The definition of fascism used by Mussolini is the “merger of state and corporate power“.
Government and the big banks are in a malignant, symbiotic relationship. And our economy now exhibits a merger of state and bank power.
Prominent economist Robert Kuttner said in 2009:
What we have is something perilously close to a dictatorship of the Fed and the Treasury, acting in the interests of Wall Street.
The government and banks use anti-terror laws to stifle dissent.
As Naomi Wolf reports, they joined efforts to violently crush the occupy protests:
The violent crackdown on Occupy [which was protesting the SAME THING as the Tea Party ... and the Boston Tea Party] last fall … was not just coordinated at the level of the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, and local police. The crackdown, which involved, as you may recall, violent arrests, group disruption, canister missiles to the skulls of protesters, people held in handcuffs so tight they were injured, people held in bondage till they were forced to wet or soil themselves –was coordinated with the big banks themselves.
[A newly-released document] shows a terrifying network of coordinated DHS, FBI, police, regional fusion center, and private-sector activity so completely merged into one another that the monstrous whole is, in fact, one entity: in some cases, bearing a single name, the Domestic Security Alliance Council. And it reveals this merged entity to have one centrally planned, locally executed mission. The documents, in short, show the cops and DHS working for and with banks to target, arrest, and politically disable peaceful American citizens. ….
Plans to crush Occupy events, planned for a month down the road, were made by the FBI – and offered to the representatives of the same organizations that the protests would target ….
The FBI – though it acknowledges Occupy movement as being, in fact, a peaceful organization – nonetheless designated OWS repeatedly as a “terrorist threat”….
[The executive Director of The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund - the group which obtained the document] points out the close partnering of banks, the New York Stock Exchange and at least one local Federal Reserve with the FBI and DHS, and calls it “police-statism”:
“This production [of documents], which we believe is just the tip of the iceberg, is a window into the nationwide scope of the FBI’s surveillance, monitoring, and reporting on peaceful protestors organizing with the Occupy movement … These documents also show these federal agencies functioning as a de facto intelligence arm of Wall Street and Corporate America.”
The documents show stunning range: in Denver, Colorado, that branch of the FBI and a “Bank Fraud Working Group” met in November 2011 – during the Occupy protests – to surveil the group. The Federal Reserve of Richmond, Virginia had its own private security surveilling Occupy Tampa and Tampa Veterans for Peace and passing privately-collected information on activists back to the Richmond FBI, which, in turn, categorized OWS activities under its “domestic terrorism” unit. The Anchorage, Alaska “terrorism task force” was watching Occupy Anchorage. The Jackson, Michigan “joint terrorism task force” was issuing a “counterterrorism preparedness alert” about the ill-organized grandmas and college sophomores in Occupy there. Also in Jackson, Michigan, the FBI and the “Bank Security Group” – multiple private banks – met to discuss the reaction to “National Bad Bank Sit-in Day” (the response was violent, as you may recall). The Virginia FBI sent that state’s Occupy members’ details to the Virginia terrorism fusion center. The Memphis FBI tracked OWS under its “joint terrorism task force” aegis, too. And so on, for over 100 pages.
Eric Zuesse notes:
The FBI was organizing against the OWS movement even before it was known to the general public, and they kept on their campaign against it, until it was dead.
***
The FBI’s police-state snooping and tracking of Occupy Wall Street … had begun even before most Americans knew that there was any such movement for the FBI to snoop against.
In other words, the reason why Barack Obama’s “Justice” Department refuses to prosecute even a single one of the mega-bank executives who profited so enormously from having defrauded both mortgagees and the investors in mortgage-backed securities, and who were bailed out by future U.S. taxpayers whose government purchased those remaining “toxic assets” at 100 cents on the dollar, is clear: we live in a police state, and these elite crooks control it. This is not real democracy.
Voters were given a choice in November between a President like that but whose liberal rhetoric is condemnatory of “Wall Street,” versus a professional stripper of corporations, whose rhetoric was overtly supportive of Wall Street. And voters chose the former. But this nonetheless is a police state, not an authentic democracy.
