Friday, April 6, 2012

12-04-06 US prosecutes torture whistleblower, not the torturers




The Truth About Espionage Act Prosecution Against Whistleblower John Kiriakou



Well-played, Justice Department. Indict former CIA officer John Kiriakou on Tuesday evening, but don't unseal the indictment until 4:59pm on Thursday, right before the holiday weekend, in order to avoid press coverage of the Obama administration's 6th Espionage Act prosecution of a whistleblower.

Before I start deconstructing the Indictment, here's a key to reading the tea leaves:
Officer A = undercover
Officer B = former CIA career & targeting analyst Deuce Martinez (never undercover)
Journalist A = Matthew Cole
Journalist B = Scott Shane
Journalist C = mentioned in original charges, but dropped from Indictment
Facts Not in the Indictment/Kiriakou's Whistleblowing Disclosures:
* Refused to be trained in torture tactics
* First CIA officer to call waterboarding "torture" (2007/ABC News)
* Helped expose CIA's torture program as policy rather than playtime (2009/The Reluctant Spy: My Secret Life in the CIA's War on Terror)
It's outrageous that John Kiriakou, a whistleblower, is the   ONLY INDIVIDUAL TO BE PROSECUTED IN RELATION TO THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION'S TORTURE PROGRAM . 

The interrogators who tortured prisoners, the officials who gave the orders, the attorneys who authored the torture memos, and the CIA agents who destroyed the interrogation tapes have not been held professionally accountable, much less charged with crimes. But John Kiriakou is facing decades in prison for helping expose torture.
The fact that national security and intelligence officials have become the exception to the Obama administration's mantra of "looking forward, not backward" and Bush-era lawbreaking sets a dangerous precedent: if you torture a prisoner, you will not be held criminally liable, but if you blow the whistle on torture, you risk criminal prosecution under the Espionage Act. 

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Thursday, April 5, 2012

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12-04-05 Fraud in the Supreme Court of the State of Israel



