The group known as Anonymous has selected one of the longest standing continuous Occupations in the US for a gathering the week before the G8 in Chicago this Spring.
Which Occupy is this you ask? You’ll never guess… Cleveland, Ohio.
That’s right, Cleveland, home of the Browns, the Rock Hall of Fame, and weather bad enough to rival Buffalo, is also the home of one of the longest continuously Occupied Occupy encampments in the United States.
Ohio’s newest claim to fame appears in this video by the group “Anonymous” that surfaced on Social Media late Friday evening with the cryptic lettering “A28-M5CLE“.
A28-M5CLE seems to refer to the dates of an Occupy Cleveland Street Festivalstarting April 28th. I’m not sure if Occupy Cleveland planned on hosting Anonymous Party Crashers, but for a town that boasts of it’s own “Factory of Sadness”, I can definitely see an Anonymous/Occupy Street Festival being just the ticket to lift Ohio’s spirits. And in Rock and Roll style if history is any indication.
And the political Junkie in me is well aware of the implications for the Occupy movement.
Ohio is shaping up to be the swing state to end all swing states this year, crawling with candidates and the media trail that accompanies them. If you ask me Cleveland has an opportunity to put on one heck of a Festival (Wonder if they’ll have a burning man?) and really create an amazing, inspirational, non-violent, community Festival showcasing Occupy Cleveland.
I certainly hope so, for Ohio’s sake. But I will at least say this, The Anonymous video is certainly a better “tourism promotion” than this Cleveland gem ;D
What do you think? Will it be a beautiful festival of love and community? Will you stop by?
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Urgent Call for Help to Prevent Eviction of Cancer Sufferer in Canal Fulton; Meeting Recaps; Call for Articles; Upcoming Events and more in the Digest…
“Being good is commendable, but only when it is combined with doing good is it useful.” ~ Author Unknown
We have a great musical line up for the Occupy Cleveland Benefit Concert @ the Beachland Ballroom on Jan.14th Mark your calendars!
Everything from folk with Charlie Mosbrook , Kyle DeForrest, Evis & Stephen & Jonathan Blackshire , Comedic stylin’s with Robin, Nice Mic .. and ZACHY IRAQI to Psychedelic San Francisco with Grateful Dead Tribute with Dead Ahead to goth rock with Morticia’s Chair to foot stompin’ americanna with Katty Whomp-us to heavy metal prog rockers Rick Ray Band …guaranteed good time for all! Come meet & support the occupiers and put on your dancing’ shoes!; Ray Benich of Damnation of Adam Blessing is also joining in! $7 adv $10 day of show at the door
You won’t believe it, ANOTHER earthquake in Northern Ohio. Some reports say a loud BOOM was heard echoing in the valley, and dishes rattled in the cupboards of shaking houses. This is outrageous! “Why?” you ask? Because we should all realize … Continue reading →
I’ve spent the last hour watching my dog push his bowl across the floor in an attempt to scrape and lick every last particle of dog chow out of it. He’s now staring at it determinedly and plunking one paw down on the inside rim (He is an 8 pound Maltese terror btw) thus flipping the empty plastic bowl off the floor and directly into his noggin. (too adorable!)
Next he huffs and gives the bowl the stank eye, then proceeds to repeat the entire process 3 or 4 more times! It is absolutely hilarious in a puppy shodenfrueden kind of way….
You’re probably thinking “What does this have to do with Occupy or the New Year?”.
Truthfully nothing, it’s just that I have been sitting at my computer desk gazing down admiringly and guffawing at my little puppy, not writing a blog post.
This presents a potential problem, I could try to throw together a post on the fly…but that’s not really my style.
BAM- the Universe steps in and provides a solution for the new year!
Form of: Guest Blogger Tim Russo! (please hold your applause until the end)
Tim wrote an inspiring piece about the New Year, the events and politics of years past, Occupy Cleveland, and the crossroads of all these. After reading it I knew I wanted to share it, and Tim was kind enough to let me “borrow” it
Occupy The Fucking New Year Already (you know who you are)
I used to try on New Year’s Eve. You know, spend a lot of money, dress up in finery, do the countdown in a room full of strangers also in finery. I could probably pinpoint when that stopped being fun if I tried, but that’d be too depressing. Maybe tonite I’ll try again, because 2011 doesn’t feel wasted for once.
