OWS becomes microcosm of big government: Protesters’ anger turns inward

[clevergirl]

WOW- so we have groups swooping in and taking the money to amass- all the while those on the streets have needs to be met- which the donations were given for.

by Howard Portnoy

On Friday’s NBC Today, deep-thinking host Matt Lauer asked of the Occupy Wall Street protests, “What’s the civics lesson in this for our kids as they’re watching this on TV?” (h/t Kyle Drennen, Newsbusters).

News anchor Natalie Morales had an answer:

Well, I think there—as a parent, there’s a huge civics lesson, and it teaches, you know, what is important about this. What are—I think you have to ask the questions, ‘What are they there for, what are the reasons behind this?’ And I think the idea of having that civil discourse is important to teach our kids…. [Ed’s note: Take a minute to stop laughing and collect yourself.]

Tempting though it is to focus on the hypocrisy of Lauer and company—who after all saw no such civics lesson in the fledgling Tea Party movement and fail to see the total incivility of the Occupiers—there is far bigger game to bag in this story. It comes by way of a New York Post article, which suggests the protests do indeed embody a teachable moment, if not the one the Today crew envisions.

According to the Post, OWS’s Finance Committee (!) has amassed $500,000 in donations, and the cash continues to pour in. Yet like the wealthy 1% whose greed they so revile, the OWS leadership refuses to spread the wealth. Bryan Smith, 45, a TV producer from Los Angeles who joined OWS three weeks ago, is quoted as saying:

F–k Finance. I hope Mayor Bloomberg gets an injunction and demands to see the movement’s books. We need to know how much money we really have and where it’s going.

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