, In a state governed by ex Linda Ronstadt boy toy Jerry Brown, The POLICE are rioting with the support and blessing of the "liberal" cognoscenti. On orders from them. While just a few short miles to the west, Pres. Obama wines and dines the 1% at $7500.00 a plate, the goon squads of the "liberal" elite shoot rubber bullets, concussion grenades, bean bags and tear gas at the rest of us.
Ask yourself this question:  Why didn't the police every use any of these violent tactics against Teabaggers who showed up with guns to protest Barack Obama? Remember, teabaggers SHOWED UP WITH GUNS. They FLAUNTED their guns. They mumbled constantly in a threatening tones about the 2nd amendment, while their CANDIDATES ominously spoke of "2ND AMENDMENT SOLUTIONS"
No, they only do this when WE peacefully hold sit ins.  Not when conservatives show up with guns.  It's almost as if the police in all of these various cities are hoping to provoke the demonstrators into responding in kind.  (SNARK)
 I'm actually amazed they haven't.
 I would have no problem if they did.
Of course, we won't, because WE always take the high road. Through out history, violence has always BEGUN WITH THE STATE. People have never risen up in violence WITHOUT PROVOCATION. Ever. The state has always pushed the people to respond to ESCALATING BRUTALITY.
Now, ask yourself this: How long till the next "Kent State"? How long till they are "cutting us down"? Hmmm? Months? Weeks? Hours?
What is happening in the various Occupy camps across the world cannot and will not be tolerated by the elite. When people begin discussing what holds them back, en mass, together, The status quo will always lose. THEY KNOW THIS. Direct Democracy is an anathema to their system. It cannot be TOLERATED. That is why the OAKLAND POLICE FORCE is rioting like the Contras on crack tonight. That is why the people of Oakland are being given the same treatment that the CIA offered to the people of Nicaragua and El Salvador. Keep up the struggle, heroes of Oakland. You are not alone.
In Solidarity
The Match

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Dirty Fucking Hippies are Still Right...

One of the right's most juvenile criticisms of the OWS movement is that it's just a re-hash of the old hippy movement. Of course, that is not the case, and only the most intellectually vapid would parrot this drivel. But... what if that were the sum total of OWS? What if OWS consisted of nothing but old, grey haired hippies, once again taking to the streets to promote their agenda? Why would that be a problem? After all,
The Dirty Fucking Hippies Were Right!!

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Today at Occupy Seattle...

Today, at Occupy Seattle, I watched as a man gave an hour long crash course in Credit Default Swaps, Derivatives, And other toxic economic scams and how they led to the collapse of the economy. I counted 76 people taking this impromptu course in economics. Think about that for a second - about 80 Americans, standing on a street corner discussing economics instead of sitting at home watching TV. That is a monumental shift. That is change you can believe in.

Friday, October 21, 2011

The angry music hour presents...

I've seen alot of video lately of cops attacking protesters - NYC, Athens, Chicago, Melbourne... and this song always comes to mind. Somewhat Ironically, this song is written about the notoriously violent Los Angeles cops, (I think) which is really the one city where occupiers have been welcomed in the USA.
Anyway, here's
Police Truck
The Dead Kennedys

BofA tries to fuck us - again

From crooksandliars, BofA is trying to dump $74 trillion in derivatives into FDIC insured accounts. Think about that for a second... $74,000,000,000,000.00 in fraud, dumped into FDIC accounts so that the corporate controlled government will "insure" the loss.


Bank of America Corp. (BAC), hit by a credit downgrade last month, has moved derivatives from its Merrill Lynch unit to a subsidiary flush with insured deposits, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation…
Bank of America’s holding company — the parent of both the retail bank and the Merrill Lynch securities unit — held almost $75 trillion of derivatives at the end of June, according to data compiled by the OCC. About $53 trillion, or 71 percent, were within Bank of America NA, according to the data, which represent the notional values of the trades.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

The 99% Declaration

This is a call for a new constitutional assembly to take place July 4, 2012 in Philadelphia. Read it. Share it. This is what is needed to address the myriad of problems confronting us - mass engagement from OUTSIDE the system. The system is truly and utterly broken. It must be changed from without or it will not change.

The most wonderful time of the year...

Riot Time!!

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Now that is what I call progress

Yesterday, in Seattle, a reporter from The Stranger witnessed this exchange:

A cop on a bicycle, talking sincerely with a middle-aged lady in a purple fleece jacket about the crowd at Westlake: "No, it's really interesting, it's really interesting—this could be the genesis of this whole new thing, this society, that they're talking about."

Good morning!

