Mayor Doomberg: Occupy Wall Street is trying to destroy jobs
Michael Bloomberg: Occupy Wall Street is trying to destroy jobs
The New York mayor says the protests are 'not productive' given the importance of financial services to the city's economy
Source - The Guardian
Saturday 8 October 2011 10.05 EDT
The New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg, has accused the Occupy Wall Street protesters of trying to destroy jobs in the city.
In his weekly radio show, Bloomberg said the protests against the city's financial services were "not productive" given the importance of the sector to the local economy.
"What they're trying to do is take the jobs away from people working in this city," he said.
"If the jobs they are trying to get rid of in this city - the people that work in finance, which is a big part of our economy - go away, we're not going to have any money to pay our municipal employees or clean our parks or anything else."
But Bloomberg acknowledged he was sympathetic to some of the protesters' complaints.
"There are some people with legitimate complaints," he said.
The protesters are angry about the 2008 Wall Street bailout that they say allowed banks to reap huge profits while average Americans suffered high unemployment and job insecurity.
Wall Street is the backbone of the New York state economy, accounting for 13% of tax contributions.
The protesters have been camped out in Zuccotti Park in Manhattan since last month, staging mainly peaceful demonstrations and marches, although there have been some clashes with the police.
On Wednesday, about 5,000 people marched on New York's financial district, the biggest rally so far. Dozens of people were arrested and police used pepper spray on some protesters.
The demonstrators are also campaigning against other social and economic inqualities in American life, including the gap between rich and poor, as well as what they regard as a corrupt political system.
The protest movement has now spread to other US cities from Tampa to Seattle, leading senior politicians to cautiously express sympathy with some of their concerns.
On Thursday the president, Barack Obama, and the vice-president, Joe Biden, acknowledged the frustration and anger of the protesters.
The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, has also said he understands the anger being felt by the protesters but had to balance that with the economic importance of Wall Street to the state.
Occupy Wall Street protesters ready to push out of Zuccotti Park, march Union Square
Source - NY Daily News
BY KERRY BURKE AND JOSE MARTINEZ
Saturday, October 8th 2011, 4:00 AM
The growing but haphazard horde of Occupy Wall Street protesters is readying to bust out of its downtown digs - and test the NYPD's patience by squatting in a city park.
The masses clamoring for social change plan to march to Union Square at 3 p.m. Saturday - and organizers have been making noise about shifting the protest entirely to nearby Washington Square Park.
"Obviously, we've outgrown our current space; we've met our capacity," said organizer Matt Vrvilo, 20, of Portland, Ore. "It's critical to find more space. . . . We have to migrate some of our people to another location."
The protesters are now in their fourth weekend of roughing it at Zuccotti Park, a privately owned space near Ground Zero that is open to the public around the clock. If they move the bulk of their ranks to a city park, they would face mandatory curfews - and possible clashes with cops trying to enforce those laws.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said cops will accompany any protesters who gather anywhere outside of Zuccotti Park. And the commish was clear: Park laws will be enforced.
"I don't have a crystal ball," Kelly said yesterday when asked if protesters who violate park curfews will get collared.
"People will leave the park at the appropriate time," he said. "That's what I would anticipate happening."
An Occupy Wall Street spokesman challenged the NYPD and city officials with a bit of bravado. "We're nonviolent. We're not going to be intimidated:
"Bring it on," Chris Guerre, 27, of Newark, N.J., blustered. "Our lawyers are waiting like piranhas."
The back-and-forth came as the owner of Zuccotti Park said filth from the squatters has reached "unacceptable levels." Brookfield Office Properties said in a statement the park hasn't been cleaned or inspected since the protests started on Sept. 16.
"Because many of the protesters refuse to cooperate by adhering to the rules, the park has not been cleaned," the statement read. "As a result, sanitary conditions have reached unacceptable levels."
The owners want the park clear so they can bust out the powerwashers to remove the accumulated scum from the politically conscious campers.
The festival-like atmosphere at Zuccotti Park continued yesterday, with a Sarah Palin impersonator, the Naked Cowboy and 200 ultra-orthodox Jews joining the fray. As night fell, some 150 reinforcements marched over the Brooklyn Bridge, bound for the encampment and chanting: "Don't occupy Haiti! Occupy Wall Street!"
Bonus! Fox & Hannity smackdown by Jon Stewart!
