I'm reading about G20 protests in the Wall Street Journal. Andrew Carnegie was from Pittsburgh and helped spur the Industrial Revolution. The conservative editor appreciates the earnestness of the protestors. He even talks about Reverend Billy, the same one that Kayakbiker covered at Mall of America! He reports that locals weren't much bothered about the protesters.
Then there were the Reverend Billy Talen and his partner, Savitri D., the activists-cum-performance artists who run the Church of Life After Shopping. The two were the closest things to celebrities in this nonhierarchical horde. Cheers of "hallelujah" rang out as the Rev strutted by in his polyester white suit and preacher's collar. He and Ms. D. didn't propose cave relocation—they already live in Brooklyn—but they handed me a DVD entitled "What Would Jesus Buy?" Vermin Supreme, a bearded guy with a clown nose and a bullhorn, was another protest veteran. "You can Google me," he said. "I'm pretty famous. Poor and famous," the self-described First Amendment-loving anarchist told me. "I'm not a trust funder. I'm not a summit hopper."
I like this part because this is what I would do if I were there - document it.
Over the next hour, countless cops in riot gear worked to disperse protesters with piercing sounds and, in at least one instance, tear gas. For those who weren't running through the smaller streets and alleys surrounding Liberty Avenue trying to get past the cops, the focus became relentless documentation of the action: Many a dreadlocked head was bent over a BlackBerry, twittering. Others silently videotaped and photographed. The reporters and cameramen, who seemed to outnumber the demonstrators by this point, ran to get some footage of what everyone had been waiting for: a standoff. On one side were cops sweating beneath their riot gear, scowling from behind their shields. On the other were demonstrators chalking "Be your own boss. Love. Peace. Free Your Mind."
The Wall Street Journal guy points out that anarchists must have cable tv. Doesn't he know alot of people watch Comedy Central on the internet? Given that it's the Wall Street Journal, the reporter points out any hypocrisies he can think of, such as that the anarchists etc. may use electricity, running water etc. so how can they be antiglobalizationists or environmentalists - that sort of thing. Which gets old. I also got the article via seeing it on a conservative guy's Facebook profile.
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