Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

Occupy Wall Street (OWS) supporters witness an arrest of one of their fellow at Zuccotti Park decorated with Christmas lights, in New York, November 21, 2011. OWS said 32,500 gathered last week to mark the anti-capitalist movement's two-month anniversary at Foley Square in lower Manhattan before many marched across the Brooklyn Bridge. [Getty Images]

Here's some of what I've been reading this morning...

Tina Dupuy has an interesting piece in The Atlantic about the gender disparity at Occupy encampments. See also Echidne's take on Dupuy's piece.

Gallup finds that US support for the Occupy Movement remains unchanged from a month ago at about 25% in favor, about 20% opposed, and about 55% conflicted or indifferent. Respondents, however, are now slightly more critical of "the way the protests are being conducted."

In Supercommittee Failure news...

Greg Sargent plainly (and correctly) states that "both sides" are not equally to blame for the breakdown in negotiations: "This is the primary difference in a nutshell: The Dem offer involved both sides making roughly equivalent concessions; the GOP offer didn't. The main GOP concession—the additional revenues—would have come in exchange for Dems giving ground on two major fronts: On cuts to entitlements, and on making the Bush tax cuts permanent. Putting aside whether the supercommittee failure matters at all, it's plainly true that one side was willing to concede far more than the other to make a deal possible. And anyone who pretends otherwise is just part of the problem."

And because our political system is irrevocably broken, both parties will look to exploit that failure for political gain: "[W]ith the [Bush tax cuts] due to expire at the end of 2012 and their fate left unresolved by the supercommittee, both parties are already positioning themselves to exploit the issue for maximum electoral advantage. President Obama, who campaigned on repealing the breaks for the wealthy, angered his base last year when he agreed to extend all the tax cuts beyond their original expiration, at the end of 2010. This time, the president has vowed to veto any effort to extend the tax breaks on upper-income Americans. ... Republicans vying to challenge Obama argue the tax cuts should be made permanent, not just for the wealthy but for middle-income Americans as well. And GOP strategists say the White House's position makes the president vulnerable to charges that he would impose what many Republicans are already calling the 'biggest tax increase in American history' if reelected."

Aside from political gamespersonship, what now? "Failure by the committee, evenly split between six Democrats and six Republicans from the House and Senate, sets in motion an alternative timetable for $1.2 trillion in spending reductions starting in January 2013. Leaders on both sides of the aisle are unhappy with the nature of the fallback plan, which cuts evenly from domestic and defense programs." Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell tries to hang the president with the responsibility for preventing the cuts: "Now it falls on the president to ensure that the defense cuts he insisted upon do not undermine national security." President Obama hangs the responsibility on Congress: "The only way these spending cuts will not take place is if Congress gets back to work and agrees on a balanced plan to reduce the deficit by at least $1.2 trillion. That's exactly what they need to do. That's the job they promised to do. And they've still got a year to figure it out."

The only thing that Democrats and Republicans can agree on anymore is that it's not their fault and it's definitely the OTHER party's responsibility to fix everything.

In related news, trying to prove he is NOT BORING and can be, in fact, just as loathsomely incendiary and irresponsible as all the best Republicans, Mitt Romney [trigger warning for violent rhetoric] described the automatic defense spending cuts initiated by the supercommittee's failure would be "like holding a gun to your own head."

In other US domestic economic news...

Reuters: Third-quarter growth revised down to 2.0 percent.

Forbes: The Top 0.1% of the nation earn half of all capital gains.

CNN Money: Next congressional battle: Payroll taxes.

Reuters: MF Global trustee doubles estimates of shortfall: Says shortfall could be about $1.2 billion.

CNN Money: Gingrich: CBO a 'reactionary socialist institution'.

And in Eurozone news, The Guardian's live coverage is here. Also: The head of the Financial Services Authority, Adair Turner, warns that "the global economy is at risk of a deflationary spiral as the private sector and governments seek to pay off their debts at the same time." Huzzah for austerity!

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

In this Friday, Nov. 18, 2011, photo University of California, Davis Police Lt. John Pike uses pepper spray to move Occupy UC Davis protesters while blocking their exit from the school's quad Friday in Davis, Calif. Two University of California, Davis police officers involved in pepper spraying seated protesters were placed on administrative leave Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011, as the chancellor of the school accelerates the investigation into the incident. [AP Photo]

Related and Recommended Reading on the UD Davis incident:

Matt Wells in The Guardian: UC Davis Police Placed on Leave After Pepper Spray Video Outrage.

Garance Franke-Ruta in The Atlantic: Too Much Violence and Pepper Spray at the OWS Protests: The Videos and Pictures.

CNN: California Campus Police on Leave After Pepper-Spraying.

In other Occupy News...

The Guardian crunches the numbers and finds it more like the 99.99% [via Andy]:


[Related article here. Video transcript is available here.]
In sweet news, Occupy Wall Street activists Jonathan Lopez, 19, and Ivan Cabrera, 18, exchanged vows, marking the first same-sex marriage at Zuccotti Park.

In shitty news, powerful DC lobbying firm Clark Lytle Geduldig & Cranford "has proposed an $850,000 plan to take on Occupy Wall Street and politicians who might express sympathy for the protests. ... CLGC's memo proposes that the [their client, the American Bankers Association] pay CLGC $850,000 to conduct 'opposition research' on Occupy Wall Street in order to construct 'negative narratives' about the protests and allied politicians. The memo also asserts that Democratic victories in 2012 would be detrimental for Wall Street and targets specific races in which it says Wall Street would benefit by electing Republicans instead."

Speaking of Republicans, GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich believes that secularism is responsible for the US' economic problems (of course he does): "A country that has been now since 1963 relentlessly in the courts driving God out of public life shouldn't be surprised at all the problems we have. Because we've in fact attempted to create a secular country, which I think is frankly a nightmare." Previously: Gingrich blames same-sex marriage for the country's economic woes.

Meanwhile, at Supercommittee Headquarters...

New York Times—The Deficit Deal That Wasn't: Hopes Are Dashed: "On Sunday, just one week after both sides had begun to feel hope, several members of the bipartisan panel conceded that their weeks of negotiations had failed. In the end the two sides could not agree on a mix of tax increases and spending cuts and—perhaps above all—on the fate of the tax cuts originally signed by President George W. Bush, which are now scheduled to expire at the end of 2012. While the panel's failure was in many ways foretold—President Obama and the House speaker, John A. Boehner, failed to reach a similar deal only this past summer—the deadlock offers fresh evidence for everyone frustrated with Congress, including its own members. ... Democrats and Republicans, as has been their wont throughout the process, could not even agree on what led the talks to slide into failure."

Washington Post—Debt supercommittee members brace for failure: "The congressional 'supercommittee' stumbled its way toward failure Sunday, with final staff-level discussions focusing mostly on how the panel should publicly admit that lawmakers could not meet their mandate of shaving $1.2 trillion from the federal debt. Rather than making a final effort at compromise, members of the special deficit-reduction committee spent their final hours casting blame and pointing fingers, bracing for the reaction from financial markets that are already jittery over the European debt crisis."

Speaking of the Eurozone...

The Guardian's live coverage is here.

New York Times—Europe Fears a Credit Squeeze as Investors Sell Bond Holdings: "Nervous investors around the globe are accelerating their exit from the debt of European governments and banks, increasing the risk of a credit squeeze that could set off a downward spiral. Financial institutions are dumping their vast holdings of European government debt and spurning new bond issues by countries like Spain and Italy. And many have decided not to renew short-term loans to European banks, which are needed to finance day-to-day operations. If this trend continues, it risks creating a vicious cycle of rising borrowing costs, deeper spending cuts and slowing growth, which is hard to get out of, especially as some European banks are having trouble meeting their financing needs."

Reuters—Warren Buffett: Euro zone not working, words alone won't fix it: "Buffett, dubbed the 'Oracle of Omaha' for his long track record as a value investor, said he had no idea how Europe's sovereign debt crisis, which started in Greece two years ago and rages on, would end, though he noted there were good valuations among companies in Europe. 'Not in the debt space, but in the equity space there are opportunities,' he said."