  • False and deliberately misleading certifications, recently executed by the Chief Clerk on decisions of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel
    The certification statement, used by the Chief Clerk, is not the one authorized by the Regulations of the Courts, and the purported certifications are executed  on unsigned copies of the purported decisions, "subject to editing and phrasing changes". No certified electronic signatures, pursuant to the Electronic Signature Act (2001), have been established in the Supreme Court.  Since early 2003, all the electronic decisions of the Supreme Court been  published online unsigned and uncertified.  A fraudulent, unsigned, undated, apostille certification arrangement has been published online by the "Judicial Authority".  Nations, including but not limited to those, who are parties to the Hague Apostille Convention (1961), should re-assess any faith and credit, given to legal public records originating in the courts of the State of Israel.
    []   []   [] [] Supreme Court; Chief Clerks: the late Shmaryahu Cohen, Sarah Lifschitz; State of Israel
    View as PDF:
    Jerusalem, April 5 - following repeated requests,  Joseph Zernik, PhD, of Human Rights Alert (NGO), has received for the first time purported certifications by Chief Clerk Sarah Lifschitz on three judicial records of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel.  All three records originated in challenges by Dr Zernik to the integrity of the electronic record systems of the Supreme Court. [1,2] All three records are claimed to be simulated decisions of the Supreme Court. [3,4]
    All three certifications are deemed false and deliberately misleading as well, for the following reasons:
    •  If valid original judicial records had existed for any of the three decisions, they would have been the records signed by the respective justices/judges.  However, the Chief Clerk's certifications are executed on unsigned copies of the respective records, which bear the disclaimer, "subject to editing and phrasing changes".
    •  The certification statement used by the Chief Clerk is invalid:
      • The Regulations of the Courts - Office of the Clerk (2004), Regulation 6a explicitly states, that the certification statement, which the Chief Clerk is permitted to execute is “Copy Corresponds to the Original” (He’eteq Mat’im la-Maqor). [5]
      •  The March 29, 2012 cover letter of the records, signed  by Chief Clerk Sarah Lifschitz, also purports the same: that the attached records bear the certification statement, “Copy Corresponds to the Original”.
      •  In contrast, the attached records are stamped “Copying Corresponds to the Original” (Ha’ataqah Mat’imah la-Maqor).
    ____________________________________________________________[]   ____________________________________________________________ [] Excerpt from one of the three records, recently provided by Chief Clerk Sarah Lifschitz, Supreme Court of the State of Israel.  The excerpt says: "Issued today, September 21, 2011", then shows spaces for the signatures of three justices.  The footnote says, "copy subject to editing and phrasing changes", then shows the Seal of the Court, and the invalid, false certification stamp, "Copying Corresponds to the Original," with the hand signature of the Chief Clerk. ____________________________________________________________
    Consequently, request has been forwarded to the  Chief Clerk, asking for new certification of the three records, correcting the deficiencies found in the records at hand. [6]
    The findings, pertaining to the records at hand, are not unique:
    •  Since January 2003, all decisions of the Supreme Court have been published online unsigned, uncertified, and with the disclaimer - "subject to editing and phrasing changes." 
    •  Although the Supreme Court relies on electronic records, no visible certified electronic signatures, pursuant to the Electronic Signature Act(2001), have been established in the electronic record systems of the Supreme Court to this date.
    •  Numerous decisions of the Supreme Court have been falsified, particularly in 2002, following the sudden death of Chief Clerk Shmaryahu Cohen.  Decisions, issued years after his death, bear his purported certifications. [7]
    •  The evidence indicates that Chief Clerk Sarah Lifschitz is not in control of the electronic records systems of the Supreme Court. And given that a valid certification by her on any judicial record of the Supreme Court is yet to be discovered, the nature of her appointment remains unclear.  The Administration of Courts has denied a Freedom of Information request for her appointment record, claiming that it was exempt as a "record of internal deliberations". [8]
    •  The "Judicial Authority" has also published online an undated, unsigned, false and deliberately misleading certification arrangement, relative to theHague Apostille Convention(1961).  The arrangement delegates the apostille certification authority, which is vested in the Chief Clerk of the Supreme Court (or other Deputy Clerks) to outside notaries. The arrangement is alleged as fraud on the courts of other nations, which are party to the Convention.[9]   The Administration of Courts refused to disclose, who authored the arrangement, who authorized its publication on the web, who the Justice Minister was, whose authority was invoked in the arrangement, and what the legal foundation for the apostille certification arrangement was. [9]
    Combined, the evidence shows that the Supreme Court refuses to certify its own judicial records, and when pressed, resorts to false and deliberately misleading certification procedures.

    "A court, which refuses to certify its own records, is certified corrupt," concludes Dr Zernik.

    The requests for certification of the three decisions at hand, were filed by Dr Zernik, as part of preparation of submission for the 2012 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of human rights in the State of Israel by the Human Rights Council (HRC) of the United Nations. The submission is narrowly focused on "integrity, or lack thereof, of the electronic record systems of the courts of the State of Israel."[10]
    The draft submission alleges:
    Conditions, now prevailing in the electronic record systems of the national courts of the State of Israel, are in violations of any article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, where integrity of the courts and the justice system is a prerequisite. Conditions, which have been established over the past decade should be deemed a simulated justice system, reflecting corruption of the courts, the Ministry of Justice, and the legal profession.
    The submission concludes:
    •  The validity of any legal public records, originating in the State of Israel, and employed in the UPR process, should be re-assessed;
    •  
    Nations, including but not limited to those, who are parties to the Hague Apostille Convention (1961), should re-assess any faith and credit, given to legal public records, originating in the State of Israel.

  •  The findings carry far-reaching implications in analysis of socioeconomic trends, stability of local financial markets, and regional violence.