Spend a lifetime professionally in Democratic Party politics, and you run into a lot of leftier than thou types. Being a campaign guy, a strategist technician paid to win elections, I would chastise their lack of pragmatism, sometimes quietly, sometimes loudly, always wore it as a badge of honor. Yeah, you might be right about the world, I’d say, but it doesn’t help win this seat, or that one. Leftier than thou exits in a huff…stage left, of course.
“There’s gonna be a revolution some day,” we’d always decide though, over a keg at a law school party, or the cabernet and camembert on the way up the ladder. Someday, people will wake up. Maybe it’ll happen this year. 1990. 1992. 1994. 1996. 1998.
Or 2000. Oh yeah, Bush v. Gore. That was a high water mark for New Year’s Eve armchair revolutionaries. Then came 2002, 2004, 2006. Dark years all. Then 2008. Was Barack Obama the revolution? Turns out no. Leftier than thou got the injection of the internet’s keyboard courage, and became louder. Then 2010.
2011, and here it is. That impending revolutionary awakening I’ve been hearing the self-appointed guardians of justice pray for since the day I was an intern on Dennis Kucinich’s 1988 congressional primary, the moment that was supposed to prove pragmatism wrong and idealists right. It has arrived. Yearned for over the sushi tray in the Heights, just the right Carole King dirge giving you those goosebumps, lighting that incense, misting up those eyes over Woodstock remembrances, snowflakes falling on your buddha statue in the garden while the organic tea steeps just long enough to be perfect, like you learned how to do that one summer backpacking in Britain or Nepal.
Their bluff has been called by kids in tents, in 3 months the long-awaited revolution went from nonexistence to everywhere, and they sit there slack-jawed, 2012 their last chance to ante up, and the excuses you hear are just comical. Where’s their message? Why are they in a tent? But they aren’t demanding policy? But…but….but….leftier than thou has been flummoxed, stammered to speechlessness. A mighty wind came and blew them right over onto their couch.
Maybe they’ll come around. They know that couch isn’t secure. They didn’t sell out for a billion, they sold out for a whole lot less and they know it – that pointless non-profit gig, that consulting 1099 with no healthcare, the waitressing on your feet all night, the adjunct position at minimum wage, that laughably tiny line item in a grant with their name on it, and it can all vanish tomorrow, all of it, because the purchase of power by the 1% doesn’t care who the fuck you are if you just sit there and take it.
That’s why they’re in a tent you damn fool. And staying in it, from a warm autumn Into the freezing cold of a Cleveland winter, for your future, and your kids’ future, your grandkids, and it ain’t gonna get any more revolutionary in this country if you lived forever waiting for it. Leftier than thou was never any good at strategy or tactics, that’s always been their own proudly waved badge of honor, now suddenly instead of idealists condemning the tacticians & strategists, they’re strategic tacticians condemning….what exactly?
Last week I helped write a proposal for Occupy Cleveland to submit to Occupy Wall Street, and here’s part of the preamble, arrived at through the signature consensus process that governs the movement uniquely unlike any other movement in American history…
“OC’s purpose is to give voice, courage, and hope to the 99% through a sustained effort to expose and attack the illegitimacy and injustice of imposing on our democracy the purchase of political power in favor of the 1%. OC will deploy creative, bold, and dramatic actions to educate and persuade citizens to reject deference to authority and instead challenge and defy authority, encourage citizens to take responsibility for their communities, take to the streets, refuse to submit to or cooperate with illegitimate action by the 1%, and thereby inspire in the greater populace a new courage to resist…”
Looks like I’m the one who’s leftier than thou, aren’t I, and ya’ll still don’t know bupkus about strategy and tactics. Maybe in 2012, we’ll all meet again, if so, it’ll be on the street, where the change we’ve all claimed we wanted is to be had, and happening, right now. The revolution will be waiting for you whenever you get here, and the welcome will be very warm indeed.
Happy New Year.
A review of Occupy Cleveland’s October, 2011. Music is Sunshine (Adagio in D minor), the score of the 2007 film Sunshine.
Occupy Cleveland is brainstorming ideas for television ads. This is the first video I have seen from the group in the “info-based” category.
I think they are looking for volunteers with a background in advertising, web design, tv or radio, video editors etc. who can volunteer their time and skillset moving this project forward.
I’ll stop babbling now, and let the video speak for itself.
Multiple Occupy Groups in Ohio come together to STOP Evictions and Foreclosures for the Holidays
URGENT:
NORTHEAST OHIO COORDINATED OCCUPIES NEED PHONE CALLS BETWEEN 8:30 AND 9:30AM TO HALT THE EVICTION OF CHRISTINE CART. Ashtabula County Sheriff Department civil division, (440) 437-2187. non emergency number (440) 576-0055. property address 7234 State Route 45 Orwell, Ohio 44076. writ of possession to be enforced December 15, 2011 at 10:00 AM.