Brad DeLong—Yet Another New York Times Fail: Ross Douthat Department:"Does Ross Douthat really believe that there ought to be a law saying that lenders must lend to a country's government whenever that country wants to borrow on terms that the country's government sets? He simply has not thought any of this through."

As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to leave links to what you've been reading/writing in comments.

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

An Occupy Wall Street demonstrator is pushed out of the way by police officers as they make an arrest during what protest organizers called a day of action in New York November 17, 2011. New York police prevented protesters from shutting down Wall Street on Thursday, arresting more than 200 people in repeated clashes with an unexpectedly small but spirited Occupy Wall Street rally. [Reuters Pictures]

Here's some of what I've been reading this morning...

New York Times—200 Are Arrested as Protesters Clash With the Police:

Thousands of protesters across the country flooded streets, squares, bridges and banks on Thursday, snarling traffic and often clashing with the police in a show of support for the Occupy Wall Street movement, two months to the day after the demonstration began.

In Lower Manhattan, protesters tossed aside metal barricades to converge again on Zuccotti Park after failing in an attempt to shut down the New York Stock Exchange. In Los Angeles, more than 20 protesters were arrested after ignoring orders to vacate streets. In Denver, 100 protesters marched by government buildings and intersections, bringing traffic to a standstill.

Organized weeks ago, the so-called day of action came two days after the police cleared the Occupy Wall Street encampment from Zuccotti Park in Manhattan in an early morning raid. After the protesters were ousted from the park that had become their de facto headquarters, a judge agreed that they could return later that day, albeit without their camping gear. They looked to Thursday to gauge the support and mettle that the movement had retained.

"We failed to close the stock exchange, but we took back our park," said Adam Farooqui, 25, of Queens. "That was a real victory."

Reuters—Authorities foil NY protest bid to shut Wall Street:

After tempers among police and protesters flared throughout the day, crowds grew larger and more festive after dark.

"This is a great night for a revolution. I've never seen anything like this in my entire life," said Daniel Reynolds, 34, a financial analyst at a venture capital firm, who joined the protests for the first time on Thursday.

Democracy Now!—Paramilitary Policing of Occupy Wall Street: Excessive Use of Force amidst the New Military Urbanism: Video with transcript at link.

Aren't you just DESPERATE to know what Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich think of Occupy Wall Street?! Of course you are! Aren't you just SHOCKED to hear that they don't like it?! What a surprisey-surprise! Herman Cain naturally thinks that the Occupy Wall Street protestors are "trying to destroy the greatest nation in the world," and Newt Gingrich, professional hater of democracy, obviously took the familiar route of demonizing citizen action, suggesting protestors should be jailed, and echoing Cain's sentiment by accusing OWS protestors of wanting "to tear down our country." What a thrilling exhibition of cutting-edge conservative thought!

Speaking of which...

CNN—Bachmann gives students a 101 on issues, then gets lectured:

With the air of a college instructor, Michele Bachmann essentially gave college students a Conservative 101 on the economy, national and foreign affairs and other important issues on Thursday in Iowa. But when the Republican presidential candidate took questions, some students turned the tables on their lecturer, peppering her with tough questions.

...As she criticized specifics of the nation's health care law, one student shouted: "So screw the sick and homeless?"

"Who said that?" Bachmann asked.

"You have," the student said.

"You could not be further from the truth," Bachmann shot back. "You're looking at someone who lived below poverty. Have you ever lived at that?"

Bachmann continued: "I know what I had to do. I got a job. That's what you need to do. You need to figure out how to get a job and make your way."

BOOTSTRAPS!!!

Paul Krugman checks in with SuperCongress.

Sarah Palin talks nonsense.

Newt Gingrich is a corporate shill. Who knew!

As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to leave links to stuff you're reading/writing in comments.

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

David Crosby, left, and Graham Nash perform at the Occupy Wall Street encampment at Zuccotti Park, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011 in New York. [AP Photo]

The Atlantic—Occupy Wall Street Gets Its Generators Back: "Occupy Wall Street got its confiscated generators back on Tuesday after its legal team pressed the Fire Department of New York to release them. The machines were picked up from the New York City Fire Academy at Randall's Island by the Wikileaks truck, which has been stationed next to Zuccotti Park since the protest's inception. The vehicle with the generator on board made its way back to Zuccotti Park hours before a planned concert by Graham Nash and David Crosby."

The Guardian—Occupy protesters plan 300-mile march from NYC to Washington:

A group of Occupy protesters plan to march nearly 300 miles from New York to Washington DC in a bid to end tax cuts which they say benefit the richest 1% of Americans.

The group will set off from Occupy Wall Street on Wednesday and walk 20 miles a day en route to the capital, their arrival planned to coincide with the Congressional deficit reduction super-committee meeting on 23 November.

Protesters will pass through other occupations during the course of the 'Occupy the highway' action, which they say will encourage people in rural communities to get involved in the movement.

In US domestic news...

AP—Ohio Voters Reject Republican-Backed Union Limits: "The state's new collective bargaining law was defeated Tuesday after an expensive union-backed campaign that pitted firefighters, police officers and teachers against the Republican establishment. In a political blow to GOP Gov. John Kasich, voters handily rejected the law, which would have limited the bargaining abilities of 350,000 unionized public workers."

Reuters—Fannie Mae taps $7.8 billion from Treasury, loss widens: "Fannie Mae, the biggest source of money for U.S. home loans, on Tuesday said it needed a further $7.8 billion in federal aid to stay afloat as a shaky housing market widened its third-quarter loss to $5.1 billion. The government-controlled firm also attributed the deeper cash drain to losses on derivatives used to hedge its exposure to interest-rate swings and on expenses related to home loans made prior to the 2008 financial collapse. In the year-earlier quarter it had a loss of a $1.3 billion. Fannie Mae has now drawn $112.6 billion in bailout funds from the Treasury Department since being seized by the government in 2008 as mortgage losses mounted, and it has returned $17.2 billion to taxpayers in the form of dividends."

Think Progress—GOP Rep. Joe Walsh Melts Down, Screams at Constituents: 'Don't Blame Banks!…I Am Tired of Hearing That Crap!': "[D]uring a recent meeting with constituents in his Chicago-area suburban district, Walsh lost his cool when several attendees asked about why banks have so much power in government. At one point, Walsh even threatened to eject a man who asked Walsh about the revolving door of bank lobbyists infiltrating Congress and financial regulatory agencies. Walsh at one point screamed, 'Don't blame the banks … this pisses me off!' After several constituents accurately pointed out that bank lobbyists occupy key positions within Congress, the SEC, and other oversight bodies that are supposed to supervise bank practices, Walsh began sticking his finger close to his constituents' faces, yelling, 'Quiet for a minute or I'll have to ask you to leave!'"

CNN Money—2012 candidates slip on Econ 101: "America's Econ 101 professors say...the candidates continue to offer ideas and policies that wouldn't pass muster in their classes—populated by 18 year-old college students. ... Michele Bachmann promised to bring back $2 gas. Tim Pawlenty suggested sustained 5% GDP growth was a realistic target. Rick Perry would balance the budget with lower tax revenues. ... Stephen Golub, who is teaching Econ 101 at Swarthmore College this semester, said some of the ideas floated by Presidential candidates would earn a failing grade in his class. 'I think it's grossly irresponsible what they are saying,' Golub said, [adding that candidates are 'promising things that are impossible to deliver or make little sense']."

Washington Post—Republicans offer tax deal to break debt impasse; Democrats dismiss it: "Congressional Republicans have for the first time retreated from their hard-line stance against new taxes, offering to raise federal tax collections by nearly $300 billion over the next decade as part of a plan to tame the national debt. But Democrats rejected the offer Tuesday—along with the notion that Republicans had made a significant concession that could end the long-standing political impasse—leaving a special debt-reduction committee far from compromise with less than two weeks until its Thanksgiving deadline." What a refreshing surprise! Good job, Dems!

And in Eurozone news...

