Activism

California Man, Faces 13 Years In Jail For Writing Anti-Big Bank Messages In Water-Soluble Chalk

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– California Man, Faces 13 Years In Jail For Writing Anti-Big Bank Messages In Chalk (Huffington Post, June 25, 2013):

Jeff Olson, a 40-year-old man from San Diego, Calif., will face jail time for charges stemming from anti-big bank messages he scrawled in water-soluble chalk outside Bank of America branches last year.

The San Diego Reader reported Tuesday that a judge had decided to prohibit Olson’s attorney from “mentioning the First Amendment, free speech, free expression, public forum, expressive conduct, or political speech during the trial.”

With that ruling, Olson must now stand trial on 13 counts of vandalism, charges that together carry a potential 13-year jail sentence and fines of up to $13,000.

“Oh my gosh,” Olson said on his way out of court on Tuesday. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

Read moreCalifornia Man, Faces 13 Years In Jail For Writing Anti-Big Bank Messages In Water-Soluble Chalk

Syngenta GMO Sugar Beets Destroyed In Southern Oregon

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It’s criminal, but “free the fields” actions are exactly how GMOs have been kept in check in Europe.

Good job!

– Genetically engineered sugar beets destroyed in southern Oregon (OregonLive, June 20, 2013):

Federal investigators are asking the public to help solve middle-of-the-night crimes that left ruined fields of genetically engineered sugar beets in rural Jackson County.

The crop destruction took place over the course of two separate nights in early June, when an unknown individual or group destroyed about 6,500 sugar beet plants genetically engineered to stand up to the herbicide Roundup on a pair of privately-owned plots of land leased and managed by Syngenta.

Read moreSyngenta GMO Sugar Beets Destroyed In Southern Oregon

Brazil Hit By Largest Protests Yet As Hundreds Of Thousands March (Reuters) – ‘Authorities In Rio de Janeiro Expect As Many As A Million Protesters’ (RT)

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Students shout slogans during a protest of what is now called the ‘Tropical Spring’ against corruption and price hikes, at National Congress in Brasilia, on June 20, 2013.(AFP Photo / Evaristo SA)

– Brazil rage spills onto the streets: LIVE UPDATES (RT):

00:06 GMT: At least 28 people have been injured in clashes with police in Rio de Janeiro. Most of the wounded were hit by rubber bullets, pepper spray and stones, officials at the Souza Aguiar hospital said.

Friday, June 21

23:47 GMT: In the city of Porto Alegre military police used a helicopter and tear gas to disperse protesters that approached the headquarters of RBS Group, a media conglomerate that publishes numerous newspapers along with radio and television stations.

23:13 GMT: Riot police in the capital Brasilia have prevented a group of protesters from breaking through the police cordon towards the Congress.

More than 20,000 are rallying in front of the Congress in the capital, Brasilia. Some 3,500 police officers were deployed to the area to respond, with clashes erupting after a group of protesters reportedly started throwing Molotov cocktails and attempted to break through the police cordon. Officers responded with tear gas.

22:45 GMT: Police fired large rounds of tear gas against protesters in the city of Campinas in Sao Paulo state in a confrontation adjacent to government buildings.

22:03 GMT: Police in Rio de Janeiro have already resorted to tear gas early Thursday evening to disperse a crowd making its way to city hall. Plumes of smoke could be seen on video broadcast by local TV.

Authorities in Brazil’s cultural capital expect as many as a million protesters to converge on the city, despite recent announcements by state governments to scrap plans to increase public transportation costs. Protesters intended to march on Maracana Stadium just as a Confederations cup football game was to kick off.

21:32 GMT: A huge demonstration is currently taking place in the Candelaria neighborhood of downtown Rio de Janeiro. At least 300,000 people have marched towards town hall, according to estimates by the police, who expect as many as a million protesters to gather later in the day.

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– Brazil hit by largest protests yet as hundreds of thousands march (Reuters, June 20, 2013):

Brazil’s biggest protests in two decades intensified on Thursday despite government concessions meant to quell the demonstrations, as 300,000 people took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro and hundreds of thousands more flooded other cities.

Undeterred by the reversal of transport fare hikes that sparked the protests, and promises of better public services, marchers demonstrated around two international soccer matches and in locales as diverse as the Amazon capital of Manaus and the prosperous southern city of Florianopolis.

