Something's happening

I'm not sure what's causing it, but some things are starting to change. First there was the Occupy Wall Street movement, an ad hoc event that kept on happening. Then similar actions spread around the country.

Occupy Huntington in WV has been going on for nearly a week. Related events are planned for Saturday in Charleston and other WV towns, in addition to dozens and maybe hundreds around the nation and world.

Labor unions have not only expressed support for the Occupy movement but have also initiated numerous actions of their own around the country, including a jobs rally last night in Charleston.

Another ad hoc crew assembled in Charleston Thursday on a rainy lunch our to hold signs calling for job creation. Among those who attended were members of the Laborers union, MoveOn supporters, and representatives of the National Association of Social Workers, WV Citizen Action, the American Friends Service Committee and other labor friendly organizations. Mary Hill and Diane Parker, both members of the Laborers International Union of North America, took the lead in organizing the event.

I'm still not sure whether this is a flash in the pan or the start of something big, but it would be nice to think that people were losing the inclination for servility and the habit of groveling at the feet of a plutocracy.

ANOTHER TAKE. Here's economist Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University's Earth Institute on the Occupy Wall Street protests and the issues driving them.

CORPORATIONS AND PEOPLE. Sorry, Mitt, but not everyone is convinced they are one and the same.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED