Tea Party petitioners sued for racketeering

Busted!
　
Kenton County, Kentucky, may be the site of the first significant legal action against the Tea Party. (It's also where I famously heckled a Tea Party event.) After teagaggers were caught forging signatures in a ballot drive, the county attorney is now SUING the petition firm under the RICO laws!
　
The federal racketeering suit says AZ Petition Partners and its independent contractors trafficked in forged documents, and the county is seeking severe penalties. The county has already been forced to spend over $14,000 in legal fees because of the forgeries (some of which were of names copied from the phone book).
　
The suit also charges the petitioners with mail fraud, for contractors mailed the petitions. Criminal prosecutions are also in the works.
　
Silly teagaggers.

Police bust Occupiers; teabaggers play victim

If you needed any more evidence of the degree of delusion harbored by the Tea Party thugs, you can now rest easy.
　
In Richmond, Virginia, city and state police broke up the Occupy Richmond rally. Yet the Richmond Tea Party claims the Occupy movement has received better treatment than them, and they're suing the city for $10,000.
　
Weird. I can't find ANY stories about cops dispersing a Tea Party event - in Richmond or anywhere. There have been hundreds of arrests of Occupy activists nationwide, but I don't know of ANY Tea Party busts, even though teabaggers have assaulted reporters and others and committed various other violations of the law. That's prima facie proof right there that the teagaggers have been receiving preferential treatment.
　
But Occupy Richmond refuses to be defeated. As in Cincinnati, they pop right back up after each bust. Good for them!

Lawn Chair Quarterback: "I Am The 47%"

We ain't crazy and we ain't lazy. We're the 47%!
　
Much noise has been generated by the fascist right lately about how only 53% of Americans pay federal income taxes. What they don't tell you - but which everybody knows - is that it's the richest 53%. The other 47% doesn't have to pay it because they don't make enough money.
　
Simple as that. If the teagaggin' right wants us in the poorest 47% to pay it, they should fix the economy so we earn enough money to have to pay it. I don't know how I can possibly make it any more succinct than that.
　
Our lawmakers have more than enough consent from the governed for such a progressive tax system. Per person, who do you think has more representation in Congress - the poor or the rich? If "we, the people" didn't support a progressive income tax, we wouldn't have what we have now. If we have a progressive income tax despite the poor having too little representation, then certainly we'd have it if representation was fairer. Taxation with representation means the rich pay more because the poor are greater in number.
　
I have nothing to be ashamed of for trying to pull myself up from nothing. I went in for a job interview this week, so you can't possibly argue that I haven't tried.
　
Our latest 'LCQ' expresses pride in being part of the poorest 47%...
　

Another Occupy rally bombed

As of now, at least 2 Occupy protests have been the target of major violence - not counting police riots like the one in Oakland that fractured a Marine's skull and put him in critical condition.
　
On Sunday, a rally in Portland, Maine, was hit by a bomb made from a Gatorade bottle. Now the Occupy Salem protest at Wilson Park in Salem, Oregon, has been bombed too. This occurred back on Tuesday, but The Media's failure to cover it means that folks outside Oregon are only now hearing about it.
　
In the Oregon incident, a bomb was thrown from a car into the park. If the bomb hadn't been built by utter idiots, it could have easily blown out a wall.
　
Meanwhile, there have been hundreds of arrests nationwide against Occupy protesters, but not a single arrest of anyone involved in the bombings. Yet the Tea Party whiners complain that the Occupy movement is receiving preferential treatment.
　
In fact, after the bomb was thrown in Oregon, police who investigated the bomb said no evidence of a bomb was found. Seriously, they said that.
　
Also, in nearby Portland, Oregon, an Occupy activist has been receiving death threats.

Bomb attack against Occupy protest

Hey, remember when you laughed at all the times I talked about how violent the lunatic right is?

But folks in Portland, Maine, are realizing it's no joke.

An Occupy Maine encampment was attacked yesterday by a bomb. The device consisted of a chemical mixture in a Gatorade bottle. It exploded under a table, lifting the table about a foot off the ground. Miraculously, no serious injuries were reported.

