Friday, September 30, 2011

Occupy Wall Street



My compatriots over at RoundTree7 have initiated a "drum roll" in support and solidarity with Occupy Wall Street (occupywallst.org). Gwendolyn Holden Barry expanded the regular show she does with Jack Jodell - Here Be Monsters - so that they're broadcasting everyday during the occupation of Wall Street and the occupation of Freedom Plaza next week in Washington DC.   It's a call-in format so no matter where you are - whether you're at work in Oklahoma or Tennessee, in bed with the flu or another more serious condition keeps you homebound in Florida, Texas, Connecticut, Iowa, Nebraska or Timbukfuckingtu - you can have a virtual sit-in in solidarity with the demonstrators.


I'm heading to Zuccotti Park(remained Liberty Park in honor of the Occupation) later today with my dear friend and former boss. She's the one I was with that day at IKEA when I spontaneously turned into a shoplifter as a result of an overwhelming overload of institutionalized stupidity. This shoplifting phase nearly got out of hand at the grocery store when I realized that corporations made a business decision to replace humans at the registers with Self-Checkers. Absorbing increased shoplifting is still cheaper than paying salary and benefits to a human.

My mother always told me that shoplifting was wrong because stores charged more for their merchandise to cover the cost of the shoplifting so if you steal from a store, all your neighbors pay for your bad behavior. She didn't know what to say when I told her that the grocery stores were already charging you, say, 20% extra for your purchases to cover shoplifting whether people shoplifted or not. So it was actually incumbent upon us all to use the self-checkers - which have eliminated jobs - to swipe 20% of the items in our carts.

It's really easy to put a $15.00 pot roast on top of a 12 pack of toilet paper. Slide the toilet paper across the scanner, and plop the pot roast straight into your bag. Take three boxes of pasta and stack them neatly, scan one.  Presto! It's practically your moral responsibility to stick it to The Man.

I stopped shoplifting because I had gotten so ballsy that it was only a matter of time before I was apprehended, and that would have been embarrassing not only to my buddy Nicole, but it also would have been problematic given that I was in the middle of the romance with that preacher from the mountains.  You don't get busted for shoplifting when you're dating a preacher.  You'll never hear the end of it.

Anyway, Nicole is helping me tote some supplies down to the food committee.   I'm not sure, but we may wind up in the middle of the march to One Police Plaza.   By now everyone should be aware that a few cops have been unnecessarily rough. Lee Camp explains:



Whatever happens, I'll be writing it up for Roundtree7.  I still love Joe over at Worldwide Hippies, but now that I'm working full time and in the writing workshop (and hopefully dating a strikingly handsome, if somewhat narcissistic yoga master with an outstanding retreat near Ithaca), I can't commit to a deadline anymore.  Ergo: I'm no longer part of that team.  Hopefully that situation will work itself out somehow since WWH brings a lot to the party.  Meanwhile, Roundtree7 has graciously included me in their collective.  I like being part of a group working toward a common goal - and right now, that goal is to keep sharing the news from the occupation since Corporate Media has a blackout on the information unless they are denigrating the efforts.  That's what happens when you've come to depend on golden showers from Goldman Sacks

11 Comments:

Blogger VV said...

Good luck with the protest. I'll be thinking of you and if I get time, I might call in.

September 30, 2011 at 9:31 AM  
Blogger Jim said...

Occupy your own heart, not with fear, but with love. - words of one of the Wall Street occupiers.

September 30, 2011 at 9:48 AM  
Blogger Kulkuri said...

CNN ran a few short bits about the Wall Street protest yesterday afternoon. Had Cornell West on to talk about it. First I've seen anything about it, but then again my TV is limited to what I can get off the internet.

September 30, 2011 at 9:58 AM  
Blogger ellen abbott said...

you go girl.

September 30, 2011 at 10:12 AM  
Blogger PENolan said...

Thanks, y'all.
I'm off and running!

September 30, 2011 at 1:25 PM  
Blogger Mr. Charleston said...

Give 'em hell Trish!

September 30, 2011 at 4:04 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Who's my buddy? Who's my pal? I luv ya and your post, too.

September 30, 2011 at 9:01 PM  
Blogger Life As I Know It Now said...

That's what happens when you've come to depend on golden showers from Goldman Sacks

hell yeah. I don't hear shit about this occupation. Thanks for covering it here.

October 1, 2011 at 9:07 AM  
Blogger PENolan said...

Liberality, it's great to see you and I'll keep it coming.
The best news source is probably through Adbusters, who organized the occupation with Anonymous. Or you can check out Occupywallst.org

Gwen, Glad you liked it.

October 2, 2011 at 7:27 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I really enjoyed reading the article, and the pictures. Why call it "Menopausal Stoners"? Just curious. I'm not young anymore, but not menopausal either. I also wonder if it is particularly being written for women, as the other half of the population doesn't have to go through menopause. Anyway, thanks for some good coverage of the subject matter! Peace and love.

October 2, 2011 at 10:54 PM  
Blogger PENolan said...

There is an older post that explains your questions - but it's hard to find. Maybe I should update it and post again.
BUT
there are Menopausal and MANopausal people. It's a demographic, not a biological or hormonal state although certainly we all have hormones and are subject to our biology. As for stoners, I don't think you have to be a Pot Smoker to share the feelings of outrage and despair over the policies of our governments - and the longing for a peaceful, loving society dedicated to stewardship and sustainability.

I chose Menopausal Stoners for the blog title because someone once called me a Menopausal Stoner and it was in my mind when I started blogging. I figured the blog should be Stoners because I'm not the only one.

As for the audience, I would have to say that primarily this blog has been my "message in a bottle" so it's not written for anyone in particular. It started as a way for me to process and come to terms with ideas swimming in my head - and as I explored other blogs and people found mine, I no longer felt isolated. A community developed, and it's been cool.

Thanks for asking, and thanks for reading.
Is that Maria Spring?

October 3, 2011 at 6:16 AM  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home