Singing For The Dark Times

In the dark times, will we be singing? Yes, we'll be singing for the dark times! Every new day's dawn brings a song of its own, Waiting to be sung, waiting for the sun! I tried to explore today. I had to, for the group (trying out a new recruit with a car), for me (clearing out my head after last night), for Laura even (to keep me away from those "interminably stupid and self serving Occutards" before I'm lost altogether). It wasn't really the best of days for it, pouring rain and barely making it to 40 degrees, but…

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The People United Will Never Be Defeated

And, just a day after my last post, Occupy Rochester took a huge turn toward the dark reality of what Occupy is in so many other cities: free speech grating against the boundaries of police oppression. While so far there has been no violence here, we have had 30 arrests and counting tonight, after a month without incident. I know I said I would keep this blog apolitical, but I needed a place where I could report and put together the story of what I saw, a bit less fragmented than the #ROCcupy twitter feed but more linear than a…

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Not Just A Phase

It's been over a month now since the first Occupiers set up their tents and dreams in Zuccotti Park, and 20 days since our daily gatherings at Liberty Pole began. I took some heat personally for my first photos here -- most painfully from Laura, who echoed the view of the older conservative generation, that the best thing to do about the Occupy movement is to tell them to grow up, get real jobs, and leave the damned park. So with that moral support to rely on, I've been spending more and more time AT the Occupy meetings, with an…

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Revolution 2

And, just as I thought about making a pilgrimage down to New York to be a part of Occupy Wall Street, we got a branch right here in Rochester as part of Occupy Everywhere. This wasn't my absolute first protest (that was booing and heckling Sarah Palin during campaign 2008), but I'd say it's the first movement I've really identified with. This being a photo blog though, I won't get too much into the politics of it. Follow me on facebook if you're really looking for that. We are the 98% [sic] -- this was my first sign. Somehow I…

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Revolution

With Occupy Wall Street starting up, I just thought about this graffiti I'd seen a few years ago in the Rochester Subway. I don't think I thought much of it at the time. In 2008 I didn't even really know how to ride a bike, let alone having one. Yes, I was that sheltered. But that was then. When the revolution comes, will your bicycle be ready? I have no idea who Jonah L'Esperance is, assuming he's even the one who said it, but this is really kind of brilliant. Say what you will about bikes being slow, or somehow…

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Last of the Summer Grime

One more trip from the brief summer season of the Concrete Collective before all the students are back in town. We'd hoped for more, but real life got in the way, and I missed most of my own meetings thanks to Laura taking control over everything, and we lost our longer trips to Nate backing out at the worst possible moments. And that's how we end up spending a Monday afternoon out exploring, the last day before the start of classes and the fall routine. We didn't have to go far to find our first location... Mt Hope chapel, which…

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