In 2008, Arturo de los Santos, a former Marine who lives with his wife and four children in Riverside, CA, fell victim to the economic crash caused by the greed of those on Wall Street. Like millions of Americans, he faced the prospect of mortgage default. Arturo was then encouraged by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to deliberately fall behind on his payments in order to modify his loan. A loan owned by Freddie Mac. Thinking the bank had his best intentions in mind, Arturo followed their instructions. Instead, JPMorgan greedily foreclosed on him, evicting Arturo and his family. Since then, Arturo has decided to fight back and re-occupy his home, even as he faces the possibility of arrest! (more…)
Poster’s Note: Is this a police tactic to arrest large numbers of people on the weekend when there are not as many non-protestor witnesses? Something to think about. No matter, people power doesn’t stop. I feel like we’re on the verge of something big. This is probably the ONLY occupation I can get behind!
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Police reopened the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday evening after more than 500 anti-Wall Street protesters were arrested for blocking traffic lanes and attempting an unauthorized march across the span. The arrests took place when a large group of marchers, participating in a second week of protests by the Occupy Wall Street movement, broke off from others on the bridge’s pedestrian walkway and headed across the Brooklyn-bound lanes.
“More than 500 were arrested on the Brooklyn Bridge late this afternoon after multiple warnings by police were given to protesters to stay on the pedestrian walkway,” a police spokesman said. “Some complied and took the walkway without being arrested. Others locked arms and proceeded on the Brooklyn-bound vehicular roadway and were arrested,” he added. (more…)
Hip-hop impresario Russell Simmons has given bottles of water – and moral support – to the Wall St. sit-in, calling the protesters “sweet kids.” Simmons made the rounds at Zuccotti Park near Ground Zero Wednesday and again Thursday morning, giving out 500 bottles of water to the protesters who have huddled there since Sept. 17. He stopped short of saying he would join the Occupy Wall St. group, but urged the protesters to remain civil and to more clearly define their agenda.
“I think they have to keep this completely nonviolent,” Simmons said of the sit-in, an ever-building but somewhat ideologically undefined assembly of voices for social change. What started as a pushback against Wall St. excess has gained momentum since police arrested more than 80 protesters on Saturday and pepper-sprayed a group of women – leading to a video that has gained international attention.
The NYPD is investigating the pepper-spraying incident involving Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna – but Simmons said police brass need to look on the protesters with more understanding. (more…)
“Governments don’t rule the world, Goldman Sachs rules the world.”
That’s what a purported London-based independent trader named Alessio Rastani told the BBC on Monday in a jaw-dropping interview that quickly went viral. But just as quickly, rumors swirled that Rastani was actually a member of the Yes Men, a loose-knit group of merry pranksters and imposters that attempt to manipulate the media with the goal of exposing the dubious conduct of big corporations.
The Yes Men publicly denied that Rastani is a member. And the BBC said in a statement that it doesn’t think he is, either: “We’ve carried out detailed investigations and can’t find any evidence to suggest that the interview with Alessio Rastani was a hoax. He is an independent market trader and one of a range of voices we’ve had on air to talk about the recession.” “We’ve never heard of Rastani,” the group said in a statement of its own. “He isn’t a Yes Man. He’s a real trader who is, for one reason or another, being more honest than usual.” (more…)
NEW YORK (AP) — About 80 people were arrested Saturday as demonstrators who were camped out near the New York Stock Exchange marched through lower Manhattan, police said. The “Occupy Wall Street” protest is entering its second week. Demonstrators said Saturday they were protesting against bank bailouts and the mortgage crisis; some also held signs decrying Georgia’s execution of Troy Davis, who was put to death Wednesday for the 1989 slaying of an off-duty Savannah police officer.
