Police Turn Oakland Into War Zone

Incredible footage emerged from downtown Oakland last night - not of basic law enforcement efforts to maintain public "health and safety" as the police have been claiming - but of a war zone in which police shot tear gas, bean bags, wooden dowels, flash grenades, and rubber bullets at protesters.

Rather than using the weaponry once in a final effort to subdue the crowd, officers reportedly used them over and over again in what @OccupyOakland describes as a "relentless" assault on the thousands of activists gathered near City Hall.

"The city remains committed to respecting free speech as well as maintaining the city's responsibility to protect public health and safety," Oakland police said in a statement Tuesday.

The "safety" concerns are the usual complaints levelled at the Occupy movements: sanitation issues, improper food storage, graffiti, litter, and vandalism, although OPD added accusations of fighting, assaults, and "threatening/intimidating behavior." Yes, you read that correctly. OPD is accusing the protesters of using "threatening/intimidating behavior."

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Canadian cities at a loss on how to end Occupy protests

They have muddied parks, overtaken public squares and clashed with police. But while Canada’s Occupy protesters may be wearing out their welcome, nobody has figured out how to get rid of them.

Although the encampments are violating bylaws, damaging public land, and in some cases, prompting public health concerns, confrontation-shy municipalities are finding themselves increasingly powerless, or at least unwilling, to remove them.

Alberta’s two largest cities have arguably taken the hardest line against occupiers — although both have failed to negotiate an end to the protests. Toronto protesters have angered neighbours of the downtown park they are camping in, prompting the church next to the site to plead with the protesters to “respect the members of the community who live and work in the area.”

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