  •  Attempts by the State of Israel to address the crisis would likely be compounded by conflicts of rivaling security, legal, and computing groups. The submission recommends:  
    •  Recruitment of all possible civil society agents in effort to resolve a constitutional crisis, in a nation with no constitution.
    •  Institution of a thorough, public investigation of events surrounding the death of Supreme Court Chief Clerk Shmaryahu Cohen in 2002.
    •  Establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
    Conditions, which have been established in the courts of the State of Israel over the past decade, closely mimic conditions, which had been established in the US courts a decade or two earlier.[11] Corruption of the US courts is tightly linked to the current financial crisis and civil unrest in the United States, and therefore, the State of Israel should be considered at increased risk of the same. The 2010 submission of Human Rights Alert, for the UPR of human rights in the United States, was reviewed and incorporated into the official HRC Professional Staff Report with a note referring to “corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination by law enforcement in California.” [12]###
    Joseph Zernik, PhD [13]Human Rights Alert (NGO)____
    LINKS:
    [1] 
    12-03-12 Request forwarded to Chief Clerk of the Supreme Court Sarah Lifschitz for Certification of Supreme Court decisions s (Eng)
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/85992928/ 
    [2] 12-03-25 Request for Certification by the Chief Clerk of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel of the December 4, 2011 Decision in Dr Joseph Zernik v Office of the Clerk of the Supreme Court (8835/11) s
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/86655977/ 
    [3] 
    "Simulated litigation", "simulated decisions", "simulated service", "simulated justice system" here refer to conduct defined as felonies in the Texas Criminal Code as follows:
    Texas Penal Code §32.48. SIMULATING LEGAL PROCESS. 
    (a) A person commits an offense if the person recklessly causes to be delivered to another any document that simulates a summons, complaint, judgment, or other court process with the intent to:
            (1)  induce payment of a claim from another person;  or                      
            (2)  cause another to:                                                       
                (A)  submit to the putative authority of the document;  or                
                (B)  take any action or refrain from taking any action in response to the document, in compliance with the document, or on the basis of the document.
    (b)  Proof that the document was mailed to any person with the intent that it be forwarded to the intended recipient is a sufficient showing that the document was delivered.
     [4] 11-12-19 Zernik, J: Simulated Records, Simulated Litigation Enabled by the Electronic Record Systems of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel (English) s
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/73239491/[5] 04-11-25 Takanot Batey Hamishpat - Mazkirut (2004) // Regulations of the Courts - Offices of the Clerks (2004) (Heb + Eng)
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/48770720/ 
    [6] 12-04-04 Request forwarded to Chief Clerk Sarah Lifschitz for correct certification of copies of decisions of the Supreme Court.
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/87995925/ 
    [7] 12-03-21 Evidence of Large-Scale Fraud in the Electronic Systems and Electronic Records of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel: Appendix 06 Invalid on Their Faces Decisions of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/86180892/
    [8] 12-03-06 Freedom of Information Response by the Administration of Courts (P29-2012), Re: March 2, 2012 Request for the appointment records of the Chief Clerks and certification procedures of the electronic records of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel (Heb+Eng) s
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/86345296/
    [9] 12-02-19 PRESS RELEASE: Invalid, Simulated Apostille Certification Procedure Published Online by the Judicial Authority of the State of Israel (English)
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/82064304/
    [10] 12-04-02 Draft Human Right Alert's 2012 State of Israel UPR Submission: Integrity, or lack thereof, of the electronic records of the courts (REVISED)
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/82927700/
    [11] 12-03-15 PRESS RELEASE: Evidence of widespread corruption of the US courts and proposed corrective measures submitted to the US House of Representatives
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/85481555/[12] 10-04-19 Human Rights Alert (NG0) submission to the  United Nations Human Rights Council  for the 2010 Review (UPR) of Human Rights in the United States as incorporated into the UPR staff report, with a note referring to "corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination  by law enforcement in California".
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/38566837/[13] 12-03-20 Biographical Sketch  Joseph Zernik, PhD s
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/86180312/
    _______________
    Human Rights Alert (NGO) online
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    http://www.examiner.com/x-38742-LA-Business-Headlines-Examiner_____________________________
    Take away justice, then, and what are governments but great bandit bands?Saint Augustine, Civitas Dei (City of God,4.4)
    _____________________________

  • Wednesday, April 4, 2012

    12-03-18 Bastille demonstration in Paris








    Citizens’ Insurrection by the People of the Left at the Bastille

    By Mina Kaci and Marie-José Sirach, Isabelle Metral, Henry Crapo, l'Humanite | News Analysis
    Original French Article: Insurrection citoyenne du peuple de gauche à la BastilleBy Mina Kaci and Marie-José Sirach
    Translated Tuesday 20 March 2012, by Henry Crapo and reviewed by Isabelle Métral

     
    120,000 persons launched an assault on the Place de la Bastille in Paris, this Sunday 18 March, at the call of the Front de gauche. Never before seen in a presidential campaign. A bet won by Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

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    Tuesday, April 3, 2012

    12-04-04 Black-hole prisons established also in the State of Israel?


