Protesters rally in downtown Chicago By Andrew L. Wang October 8, 2011

Protesters rally in downtown Chicago By Andrew L. Wang October 8, 2011
www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-protesters-rally-in-downtown-chicago-20111008,0,7219087.story

chicagotribune.com

The chants of protesters echoed through downtown Chicago this afternoon as marchers descended on the Loop to give voice to a wide cross-section of activist issues.

A crowd of about 700 gathered at noon at Congress Parkway andMichigan Avenue to hear speeches protesting the 10-year-old war in Afghanistan, though references other issues -- including unemployment, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, gay marriage and stopping urban violence -- were sprinkled in.

"There's always money for more wars," Dennis Kosuth, an emergency room nurse at Stroger Hospital, told the crowd. "But there's never enough money for the jobs that we need."

Meanwhile, a crowd of about 200 protesters loosely unified under the Occupy Chicago banner collected at LaSalle Street and Jackson Boulevard, railing against high unemployment, corporate greed and what they argue is the undue influence of cash in the political process {now, while they "argue" the point, does the Chicago Tribune reporter writing this report have any facts on the validity or lack thereof on this matter? Is there in fact "corporate greed and ... undue influence of cash in the political process" or are they just blowing hot air out of their pie holes? Enquiring minds want to KNOW -- and, in point of fact, THIS IS THE FUCKING STORY, which, of course, the Tribune reporter simply misses; as did his editor, etc, etc, etc.}

"They talk about not raising taxes on the rich because they create jobs," said Dove Anthony, 43, of Zion. "Yeah, they create jobs in China and other countries."

Police officers patrolled at the fringes of both gatherings, keeping the peace and guiding protesters through streets clogged with weekend traffic (AHEM! The POLICE were the keepers of the peace? Only insofar as they didn't pull out the billy clubs and start whaling on THE ALREADY PEACEFUL AND WELL ORGANIZED DEMONSTRATORS nor did they even TAS any of them ... Let's give full credit to the police, the police chief, and the mayor of Chicago for ordering the cops to keep things in check; to keep their pistols holstered: INDEED, the whole world is watcying!). Tourists gawked and snapped images with their mobile phone cameras.

In the end, the concrete canyons of Chicago's central business district were witness to a great overlapping of issues, expressed through chants, signs and slogans [as] AT a feeling of discontent and disappointment in America's centers of power -- political, military and economic. (Incurably sloppy editing job - as printed, this is not even a sentence; what a difference a letter makes, as in "T" v "s".)

"We are the 99 percent," said Megan Groves, a spokeswoman for Occupy Chicago, in a reference to the 1 percent of Americans the group believes holds the most wealth. "We will not be silent and we demand a voice in our government." (GOOD on you, Megan - this is a slogan that can get a WHOLE lot of people jumpin' on the band wagin - no anarchy, no violins in the streets - just something for the "middle class" that 99% of the country that actually has to budget and can't afford three homes - one to winter in; one to summer in; and one to live the rest of the year in .. WE ARE THE LOWER 99, TYVM!)

The anti-war marchers made a stop at President Obama’s 2012 campaign headquarters in the Prudential Building, with some protesters likening Obama to many of his Republican predecessors in the way he is handling both the war and economy.

(WELL, yes, of course, and he has been acting like a Republican President since he started unofficially taking over and running the country in November, 2007, shortly after the elections, where by he was the driving force to get the bail out moneis for the banksters into the greedy little piggy hands ... BarryO will also reduce social security benefits, and has seen to it that the insurance industry (and pharmacueticals by extension) will make a killing on OBUMMAH DON'TCARE health insurance legislation.)

The group held signs and chanted “This is what Democracy looks like,” (this is HARDLY singin' songs, and a-carryin' signs, mostly say 'hooray' for our side ... indeed this is something ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT from the ragged, scattered, schizophrenic special interest groups of the 60's - each protesting for their one issue, when in point of fact, it was the WHOLE GOD DAMNED SYSTEM that is (1) not working, (2) unAmerican.) among other slogans. Part of the group, some carrying Palestinian flags, also stopped near the Israeli consulate (and did not break any windows, nor did they storm the building, they just demonstrated with their presence ... the power of the J-Street lobby and the stranglehold they have on the discourse in re: the role of Israel in the middle East and whether or NOT the US should continue to funnel billions of dollars into the gullet of the pig Israeli war and repression machine has never come more fully unto scrutinty -- I would assume they {as well as all the 'powers that be'} are praying that this protest will fizzle out, and the sooner the betterer!} near Wacker Drive and Michigan Avenue.

While the marchers gathered on the 10th anniversary of the start of the Afghanistan War to call for an end to U.S. military action there, economic issues weren't far from protesters' minds.

David Bachman, 34, of West Dundee, joined the march, he said, because he was dissatisfied with the power corporations wield in the daily lives of ordinary people. A carpenter by trade, Bachman has had trouble finding work and had to liquidate his savings to pay bills. (DUH! It's ALWAYS about the friggin economy; the American people may always do the "right thing" eventually, but it have NEVER been until the impact of not doing the right thing is seen on the old monthly bank statement that you can get our fat, generally contented, mostly ignorant people in the middle and upper middle income brackets (the 25-75 groping; hell, we've even added the 2-24% highest income folks to the rolls of those no longer shy to protest .. in a few short words, "WE ARE MAD AS HALL AND WE ARE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANY MORE!"

"It's a hell of a world we live in," said Bachman, who wore a Public Enemy T-shirt and a Guy Fawkes mask backwards on his head.

At LaSalle and Jackson, in the shadows cast by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the Chicago Board of Trade and the Bank of America Center, protesters held signs that read "Are you feeling the trickle down yet?," "Stop corporate sponsored democracy," and simply "Tax the rich."

Occupy Chicago is a spinoff of anti-wall Street protests in New York. They began protesting at the intersection two weeks ago.

President Barack Obama "hasn't done nearly enough. It's been disappointing," said Cheryl Pomeroy, 56, of Oak Park, who wore a hard hat and carried a whiteboard on which was written "Prosecute Wall St."

"The Democratic Party needs a push," she said. "The country needs to see how frustrated the average American workers are."

Chicago Tribune reporter Brent Lewis and the Associated Press contributed.

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