“Twenty cents was just the start,” read signs held by many converging along the Avenida Paulista, the broad avenue in central Sao Paulo, referring to the bus fare reductions.

In the capital, Brasilia, tens of thousands of protesters by early evening marched around the landmark modernist buildings that house Congress, the Supreme Court and presidential offices.

The swelling tide of protests prompted President Dilma Rousseff to cancel a trip next week to Japan, her office said.

The targets of the protests, now in their second week, have broadened to include high taxes, inflation, corruption and poor public services ranging from hospitals and schools to roads and police forces.

With an international soccer tournament as a backdrop, demonstrators are also denouncing the more than $26 billion of public money that will be spent on the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics, two events meant to showcase a modern, developed Brazil.

Read moreBrazil Hit By Largest Protests Yet As Hundreds Of Thousands March (Reuters) – ‘Authorities In Rio de Janeiro Expect As Many As A Million Protesters’ (RT)

Brazilian Protests Succeed In Reversing Bus, Subway Fare Hike

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From the article:

“Then again, at least the Brazilians are protesting for change: in the US, one only has to consider the epic indignation that the recent NSA spying scandal has unleashed and the mass throngs of people demanding a return of their constitutional rights. Oh wait…”

– Brazilian Protests Succeed In Reversing Bus, Subway Fare Hike (ZeroHedge, June 19, 2013):

The Brazilian protests, which swept through the country with the raging bear market (and the pulled mega-IPO) over the past week, and which had the goal of reducing a recent bus-fare increase among other assorted protest goals, appear to have succeeded. At least when it comes to the fare increase. As for the other protester demands, listed below, it may take a little longer.

AP reports:

Brazilian leaders in Sao Paulo say they are reversing a 10-cent hike in bus and subway fares that has sparked widespread protests across the nation.

Read moreBrazilian Protests Succeed In Reversing Bus, Subway Fare Hike

Brazil: 200,000 Take To Streets In Largest Protest In Two Decades (Video, Pics)

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– 200,000 Take To Brazil’s Streets In Largest Protest In Two Decades (ZeroHedge, June 18, 2013):

It started off a simple protest in Sao Paulo as a demonstration by students against an increase in bus fares from R$3 to R$3.20, and then quickly morphed into general demonstration of discontent with the nation’s political classes on both sides of the spectrum involving over 200,000 across the country, with those marching on Monday holding placards decrying everything from the enormous sums spent on the World Cup to the treatment by police of protesters last week. It got to the point where protesters invaded and occupied, peacefully, the roof of the national Congress complex in Brasilia. Then things turned less peaceful when a breakaway group from the main rally in Rio de Janeiro attacked the state legislative assembly building and attempted to set it on fire.

From Reuters:

As many as 200,000 demonstrators marched through the streets of Brazil’s biggest cities on Monday in a swelling wave of protest tapping into widespread anger at poor public services, police violence and government corruption.

The marches, organized mostly through snowballing social media campaigns, blocked streets and halted traffic in more than a half-dozen cities, including Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte and Brasilia, where demonstrators climbed onto the roof of Brazil’s Congress building and then stormed it.

Monday’s demonstrations were the latest in a flurry of protests in the past two weeks that have added to growing unease over Brazil’s sluggish economy, high inflation and a spurt in violent crime.

Read moreBrazil: 200,000 Take To Streets In Largest Protest In Two Decades (Video, Pics)

Boycott Monsanto-Pandering Factory ‘Food’ Companies And Drive GMOs Out Of The Food Supply

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Related info:

– Shocking Photos Reveal Severe Damage Caused By GM Soy And Corn. GMO Feed Turns Pig Stomachs To Mush!

– Boycott these Monsanto-pandering factory ‘food’ companies and help drive GMOs out of the food supply (Natural News, June 13, 2013):

If Americans are truly serious about making real progress in the fight against genetically-modified organisms (GMOs), then we are going to have to take things to the next level by voting with our wallets, and boycotting every single factory food company that continues to secretly use GMOs in its products. And one way to help jump start this efforts is to get the health-conscious community up to speed about which major food companies are still using GMOs in secrecy.