The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cParks and Demonstrationwww.thedailyshow.comDaily Show Full EpisodesPolitical Humor & Satire BlogThe Daily Show on Facebook
The New York mayor says the protests are 'not productive' given the importance of financial services to the city's economy
Source - The Guardian
Saturday 8 October 2011 10.05 EDT
The New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg, has accused the Occupy Wall Street protesters of trying to destroy jobs in the city.
In his weekly radio show, Bloomberg said the protests against the city's financial services were "not productive" given the importance of the sector to the local economy.
"What they're trying to do is take the jobs away from people working in this city," he said.
"If the jobs they are trying to get rid of in this city - the people that work in finance, which is a big part of our economy - go away, we're not going to have any money to pay our municipal employees or clean our parks or anything else."
But Bloomberg acknowledged he was sympathetic to some of the protesters' complaints.
"There are some people with legitimate complaints," he said.
The protesters are angry about the 2008 Wall Street bailout that they say allowed banks to reap huge profits while average Americans suffered high unemployment and job insecurity.
Wall Street is the backbone of the New York state economy, accounting for 13% of tax contributions.
The protesters have been camped out in Zuccotti Park in Manhattan since last month, staging mainly peaceful demonstrations and marches, although there have been some clashes with the police.
On Wednesday, about 5,000 people marched on New York's financial district, the biggest rally so far. Dozens of people were arrested and police used pepper spray on some protesters.
The demonstrators are also campaigning against other social and economic inqualities in American life, including the gap between rich and poor, as well as what they regard as a corrupt political system.
The protest movement has now spread to other US cities from Tampa to Seattle, leading senior politicians to cautiously express sympathy with some of their concerns.
On Thursday the president, Barack Obama, and the vice-president, Joe Biden, acknowledged the frustration and anger of the protesters.
The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, has also said he understands the anger being felt by the protesters but had to balance that with the economic importance of Wall Street to the state.
Occupy Wall Street protesters ready to push out of Zuccotti Park, march Union Square
Source - NY Daily News
BY KERRY BURKE AND JOSE MARTINEZ
Saturday, October 8th 2011, 4:00 AM
The growing but haphazard horde of Occupy Wall Street protesters is readying to bust out of its downtown digs - and test the NYPD's patience by squatting in a city park.
The masses clamoring for social change plan to march to Union Square at 3 p.m. Saturday - and organizers have been making noise about shifting the protest entirely to nearby Washington Square Park.
"Obviously, we've outgrown our current space; we've met our capacity," said organizer Matt Vrvilo, 20, of Portland, Ore. "It's critical to find more space. . . . We have to migrate some of our people to another location."
The protesters are now in their fourth weekend of roughing it at Zuccotti Park, a privately owned space near Ground Zero that is open to the public around the clock. If they move the bulk of their ranks to a city park, they would face mandatory curfews - and possible clashes with cops trying to enforce those laws.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said cops will accompany any protesters who gather anywhere outside of Zuccotti Park. And the commish was clear: Park laws will be enforced.
"I don't have a crystal ball," Kelly said yesterday when asked if protesters who violate park curfews will get collared.
"People will leave the park at the appropriate time," he said. "That's what I would anticipate happening."
An Occupy Wall Street spokesman challenged the NYPD and city officials with a bit of bravado. "We're nonviolent. We're not going to be intimidated:
"Bring it on," Chris Guerre, 27, of Newark, N.J., blustered. "Our lawyers are waiting like piranhas."
The back-and-forth came as the owner of Zuccotti Park said filth from the squatters has reached "unacceptable levels." Brookfield Office Properties said in a statement the park hasn't been cleaned or inspected since the protests started on Sept. 16.
"Because many of the protesters refuse to cooperate by adhering to the rules, the park has not been cleaned," the statement read. "As a result, sanitary conditions have reached unacceptable levels."
The owners want the park clear so they can bust out the powerwashers to remove the accumulated scum from the politically conscious campers.
The festival-like atmosphere at Zuccotti Park continued yesterday, with a Sarah Palin impersonator, the Naked Cowboy and 200 ultra-orthodox Jews joining the fray. As night fell, some 150 reinforcements marched over the Brooklyn Bridge, bound for the encampment and chanting: "Don't occupy Haiti! Occupy Wall Street!"
Bonus! Fox & Hannity smackdown by Jon Stewart!
The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cParks and Demonstrationwww.thedailyshow.comDaily Show Full EpisodesPolitical Humor & Satire BlogThe Daily Show on Facebook