    []     []   
    US-operated black-hole prisons
    Federal Bureau of Prisons, Communications Management Unit (CMU) in Terre Haute, Indiana, USA; CIA-operated secret prison, discovered in Bucharest, Romania.
    Jerusalem, April 1 - Human Rights Alert (NGO) received a response from the Ministry of Justice of the State of Israel on a Freedom of Information Act(FOIA) request, pertaining to the names, addresses, electronic records of the Detainees Courts.

    The response was considered deficient on several grounds:

    1) The response came as an unsigned email note.  Normally, the responses come as signed paper letters.  In reply, a paper document of the response, signed by an authorized person, was requested.

    2) The response denied the request, providing instead only a link to an undated "Contact" web page of the Detainees Courts, where only two courts were listed. According to media report, the Detainees Court operate in the Detainees Prisons themselves, and various external sources listed more than two such courts.  Needless to say, a link to an undated, unsigned, uncertified "Contact" web page is not a valid legal response. 

    3) The response failed to include information regarding the request to identify those, who hold administrative responsibility for the electronic records of the Detainees Courts.

    "In current US lingo, such conduct amounts to the establishment of 'black hole' prisons," says Joseph Zernik, PhD, of Human Rights Alert (NGO).

    Human Rights Alert (NGO) filed the FOIA requests as part of preparation of the 2012 submission for the Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights in Israel by the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.  The Human Rights Alert's submission is narrowly focused on "integrity, or lack thereof, of the electronic record systems of the courts of the State of Israel." [1]
    The 2010 submission of Human Rights Alert to the Human Rights Council (HRC) of the United Nations was reviewed by the HRC professional staff and incorporated in the official HRC Professional Staff Report with a note referring to “corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination by law enforcement in California.” [2]###
    Joseph Zernik, PhD [2]Human Rights Alert (NGO)_________
    LINKS:
    [1] 12-04-02 Draft Human Right Alert's 2012 State of Israel UPR Submission: Integrity, or lack thereof, of the electronic records of the courts (REVISED)
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/82927700/
    [2] 
    10-04-19 Human Rights Alert (NG0) submission to the  United Nations Human Rights Council  for the 2010 Review (UPR) of Human Rights in the United States as incorporated into the UPR staff report, with a note referring to "corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination  by law enforcement in California".
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/38566837/[3] 12-03-20 Biographical Sketch  Joseph Zernik, PhD s
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/86180312/ 
    _______________
    Human Rights Alert (NGO)
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    http://www.examiner.com/x-38742-LA-Business-Headlines-Examiner_____________________________
    Take away justice, then, and what are governments but great bandit bands?Saint Augustine, Civitas Dei (City of God,4.4)
    _____________________________

    12-04-04 Police shooting of another African-American teen shocks US


    Police shooting of another African-American teen shocks US


    19-year-old college student, Kendrec McDade (file photo)

    The killing of another African-American teenager by police has shaken the US, as Americans were already angered over the earlier controversial murder of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin by a volunteer watch guard.



    The 19-year-old college student, Kendrec McDade, was shot and killed by two Pasadena police officers on March 24.

    The incident occurred when a Pasadena resident, Oscar Carrillo, called the police to report that two armed men had robbed him of his computer and backpack and that one of them had pointed a gun at him.

    Moments later, two police officers encountered McDade, who was running on the street at the time. When he made a move at his waistband, one of officers opened fire and killed the student.

    However, no weapons or any of the stolen items were found on him.

    Two days after the shooting, police arrested Carrillo on charges of involuntary manslaughter, blaming his false claim about his assailants brandishing a gun for the police shooting.

    The incident came as public protests continue across the US over the killing of another unarmed 17-year-old African American by an armed neighborhood-watch volunteer.

    On February 26, George Zimmerman shot dead Trayvon Martin outside his father’s house, claiming he killed the teen in self-defense after being severely beaten by Martin. However, the police video footage of Zimmerman’s arrest showed no sign of injuries on him.

    Meanwhile, Human rights groups insist that the shooting of Martin was racially motivated.

    Trayvon's case has once again stirred serious concerns over a growing trend of racial discrimination against African-American communities in the US.