The Guardian—Greece's squabbling politicians fail to pick new prime minister: "The struggle to appoint a new prime minister at the helm of an interim coalition government in Athens dragged on as squabbling politicians darted across the capital in frantic negotiation while EU leaders looked on nervously. ... The unexpected length of the negotiations combined with their fractious nature, despite the looming threat of bankruptcy, raised fears over the ability of Greece's sparring politicians to forge consensus at all. In a nation so bitterly divided by left and right, where memories of brutal civil war and military dictatorship still run deep, coalition governments are almost non-existent. Attempting to douse concerns of political instability exacerbating the debt-stricken country's economic plight, officials insisted that the appointment of a new prime minister was 'very close'."

New York Times—Crisis in Italy Deepens, as Bond Yields Hit Record Highs: "Italy's financial crisis deepened on Wednesday despite a pledge by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to resign once Parliament passes austerity measures demanded by the European Union. ... Mr. Berlusconi, cornered by world markets and humiliated by a parliamentary setback, appeared to have become the most prominent victim of the broader European debt crisis. But his decision did not remove wide uncertainty about Italy's ability to tackle the crisis, and some analysts said the prospect of a protracted period of political wrangling could exert further pressure for a quicker exit from the impasse."

CNBC—IMF Chief Warns World Economy Risks 'Lost Decade': "Christine Lagarde told a financial forum in Beijing that European plans to bolster a rescue package for Greece were a 'step in the right direction', but that the outlook for the world economy remained dangerous and uncertain. ... 'Our sense is that if we do not act boldly and if we do not act together, the economy around the world runs the risk of downward spiral of uncertainty, financial instability and potential collapse of global demand... we could run the risk of what some commentators are already calling the lost decade.'"

The Guardian—The emergence of the Frankfurt Group has turned back the democratic clock: "The European Union has always had problems with democracy, a messy process that can interfere with the grand designs of people at the top who know best. When Ireland voted no to the Nice Treaty, it was told to come up with the right result in a second ballot. The European Central Bank wields immense power, but nobody knows how the unelected members of its governing council vote because no minutes of meetings are published. That said, the latest phase of Europe's sovereign debt crisis has exposed the quite flagrant contempt for voters, the people who are going to bear the full weight of the austerity programmes being cooked up by the political elites."

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

People ride a stationary bicycle to generate electricity for laptops and mobile phones at the headquarters of the Occupy Wall Street movement in Zuccotti Park in the Financial District on November 4, 2011 in New York City. Despite a freak snowstorm last Saturday and the confiscation of their generators by the fire department, hundreds of young and old are staying put in the park. [Getty Images]

The Guardian's live coverage of the most recent Occupy events is here.

In US domestic news...

CNN Money—Bank dumping: Do the megabanks even care?

Credit unions and small banks say they've seen big jumps in new account openings thanks to this weekend's "Move Your Money" and "Bank Transfer Day" initiatives, but do the big banks even care?

Digital Federal Credit Union, the largest credit union in New England with 330,000 total members, welcomed 133 new members on Saturday. That's 56% higher than the average 85 account openings it sees on a typical Saturday.

...But while the "Move Your Money" initiative provided a wave of new customers to these smaller institutions, the big banks that these customers are leaving are so big that many of them have barely felt a dent in account holdings.

Bank of America, for example, has 58 million retail and small business accounts.

This, then, is yet another effect of deregulation allowing banks to expand to massive, too-big-to-fail sizes: It becomes increasingly impossible for a consumer-driven protest to have any meaningful impact.

TPMDC—Super Committee GOPers May Agree to Violate Norquist Pledge…With a Catch:

Super Committee Republicans are floating a trial balloon that would produce new tax revenue, in apparent contravention of Grover Norquist's taxpayer protection pledge, according to Wall Street Journal editorialist Stephen Moore.

But as Moore explains that the offer has a catch:

One positive development on taxes taking shape is a deal that could include limiting tax deductions, perhaps by capping write-offs on charities, state and local taxes, and mortgage interest payments as a percentage of each tax filer's gross income. That idea was introduced on these pages by Harvard economist Martin Feldstein.

In exchange, Democrats would agree to make the Bush income-tax cuts permanent. This would mean preventing top rates from going to 42% from 35% today, and keeping the capital gains and dividend tax rate at 15%, as opposed to plans to raise them to 23.8% or higher after 2013.

Neither Republican nor Democratic aides were immediately available to discuss the proposal. But if accurate as reported, it represents both a significant expansion of the growing rift between Norquist and the GOP, and a bad deal for Democrats.

...This isn't offered as a concession Republicans are willing to make in exchange for entitlement cuts — a key Democratic demand. It's designed as a concession Republicans are willing to make if Democrats will agree to make all of the Bush tax cuts permanent — and thereby throw away an enormous amount of leverage they have over Republicans who are committed to extending them.

Democrats, thus, would be expected to agree to throw in entitlement cuts anyhow, just because.

And they almost certainly will, because as soon as the Republicans start screaming, "WE MADE CONCESSIONS! THE DEMOCRATS ARE OBSTRUCTIONISTS!" the Dems will either cave on their own or face bipartipoop pressure from President Obama to cave. Sadly, the best hope we have of quashing this comes from the right, who will think the deal is too favorable to Dems.

CNN Money—Older Americans are 47 times richer than young: "According to analysis by the Pew Research Center released Monday, younger Americans have been left behind as the oldest generation has seen wealth surge since the mid-1980s. While it's typical for older generations to hold more wealth than younger ones who've had less time to save, the gap between the two age groups has widened rapidly. In 1984, households headed by people age 65 and older were worth just 10 times the median net worth of households headed by people 35 and younger. But now that gap has widened to 47-to-one, marking the largest wealth gap ever recorded between the two age groups." They weren't called the Me Generation for nothing.

The Guardian—Koch brothers: secretive billionaires to launch vast database with 2012 in mind: "The secretive oil billionaires the Koch brothers are close to launching a nationwide database connecting millions of Americans who share their anti-government and libertarian views, a move that will further enhance the tycoons' political influence and that could prove significant in next year's presidential election. The database will give concrete form to the vast network of alliances that David and Charles Koch have cultivated over the past 20 years on the right of US politics. The brothers, whose personal wealth has been put at $25bn each, were a major force behind the creation of the tea party movement and enjoy close ties to leading conservative politicians, financiers, business people, media figures and US supreme court judges."

Think Progress—Four Problems in Mitt Romney's Medicare Proposal: "Romney—who had leaked aspects of [his plan to partially privatize the Medicare program for future enrollees] during interviews—met with Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) before officially announcing his 'premium support' proposal at the end of last week, and Ryan, in turn, gushed the he is 'very pleased with these kind of entitlement reforms.' ... But this approach is still problematic. ... There is still no evidence that competition between private insurers and traditional Medicare will lower health care spending. ... Lower income seniors will pay more. ... Private plans will undoubtedly be encouraged to cherry-pick the healthiest beneficiaries and leave sicker applicants to traditional Medicare. ... Nothing in Romney's plan would actually reduce national health care spending."

Meanwhile, in the Eurozone...

The Guardian's live coverage of the day's events is here.

CNN—Italian lawmakers to take up economic reforms: "The Italian parliament is expected to face a crucial vote on budget reform measures Tuesday, as the country's prime minister comes under increasing pressure to resign amid unease over Italy's economy. Italy agreed to implement structural reforms during an European Union meeting in Brussels last month. Italian President Giorgio Napolitano said the reforms must be put in place or risk Italy's credibility in the international community. The budget vote comes after Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi denied Monday's rumors that he might resign. But his main coalition partner added fuel to the fire Tuesday, telling reporters he had asked Berlusconi to take a sideways step."

AP—New Greek premier expected to be named Tuesday: "Greece will get a new prime minister later Tuesday, a senior government official said, as the country's European partners ratcheted up the pressure for a swift resolution to the political crisis. Talks between current Prime Minister George Papandreou and opposition leader Antonis Samaras have dragged into a second day as they try to hammer out a power-sharing deal. The two agreed over the weekend to forge an interim government that will shepherd the country's new €130 billion ($179 billion) European rescue package through Parliament. Without the deal, agreed less than two weeks ago, Greece would go bankrupt, potentially wrecking Europe's banking system and sending the global economy back into recession. As yet, there are no precise details of when the new interim prime minister will be announced but the pressure is rising on Greek politicians to make decisions soon."