Witnesses believe the bomb was thrown from a silver car whose occupants kept shouting right-wing slogans.

This attack is an open-and-shut case of terrorism, but it's received almost no media coverage.

(Source: http://www.pressherald.com/news/Chemical-bomb-tossed-into-Occupy-Maine-encampment.html)

Lawn Chair Quarterback: "Wow! A New Computer!"

You may remember the commercial where a kid declares, "Wow! A Tony the Tiger art pen!" But when you watch our latest 'LCQ', you're gonna say, "Wow! A new computer!"

I just buyed a new computer. Apparently, viruses had begun digesting the old one I got 5 years ago, so that one was nearing the end of its useful life. I tried everything - and I mean everything - to clear it of viruses, but ultimately, it became too slow to use for normal duty.

Our latest 'LCQ' talks about our brand new machine...

Enquirer again tries manipulating public opinion

I think most folks are getting a little tired of The Media telling them what to think - especially the Cincinnati Enquirer, one of the most right-wing and biased major newspapers in America.

Now they've introduced a poll asking whether The Media has given too much coverage to Occupy Cincinnati. You read that right. They actually want people to think Occupy Cincinnati has gotten too much coverage!

This is the same Enquirer that indulged the fascist Tea Party every time it came to town. In comparison, Occupy Cincinnati has received only minimal coverage.

But a one-paper town is a one-paper town, so they can get away with stage-managing public opinion like this.

23 arrested for participating in Occupy Cincinnati

We might not like confrontation, but it gets folks' attention. It angries up the bile. Gets the wheels turning.

If Brossart had never done anything worse than fining me $100, do you think I'd have ever started The Last Word? We do what we do as a response to confrontation. Serial harassers at school were about nothing but confrontation since day one. Confrontation has also been the modus operandi of the Republican Right in modern times. Just after midnight this morning, I witnessed yet more confrontation - courtesy of right-wing public officials who can't tolerate free speech.

After being sidelined by illness (possibly gallstones), I returned to Occupy Cincinnati at Piatt Park last night when city officials threatened to launch mass arrests of protesters just for the "crime" of protesting. For the past 2 weeks, police had been issuing citations, but the only arrest before last night was of a man who refused to sign one.

I did set foot in the forbidden zone of Piatt Park after hours last night, but that was quite a while before cops arrived. Most of us gathered across the street instead. City police appeared around midnight, followed by the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department with their mass arrest bus. (They unleashed a bus like this during the protest against the economic summit back in 2000.) They promptly arrested 23 people for daring to participate in Occupy Cincinnati.

The arrests came following pressure by right-wing City Council members Leslie Ghiz, Wayne Lippert, and Amy Murray. This trio would like living in Red China better, obviously. Over there, they don't have that pesky First Amendment thing to deal with.

I am calling for Ghiz, Lippert, and Murray to be impeached immediately. In America, you obey the Constitution. End of story.

The 23 demonstrators were charged with trespassing - even though Piatt Park is a public space. (Shades of the NKU incident?)

But there were folks out all night protesting. We bipped over to the Hamilton County Justice Center with our signs, and it went from there. And Occupy Cincinnati is continuing nonstop! Because that's what we do, you see. We will stand firm until we accomplish our goal of limiting corporate power and expanding people power.

Lawn Chair Quarterback: "The Kernel's Way"

Somebody suggested I do a tribute to Steve Jobs for my next 'LCQ'. So this 'LCQ' talks about how his beautiful computers liked to tout their own hardiness even after enduring a marathon abuse session from middle school kids...

Snack Break

+ Right-wing Sen. Scott "Records" Brown of Massachusetts has now been caught plagiarizing Elizabeth Dole's website. Oops. Is Record Man gonna start talking about "Smash Mouth politics" next?

+ The War on Drugs continues to be completely discredited: Former NYPD Detective Stephen Anderson now admits that the NYPD fabricated drug charges against innocent people and ruined their lives just to meet arrest quotas. Anderson was testifying in court after being nabbed for planting cocaine on 4 men.

