Oh, it's not dead, yet. In America, these things--civil liberties seemingly guaranteed by the Bill of Rights--don't die spectacularly and suddenly. No; they suffer protracted, gradual deaths, making it seem almost natural and expected like the death of a beloved aunt or uncle after the body "wears out." Just look at the once-hale-and-hearty Fourth Amendment, which is a pale shadow of its former self.
We began to see a renewed round of attacks on the freedom of the press at the 2008 Republican National Convention, when over 50 journalists including Democracy Now! producer Nicole Salazar were arrested--violently, in Salazar's case--by cops resembling Star Wars storm troopers:
Recent events related to the Occupy movement, however, present an alarming acceleration in the assault on the granddaddy of them all, the First Amendment.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
The government's coordinated, multi-level, all-out assault on the freedoms of speech, the press, and the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the Government for a redress of grievances, has only very recently become fully evident. We have already seen what happens when the people attempt to peaceably assemble:
Dangerous protester armed with a blue jacket subdued by brave police in SWAT gear
Cop smiles pretty for the camera while "escorting protester to the ground"
Occupy Denver protester assaulted cop's baton with the bridge of his nose
Heroic cops subdue dangerous anarchist as he attacks the sidewalk with his face and body
The police have been instructed to "protect" the Government from its citizens:
Brave storm troopers ensure safety of even braver Colorado politicians by blocking unruly hippie mob from dirtying up the Capitol steps
What is new, and even more disturbing, is the assault on the freedom of the press, as well-documented in this diary by RodgzK . The nationally coordinated middle-of-the-night assaults on peaceful camps of demonstrators, coupled with the beatings and arrests of news reporters (documented in RodgzK's great diary), and the efforts of the police to intimidate the press and block coverage, represent a dangerous escalation of the assault on the First Amendment.
It is now apparently even illegal to honk your horn in support of the Occupy movement.
What can be done? For starters, support your local Occupy movement. Join them if possible. Write letters to the editor to counteract the misinformation being distributed to the press. And sign this petition demanding that Bloomberg, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, commit to stopping the attacks on our press.
If the First Amendment goes, the damage to the Occupy movement--and any possibility of real change to benefit the 99%--will die with it.
Update: Looks like the cops are going after the churches, too--another prong of the First Amendment under attack (yes, "surveillance" is a form of attack and intimidation):
Several dozen Occupy Wall Street demonstrators were sleeping on the cushioned pews of a United Methodist church on the Upper West Side on Thursday morning when one of them spotted a man in plainclothes wandering through the sanctuary, apparently counting heads.
Flustered, the demonstrator confronted the man, who after several moments identified himself as a plainclothes detective. The demonstrator called the pastor, who was sleeping next door. But by then, the detective had left, along with his partner, who had been asking questions at a homeless shelter in the church’s basement.
12:01 PM PT: See above--spying on churches now? Really?