As always, please feel welcome and encourage to drop links to things you're reading and/or writing in comments.

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Number of the Day

49.1 million: The number of USians living in poverty in 2010, or 16% of the population, according to a new broader measure of poverty released by the US Census Bureau today.

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

[Trigger warning for violence.]

Below is video of an Occupy Oakland protester being shot with a rubber bullet while filming the police line in the early hours of November 3: "While filming a police line at Occupy Oakland after midnight on Nov. 3 following the Nov. 2 general strike, an officer opens fire and shoots me with a rubber bullet. I was standing well back. There was no violence or confrontations of any kind underway." [Via Zaid at Think Progress.]

CNN—A roundup of Occupy protests: "On Monday, a hearing will be held [in Atlanta] for a protester who was charged Saturday night with aggravated assault and obstruction after police said he assaulted a motorcycle officer patrolling the area. However, demonstrators said the officer 'accelerated into a demonstrator.' ... Riverside [California] police arrested 11 people Sunday after a group of about 40 demonstrators formed a human chain to prevent officers from pulling down tents near City Hall, Occupy organizers said." Etc. Meanwhile, in Chicago, police have installed surveillance equipment near Occupy Chicago HQ.

Welcome to America 2.0!

Here's some of the other stuff I've been reading this morning...

NPR—What Do Occupy Wall Street Protesters Want?: "Occupy Wall Street is in its second month of protest, and the frustration with financial big wigs continues to grow. Tomorrow's protesters will track 11 miles from Upper Manhattan to Lower Manhattan, ending in Zuccotti Park, the place where it all started seven weeks ago. They're calling the walk End to End for 99%."

The Guardian—US entrepreneurs cash in on Occupy movement: "The revolution could be trademarked in the US as more entrepreneurs seek to profit from the Occupy demonstrations. T-shirts began to appear days after the first protest on 17 September, a march through lower Manhattan. Now T-shirts, coffee mugs and other merchandise are being offered on the campsites that have sprung up in cities across the US. The US patent and trademark office has received a spate of applications." Perfect.

Barry Ritholtz in the Washington Post—What caused the financial crisis? The Big Lie goes viral: "A Big Lie is so colossal that no one would believe that someone could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. There are many examples: Claims that Earth is not warming, or that evolution is not the best thesis we have for how humans developed. Those opposed to stimulus spending have gone so far as to claim that the infrastructure of the United States is just fine, Grade A (not D, as the we discussed last month), and needs little repair. Wall Street has its own version: Its Big Lie is that banks and investment houses are merely victims of the crash. You see, the entire boom and bust was caused by misguided government policies. It was not irresponsible lending or derivative or excess leverage or misguided compensation packages, but rather long-standing housing policies that were at fault. Indeed, the arguments these folks make fail to withstand even casual scrutiny. But that has not stopped people who should know better from repeating them."

WaPo—Wall Street's resurgent prosperity frustrates its claims, and Obama's: "President Obama has called people who work on Wall Street 'fat-cat bankers,' and his reelection campaign has sought to harness public frustration with Wall Street. Financial executives retort that the president's pursuit of financial regulations is punitive and that new rules may be 'holding us back.' But both sides face an inconvenient fact: During Obama's tenure, Wall Street has roared back, even as the broader economy has struggled. The largest banks are larger than they were when Obama took office and are nearing the level of profits they were making before the depths of the financial crisis in 2008, according to government data."

New York Times—The Next Fight Over Jobs: "The way the job market is going, it will never be robust enough to bring down the unemployment rate, now at 9 percent, or 13.9 million people. Monthly job growth has slowed to an average of just 90,000 new jobs a month over the past six months, a pace at which growth in the working-age population will always exceed the number of new jobs being created. High unemployment and low job growth, which have plagued the economy all through the current 'recovery,' hurt both consumer spending and economic growth. But don't count on government to do the obvious and urgent thing—intervene to create jobs. Tragically, the more entrenched the jobs shortage becomes, the more paralyzed Congress becomes."

Paul Krugman in the New York Times—Here Comes the Sun: "Let's face it: a large part of our political class, including essentially the entire GOP, is deeply invested in an energy sector dominated by fossil fuels, and actively hostile to alternatives. This political class will do everything it can to ensure subsidies for the extraction and use of fossil fuels, directly with taxpayers' money and indirectly by letting the industry off the hook for environmental costs, while ridiculing technologies like solar. So what you need to know is that nothing you hear from these people is true. Fracking is not a dream come true; solar is now cost-effective. Here comes the sun, if we're willing to let it in."

In Eurozone news...

The Guardian's live coverage is here.

CNN—Greece's prime minister to quit in deal to salvage bailout package: "Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will step down as his government's leader, the country's president announced Sunday night—agreeing to do so on the condition that the controversial 130 billion euro bailout deal is approved. The announcement follows a meeting on Sunday in which Papandreou and Antonis Samaras—the leader of the New Democracy party, Greece's leading opposition party—agreed to form a new government."

The Guardian—Italy hails businessman a hero after he launches appeal to save the economy: "A businessman has become an unlikely national hero after urging Italians to buy up government bonds to help drag the country back from the brink of an economic meltdown. As the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, scrambles to deliver key reforms, the Tuscan financial services entrepreneur Giuliano Melani announced his appeal with a full-page ad in the leading daily Corriere della Sera, complete with his telephone number and email address. Melani says the bill for Italian government bonds expiring annually is €260-270bn (£223-232bn), a sum which would be taken care of if every Italian paid €4,500."

CNN Money—Europe: The worst-case scenarios: "That upheaval [in Greece] serves as just another reminder that the the crisis is far from over. ... Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy, put the odds of Greece leaving the eurozone at zero in the near term. Global Insight, another consultancy, puts it at about one in three. But UBS's Magnus puts it at 50-50 in the next year or two, and 80% by 2016."

This is not good:

The Guardian—Far right on rise in Europe, says report: "The far right is on the rise across Europe as a new generation of young, web-based supporters embrace hardline nationalist and anti-immigrant groups, a study has revealed ahead of a meeting of politicians and academics in Brussels to examine the phenomenon. Research by the British thinktank Demos for the first time examines attitudes among supporters of the far right online. Using advertisements on Facebook group pages, they persuaded more than 10,000 followers of 14 parties and street organisations in 11 countries to fill in detailed questionnaires. The study reveals a continent-wide spread of hardline nationalist sentiment among the young, mainly men. Deeply cynical about their own governments and the EU, their generalised fear about the future is focused on cultural identity, with immigration—particularly a perceived spread of Islamic influence—a concern."

As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to leave links to what you've been reading and/or writing in comments.

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

Sheriff's deputies advance on Occupy Oakland protesters early Thursday morning, Nov. 3, 2011, in Oakland, Calif. Following a mainly peaceful day-long protest by thousands of anti-Wall Street demonstrators, several hundred rallied through the night with some painting graffiti, breaking windows, and setting fires. [AP Photo]

I've seen several headlines and/or story ledes this morning that are some variation on "Oakland Protests Get Violent." Interesting framing, that. The protests, you see, only "got violent" when protesters broke shit; they weren't "violent," apparently, when police put Scott Olsen in the hospital.

Anyway.

CNN—Oakland, NYC occupiers see violence, legal action:

Two major hubs of the Occupy movement -- Oakland and New York City -- recovered Thursday from West Coast violence and East Coast court actions, with both fronts continuing their protest camps despite their encounters with the law.

In violence-torn Oakland, authorities reopened Thursday the city's port on San Francisco Bay after a night of Occupy demonstrations shut down the fifth-busiest port in the nation, a port spokesman said.

"The most current field reports confirm that in the port area there were no injuries, no property damage, and no major security problems from last night's demonstrations," port officials said. "There was a limited incursion into a private rail facility, and trespassers were escorted off peacefully."

