I've been operating under the persona of #OccupyViennaNow on Twitter for a while now, and though very little has been happening in Austria, I usually get plenty of news tweets from counterparts worldwide. So, I've decided to start this nice newsblast.
In Chicago: Judge Stanley Sacks rules eavesdropping law illegal
A Cook County judge today ruled the state’s controversial eavesdropping law unconstitutional.
The decision came in the case of Christopher Drew, an artist who was arrested in December 2009 for selling art on a Loop street without a permit. Drew was charged with a felony violation of the eavesdropping law after he used an audio recorder in his pocket to capture his conversations with police during his arrest.
Full Story Here
Nationwide: Credit Union membership shoots up as Americans move their money from big banks
Last year, 10 percent of customers moved their money out of their bank, a significant increase over the previous few years, with fees the number one reason people cited for their discontent. In the 90 days ending in February, a whopping 5.6 million people switched their banks.
At the nation’s biggest banks, those with more than $33 billion in assets, transfer rates are running above 10 percent, while transfer rates are below 1 percent for small banks and credit unions. In fact, one of the main beneficiaries of Americans moving their money has been the nation’s credit unions, as, according to the National Credit Union Administration, credit union membership is now at an all-time high:
Full Story Here
In London: Occupy camp destroyed
The Occupy London camp outside St Paul's Cathedral was destroyed early Tuesday. Hundreds of officers converged on the camp just before midnight local time and began to dismantle what had been home to around 70 activists.
Bailiffs in high-visibility jackets dragged tents and their contents to garbage trucks and dumpsters where they were crushed. Police in riot gear formed cordons to keep protesters and their supporters out of the camp. Activists say the police were met with peaceful resistance. However, media reports say around 20 protesters have been detained.
Several dozen protesters have been camped on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral since October last year. It was one of the longest-surviving encampments inspired by the New York “Occupy Wall Street” movement against corporate greed.
Full Story, Video, and Photos Here
So, overall, mixed news. In the US, the Occupy movement is making difficult, but important progress as the banks and local governments finally begin to realize how dangerous--and how right--the protesters are. Britain, unfortunately, not so much. What I've been hearing from Oklahoma (I have many friends there) is that several young musicians have started a free, grassroots schooling program with grants from Tulsa community college; its aim is to teach literacy and music to poor children in Tulsa so as to help them pull themselves up. Unfortunately, they've recently hit a major setback as both the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Education rejected their requests for a grant, the former saying (and I paraphrase) that Tulsa did not have enough income inequality to justify such a thing. In the words of my friend (who is involved in the project), are they going to wait until Tulsa is hell on earth to act?
This has been your daily Occupy newblast.