Observations from the Edge 10.14

I went down to Zuccotti Park early Friday morning where the city was poised to use the cover of park cleaning to evict Occupy Wall Street. If what follows seems a bit confusing it may be because I was running, and still am running, on three hours sleep and most of it is off the top of my head because I was traveling without my usual backpack of toys. All I took along was Ash's old Nikon, the largest cup of coffee I could find at 5 AM, my phone zipped tight in my jacket, and the cell number of Ash's lawyer who I am quite sure was already expecting my call.

When I got to Zuccotti around 5:30 there were already thousands of people crowding the park. Broadway was partially blocked by steel barricades and maybe a hundred NYPD officers, a sight which sort of blew my mind. Not so much seeing all of them there but the fact that they were blocking one of the main arteries of the Financial District just before rush hour. Not only that but it was perfectly timed to be broadcast live on all the morning news shows and I began thinking somebody really hadn't thought the whole thing through. That may have been the scariest thought of the day. Ringing the park were cameras from networks all over the country and the world. I could easily pick out ABC 7, NBC 4, CNN, Univision, AP, German ARD, and the BBC.

I found a nice clean and comfy trash can to sit on than settled in to drink my coffee and see what dawn bought. My trash can was in a good spot just outside the park with an open street behind it so I figured I had a nice exit route should I need one. Just after 6:00 my escape plan went to hell when about a dozen officers arrived on scooters I could only think they borrowed from meter maids. I have to admit that made me more than a little nervous so I quickly double checked that lawyer's number. Not long after the scooter cops arrived a rumor began to spread through the crowd that the whole operation had been postponed if not canceled and it was officially announced at around 6:45. It was a slightly emotional moment because the crowd began chanting “we won, we won” over and over and I know I saw some of the younger cops smiling. By now I had my phone out and was back in contact with the rest of my world.

At this point hundreds of protesters poured out of the park and headed north on Broadway in an impromptu celebratory march on City Hall. I hoped off my perch and followed part of the way but turned back when I started to see riot police, horses, and those damn orange nets the police used to gather up marchers on the Brooklyn Bridge. During this march protesters clashed with riot police outside City Hall and this is where most of the days arrests took place. I wandered back through Zuccotti taking photos and talking a little including to a guy who had just been arrested in the big Occupy Boston arrest, got out, and than traveled to New York fully expecting to be arrested yet again. One of the most discussed topics is also one of the least reported facts of the day. Diana Taylor, Mayor Bloomberg's live in girlfriend, just happens to be on the board of directors of Brookfield Office Properites, the owners of Zuccotti Park.

Personally I don't think the cleaning operation could have been planned without the approval of Mayor Bloomberg himself and so the decision not too do it must have been his as well. Probably laying it on Brookfield Properties was an easy way for him to wash his hands of the whole affair should it have gone bad. I have to agree with what a Village Voice writer said in a column later in the day. If the decision not to clean the park had been made the night before why the hell didn't they announce it than. Announce it before thousands of people, some of them very heavily armed, stood in the early morning light of Zuccotti Park just waiting for something to happen.

What I do know is that the word postponed was burned into the minds of everyone there this morning. Not cancelled, just postponed.

Observations from the Gallery 10.13 Randomness

Some days I just get all kinds of things in my mail, for instance today I got an invitation to the 12th Istanbul Biennial which runs through November 13th. Now I'd go in a heartbeat because I would love to see the Hagia Sophia and museums but it seems the folks at the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts forgot to send along the airfare. I suppose I need to pass on Istanbul this year. I also received an invitation to a Halloween party at a major gallery in the Village, now that could be fun and far cheaper than Istanbul, but it seems a $100 donation is necessary to attend this event. I guess I pass on that one too or maybe we'll just have our own Halloween party that night. I spend far too much time on my multiple tumblr blogs but I like looking at photos so I would probably be looking anyway.

One thing I have discovered is I'm far from the only person alive who loves quotes. I rarely get photos reblogged, well rare for the number I post, but the quotes always seem to get a couple likes or reblogs or likes. Two of the most popular are Hunter S. Thompson quotes, "life has become immeasurably better since I have been forced to stop taking it seriously," with 98 reblogs and "who is the happier man, he who has braved the storm of life and lived or he who has stayed securely on shore and merely existed," with 52. Seems there are a lot of Thompson fans out there.

Another thing I've been spending some time on is trying to keep up with the Occupy Wall Street protests and others around the country. There is a video on YouTube of the Boston Police breaking up a demonstration and tearing a flag out of a man's hands. I wont bother sharing because it isn't of the best quality. What I want to share is a comment to the video that just shows how damn myopic some people are in this country. The comment said, “Boston Police officers are doing an outstanding job. These so-called "protesters" are the most ignorant and arrogant misfits around. They were repeatedly told to leave the area. The fault clearly lies with these ignorant misfits. It is a shame that the Boston Police officers are forced to put up with these arrogant crapheads. Keep up the good work, Boston Police!!!!” The group protesting was the Veterans for Peace, a non-profit humanitarian organization of vets dedicated to increasing public awareness of the costs of war.

Finally today was one of those days where one topic of conversation seemed to linger all day in the gallery. That would be thanks to Ash who, when I got the party invitation, commented that before she dies she would just like to get a little respect from those, well, people. I shan't elaborate on the exact language she used but I will say she has a point because the bigger galleries do tend to look down on the smaller ones. Respect is a tricky thing in that it's earned, given, and sometimes taken for granted, sometimes until it is gone. But should a large gallery have our respect simply because it is large or should there be more to it than that? I suppose more art world bridges have been burned over that one simple word than almost any other reason. Damn arrogant artists.

My only fear is that any hits taken out during Ash's campaign for recognition will have to be handled by me.

Michelle Branch - Loud Music