Yesterday's global action was a huge success. From Seattle to Madrid, Tokyo to Times Square, Pepople rose up and demanded economic justice. I feel it was truly an historic day, the beginning of a true Internationale.
Here's a message to all the hater's out there, from London's Lowkey.



In Solidarity,
The Match

Thursday, October 13, 2011

The angry music hour presents...

Billy Bragg 
All You Fascists Are Going to Lose

The first occupy wall street protester...

Was probably Jesus, throwing the moneychangers out of the temple. Yet modern day fundamentalists worship the money changers, and deride the people trying to remove them from the temple... go figure.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

If I weren't sick...

This is the message I would take to today's GA at occupy Seattle:

Just. Move.To. City. Hall.
Right now, you are allowing yourselves to be played by the system. What is important is the occupation itself, not so much the ground upon which the occupation takes place. (Although that is important, too) You are allowing the system to create divisions and rend you apart. You are, in effect, doing their work for them. Move to city hall, put up tents and refuse to move them. Read the Los Angeles city council's three page proclamation of support to every camera. Take over the city council chamber and read it there. Make everyone aware that in LA, the mayor and the council are behind the occupation 100%
Plan an effective action for everyday. Use all those internet skills to find out about every bankers meeting, every politician coming to town, every stockholders meeting, etc. and disrupt it. then reconvene at base camp fo rthe GA and plan what to disrupt/shut down the next day. March to colleges and hold rallies about student debt. Find a family facing foreclosure and keep them from being evicted. Find a family that is being refused insurance coverage that will save a life, and occupy the insurance company offices in support. Plan actions that matter. Stop trying to get arrested just for the fuck of it. Get arrested for something that matters. (Like preventing a family from being evicted.)
Quit bickering about here, or there. Quit destroying yourselves in service of the masters.


Maybe tomorrow I'll be well enough to attend the GA, if they don't self destruct tonight.

The angry music hour presents...

Tonight's selection is from France.
La Rage
Keny Arkana

That was all we need, man, a spark...

occupy seattle cold, tired and edgy

Last night the General Assembly in Seattle voted overwhelmingly (84%) to accept the Mayor's offer of the park adjacent to City Hall, contingent on some demands. Later that night, another assembly was called, and that one voted to stay, albeit by a much less than convincing margin. My feelings are that there is not much lost by sleeping at City Hall and protesting Westlake during the day. There are excellent arguments for staying and pushing the envelope, as well. What is important is that the occupation continue, and that the movement not be fractured by internal debate. One of the lessons learned from previous horizontal, consensus based movements that debate and vote continually is that you get used to winning and you get used to losing. While all politics is personal, one must not take small defeats personally. Continue to agitate for your position when it is relevant to the zeitgeist of the moment, but be willing and able to move on in solidarity when it is time to move forward. More on yesterday's votes HERE and HERE.
In Solidarity,
The Match

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

The angry music hour presents...

Tonight's selection is my favorite Crass song, Do They Owe Us A Living?

The living that is owed to me I'm never going to get,
They've buggered this old world up, up to their necks in dept.
They'd give you a lobotomy for something you ain't done,
They'll make you an epitomy of everything that's wrong.

Do they owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do.
Owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do.
Owe us a living?
OF COURSE THEY FUCKING DO.

A second occupation begins in Seattle

Last night, as a result of more than $1.5 million in federal cuts, SHARE/WHEEL, a local homeless center, was forced to close all 15 of it's indoor center, a loss of 300 indoor sleeping spaces. They have begun an occupation around the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation at 5th and Mercer. Story in The Stranger.

The tipping point

I am fascinated by Anonymous, and the possibilities they represent. They are masters of agit-prop.

Democracy and capitalism don't mix, part deux:

On the heels of this mornings rant, this story from counterpunch.org:

If you’re a Wall Street behemoth, there are endless opportunities to privatize profits and socialize losses beyond collecting trillions of dollars in bailouts from taxpayers. One of the ingenious methods that has remained below the public’s radar was started by the Rudy Giuliani administration in New York City in 1998. It’s called the Paid Detail Unit and it allows the New York Stock Exchange and Wall Street corporations, including those repeatedly charged with crimes, to order up a flank of New York’s finest with the ease of dialing the deli for a pastrami on rye.


The corporations pay an average of $37 an hour (no medical, no pension benefit, no overtime pay) for a member of the NYPD, with gun, handcuffs and the ability to arrest. The officer is indemnified by the taxpayer, not the corporation.