Mussolini would recognize it as fascism.
Fun bonus post:
Yves Smith notes that newly-declassified documents prove that the federal government treated peaceful protesters as terrorists:
The FBI deemed OWS [Occupy Wall Street] to be a terrorist organization and went into “guilty until proven innocent” mode. Many of the FBI descriptions of possible OWS actions or those of affiliated organizations like Adbusters consistently look to have taken the most inflammatory snippets and presented them out of context.
The FBI also seems to believe that there is no such thing as peaceful protest, that any non-violent activity has the potential to turn violent and therefore should be treated as violent.
In fact, according to Department of Defense training manuals, all protest is now considered “low-level terrorism”. And see this, this and this.
And an Army colonel has written a paper advocating military methods for “crushing” a Tea Party type insurgency.
Indeed, doing anything to challenge government or big bank policies can get you labeled a potential terrorist in America today.
Do you get it yet?
Big Brother is here, and he’s … very well armed.
This is ridiculous to compare occupy with Tea Party. Occupy are communists and anarchists who use drugs before their protests. They destroy, rape, steal and dissrupt lives oflaw abiding citizens. Tea Party members are patriots, ordinary, polite people who are just concerned about our country and the future of their children. People who picked up their own trash after their gatherings.
What a propaganda piece! You do it better than Soviet Pravda. This is disgusting!
"Another plane has hit the South Tower!!! WAHHHHHHHHHH...why do they HATE US???"
Despite the divide-and-conquer tricks of both the mainstream Left and the mainstream Right, Occupy and the Tea Party were originally protesting the exact same thing: the malignant, symbiotic relationship between big government and big corporations. Conservative and liberal protesters both railed against the unchecked power of the Federal Reserve.
Indeed, if the partisan shenanigans on both sides hadn’t derailed the protests so quickly, Occupy and the Tea Party would have joined forces in a way which affected real change.
People like you were called "Usful Idiots" by commies. Study your movement and study Bolshevic's Revolution you might see a lot of parallels and how these things are played out on the bigger scale. This is dangerous shit! If you want to be a part of it, search your soul my friend.
Another thing, Occupy was created to show that there is as strong leftist movement AS OPPOSED to the grassroots Tea Party. It is a manufactured opposition. I remember how quickly they were embraced by the administration and all left-wing politicians. How relieved they felt that there is a counter-force to the Tea Party. These thugs would be unleashed to bit up quiet and peacefull citizens when it comes to major protests. They suppose to scare and intimidate Tea Party Members not to protest against the current government. Occupy Wallstreet are simply puppets and future weapon in the hands of current regime. They went a little bit out of control, because you cannot control everyting with drug addicts, but overall they have a role to play. We should follow the money, who is sponsoring them.
This is BS. Occupy are commies and street thugs combined together. Enyone with a little bit of brains can google their crimes during the protests. You try to elevate them by comparing their cause to Tea Party cause. Total nonsense and intellectualy dishonest. You have an agenda and it shows.
"Indeed, if the partisan shenanigans on both sides hadn’t derailed the protests so quickly, Occupy and the Tea Party would have joined forces in a way which affected real change."
That statement alone makes you full of shit. I attended 3 teaparty events in D.C. and the difference between both groups is like apples and oranges. You really know nothing about the teaparty, yet...
why people can't see that is beyond me, I can only assume the brainwashing campaign to divide has been extremely successful.
Slinging feces, fighting class warfare, and chanting marxist slogans counts as an occupation? Who knew?
Come on. The whole starting idea of OWS was a demonstration to turn up on day at wall street and occupy it. It was first and foremost a protest against the TBTF banks, the corruption, the financial political coup, spooky HFT machines, the FED, the debt, the abuse of power, the lack of punishment for obvious fraud, and all the other financialist crap.
You know, the stuff that makes every one's blood boil. Unless of course, you're into that stuff?