Meanwhile, in downtown Oakland, Occupy protesters continued their encampment Thursday in the park in front of City Hall following a night of violent clashes with police.

CNN also has video of protests in Seattle greeting the CEO of JP Morgan, who was in town for some reason.

New York Daily News—More than a dozen Occupy Wall Street protesters arrested outside Goldman Sachs:

At least 15 Occupy Wall Street protesters were arrested Thursday after marching on Goldman Sachs to deliver an "indictment" of the financial giant.

Among the demonstrators hauled away after sitting down in front of the multinational's doors at 200 West St. was former New York Times foreign correspondent-turned-activist Chris Hedges.

...The marchers, led by four drummers, stretched a city block.

Some construction workers sitting along Church Street gave them thumbs up and a businessman on Murray Street muttered to himself, "What a bunch of idiots."

The NYPD didn't move in until about 15 protesters sat down and linked arms, blocking the lobby entrance.

As they were arrested, onlookers chanted "shame!" and "the criminals are inside!"

Here are two fun stories to read back-to-back...

New York Magazine—Jon Corzine Resigns, Won't Take More Millions From Failing Firm: "The CEO of MF Global, the securities firm that filed for bankruptcy on Monday, resigned this morning, and has opted not to accept his $12.1 million severance package, probably quite appropriately considering the role he had in the company's failing. Jon Corzine, the former New Jersey governor and Goldman Sachs CEO, said in a statement today that he feels 'great sadness about what has transpired at MF Global and the impact it has had on the firm’s clients, employees and many others.' Employees, of course, are basically out of a job, while about $630 million in client funds is still missing, drawing the suspicious eyes of the FBI and federal regulators. To keep things extra cozy, the man leading those regulators, Gary Gensler, head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, worked closely with Corzine at Goldman Sachs, and eventually even worked for him."

I love how he's still entitled to a $12.1 million severance for running a company into the ground. Meanwhile...

The Guardian—US poverty data: 1 in 15 people among America's poorest poor:
"The ranks of America's poorest poor have climbed to a record high—1 in 15 people—and spread widely across metropolitan areas, as the US housing bust pushed many inner-city poor into suburbs and other outlying places and reduced jobs and income. New US census data paint a stark portrait of the nation's haves and have-nots at a time when unemployment remains persistently high."

In other domestic news...

Raw Story—Tea party supporter to Elizabeth Warren: 'You're a socialist whore!': Not only did a heckler at a campaign appearance call Warren a whore for being "the intellectual creator of that so-called party," referring to the Occupy Movement, but: "The Massachusetts Republican Party recently released an ad that dubbed Warren the 'Matriarch of Mayhem' for supporting the Occupy Movement protesters across the country." You know, in case anyone hadn't noticed she's a woman, or failed to understand how her womanhood makes her EXTRA HORRIBLE.

CNN Money—'I'm home!' Adult children move back in: "With job openings scarce, getting adult children to leave the nest is becoming a lot more difficult. The number of adult children who live with their parents, especially young males, has soared since the economy started heading south. Among males age 25 to 34, 19% live with their parents today, a 5% increase from 2005, according to Census data released Thursday. Meanwhile, 10% of women in that age group live at home, up from 8% six years ago. Among the college-aged set, the 18- to 24-year-olds, 59% of males and 50% of females lived with their parents, up from 53% and 46%, respectively. The fact that so many young people are unable or unwilling to flee the nest 'cuts into the formation of new households quite a lot,' said Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody's Analytics. Zandi calculated that there are about 150,000 fewer households being formed per year than the 1.2 million that would be in a normal, well-functioning economy."

Paul Krugman in the New York Times—Oligarchy, American Style: "[E]xtreme concentration of income is incompatible with real democracy. Can anyone seriously deny that our political system is being warped by the influence of big money, and that the warping is getting worse as the wealth of a few grows ever larger? Some pundits are still trying to dismiss concerns about rising inequality as somehow foolish. But the truth is that the whole nature of our society is at stake."

Speaking of oligarchs...

Think Progress—Romney Campaign Memo: The Koch Brothers Are the 'Financial Engine of the Tea Party'.

New York Times—For Perry, Private Jets Have Been Key to Public Job.

In Washington...

CBS News—Boehner: Debt deal will include new tax revenues: "House Speaker John Boehner addressed one of the biggest sticking points for the 12 member Congressional 'supercommittee' today, acknowledging that any bipartisan agreement will need to include some new tax revenue. 'I think there is room for revenues, but I think there clearly is a limit to the amount of revenues that are available,' Boehner told reporters." Yeah, yeah—I'll believe it when I see it.

Reuters—Republicans block another part of Obama jobs plan: "Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a $60 billion White House proposal to repair crumbling bridges, highways and other transportation systems as President Barack Obama's job creation agenda hit another obstacle in Congress. All 47 Senate Republicans, one Democrat and one independent voted against a piece of Obama's $447 billion stimulus plan that would have helped construction workers—some of the hardest hit after the housing meltdown and economic downturn. The bill needed 60 votes to advance in the 100-seat Senate. Construction workers face a jobless rate of 13.3 percent, according to the Labor Department, far above the nationwide rate of 9.1 percent. Obama's jobs plan is effectively dead in Congress, but Democrats are forcing Republicans to vote on it piece by piece as both sides dig in their heels before 2012 presidential and congressional elections in which the economy is expected to be a defining issue."

And in Eurozone news...

The Guardian—Greece may leave euro, leaders admit: "The G20 is planning to increase the crisis-fighting firepower of the International Monetary Fund after the start of its summit was dominated by the first open admission from EU leaders that it might be necessary for Greece to leave the eurozone if the single currency is to survive. George Osborne said there was a 'real sense of urgency' on a day that saw an emergency interest rate cut from the European Central Bank, backtracking from Greece over a referendum on its bailout conditions, and a recognition that the IMF may need extra resources to cope with a deteriorating global economy."

The Guardian's live coverage of Greek PM George Papandreou's confidence vote, and related news, is here.

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

[Oakland Men's Wearhouse. Photo tweeted by Oakland Tribune reporter Matt O'Brien.
The Guardian's live coverage of the Occupy Oakland General Strike is here. InsideBayArea's live coverage is here.

In a bitterly emblematic incident, a Mercedes driver hit two protesters in Oakland last night, delivering non-life-threatening leg and ankle injuries to the woman and man who were hit. The police questioned the driver, then let him go.

Back in New York [trigger warning], a 26-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly sexually assaulting two teenage women in Zuccotti Park. #OccupyRapeCulture

CNN reports that Occupy Wall Street is gaining favor among USians:

As Americans learn more about Occupy Wall Street, they are becoming more supportive of the movement's positions, according to a new poll from ORC International.

The survey, taken Oct. 28-31, shows more adult Americans saying they have heard of Occupy Wall Street than when the question was asked in early October. Sixty-four percent of respondents now say they've heard of the movement, compared to only 51% in the earlier poll.

The new poll also shows more Americans supporting the movement. Thirty-six percent say they agree with the overall positions of Occupy Wall Street, while 19% say they disagree.

Nearly any protest movement that can just hang in there inevitably grains credibility among the general population, for the sheer appearance of having unwavering principles and not just being the dirty hippies/crackpots/fools/lowlifes/extremists/whatever that their opponents, with the help of the media, make them out to be.

In US domestic news...

BBC—US manufacturing growth slows to a crawl: "US manufacturing continued to expand in October, but growth slowed to a snail's pace, according to the latest monthly survey of the sector."

Pat Garofalo at Think Progress—For the First Time Since 2007, Federal Reserve Official Dissents from Central Bank Policy from the Left: "The Federal Reserve today released its latest policy statement, announcing that it is taking no new moves to boost the economy's sluggish growth. However, for the first time since 2007, one of the voting members of the central bank—Chicago Fed President Charles Evans—dissented from the Fed's decision from the left...support[ing] additional policy accommodation at this time."

ABC's The Note—Mitt Romney Directs New Attack at Rick Perry, Telling Him 'Deficits Matter': "Romney's new line of attack comes days after Perry suggested he is less concerned about how his economic plan will affect the federal deficit in the short term and more focused on creating incentives for job creators to spur hiring in the country."