At Manhattan’s Union Square, police tried to corral the demonstrators using orange plastic netting. Some of the arrests were filmed and activists posted the videos online. One video appears to show officers using pepper spray on women who already were cordoned off; another shows officers handcuffing a man after pulling him up off the ground, blood trickling down his face. (more…)
A former Duane Reade executive facing prison time for securities fraud was cut a break by a federal judge who sentenced him to time served Tuesday. William Tennant, 64, convicted of his role in a scheme to inflate the stock of the drug store chain, begged the judge for mercy, saying that he was sorry and that he didn’t profit from the deceit. “Please don’t send me to jail,” the gray-haired former Duane Reade chief financial officer pleaded with District Judge Deborah Batts.
Speaking in a shaky voice, Tennant said he and his wife, Barbara, are facing financial ruin, and that they and their daughter will likely be on anti-depressants for the rest of their lives due to the stress. “I can’t express this extreme guilt I feel, knowing I placed this heavy burden on my wife and daughter,” he said. Tennant’s role in fraudulently pumping up Duane Reade stock was minimal, his defense lawyer, John Kenney, said. He noted his client was convicted of only one count of securities fraud.
Tennant’s co-defendant, former Duane Reade CEO Anthony Cuti, was convicted of five counts of securities fraud. (more…)
In this “Countdown” exclusive interview, Keith sits down with Rolling Stone contributing editor Matt Taibbi to discuss breaking the story about the Securities and Exchange Commission destroying the records of promising cases in the years leading up to the financial meltdown.
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Genres: Drama and Sequel
Running Time: 2hr 16min.
Release Date: September 24th, 2010
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for brief strong language and thematic elements.
Distributors: 20th Century Fox
Starring: Michael Douglas, Shia LaBeouf, Carey Mulligan, Frank Langella, Vanessa Ferlito
Directed by: Oliver Stone
Produced by: Celia D. Costas, Alessandro Camon, Alex Young
Synopsis: Emerging from a lengthy prison stint, Gordon Gekko finds himself on the outside of a world he once dominated. Looking to repair his damaged relationship with his daughter, Gekko forms an alliance with her fiance Jacob, and Jacob begins to see him as a father figure. But Jacob learns the hard way that Gekko — still a master manipulator and player — is after something very different from redemption.
Despite House Passage, Feingold Maintains Opposition to Financial Reform Bill as “Too Weak” in Face of Wall St. Recklessness Democrats may still be one vote short of approving an overhaul of financial regulation with Senator Russ Feingold vowing to vote against the measure again. The House approved the measure this week following over three weeks of conference committee negotiations. We speak to former investment banker turned journalist Nomi Prins, author of several books including “It Takes a Pillage: Behind the Bonuses, Bailouts, and Backroom Deals from Washington to Wall Street.”
Nomi Prins, former investment banker turned journalist. She worked at Goldman Sachs and Bear Stearns. She is the author of several books including “It Takes a Pillage: Behind the Bonuses, Bailouts, and Backroom Deals from Washington to Wall Street.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner described the nation’s financial crisis as “deeply unfair” to average Americans Tuesday, during an interview with Rachel Maddow. Geithner told Maddow that because of American suffering, he felt a “deep sense of responsibility” to reform the nation’s financial system:GEITHNER is a joke.
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Police reopened the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday evening after more than 500 anti-Wall Street protesters were arrested for blocking traffic lanes and attempting an unauthorized march across the span. The arrests took place when a large group of marchers, participating in a second week of protests by the Occupy Wall Street movement, broke off from others on the bridge’s pedestrian walkway and headed across the Brooklyn-bound lanes.
A former Duane Reade executive facing prison time for securities fraud was cut a break by a federal judge who sentenced him to time served Tuesday. William Tennant, 64, convicted of his role in a scheme to inflate the stock of the drug store chain, begged the judge for mercy, saying that he was sorry and that he didn’t profit from the deceit. “Please don’t send me to jail,” the gray-haired former Duane Reade chief financial officer pleaded with District Judge Deborah Batts. 