It was after that, that it turned into a wider 'movement' that set about to create recurring events, etc. To say it was just this, or just that, is not honest, and to portray the entire movement and all participants as shit-flinging maxists is utterly dishonest propaganda-based bullshit.
the 'jump motherfuckers' signs I have seen OWS protesters carrying in NY is something I definitely support. The big problem is the windows don't open anymore. I don't see such slogans as 'marxist' but I guess some people do.
No doubt about it.
Any hominid, with at least one eye and half a brain, understands that the "Occupy" domestic insurrection was little more than a lame attempt at a marxist revolution conjured up by devout marxist Andrew Stern and the despot. Mostly likely during Andrew Stern's visits to 1600 PA avenue during 2010.
For those who don't remember, devout marxist Andrew Stern was the most frequent visitor to 1600 PA avenue during 2010.
Indeed it was a marxist revolution, thats why they stormed the post office, railway stations and the police stations right after they stormed the banks.
/Sarc
Are there any trolls on here who have actually read some political books or do they all get their talking points from fox news and msnbc?
Here's a lil tip for you Bastiat, most if not all of what you are told by your TV is BS.
Try and remember that before you spout off your diatribes.
If people like you got off your ass and went onto the streets mebbe summat might happen till then divide and conquer works great for TPTB.
Do you read any political books? Maybe some world history class? That's exactly how this shit starts. Lefitsts create a group of "concerned protesters", after some major catastrophy they grow like a snowball, they intimidate the opposition, they think they have a mandate, they take over (often violently). Revolution, do you think it would never happen in here?
Some excellent video of the "Occupy" domestic insurrection attacking private property:
http://youtu.be/86XhCwHhwn8
Attacking private property, attacking the family, and attacking religion, mainly Christianity, seemed to be the hallmarks of the "Occupy" domestic insurrection.
What's wrong with attacking Christianity?
Too many resources are being directed to finding who is to blame rather than moving on with the story.
Write it how you will.
Know that people are looking for a new path.
Where do we go from here?
I'm going to bed early, putting my boots on and going to town.
Sleep in peace my brother.
Know that others drop off well before midnight but still have your back early on.
Peace!
Any opinion that criticises the State or its friends will be considered a veild threat to the State and thus an act of terrorism.
This is their rationale now in place and they can interpret it any way that they like at any time they like.
America, your country is lost, it is too late. You are totally owned and ruled by the Banks and Military Industrial complex.
There is no escape.
There is no law maker, or enough law makers that wil act for the people. For that reason there is no escape. The farm has been sold out by too easily corruptible politicians and regulators and law enforcement, you become the cattle.
You are totally powerless.
In my life experience the art of disengagement has proved a worthy companion to thriving.
You are totally powerless as long as you are connected to the premise of the argument and bow down to a theme you know is wrong but decide to go along to get along as a norm.
You are totally powerfull.
If you choose.
Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, JFK and Bobby would disagree. When your back is turned and traitors have been permitted in the door, you have no hope of surviving when you stand up to injustice.
Banana Republic is the type of country people flee from because of safety issues. Desperation in a country with injustice changes the whole scenario. This is not Kansas anymore.
Who is supporting violence? This video tells the story http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrJjlPH1dqo
This video is all over the place: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrJjlPH1dqo
Typical nonsense from that writer. The Occupiers weren't peaceful. They were communist criminals. Their protests weren't put down violently. They were tools of Obama. Paid for by his supporters.
After Poll Shows That Both National Parties Are Deeply Unpopular With
An Electorate Looking For Something New And Different”
Is it any real surprise that American citizens in the U.S. are now being treated like Palestinians?
Wasn't it inevitable?
You've clearly never been to the middle east.
That said, you're correct in the sense that there are plenty of marxists in our midst - Gyorgy Schwartz, Cass Sunstein, Andrew Stern, Louis Michael Seidman, Fox-Piven, Joseph Schwartz, and Stephen Lerner all come to mind.
Interestingly, all of those marxists have been vocal supporters of the "Occupy" domestic insurrection. Devout marxist Andrew Stern, in particular.
I live in the Promised Land "America" I am not a Palestinian and cannot see how I am being treated as such.