Nate Silver in the New York Times—On Obama's Reelection Chances: "[T]he conventional wisdom long held that Barack Obama would most likely weather his midpresidency slump to win another term. Then came the debt-ceiling debates of July and August, which seemed to crystallize Obama's vulnerabilities in a way that even the Democrats' midterm disaster of 2010 did not. It's probably because he handled the situation so poorly, simultaneously managing to annoy his base, frustrate swing voters, concede a major policy victory to Republicans and—through the fear imported into the market by the brinksmanship in Congress and the credit-rating downgrade that followed—further imperil the economic recovery. ... Obama has gone from a modest favorite to win re-election to, probably, a slight underdog. Let's not oversell this. A couple of months of solid jobs reports, or the selection of a poor Republican opponent, would suffice to make him the favorite again."

In international news...

The Guardian—Greek crisis: PM 'expected to step down today': "Reports are breaking in Athens now that George Papandreou is set to meet with the country's president within the hour. Greek Mega TV claims that following a meeting of his parliamentary group after his cabinet session, the embattled leader will soon visit the president, Helena Smith tells me. This is probably to ask the president to dissolve the government and call early elections. But seperately, the BBC is reporting that Papandreou plan is to step aside and make way for a new coalition government to take over."

CNN—Young Italians fear uncertain future: "Youth unemployment in Italy runs at 28%, well above the eurozone average of 20%. When I asked [Italian youth] how worried [they] were about [their] job prospects, [they] all laughed nervously. 'There is no money in Italy, there is no opportunity,' [they] said."

CNN—Tax evasion is a national pastime afflicting southern Europe: "'Wherever the olive tree grows, you won't find much tax being collected,' the mayor of a small town in southern Spain told me a few years ago. He shrugged; such was life. ... That is partly because of the higher number of self-employed and family businesses [in Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal], which tend to deal in cash and pay little tax. But to many economic commentators, tax evasion is also a national pastime in much of southern Europe, and a significant factor in the region's burgeoning financial crisis."

The Guardian—G20: Europe faces the nightmare of a euro breakup: "The four members of the eurozone attending the G20 summit—Germany, France, Italy and Spain—were holding talks in Cannes this morning to discuss what to do next. Unsurprisingly, the mood was grim. Splits were appearing in the Greek cabinet, Italian bond yields were rising after Silvio Berlusconi's cabinet came up with no new proposals for tackling Italy's debts and for the first time European leaders have had to confront their worst nightmare: the euro may break up."

BBC—Obama calls for urgent debt deal: "US President Barack Obama has warned that there is still work to be done on how the eurozone can end a financial crisis that threatens engulf the world. Speaking on Thursday ahead of the opening of the G20 summit in France, he said that the most important topic on the agenda was Europe's problems."

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

ARLINGTON, VA - NOVEMBER 01: A statue of former President Ronald Reagan is seen after its unveiling ceremony at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport November 1, 2011 in Arlington, Virginia. The nine foot tall bronze statue of Ronald Reagan weighs approximately 900 pounds and stands in front of a 38 foot curving stainless steel wall outside Terminal A. [Getty Images]

If there were ever a time to install a nine-foot, 900-pound bronze statue of Ronald Reagan, it's definitely now. Perfect.

Meanwhile, in Oakland...

The Guardian—Thousands to gather in Oakland for mass day of action:

Thousands of protesters are expected to gather in Oakland on Wednesday for a general strike and mass day of action, organisers said on Monday.

The strike, organised by Occupy Oakland, aims to "shut down" the city, culminating with a march to the Port of Oakland to prevent the transit of cargo. Workers, university students and school pupils are all being urged to rally near the Occupy camp, with banks and large corporations expected to be targeted by marches.

"Oakland was the site of the last general strike in the US," said protester Tim Simons, at a press conference on Monday – drawing what would be an oft-repeated parallel between the Occupy action and Oakland's general strike of 1946.

"On Wednesday, we're going to make history once again. We're gonna make Oakland proud."

In other news, this is quite possibly the stupidest thing written about Occupy Wall Street so far.

Next up, domestic news...

CNN Money—FBI investigating missing money at MF Global: "The FBI and federal prosecutors are investigating how some $600 million of MF Global customers' money has gone missing, CNN learned Tuesday from sources close to the probe. The investigation of MF Global is being conducted by the FBI and other federal regulators, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission."

Azi Paybarah at Capital New York—Bloomberg: 'Plain and Simple' Congress caused the mortgage crisis, not the banks: "Mayor Michael Bloomberg said this morning that if there is anyone to blame for the mortgage crisis that led the collapse of the financial industry, it's not the 'big banks,' but Congress. ... 'I hear your complaints,' Bloomberg said. 'Some of them are totally unfounded. It was not the banks that created the mortgage crisis. It was, plain and simple, Congress who forced everybody to go and give mortgages to people who were on the cusp.'"

New York Times—Deficit Panel Is Warned That It Must Not Fail and Is Urged to Compromise: "A co-chairman of President Obama's fiscal commission told members of a powerful Congressional panel on deficit reduction Tuesday that he feared they would fail, and he said the consequences of such failure could be calamitous. ... One co-chairman of the president's fiscal commission, Erskine B. Bowles, said he had great respect for each member of the committee, but added, 'I am worried you're going to fail—fail the country.' Former Senator Alan K. Simpson, the other co-chairman of the commission, denounced Grover G. Norquist, the conservative antitax advocate, and AARP, the lobby for older Americans, saying both were obstructing efforts to reduce the deficit."

Bloomberg—Lawmakers to Propose Transaction Tax for Financial Firms Modeled on Europe: "Two U.S. lawmakers will introduce measures to impose a transaction tax on financial firms that resembles a proposal released by the European Union. Senator Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, and Representative Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat, will introduce the bills tomorrow in their respective chambers. The bills will give the United States an increased role in the international debate over a transaction tax, which is likely to be discussed at the Group of 20 summit this week in Cannes, France."

And in international news...

The Guardian—Greek PM wins backing for referendum: European debt crisis live. Check that page throughout the day for updates.

New York Times—Austerity Faces Test as Greeks Question Their Ties to Euro: "The crisis of the euro zone has finally hit the potholed road of real politics, with the Greeks now openly questioning whether their commitment to Europe and its single currency still matters more to them than control over their own future and economic well-being. ... 'This is clearly the return of politics,' said Jean Pisani-Ferry, director of Bruegel, an economic research institution in Brussels. 'The management of all this by the Europeans has been fairly technocratic. But now we see the gamble of a politician, which creates uncertainty again, but in a different form. But it was bound to come at some point.'"

Seconding what Atrios says here in response: "It's time to do away with the term 'technocratic.' It creates a category of policies which are The Right Thing To Do, yet the rightness of the policies aren't tested against anything. They aren't tested against democracy (messy pesky voters!) or results (the economy sucks, technocrats, and this is your doing). But merely say the word and we've conjured up images of very sensible highly educated wonky people doing the right thing, even as they destroy the world."

More Reagan statues! Reagan statues for EVERYONE!

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

Demonstrators wearing V-masks sit in front of a Commerzbank branch as they take part in a protest march as part of the 'Occupy Frankfurt' movement in Frankfurt am Main, on October 29, 2011 to protest against the financial system. Inspired by the US Occupy Wall Street movement and Spain's 'Indignants', the 'Occupy Frankfurt' protesters have erected in October around 50 tents in the city-centre park next to the ECB's Eurotower headquarters. [Getty Images]

Here's some of what I've been reading this morning [trigger warning for sexual violence]...

Yesterday, scatx and I had the following exchange on Twitter about increasing reports of violent misogyny and sexual violence at various Occupy locations, which I'll just reprint here for those who aren't on Twitter:

Me: RT @CathElliott Woah: RT @SW9Red: So for the third time of asking...Will @OccupyLSX apologise for retweeting this misogynist shit. [The link goes to an image of Occupy Finsbury Square's "Carve a Feminist Pumpkin Competition" winner, which is a pumpkin roughly carved to look like it's got a dick in its mouth.]

scatx: @shakestweetz Also, this: [TW] RT @xeni: #occupyGlasgow assault reported to have been a gang rape of a pregnant woman. bit.ly/uLGrSG [The link leads to a blog post which details reports of the event.]