    MYA/MB/HJL

    12-04-04 Occupy San Francisco news

    "Empty Buildings Are the Crime": Occupy SF Commune Evicted After One Day

    Tuesday, 03 April 2012 14:03By Susie Cagle, Truthout | Graphic Journalism
      Occupy SF CommuneIt lasted less than 24 hours, but the Occupy SF Commune at 888 Turk may have pushed the movement forward harder than many other of the movement's Bay Area actions of late. And despite Monday's raid, many occupiers saw the building operation as a success.
      The 888 Turk building is not only the story of this brief building occupation, but also its place in the context of Bay Area activism, Occupy and beyond, on the eve of the planned May 1 General Strike. On January 28, many of these same people attempted a building occupation in Oakland, which turned into the tear gas, less-lethal melee that spawned another Occupy backlash there.
      The 888 Turk occupation was, in Occupy terms, an escalation so profound and unexpected that many dismissed it as an April Fool's joke - even at the expense of Occupy Oakland and its brutal J28 crushing, which resulted in more than 400 arrests.
      But the SF Commune was not a joke; the Spring Awakening took the city by storm, if only for a day. Within a half hour of the building's occupation, several large place-making banners were dropped from the roof, including many with Christian slogans and quotes, including, "Forgive us our trespasses" in white letters on black cloth.
      Occupy SF Commune
      It was clear how much the building meant to the movement that has largely been overshadowed by its wild East Bay neighbors. At least 22 school chairs were used to reinforce a barricade holding police out of the lot behind 888 Turk. Nearby, scrawled on a door: "When the cities burn down, we'll all be warm."
      Occupy SF Commune
      The activist group Homes Not Jails, that was involved in the 888 Turk action, has been occupying buildings in San Francisco for about 20 years. They opened several hundred buildings from the mid to late '90s, creating symbolic short-lived occupations in some spaces and holding off police for days on end in others. While many occupiers were excited by 888 Turk, some seasoned activists were nonplussed.
      "This is an old tactic," said Lydia Blumberg, who has worked with Homes Not Jails in the past and had brought her four-year-old daughter to the building's "Sacred Space" the prior evening. "We've been doing this for years."
      A year ago next week, Homes Not Jails occupied a San Francisco apartment building owned by Kaiser Permanente. A banner hung from the roof read "Hella Occupy" - more than six months before Occupy Wall Street was born and that phrase came to typify the Bay Area iteration of the movement.
      Homes Not Jails, first took the 600-unit Cathedral Hill Hotel on October 10. Occupiers took the building once again on January 20 following the "Occupy Wall Street West" day of action, which shut down the downtown San Francisco financial district.
      "It makes me optimistic that we have all these kids carrying the torch," said Blumberg.
      Occupy SF Commune
      It may not be a bank, but occupiers were quick to point out how the Catholic Church is the 1 percent, especially in the Bay Area, where they own many vacant properties on which they do not pay property taxes.
      The 9,950 square foot, two-story building at 888 Turk became Occupy SF's Commune used to house Westside Community Crisis and Outpatient mental health services. The 888 Turk building had received numerous complaints for failure to register in the city's vacant building registry. It is set to respond to those complaints on April 19 in a hearing. According to online real estate listings, it is currently listed for lease at $11,000 monthly.
      "I was completely blown away. Cathedral Hill was cool and all, but this was just beautiful," said occupier Jesse Smith of 888 Turk. "We learned from Cathedral Hill," said Smith, "barricades, contingency plans."
      Occupy SF Commune
      "The camps made a statement and were great to be visible but for the longterm mission of occupy, we need buildings," said Jesse Smith. The clear strategic advantage doesn't hurt, either. "It's a hell of a lot harder to kick us out of a building than it is to kick us out of a park."
      Occupy SF CommuneOccupiers first took the building around 5:45 PM on Sunday, April 1, following a march of several hundred from downtown. It was clear that activists had held the building for some time before opening it - assignment of rooms and a skeletal organizational structure were already in place, as were signage and literature. The police said they were "monitoring" the situation, but couldn't do anything unless the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco filed a formal complaint of citizen's arrest, asking for the occupiers' removal - and they hadn't.
      The most tense moment that first night came when the police briefly held up the occupiers' pizza delivery.
      By the next morning, things had changed. The San Francisco police had declared the area a "crime scene" and were for the most part limiting access to the building for both people and supplies. One particularly tough battle involved the delivery of morning coffee; occupiers were ultimately successful.