+ In other drug warrior news, Florida's new program of requiring welfare recipients to take a drug test has also turned out to be a fraud. At first, only 2% had failed the test. But now that several thousand people have been tested, less than 0.5% have failed. That's less than 1 in 200. That's right, folks: 1 in 200. I GUARANTEE you more than 0.5% of Wall Street is abusing drugs, yet nobody makes them take a drug test.

Building tries evicting residents over video

When you think things can't get any weirder, they always do...

A corporation that owns an apartment complex in Canton, Mississippi, is trying to evict dozens of residents because they filmed a rap video out in front of the building.

Needless to say, the building owner has no legal leg to stand on. I shouldn't even have to tell you this. Although the complex is private property, the court system cannot be a party to squelching free expression by allowing the residents to be evicted. The bounds of what the law allows are reasonably clear here.

Still - although Occupy Wall Street is making inroads - I can't guarantee justice will prevail in this case. The corporate rootkit that aggravates economic and social injustice is entrenched. The American people are broke largely because we allow too many bailouts and tax breaks for Big Business.

Day 3 of Occupy Cincinnati

Since Occupy Cincinnati shows no signs of letting up anytime soon, allow me to bring the latest info to those of you who are still unfamiliar with what we stand for...

The Cincinnati protest is now on day 3 of continuous activity, though now it's gravitated to Piatt Park downtown. Over 20 participants have now been given misdemeanor citations for being in a city park after hours.

This underscores another important point: Why can't the public use a space (regardless of what time of day it is) that they paid for with their tax dollars? We've all seen signs at public parks warning about how the park closes at a certain time each night, but do you know why these rules were established? They were established as a battering ram to use against people who the authorities simply didn't like. In other words, these ordinances were written just to be selectively enforced.

The citations given to Occupy Cincinnati peeps carry a fine of $105 each. After issuing the tickets, police reportedly simply left and wished the protesters well. But on the other hand, do you honestly think the Tea Party would be ticketed at all for being in a public place after hours?

It's also important to note that the Occupy protests aren't limited to just big cities. Now they're cropping up in tiny towns like Hartford, Kentucky; Floyd, Virginia; and Winston, Missouri. This list reads almost like Casey Kasem listing the affiliates of his show.

Occupy Cincinnati wins major battle

Cincinnati saw its first protest based on Occupy Wall Street yesterday, and it was an amazing sight!

I got back from my Big Bend trip last night, and I was able to get down to the Occupy Cincinnati protest on Fountain Square at about 10 PM. There were still about 500 people there, and I heard there were about 4,000 earlier in the day - likely dwarfing any local Tea Party event.

All you've heard lately about Fountain Square is that 3CDC owns the place, so get with the program. In reality, however, Fountain Square is publicly owned. It wasn't until the 2000s that 3CDC was created to mismanage it. Nonetheless, authorities warned beforehand that if any Occupy Cincinnati participants remained on the Square after 1 AM today, they WILL be arrested.

Unfortunately, I became deathly ill at about 1 AM and had to go to Christ Hospital. In all likelihood, I was suffering from gallstones, according to the nurse at the hosp. But here's the best part of the story: About 10 or 20 people remained on Fountain Square all night in defiance of the 3CDC-inspired Allowed Cloud. Although police repeatedly lectured them in an attempt to convince them to leave, not a single arrest was made.

Long story short: Occupy Cincinnati wins. It's dawned on city leaders and local corporate powers that the world is watching, and they weren't about to lay themselves wide open for any more criticism. There reportedly was some whining from a nearby corporation that feared the rally was scaring its privileged clientele, but nothing became of it.

Locally, the Establishment is starting to learn we mean business. For 30 years, Americans have stood idly by while being economically ruined and watching basic civil liberties be mortgaged at a daily clip. But no more. We're fighting back at long last, and it's working. If the actions of the past couple weeks can be sustained, I think America for the foreseeable future will be very, very different from that of the awful decades of decay we experienced.

As Gandhi once said: "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."

Meanwhile, the Occupy protests have spread to over 1,100 cities.