Me: @scatx Oh god. We need to start an Occupy Rape Culture.

scatx: @Shakestweetz Yes, true. It's fucking depressing. I've been meaning to blog about this since Josh Harkinson tweeted a couple weeks ago about a sexual assault at ows in NYC and progs on Twitter were like, "Be quiet or it will hurt the movement!"

Me: @scatx Without a trace of irony. Uh, no: Silencing sexual assault survivors hurts the movement.

Again, I will note my consternation that so many of these "radicals" continue to be held in thrall by the most conservative of kyriarchal prejudices and ancient tactics of oppression. Listen, if your revolution doesn't implicitly and explicitly include a rejection of misogyny and other intersectional marginalizations, then you're not staging a revolution: You're staging a change in management.

* * *

First up in news: The MF Global meltdown, the 7th largest bankruptcy in US history.

Bloomberg/Businessweek—MF Global, Beacon Power, Real Mex, Lehman, PPI, NEC: Bankruptcy: "MF Global Holdings Ltd., a New York- based holding company for commodities and derivatives brokers, filed for Chapter 11 protection yesterday in New York after the New York Federal Reserve suspended the company from doing new business as a primary dealer. Later in the day, the Securities Investor Protection Corp. initiated a liquidation proceeding against the brokerage subsidiary, MF Global Inc. A finance subsidiary named MF Global Finance USA Inc. is also in Chapter 11 alongside the parent."

Reuters Video—MF Global files for bankruptcy.

Reuters—Traders try to limit damage from MF Global collapse.

Henry Blodget at Business Insider—Wow, Jon Corzine—Way to Fly Your Company into a Mountain: "Well, this one's right up there with the most spectacular CEO disasters ever. Yesterday, 18 months after Jon Corzine took over the helm of MF Global with the goal of building it into a real investment bank, he flew the company into a mountain. Why? Because part of becoming a real investment bank, apparently, is betting the company. Jon Corzine bellied up to the global market tables, bet MF Global, and lost. Specifically, the former head of Goldman Sachs and governor of New Jersey authorized his traders to scarf up $6 billion in bonds issued by Spain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, and Ireland. The bet, presumably, was that the powers-that-be in Europe would bail out these and other bondholders to the tune of 100 cents on the dollar, because in our global bailout spree, that's what powers-that-be do. Oops."

Atrios comments that the MF bankruptcy is "a reminder that the current International Great Casino is almost entirely about betting on just who will or will not be bailed out by governments and central banks. Betting on what central banks are going to do is always a part of this stuff, but in 'normal times' (remember them? me neither) that's about betting on whether they're going to raise or lower rates by 25 basis points. But now the bets are about just where the free money howitzer is going to be aimed."

And Yves Smith takes a look at the reports that customer accounts were pilfered at MF Global.

Next up: Domestic News!

CNN Money—Home prices heading for triple-dip: "The besieged housing market has even further to fall before home prices really hit rock bottom. According to Fiserv, a financial analytics company, home values are expected to fall another 3.6% by next June, pushing them to a new low of 35% below the peak reached in early 2006 and marking a triple dip in prices. Several factors will be working against the housing market in the upcoming months, including an increase in foreclosure activity and sustained high unemployment, explained David Stiff, Fiserv's chief economist. Should home values meet Fiserv's expectations, it would make it the third (and lowest) trough for home prices since the housing bubble burst."

The Hill—Larson: More needs to be done on housing: "Echoing a growing number of House Democrats, Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) warned Tuesday that the Obama administration's new anti-foreclosure strategy alone won't solve the housing crisis. Larson, who heads the House Democratic Caucus, said the administration's new housing reforms are 'a good step' toward stabilizing the volatile housing market but more needs to be done to help struggling Americans keep their homes. 'Our caucus is pleased to see the president come up with his program,' Larson said during a press briefing in the Capitol, 'Our caucus would like to see more done, as well.'"

AnnArbor—Eric Cantor criticizes 'wealth redistribution' and Occupy protesters during University of Michigan speech: "Inside the University of Michigan League, U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, spoke of the opportunity of Americans to move up 'the economic ladder.' Outside, a group of about 70 students and Ann Arbor residents protested a perceived economic inequality that they say makes it too difficult to climb that ladder."

The Hill—Supercommittee panelists would take hit if they fail to get debt deal: "Three weeks out with no deal in sight, the risk of failure is mounting for members of the congressional supercommittee on deficit reduction. ... Washington's political establishment has looked to the panel's Nov. 23 deadline as a pivotal moment in the national debate over federal deficits. It is the culmination of the year's battles in Congress, which almost resulted in a government shutdown in April and a national default in August. To fall short of the $1.2 trillion minimum goal necessary to avoid automatic cuts would come as an overwhelming letdown that would likely roil the stock market as well as the political landscape."

CNN Money—20 biggest CEO pay raises.

Meanwhile, in Europe...

Reuters—UK factory sector contracts at fastest pace in 2 years: "The manufacturing sector contracted at its fastest pace in more than two years in October as new orders plummeted, adding to signs that the country is teetering on the brink of recession, a survey showed on Tuesday. ... The numbers provide grim reading for policymakers and politicians, coming just ahead of data expected to show the economy grew a lacklustre 0.4 percent last quarter having basically flatlined in the previous nine months."

New York Times—Markets Slide After Surprise Referendum Is Set by Greece: "European markets slid dramatically on Tuesday after Prime Minister George A. Papandreou stunned the continent's leaders with a surprise announcement late Monday that his government would hold a referendum on a new aid package for Greece. The proposed ballot measure would put Greek austerity measures—and potentially membership in the euro zone—to a popular vote for the first time, risking Mr. Papandreou's political future and threatening even greater turmoil both among the countries that share the single currency and further afield. His announcement sent tremors through Europe's see-sawing markets on Tuesday, with bank stocks taking a particular hammering because of their exposure to Greek debt."

And globally...

The Guardian—Jobs crisis threatens global wave of social unrest, warns ILO: "The International Labour Organisation has warned that a jobs crisis caused by the slowdown in the global economy threatens a wave of widespread social unrest engulfing both rich and poor countries. ... [The organisation's World of Work study] found that only half the 80m jobs needed to return employment to its pre-crisis levels were likely to be created over the next two years, and that the stalling of the global recovery was already leading to an increase in joblessness. ... In a new 'social unrest' index, the ILO said there was growing unhappiness over the lack of jobs and anger over perceptions that the burden of the crisis is not being shared fairly. It noted that in over 45 of the 118 countries examined, the risk of social unrest is rising, with particular signs of tension in the EU, the Arab region and to a lesser extent Asia."

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When Mendacious Corporate Media Shills Say With Affected Wide-Eyed Wonder That They Just Can't Figure Out What Occupy Wall Street Is All About...

...it is quite reasonably pointed out to them by patient people who indulge their manufactured ignorance that many USians are quite frustrated with the banks, and deregulation, and the erosion of workers' rights, and corporate greed. Unemployment. Student loans. Foreclosures. Bankruptcies.

Big concepts. All correct. But it's also just shit like this, wearing on people day in and day out and grinding them down until they're nothing but raw nerves, vibrating with anticipated pain from the constant attacks on their security and dignity:

Like a lot of companies, Veridian Credit Union wants its employees to be healthier. In January, the Waterloo, Iowa-company rolled out a wellness program and voluntary screenings.

It also gave workers a mandate - quit smoking, curb obesity, or you'll be paying higher healthcare costs in 2013. It doesn't yet know by how much, but one thing's for certain - the unhealthy will pay more.

The credit union, which has more than 500 employees, is not alone.

In recent years, a growing number of companies have been encouraging workers to voluntarily improve their health to control escalating insurance costs. And while workers mostly like to see an employer offer smoking cessation classes and weight loss programs, too few are signing up or showing signs of improvement.

