Banks and Drugs II

Do you need any more reasons to be pissed off at banks, part 2?  Previously, we discussed their decades long cozy relationship with drug cartels and the CIA?  The Golden Triangle, Iran-Contra Affair, Mena, Arkansas, Mexico, Panama and Venezuela National Guard, etc.
This time we take a look at the recent "settlement" for the third largest bank in the world and their decades long relationship with Mexican and Columbian drug cartels. 
 [Click to Listen]

Police Violence in Cleveland

After a quick discussion of the role of the national corporate media in shaping our day to day reality of the world around us, we get into the horrific story of 13 Cleveland Police officers shooting 137 rounds at two unarmed citizens after a 20+ minutes car chase - killing both of them. [Click to Listen]

Cooper Union Occupation

Students are taking matters into their own hands at Cooper Union in NYC.  12 students are occupying the "clock tower" in order to keep the tuition free and oust the current president of the university. [Click to Listen]

F**k Keystone XL Pipeline

As I type this, there are activists sitting in tress stands in Texas trying the best to hold off construction on the Keystone XL pipeline.  Keep up with their actions at the Tar Sands Blockade website.  Also, we take a look at their 10 reasons to oppose the pipeline. [Click to Listen]

Cleveland 5 Update

Three of the five people arrested in Cleveland this past spring find out how long they will be spending in jail.  The presiding judge in this case keeps a relatively cool head in the face of the US Attorney's office pushing for upwards of 30 years for some of the defendants.  "It doesn't make any sense whatsoever," the judges said in an interview.  He went on to call the tough sentencing sought by the prosecution as "grotesque". [Click to Listen]

Banks and Drugs

Do you need any more reasons to be pissed off at banks?  How about their decades long cozy relationship with drug cartels and the CIA?  The Golden Triangle, Iran-Contra Affair, Mena, Arkansas, Mexico, Panama and Venezuela National Guard (to name just a few from a Wikipedia page). [Click to Listen]

Occupy Sandy and Rolling Jubilee

The Occupy movement in NYC has two fascinating off shoots that we take a look at today.  The first is Rolling Jubilee and The Debt Resistors Operation Manual.  Actual financial help for those in need!  The second is the OWS response to Superstorm Sandy, Occupy Sandy, and how organizers are being more effective in their own neighborhood than the Red Cross could ever hope to be.  The show ends with an audio clip from Naomi Klein discussing how Occupy Sandy relates to her ideas on disaster capitalism. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - Post Mortem

A quick post mortem of the 2012 cluster fuck of an election.  A total of $6 billion spent to elect a corporate candidate.  How Bernie Sanders ran an actual re-election campaign with no TV, radio or direct mail ads.  A possible backlash against Super PAC's and the ridiculous idea of voting being either patriotic or a civic duty. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - F**k Voting (Part II)

Let's say you have picked a candidate for the Presidency of the United States.  After all the primary debates, campaign stops, stump speeches, conventions, ads, mailings, robo-calls, PAC's, Super PAC's, canvassing, the debates (including third party debates), yard signs, billboards and get out the vote campaigns - you have finally chosen someone to vote for.  Great!  But, guess what?  There is a growing chance that your vote just won't count.  I this episode, we take a look at information from a few different sources that expose the problems with using machines to count our votes.  Books by Mark Crispin Miller and Greg Palast as well as the fantastic citizen reporting from Bev Harris at Black Box Voting.  It's all enough to make you say "F**k Voting!". [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - F**k Voting (Part I)

In part I, we take a look at who actually votes.  With all the corporate media hype about how important every election cycle is, why are almost half of registered voters staying home on (S)election day?  Also, we get into who works the polls on (S)election day and how there will be no one to work the polls in a few years. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - Third Party Voting

A brief history of some recent third party candidates as well as some Gallup poll data which indicates that almost half of the country identifies as "Independent" in their political ideology.  Seems like the perfect environment for a massive switch towards a new political paradigm.  The question then should be 'why vote for one of the two corporate candidates?' and not 'why vote third party?'. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - Super Duper PACS

A brief history of 7 court cases that have shaped the current landscape of campaign financing. Emily's List vs FEC, Citizen's United vs FEC, SpeechNOW.org vs FEC, Club for Growth, Commonsense Ten and National Defense PAC. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Elections - Debates

A look into the Commission on Presidential Debates and how they hijacked the presidential debates from the League of Women Voters and turned the whole circus into, well a more boring form of a circus. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Kids

Just because you are older than a kid, doesn't mean you can't learn from them.  The innocent point of view of kids is unvarnished by corporate media (to a point) and social pressure as well as the natural curiosity about anything and everything. [Click to Listen]