Of the 7 plus billion people on the planet, I’m part of the .046% who use .25% of planetary resources I know there is not a lot of extra planets available for everyone who would like to have my benefit of geospatial positioning.
Recalling being toilet trained by my Irish grandmother to “Make another Englishman” the memory persists but the idea does not.
I live in the promised land, a creature so grateful to those before.
The best I can do for Palestinians is to remember what I’ve been taught and not equate them with the English or other peoples as some sort of piece of crap.
In the promised land “America” there are no promises to be held in enduring reemergence of memory.
There is the resource of influence and character of our persons.
How will you have it?
Inevtability is how you live and what you choose to do with your blessings.
There is nothing peaceful about the marixst "Occupy" domestic insurrection fomented by the likes of Andrew Stern and the despot.
Marine Sergeant Stands Up to NYPD to Protect Wall Street Protesters
Occupy Newark comrade Erik Richardson notes that the "Occupy" domestic insurrection is clearly racist:
http://youtu.be/Op_94IIJ_Aw
Who the hell is "Erik Richardson"? Oh, I get it ...
Undercover
Oakland Police Officer Supports Protesters: “This Movement Could Be
the Turning Point, The Tipping Point … It’s About Time Your Generation
Stood Up For Something. It’s About Time Young People Are In The Streets”
"Occupy" Charlottesville members get violent, attack Tea Party:
http://youtu.be/UPIP-i3sdVk
(Pretty amusing, but typical)
Oakland
Police Strike Army Ranger With Nightsticks On His Back, Ribs, Shoulders
and Hands, Lacerating His Spleen and Causing Internal Bleeding … Then
Deny Him Medical Treatment for 18 Hours
Marxist collectivist decision making at "Occupy" Chapel Hill:
http://youtu.be/p3xWDHFmJzk
(The comedy never ends with useless idiot marxists occupying their own feces, and slinging it, in tarps and tents.)
Protesters Have the Right to Protest … and to Resist Unlawful Arrest
Nobody can give you permission to stand up for yourself.
Once you say they can you are not you.
Marine, Navy, Army and Airforce Vets and Police Vow to Protect Innocent Protesters
"Occupy" DC comrade, and spokesman, shares his drug-induced utopian delusions of a collectivist police state:
http://youtu.be/-E1Io7J7y-k
(At least there's no feces being slung)
Conservatives Support Protests
Conservatives...fiscal or otherwise...DO NOT SUPPORT...rape, murder, theft, extortion, public urination & defecation.
You need to step back from your zeal here a minute George.
Roseanne Barr (an OWS supporter) has a net worth of 80 million dollars, clearly a part of the vile one percenter class...yes?
One supposes Yoko Ono (at 500 million) would qualify as well.
Folks tend to forget that the despot supported the Arab Spring precisely because the Arab Spring provided a model for the "Occupy" domestic insurrection conjured up by the despot and devout marxist Andrew Stern during 2010.
Needless to say, folks also forget that devout marxist and Occupy domestic insurrection organizer Andrew Stern was the most frequent visitor to 1600 PA avenue during 2010.
I wonder if Michael Moore, Russell Simmons and union supporters that showed up at OWS were also included as terrorists?
For sure they are on a list of 'usefull idiots' to be liquidated once of no further use.
Oldbongwater is more Stalinist than Marxist.Just like Daddy.
I voted you up...
No doubt about it. An entire collection of violence, nonsense, and useful idiocy courtesy of the "Occupy" domestic insurrection may be found here:
http://www.savageleft.com
Matthew Simmons would have showed up but he was accidentally sucided.
Only a fool would think that the union goons are peaceful. Richard Trumka has specifically offered his "army" of brownshirts to be of service as the despot's SA equivalent.
This is why I always laugh at people who think peaceful protests will change anything. The will NEVER change anything. TPTB simply beat them to a pulp, or they patiently wait for the weather to get cold and the protesters go home.
The only way anything will change is with a VIOLENT revolution.
Certainly, the despot and devout marxist Andrew Stern have attempted to foment a violent marxist domestic insurrection via the "Occupy" domestic insurrection.