So now more employers are trying a different strategy - they're replacing the carrot with a stick and raising costs for workers who can't seem to lower their cholesterol or tackle obesity. They're also coming down hard on smokers. For example, discount store giant Wal-Mart says that starting in 2012 it will charge tobacco users higher premiums but also offer free smoking cessation programs.

I'm not going to get into, yet again, the reality that weight is not a great indicator of health, nor the inherent disablism in a policy requiring people to lose weight irrespective of any underlying illnesses or disabilities contributing to weight gain, nor the outsized fuckery of penalizing people for eating crap like ubiquitous, fat-making HFCS or being addicted to cigarettes which our government allows tobacco companies to make increasingly more addictive, because, while those things are ALL TRUE, the average worker being subjected to this garbage isn't thinking, "This is bullshit! I am being tasked with finding an individual solution to systemic problems!" but is thinking, "Oh my god, how am I going to pay for my healthcare?" and/or "I'm a moral failure because I am fat!" and/or "CHEESUS FUCKING CHRIST THERE IS TOO MUCH PRESSURE ON ME FROM UNPAID DEBT AND UNPAID OVERTIME AT MY UNDERPAID JOB AND MY MOTHER IS COMING TO LIVE WITH ME BECAUSE SHE LOST HER HOUSE AND MY KID NEEDS NEW CLOTHES AND MY CAR'S ABOUT TO DIE AND I HAVEN'T HAD A VACATION IN TEN YEARS AND I DON'T HAVE TIME TO READ THE PAPER AND I AM GOING TO CRACK."

Hey, USians! We heard you didn't have enough stress already, so howsabout adding "quit smoking" and "lose weight" to the pile? Sound good? Great! Love, Corporate America.

That's what people are feeling. And all the arguments about "healthfulness" and "long-term costs to the collective" and whatever are not going to change the fact that hard-working and highly-stressed people are hearing, "You know that cigarette or candy bar you enjoy at the end of another shitty, soul-destroying day in the employ of a corporation who is wringing every last shred of carefreedom out of your life to maximize its profits so its CEO can have a gold-plated bidet installed in his executive bathroom? Well, YOU CAN'T HAVE IT ANYMORE. Not if you want healthcare benefits."

It doesn't matter if that thinking is right, or wrong, or ethically neutral. What matters is that's what a hell of a lot of 99 percenters are thinking. And when they think it, they aren't blaming institutional prejudice, and they're not blaming Washington, and they're sure as shit not blaming themselves for wanting the ability to exercise a little fucking control over their bodies and lives.

They're blaming corporations—their employers, and their benefits providers.

And rightfully so.

* * *

About the same article, Digby makes a related point: "Libertarians make the argument that the government is a threat to liberty because it employs 'men with guns' who can rob you of your life and freedom. Without getting into that tired debate, I would just like to make one observation: for most Americans, the greatest threat to their freedom comes from 'men with pink slips' not men with guns, particularly now. (These men with pink slips, by the way, are exalted by 'free market' worshipers of all philosophical bents.)"

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Occupy Everywhere & Economic News Round-Up

At Occupy Lancaster, one of the many smaller protests around the country, demonstrators held fast despite the unseasonably early snowfall by making snowpeople to hold their signs while they tried to stay warm in tents overnight. [Thanks to Shaker Eccaba.]

Here's some of what I've been reading this morning...

Detroit Free Press—Veteran hit in head expected to recover:

An Iraq war veteran badly injured when police stormed an Occupy Oakland encampment last week is expected to make a full recovery, his roommate said Sunday.

Scott Olsen, 24, was hit in the head by a tear-gas canister fired by police trying to control a crowd on Tuesday night, according to witnesses.

Olsen was listed in critical condition at first with damage to the speech center of his brain, according to Olsen's roommate, Keith Shannon.

Although Olsen remained hospitalized Sunday and was not able to speak, doctors expect a full recovery, Shannon said.

Olsen's condition Sunday was listed as fair.

LA Times—Occupy Wall Street braces for winter:

Organizers have predicted the freezing temperatures and snow would reduce the Lower Manhattan encampment to a small assemblage through winter.

"But that's OK with us," said Richmond, 26, a carpenter from upstate New York. "The hardy will stay. The junkies will go. And in the spring all somebody has to do is declare Occupy Central Park or Occupy Union Square and everyone will return. This was just practice."

...It's also clear [authorities] don't want the demonstrators to get too comfortable.

City fire and police officials on Friday confiscated gas tanks and half a dozen generators being used for electricity in the makeshift kitchen and for media equipment. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg had declared them a safety hazard. Organizers were baffled; they said fire marshals had inspected the park the day before and hadn't mentioned any violations.

ABC News—Occupy Veterans Movement Growing across US:

Since Occupy Wall Street protests have broken out in cities across the U.S. and abroad, support has come from what might seem like an unlikely corner: war veterans.

"For veterans especially, health care is paramount, yet is always on the table to be cut," [veteran and organizer Paige Jenkins] said in an interview with ABC News. "Vets in this movement don't want to fight anymore. We want to make peace and live peaceably. We shouldn't have to fight for our benefits, and if vets are fighting for their benefits then it can't be any better for nonvets. ... What do you think is going to happen in 2012 after everyone gets home from Iraq? No jobs, no benefits. This will not be a good scene."

...Another group that called itself Occupy Marine Corps recently posted on its Facebook page advise about how to protest in winter weather. According to a Tweet by @Kruggurl, Occupy Marine Corps has offered protesters supplies for the winter.

"We are a collection of prior service Marines intent on protecting American citizens and their ability to exercise their First Amendment rights," a spokesperson for the group said.

In other Occupy Movement news, smaller protests, like the one in Lancaster County, are starting to get more media—and police—attention...

Chicago Tribune—Occupy Wall Street spinoff pickets Niles (MI) City Hall.

AP—Police break up Occupy Wall St. camp in Richmond.

Reuters—Occupy Wall Street arrests in Texas and Oregon.

The Hill—Fears about inequality in income grow: "Two-thirds of likely voters say the American middle class is shrinking, and 55 percent believe income inequality has become a big problem for the country, according to this week's The Hill Poll. ... Majorities across practically all income levels, and all political, philosophical and racial lines agreed that the middle class is being reduced, while the bulk of respondents in each category thought income inequality was at least a moderate concern."

The New York Times—As Meeting Approaches, Fed Panel Is Divided on Direction: "When the Federal Reserve's policy-making committee meets on Tuesday and Wednesday, 5 of the 10 voting members will arrive in open disagreement with the chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, about the direction of monetary policy. Three conservative members say the Fed has already done too much. Two liberals say the Fed needs to do much more. But it is still the chairman who determines whether the central bank should expand its campaign to stimulate growth for the third time since August, and lately Mr. Bernanke has been focused on an old theme: communicating the benefits of existing policies in order to increase their impact."

Paul Krugman in The New York Times—Bombs, Bridges and Jobs: "What's bringing out the military big spenders is the approaching deadline for the so-called supercommittee to agree on a plan for deficit reduction. If no agreement is reached, this failure is supposed to trigger cuts in the defense budget. Faced with this prospect, Republicans—who normally insist that the government can't create jobs, and who have argued that lower, not higher, federal spending is the key to recovery—have rushed to oppose any cuts in military spending. Why? Because, they say, such cuts would destroy jobs."

HuffPo—GOP Candidates' Plans on Economy, Housing, Challenged by Studies: "'Republicans favor tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, but these had no stimulative effect during the George W. Bush administration, and there is no reason to believe that more of them will have any today,' writes Bruce Bartlett. He's an economist who worked for Republican congressmen and in the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. As for the idea that cutting regulations will lead to significant job growth, Bartlett said in an interview, 'It's just nonsense. It's just made up.' Government and industry studies support his view."

Meanwhile, in Europe...

AFP—OECD says EU economy set to 'shrink': "Top economies are slowing with the eurozone set to shrink briefly, and rapid action by European leaders to enact promised crisis measures is key to global recovery, the OECD said on Monday. The eurozone should also cut interest rates, and countries with stronger public finances undertake short-term measures to boost growth, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said."

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