      San Francisco occupier Alex Kerfoot told me "it was like siege warfare." And that was before police moved in.
      Shortly before 2 PM, San Francisco police and county sheriffs began the raid on 888 Turk, following over a dozen hours of monitoring the situation and noting that because people were bringing in supplies, "those trespassing inside intended to remain inside and were not going to leave." At some point on Monday, police say, an Archdiocese representative also requested the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) remove the protesters, and signed a citizens arrest for trespassing giving the agency the authority to do so. According to Kerfoot, occupiers inside the building were on the phone, planning to meet with the Archdiocese at 3 PM about the future of the building.
      Occupiers said the building had been vacant for five years, but a spokesperson for the Archdiocese said it had only been vacant for 18 months, and was previously housing Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory High classes. The Archdiocese declined to meet with a delegation of occupiers who marched to the cathedral uphill from 888 Turk late Monday afternoon following the raid.
      Police moved in suddenly and without warning. Journalist Steve Rhodes, having heard police were on their way, attempted to leave, but was unable.
      "Some people were trying to close the door and some people were trying to open the door to get out. And then the riot police arrived," he told me. "I was right at the entrance and I saw these riot police coming out - and my first thought was, take some photos." Rhodes didn't have a chance, though, because "there were non-lethal [shotguns] directed at my face when I was ordered to put my hands on my head." He was cited with misdemeanor trespassing and released around 7 PM on Monday.
      "They will often warn people so they don't have to arrest as many," Rhodes said of the SFPD's approach to building occupations in the city. "But in this case it seemed they wanted to contain and intimidate."
      Occupiers were arrested room by room. According to police, "trespassers retreated into rooms, many of which were barricaded from the inside, while others closed doors to an interior stair well and retreated to the second floor." One person jumped off the roof and was arrested.
      Occupy SF Commune
      Police feared a fight that never came. Protesters defended the commune vigorously with barricades, but nothing was thrown at police before, during or after the raid of 888 Turk Street, but the SFPD forwarded photos of piles of bricks to the press following the raid. "There was concern that these items were going to be used as weapons against police officers," the SFPD said in a statement. The building was also marked by graffiti inside and out, ranging from hearts and messages of peace, including "Gun Free Zone" on the front facade, to "Kill Cops" and endless bacon jokes in upstairs corridors.
      Occupy SF Commune
      In all, 75 people were arrested and cited for misdemeanor trespassing, and three dogs were detained by city animal control.
      The raid, though relatively peaceful, was not without shows of brutality. One protester, Nick Shaw, was put into a control hold by officers several times during the course of his arrest for alleged non-cooperation when asking for medical assistance to treat his injured hand. At one point, Shaw lost consciousness on the bus headed for the jail and arrestees attempted to gain the attention of media and onlookers to obtain care. SFPD would not allow on-scene EMTs to care for Shaw, choosing instead to cite and release him earlier than other protesters.
      Many of the arrestees were not in a sense residents of Occupy San Francisco; many were from Oakland, UC Berkeley, and other Bay Area protest sites. This sort of regional cross-pollination and convergence has been happening more and more across the Northern California iterations of the movement. While this can at times cause problems with splitting the crowd, this fluidity across the region also stands to unite the area headed into the May 1 General Strike, the painfully ironic court date many of the 888 Turk arrestees received for their trespass.
      "Because it's Occupy and not Homes Not Jails they think that this would keep people from joining another occupation," said Rhodes of the 888 Turk crackdown. "Whereas all it may do is inspire more people to get involved."
      "It makes me optimistic that this going to be a more widespread movement," said Blumberg. "It makes me optimistic because this used to be a totally radical fringe thing, and now you've got the whole Occupy movement surrounding it and taking it up as their cause."
      "People who otherwise wouldn't have participated in Mayday are able to look at this sort of stuff, see what it is we're able to do and that we're not trying to hurt anybody," said Smith of the SF Commune action. "SFPD's biggest mistake was letting us do this," said Jesse Smith. "It just proves to us and every other occupy in the country that this can be done."