The tactics used against #OWS in NYC are unbearable

I've been closely following Occupy Wall Street since it started. I've participated in some rallies, and cooked food multiple times for the protesters and generally done my best to express support.

Last night, I was literally standing up from the computer to go to sleep for the night when a tweet went out over the @OccupyWallStNYC twitter feed indicating that Zuccotti Park was being cleared. At 2 am, with no warning to the protesters. A short while later a tweet went out to mobilize everyone and regroup at Foley Square. I put my pants back on and called a car. My car guy recognized me and asked if I was going to Zuccotti. I told him they were being disbanded and regrouping at Foley Square.

When I arrived I was one of the first 20ish people there. I thought I was in the wrong place, it was about 3:30am. Over the next three hours a large crowd assembled and a general assembly was held, and that is where this really starts. There were a lot of people that had headed in different directions. Reports came in of some people at Washington Square, a few hundred that had been stopped at Broadway and Pine, some people wanted us to march back to Zuccotti, and others wanted us to stay. Every time a new group joined we got a large influx of information, some new, some repeats from less than 5 minutes ago, and some already debunked.

And that was really the point of doing this unexpectedly at 2am, isn't it? This wasn't about cleaning the park, it was about disbanding a threat and ensuring that they couldn't regroup in an organized fashion. The polite language the Mayor used was, 'reduce possibility of confrontation'. And that is true. had they tried this during the day, when people were prepared to deal with them in any organized fashion, then peaceful non-violence cannot lose. This is very important. Our public authorities have been reduced to operating in darkness, because they are afraid of what the #OWS protesters can accomplish in the light of day.

The tactics used were unbearable. In the past 12 hours these are some incontrovertible facts:

• The police are holding a public park, legally required to be open to the public closed to all public traffic.

Mayor Bloomberg has repeatedly, purposefully misled the populace, and abused the system, via lies and omissions, such as:

• Announcing that the park would have been reopened, except for a restraining order. This purposefully implies that it is an order against the protesters, when it was a restraining order demanding the opening of the park to the protesters.
• Denying that they had been served with the order, when video exists of a deputy refusing acceptance of it.
• After having been served with the order, the police continue to refuse entrance to the park in direct opposition to a Supreme Court issued order.
• During last nights raids there were 5 reporters with city-issued press passes arrested alongside the protesters.This is a direct violation of the Freedom of the Press.
• There was a confirmed airspace restriction to prevent news helicopters from getting video of the clearing.
• Oakland Mayor admits to an 18 city wide conference call on how to deal with this problem. http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/?id=731137&t=oakland_mayor_jean_quan_admits_18_cities_were_consulting_on_%23occupy_crackdowns

These are all tactics that are at best, morally questionable, at worst, illegal and oppressive.