The System is Broken

The inconsistencies of law enforcement illustrate how broken the system really is.  Corporations pollute and poison with impunity while activists are arrested for wearing masks in public or sitting in trees. [Click to Listen]

Malcolm X Voting Advice

Malcolm X was addressing the upcoming election of 1964 in this clip, but he may as well have been talking about our current situation.  It's depressing how politics never changes. [Click to Listen]

Next Housing Crisis

Trying to predict the future by looking at the rising trends in unemployment and underemployment and the growing number of foreclosure filings by the major banks since the February 2012 "settlement" over the Robo-Signing scandal. [Click to Listen]

Europe is Burning

Greece, Spain and Portugal are (once again) fighting back against austerity measures. [Click to Listen]

Wedge Issues

The down side of Occupy Wall Street changing the political conversation, it may become a wedge issue.  Also, some words of wisdom from the late, great George Carlin. [Click to Listen]

Occupy Wall Street Year One

A reading of the Declaration of the Occupation of New York City (Sept. 29, 2011) as well as one of the biggest accomplishments of the Occupy Movement so far. [Click to Listen]

Chicago Teachers Strike

The big picture of education reform in this country is on display in Chicago as the Chicago Teachers Union continues to strike.  Good luck Chicago! [Click to Listen]

Infiltrating Occupy and CTU Strikes

Occupy Austin members are facing felony charges due to the provocation of at least one undercover officer.  Luckily, the police poorly documented their illegal actions, so the case may be thrown out of court.  Meanwhile, the Chicago Teachers Union kicks off a massive strike, the likes of which we haven't seen in over 25 years. [Click to Listen]

DNC Protests

The coronations (Conventions) are finally over with!  We start off this episode looking at some of the social justice groups that were in the streets protesting President Obama and the Democratic National Convention.  A jealous "news" agency is upset that protesters are getting political and having fun at the same time.  A list of some reasons why Occupy activists are targeting Charlotte as Wall Street South and a couple of delegates who are also Occupy sympathizers. [Click to Listen]

RNC Protests 2

Wrap up coverage of the Republican National Convention and the protests in Tampa.  Plus, two mystery quotes from establishment politicians that might surprise you as well as my daughter "mic checking" me as I wrap up the show. [Click to Listen]

Code Pink Kicks A**

A quick history of Code Pink actions, including their interruption of Mitt Romney's coronation at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. [Click to Listen]

RNC Protests 1

We're back!  With some major computer and financial situation solved (I hope), we're back on the airwaves (Internet).  Tampa is gearing up for the RNC, or rather, the protests at the RNC.  We've got strippers, bricks and graffiti, leaked police state memos, Department of Homeland Security warns of Anarchist using Improvised Explosive Devices (no joke), trained sanitation workers spying on citizens, jails emptied in anticipation of scores of arrested citizens, and oh yea, the Tampa Police Department (TPD) has a TANK!  Meanwhile, protester respond with the usual creativity, including a Google Map of all the CCTV cameras that will be scanning out faces as we march, a declaration to the TPD, and a local businessman who has given Occupy Tampa a home base for months and months.  Check out March on the RNC for protests plans throughout the week.  See you in the streets! [Click to Listen].

SF Commune & Religion

On this show we take a look at N+1 magazines gazette series called Occupy!, specifically the articles by Susie Cagle and Nathan Schneider on the San Francisco's Commune and the role Religion should be playing within the movement.

COINTELPRO

A look at the tactics used by the FBI's COunter INTELligence PROgram (COINTELPRO) against activist groups in the United States (with some readings from Dan Berger's book: Outlaws in America).  The program officially ended in 1971, but the tactics are clearly still being practiced today against Occupy Wall Street and the Occupy Movement in general.

The NATO 3 & Cleveland 5

Activists are arrested as the NATO protests begin, clouding the Corporate Media's coverage just as the Cleveland arrests did for the May Day Rally's nation wide.  The violent demonization of the Occupy Movement by the State and all of its cohorts is starting to look suspiciously like Operation Backfire and the FBI crackdown on ELF and ALF.

Chicago 1968

A little history lesson from the archives of Pacifica Radio.  The Democratic Convention of 1968 and the heavy handed tactics of the Chicago Police Department thru the fantastic reporting of Phil Watson.

The Activists Backpack

Some thoughts on how to prepare for modern protests within the current police state, specifically in Chicago for the NATO/G8 protests.  The Black Cross Health Collective in Portland, Oregon has some great resources available here.

May Day via Corporate Media

After sifting through way too much Corporate Media coverage of May Day 2012, here are some of the choicest clips from Neil Cavuto, Shepard Smith, HLN Special Report and Anderson Cooper.  Prepare to yell at your speakers!