There is more info about the family, and the joint action by the Ohio Occupy groups availableHERE
On December 1st Fannie Mae announced it would begin a “Foreclosure Holiday” from December 19, 2011, to January 2nd 2012.
STOP foreclosures and evictions!
Like some other big banks, Fannie Mae plans to give a short reprieve to those in danger of being evicted over the holidays. Unfortunately for one Ohio family, scheduled to be evicted Thursday December 15th, that 2 business day gap, means Christine Cart, her Husband, and their two sons, will be forcibly removed ( and likely arrested) from their home by the sheriff, and will have to find some type of shelter or accommodation over the weekend, when temperatures in the Orwell, Ashtabula cty. are likely to be in the 30s. (God help her if it snows)
Did you catch that?
Simply postponing the eviction until Monday would stay the eviction long enough to qualify for the Fannie Mae eviction moratorium. Keeping the family of four in their home, safe, with running water and heat, through the Holidays, and one of the coldest months in Ohio.
I’ve quoted (in full) the press release I was able to find after first reading this Ben Fox Rubin article in the WSJ.
While reading the release from Fannie Mae regarding the eviction holiday, I was particularly moved by the quotes from Terry Edwards, the Executive Vice President of Credit Portfolio Management, Fannie Mae. So I bolded them (emboldened them?) for emphasis and easy reading
December 01, 2011
Fannie Mae Announces Eviction Moratorium for the Holidays
Andrew Wilson
202-752-5168
WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) announced today that it will suspend evictions of foreclosed single family and 2-4 unit properties from December 19th, 2011 through January 2nd, 2012. During this period, legal and administrative proceedings for evictions may continue, but families living in foreclosed properties will be permitted to remain in the home.
“The holidays are meant for families to spend time together, especially if they’ve gone through the stress of financial challenges and foreclosure,” said Terry Edwards, Executive Vice President of Credit Portfolio Management, Fannie Mae. “No family should have to give up their home during this holiday season. Fannie Mae is committed to helping borrowers avoid foreclosure whenever possible and we encourage any homeowner who is having difficulty making their payment to reach out for help.”
Homeowners with Fannie Mae-backed loans can call 1-800-7FANNIE or visitwww.knowyouroptions.com for information and resources on foreclosure prevention options, including contact information for the Fannie Mae Mortgage Help Center or a HUD-approved counseling agency in their area.
Fannie Mae exists to expand affordable housing and bring global capital to local communities in order to serve the U.S. housing market. Fannie Mae has a federal charter and operates in America’s secondary mortgage market to enhance the liquidity of the mortgage market by providing funds to mortgage bankers and other lenders so that they may lend to home buyers. Our job is to help those who house America.
Even if you can’t attend an Occupy rally, or visit the Cart’s home, you can still make a difference and take action. The following quote is from an Occupy Youngstown FB page.
Call the Ashtabula Sheriff’s department express your concern that a crime is about to be committed. The Cart family — Christina, Steve, and their sons — are about to be evicted from their home and neither Fannie Mae nor Aurora Loan Services has produced the note proving their ownership of the home. The writ of possession/eviction is scheduled for Thursday December 15, 2011 at 10:00 am.
Here are the numbers:
Ashtabula County Sheriff Department civil division: (440) 437-2187
non-emergency number: (440) 576-0055
Address of the Cart’s home:
7234 State Route 45
Orwell, Ohio 44076
OR
ANOTHER WAY TO HELP, compose a letter asking Judge Ronald Vettel to suspend any eviction action until Monday, which will put it within the holiday eviction moratorium buying us time until after the new year. Please FAX your letter to the contact info below. If you don’t have a fax machine, you can use the free web to fax service, http://faxzero.com/. Also, email your letter to his bailiff (see below). Remember, be respectful but firm.
Fax your letter to 440-576-3677:
Judge Ronald Vettel
Ashtabula County Court of Common Pleas
25 West Jefferson Street
Jefferson, OH 44047
Also send an email to:
Bailiff Sharon Huey
sshuey@ashtabulacounty.us
They’ve reached out to the Judge, Fannie Mae, Occupy Cleveland and Youngstown….Now they are reaching out to the people….Please help by taking a minute to call, fax, or email!
