Counter-Friction

“Civil disobedience will not be tolerated.” —Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.

“Oh, dude. I don’t think this works how you think this works.” —@thegirlone

“All machines have their friction; and possibly this does enough good to counter-balance the evil. At any rate, it is a great evil to make a stir about it. But when the friction comes to have its machine, and oppression and robbery are organized, I say, let us not have such a machine any longer…If the injustice is part of the necessary friction of the machine of government, let it go, let it go: perchance it will wear smooth–certainly the machine will wear out. If the injustice has a spring, or a pulley, or a rope, or a crank, exclusively for itself, then perhaps you may consider whether the remedy will not be worse than the evil; but if it is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then I say, break the law. Let your life be a counter-friction to stop the machine. ” —Henry David Thoreau

Occupation continues:

• Boston Police Throw American Flag To Ground, Arrest Veterans, Trash Property To Protect ‘Green Space’ From 99%
• A witness account and analysis of the arrests at #occupyboston last night.
• OccupyDC plans to shut down Senate building
• Greg Mitchell’s OccupyUSA liveblog
• The occupiers are staying
• The First Weekend of Occupy Austin
• Emerson on Occupy Wall StreetInvitation and Statement from the Oakland General Assembly
• What the Police Raid on Occupy Boston Tells Us
• Occupy Boston: The Glory And Imperfection Of Democracy
• Periods of Discouragement
• The Fight for “Real Democracy” at the Heart of Occupy Wall Street.
• Bartleby’s Occupation of Wall Street
• Bill McKibben At Occupy Wall Street: ‘Wall Street Has Been Occupying The Atmosphere’
• Wonks, hacks, and revolutionaries.
• INTERNET, MAYBE IT IS TIME FOR YOU AND ME TO HAVE A TALK ABOUT PROCEDURAL DUE PROCESS.
• Exilic spaces.
• Let it breathe.
• Media coverage of Occupy Wall Street is predictably lazy, but likely to improve and The 3 mistakes media are making in covering Occupy Wall Street protests
• How the Top One Percent Ripped Off the Bottom 99 Percent
• The Harvard Crimson was concerned that its reputation for douchey elitism was in jeopardy, so they decided to shore it up with this editorial. via Daryl Li, to whom I am indebted for the locution and application of “douchey elitism.”
• You are the 98%, from “The Last Psychologist,” who is smart but always more cynical than you are, trapped, as you are, in your illusions.

Oakland’s tent city waking up this morning:

coffee and food