The blog REALfarmacy.com recently created a “Do Not Buy” list that outlines all the major food producers that use GMOs in their products. Besides the more obvious offenders such as Coca-Cola, General Mills, Pepsi, and Frito-Lay, the list also pins “health”-branded food companies like Nature Valley and Morningstar that many people are still unaware also use GMOs in their products. You can view this list here:
http://www.realfarmacy.com

Read moreBoycott Monsanto-Pandering Factory ‘Food’ Companies And Drive GMOs Out Of The Food Supply

Turkey: Taksim Square Drenched In Blood As 900 Protesters Are Arrested (Extremely Graphic Content)

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– Turkey’s Taksim Square Drenched in Blood as 900 Protesters Are Arrested (Extremely Graphic Content) (The Daily Sheeple, June 1, 2013)

Turkey is entering its third day of violent protests as police have withdrawn from Taksim Square and allowed the mass protests to continue.

Over 900 people have been arrested across Turkey for what the authorities called a security measure.

The first photo below was taken from a CNN IReport that CNN themselves have not vetted.

Blood in streets near Taksim Turkey

A shocking video report from RT shows violent clashes between police and protesters:

An RT article covered various aspects of the protests including how they started and what they stand for:

Police in Istanbul have withdrawn from Taksim Square, allowing the mass protest to continue unabated, Turkish media report. Istanbul and Ankara are entering the third day of violent protests, with tear gas and water cannon deployed and over 900 arrested.

Read moreTurkey: Taksim Square Drenched In Blood As 900 Protesters Are Arrested (Extremely Graphic Content)

Turkey: Police And Protesters Battle For Taksim Square In Istanbul

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Turkish police fired tear gas at demonstrators before retreating from Taksim Square in Istanbul.

– ?Turkish police and protesters battle for Taksim square (Telegraph, June 1, 2013):

Some protesters hurled objects at officers and police vehicles, prompting police to fire several rounds of tear gas.

In Ankara, a police vehicle hit two demonstrators who were crouched in the middle of the street, barricading themselves behind rubbish bins.

One of the men who was hit was seen being rescued by other demonstrators and loaded into an ambulance while flashing a “V” for victory sign.

The other man was thrown in the air but appeared to not have been seriously injured.

A demonstration that started in Istanbul on Friday as a peaceful sit-in to save an inner-city green space has turned into nationwide anti-government protests in Turkey, revealing the depth of public anger against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Many Turks view him as increasingly authoritarian and dismissive of opposing views.
Protesters who had camped out at Taksim were angry over the planned removal of trees in the square, one of the few bits of green in sprawling Istanbul.

Read moreTurkey: Police And Protesters Battle For Taksim Square In Istanbul

Meanwhile, In Turkey … FULL-SCALE RIOTS (Video & Photos)

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– Meanwhile, In Turkey… (ZeroHedge, May 31, 2013):

While most of the headlines this week have centered on Syria, Sweden (and Switzerland), Turkey has been cooking and today has broken into full-scale riots. As Reuters reports, Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon on Friday at demonstrators in central Istanbul, wounding scores of people and prompting rallies in other cities in the fiercest anti-government protests for years. The growing unrest centers on disquiet at the authoritarianism of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (who just visited Obama). “We do not have a government, we have Tayyip Erdogan … Even AK Party supporters are saying they have lost their mind, they are not listening to us.” The protests somewhat surprisingly were sparked by the uprooting of trees but rapidly escalated (as seen below) into riot police, water cannon, and tear gas battles as protesters exclaim, “we’re fed up… we don’t like the direction the country is heading.”

Via Reuters:

Thousands of demonstrators massed on streets surrounding Istanbul’s central Taksim Square, long a venue for political unrest, while protests erupted in the capital Ankara and the Aegean coastal city of Izmir.

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The unrest reflects growing disquiet at the authoritarianism of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP).

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There have also been protests against the government’s stance on the conflict in neighboring Syria, a tightening of restrictions on alcohol sales and warnings against public displays of affection.

“We do not have a government, we have Tayyip Erdogan … Even AK Party supporters are saying they have lost their mind, they are not listening to us,” said Koray Caliskan, a political scientist at Bosphorus University who attended the protest.

“This is the beginning of a summer of discontent.”

Read moreMeanwhile, In Turkey … FULL-SCALE RIOTS (Video & Photos)