AT THIS POINT SANTACON/ANTICON/BANANACON HAS MORE POLITICAL LEGITIMACY THAN OPDX.

RANDOMLY TAKING OVER A PARK FOR A DANCE PARTY IS COOL; I FULLY SUPPORT YOUR DOING THAT. ROCK OUT WITH YOUR COCK OUT, ETC. BUT TRYING TO SAY THAT IT'S A FIRST AMENDMENT ISSUE IS BULLSHIT AND THAT YOU'RE DOING THIS TO SUPPORT THE WORKING CLASS? FUCK YOU. YOU'RE AWFUL PEOPLE FOR BEING SO OBLIVIOUS TO THE MANNER IN WHICH YOUR MESSAGE IS RUINING LEGITIMATE ATTEMPTS AT ADDRESSING REAL SOCIAL INJUSTICES. THE ENTIRE PURPOSE OF THIS OPDX ACTION WAS TO START TROUBLE WITH THE COPS. THE PPB MADE THE RIGHT DECISION IN SAYING, "FUCK THIS, LETS EAT PIZZA".

When the occupations started, a lot of people, even sympathetic people on the left, were dubious about what this would achieve, saying that, if nothing else, the cold weather would likely bring the whole thing to an unimpressive end. The dedication and resourcefulness of the movement on a large scale has achieved a sustained presence that a march once a month or shorter occupations would not have achieved. The result has been finally getting a set of issues around economic injustice on the national agenda for the first time.

Can we get one thing real clear? Using public spaces (parks) however you please is not a "free speech right." It is perfectly constitutional for public agencies to put limits (i.e. curfews, camping bans, etc.) on public spaces. In the same way that it is perfectly legal to lock City Hall at night, and not allow someone to sleep in the council chambers, it is legal to close a park and not allow someone to sleep there.

So while you may argue that camping should be allowed, stop saying that it is currently a first amendment right, because it isn't.

Now, OWS itself. Many people are interested and sypathetic to OWS's broader national goals. I think that many fewer people are interested in a running battle between a small subset of protesters and Portland police.

So to the extent that OP keeps changing the subject to "us 200 people vs. local police" they lose their audience.

At this point, I don't have much faith that they will be able to present a more coherent message. I mean, freaking Jamie Dimon came to town a few weeks ago and OP only mustered about a dozen protesters. It is very apparent that they don't understand the original intent of OWS in New York.

The "I will be bringing national #OWS issues to the fore since #OPDX isn't" statement I would call a win for Occupy. If every mayor in every city that feels encumbered/annoyed by Occupy started making similar statements and actually followed through with action, then the movement would definitely be working.

Are people retarded? Yes, occupying the parks did NOTHING positive for the movement. Get over it. All it did was invite undesirables into the camp to destroy everything from the inside out. Or were junkies and drunk-off-their-ass hobos the population we're trying to reach here? I'm sure there are ways to stay in the public eye that don't involve glorified homelessness.

Also, twitter is a ridiculous forum to have a discussion.

Sam Adams is behaving like a petulant child who didn't get his way. I think he thought he'd automatically get the support of the occupy movement because he's "so liberal", and now that he didn't he's super cranky.

@geyser: The ca. 2000 WTO/IMF/WB demonstrations went on far longer than OWS has thus far, and there was no camping being done at all. That OWS-related demonstrations have carried on for a few months does not serve as a very strong point of evidence for it being a strong tactic in terms of propelling a movement. The fact that camping is all people seem to be talking about here and pretty much any place the topic of opdx comes up is a very strong indicator that it's a wasteful, distracting tactic.

My favorite Sam Adams statement: http://www.twitlonger.com/show/ehp7lf

The mayor, a person elected to the executive branch of a representative democracy, is arguing that citizen protesters aren’t bringing enough attention to the platforms of their cause and so he has to pick up the slack. How does a republic work, anyway?

Good point reid.

I hope #OPDX keeps up the protests, but I don't think an actual tent city is needed at this point. It just gives the police an excuse to try to shut down the protests altogether.

Most of the critics of the occupations in general were able to try to discredit the movement over the problems that cropped up in the overnight camps. (Drugs, sanitation and so on.)

If those issues are not present, then they will have to attack the ideas. This is far more difficult for the critics and puts them in a position they don't want to be in.

Gawd -- Even a liberal like Sam Adams misses the point of the Occupy movement. It is a protest about Government Corruption. It seems that currently our elected official are "The best legislatures money can buy."

The North Park Blocks would allow easier access to the restrooms at Powell's. And that elephant sculpture would make for some sweet photo ops.

Why does people assembling have to warrant police intervention?? That is a question that needs to be answered!

Are people 'asking for trouble' from the police, or has Americanized society adopted a social norm which makes us believe that people have to accept the fact that authority holders will use force to dissuade unapproved behaviour, and if we don't comply, we are labeled as agitators.

I say, any peaceful act should receive sympathy from the people. You can't blame people linking arms for inviting the baton-holding police and creating an unsafe space.

Pretty sure that OWS is not about government corruption, but rather, corporate excesses. Yes, government plays a role, but this is about using government to reign in Wall Street, not being against both government and Wall Street.

I think the movement is about corruption and the resulting corporate excesses. When Corporations "buy" elected officials to pass laws for their benefit I would call that corruption. And really the source of the problem. Or at the very least, a roadblock to any reform. Why do we spend all of our time arguing over whether the park occupation is good or not? It is over and done with. Let's discuss what needs to change, so we can get America on the right track. We need election reform. How can we stop the corporations from controlling who we get to choose from for President or any office? Until we figure this out we will be governed by the corporations who bought our politicians.