Live (sort of) May Day Coverage

Recorded Live (sort of) on May Day, a rambling narrative of news events as they happened.
Mission Police substation hit with paint balls, New York City activists residences raided by NYPD on April 30th, Risk Control Strategies helps the State monitor protest plans, over 50 picket lines in NYC, New York Times reports on envelopes with notes and white powder sent to Mayor Bloomberg and 6 others, 5 arrested in Cleveland for plotting, Occupy Oakland harassed and gassed by cops, Occupy Chicago shuts down banks, Guitarmy draws huge crowds, the San Francisco Commune is re-Occupied, Obama pops up in Afghanistan and created a Corporate Media distraction, London is re-occupied, Wall Street is blocked off so OWS protesters head to the Vietnam War Memorial and end the night in Liberty Square.

How to Occupy Your College

Want to Occupy your college or university? Here are some lessons learned from the 1968 Columbia student occupation.

F**k Fracking!

Taking a look at Fracking and other Environmental issues within the OWS protests via an article in EcoWatch Journal by Rep. Bob Hagan (D-Youngstown).

From Port Huron to OWS

Tom Hayden and his thoughts (published over at The Nation) having been there at the start of the Students for a Democratic Society and the authoring of the Port Huron Statement, up through the Occupy Wall Street movement.  Here is his interview with Democracy Now.

Co-Opting and The 99% Spring

Taking a look at MoveOn.org's 99% Spring initiative thru a few articles.  Charles Lenchner's post at the NYC General Assembly site discusses his experience in the Training for Trainers program.  Allison Kilkenny surveys the reactions of Occupiers to the 99% Spring initiative over at The Nation.  And then a couple of after the fact reports from Counter Punch that spend a bit too much time and energy ripping the whole initiative to shreds, anonymously.

The Police State is Here

Police State or no Police State, there is no longer a question here at Mic Check Radio.  It's here.  For example from the NYPD: spying on activists and Muslims, Stop & Frisk, DNA database, Retna scans, Commissioner Kelly telling 60 Minutes they can take down a plane with their firepower.  On a National level: Warrantless Wire Taping, PATRIOT Act, NDAA on NYE, Enemy Belligerent Interrogation Detention Prosecution Act of 2010, Military Commissions Act of 2006, HR 347 (Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011) and a brand new NSA facility to store all of the data from our phones/e-mails/texts/tweets/status updates and podcasts.

OWS and Corporate Media

OWS and the Corporate Media...should there be a relationship there?  An article published in Tidal (Issue 2), Media As Direct Action by Katie Davison proposes and interesting way to look at the media.

The G8 Retreats

The G8 retreats back to Camp David!  An argument for this move as a victory for the Occupy Movement, a victory based on just the threat of a protest.  But in reality, probably because this movement is so heavily under surveillance that the State knows exactly how big the scene is going to be...also, during an election year the President wants to be nowhere near a demonstration as big as Chicago.

MCR 03.05.12

Book review time here at Mic Check Radio...in the day and age of e-publishing, there are already several Occupy Wall Street books available.  In this episode, we take a look at Occupy Wall Street: Romance to Reality by David Hodgson Dennis.

MCR 02.19.12

A discussion of the topics raised by looking at the "Signs" of the Occupy Movement.

MCR 02.17.12

If we all teach our children to take turns, don't lie and share with others...then when do they unlearn this and become "money hoarding, screw everyone else investment bankers working for Goldman Sachs"?

MCR 02.15.12

A look at the overuse of the word Revolution; in advertising, movies, in the news and especially within the Occupy Movement.

MCR 02.07.12

A clip from Ward Churchill's spoken word album, Pacifism as Pathology: Reflections on the Role of Armed Struggle in North America, as well as some more reflections on the January 28th action that Occupy Oakland undertook.

MCR 02.05.12

An interview with Kalle Lasn, publisher of Adbusters, on the Canadian Business website gives us some hints as to what might be in the works for the Occupy Movement.

MCR 02.03.12

A slightly closer look at Occupy Oakland in the wake of the events of January 28th.  The city that brought the Black Panther Party out to the world is stepping up again as a shinning example of the Occupy Movement.  Can this stay non-violent for much longer?

MCR 01.27.12

Adbusters Tactical Briefing #25: Calls for 50,000 people to #OccupyChicago on May 1st for one month.

MCR 01.20.12

A couple of clips from Chris Hedges appearance on C-SPAN's Book TV In Depth program. 

MCR 01.11.12

Occupy Oakland vs the Oakland Police Department.  NYPD crackdown on citizen journalists, again.  Several upcoming actions to watch for from OWS.

MCR 01.03.11

Occupy the Caucus gets ready to roll in Iowa and New Hampshire.  OWS celebrates NYE at Liberty Square.  The Smithsonian Institute and half a dozen other museums are now actively archiving the Occupy Movement.