New York City gets a 10 percent administrative fee on top of the $37 per hour paid to the police. The City’s 2011 budget called for $1,184,000 in Paid Detail fees, meaning private corporations were paying wages of $11.8 million to police participating in the Paid Detail Unit. The program has more than doubled in revenue to the city since 2002.
Like I said, democracy and capitalism don't mix. Capitalism and fascism, on the other hand...

Democray and capitalism don't mix

Last night in Seattle, police began using psy-ops tactics against occupiers In Westlake Center, making regular announcements to clear the park or face arrest, then not following through. These orders were apparently issued by a Lt. Nollette, without approval of the Mayor's office, or knowledge of the Mayor's office. The purpose, of course, was to disrupt the sleep of occupiers by forcing them to repeatedly link arms in defense.
In Boston, Police attacked an Occupyboston site, arresting and beating dozens of occupiers. In Des Moines, Iowa, cops arrested 40.
All of this illustrates the basic truth of a speech given by Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek to Occupy Wall Street on Sunday, 10/9/11. In the speech, he commented on the illusion that capitalism and democracy are somehow intertwined: "If communism means the system which collapsed in 1990, remember that today those communists are the most efficient ruthless capitalists. In China today we have capitalism which is even more dynamic than your American capitalism but doesn’t need democracy."
Modern day capitalism is anti-democratic. It is the a quasi-hybrid  of feudalism and fascism. If the evidence for this is not yet clear to you, it will be soon enough.
In Solidarity,
The Match

Monday, October 10, 2011

The angry music hour presents...

Of course, no bottle, fuel, rag day would be complete without an angry music entry.
Dead Prez
Hip Hop


What demands? We don't need no stinkin' demands...

Perhaps the most pervasive criticism of the Occupy Everything Movement is that there is no singular message or demand. This is, of course, complete and utter horse poop. The message is pretty goddamn clear to anyone willing to open their fucking ears - people are sick and fucking tired of the financial elite stealing everything, be it the wealth of nations, the tools of democracy or elections. People are finally giving voice to the frustrations they feel, and stating openly and publicly that the system is broken beyond repair. They are beginning to understand the enforced powerlessness that working within the system creates. And they have a demand - They are demanding redress of their grievances. They are demanding the future promised to them. They are demanding a future for the next generation. They are demanding power, real political power.
Now, the entrenched politicos don't see it that way, of course. They are in an absolute tizzy over the outrageousness of it all. Some of them simply don't get it at all - they are so invested in the system that anything that comes from without is simply indecipherable to them. Some, like ultra-rightist Rep. King of New York do get it, and it scares the shit out of them. He recently said, “It’s really important for us not to give any legitimacy to these people in the streets. I remember what happened in the 1960s when the left-wing took to the streets and somehow the media glorified them and it ended up shaping policy. We can’t allow that to happen.”
One of the best analysis I have read comes from this blog, adriennemareebrown.net, specifically this post :
and in terms of the demands, it seems the central demand is to build and expand a conversation that is long overdue in this country, a conversation which doesn’t have simple cut and dry demands. we are realizing that we must become the systems we need – no government, political party or corporation is going to care for us, so we have to remember how to care for each other.

and that will take time, and commitment, a willingness to step outside of the comfort of the current and lean into the unknown, together. to listen to each other across all real and perceived divides...
the whole thing seems so utterly not produced, not micromanaged, and not acting from a place of crisis which excuses top down elitist decision making processes – not rushing itself...it feels spacious. it feels like something you can do, no matter where you are, by authentically applying yourself to the changes you wish to see.
And that, I think is a brilliant summation of the whole kit-n-kaboodle. The detractors are really crying because we are not doing 'it' the way 'it' has been done before. We are blazing a new path, and leaving the old forces, left and right, behind.
And nobody likes being left behind, so they attack the vanguard. Their mewling, however, is both impotent and immaterial. WE have forged ahead with out them, and that scares the fuck out of them. As well it should.
In Solidarity,
The Match

It's been a long, long time...

I started this blog a while back out of frustration. Frustration with the world, with the political paradigm, with the entrenched left, with my own inaction, with the lack of a cohesive voice that spoke for me. It was, and is, a cry for attention. Not for myself, but for all the like minded, the disaffected, disenfranchised and the dissed. After a bit, I fell off. I never really found the voice I was seeking, and never quite found the focus point that would make it all more than just me howling at the moon.

Then the Occupation started.

So, I'm going to try to get this little project up and running again. The focus will be the occupation movement sweeping the globe. This will be a holding cell for subversive ideas, relevant links, stories and analysis of the struggle now being engaged in the streets of America. I will twitter updates at iamthematch. I hope it is helpful to some.

OCCUPY. RESIST. PRODUCE.

In solidarity,
The Match