#Occupy Digest - Op-Ed: There Will Be Blood

By D.J. Raspe - DJRaspy.com

A veteran at Occupy Oakland protest, wounded in the head by riot rounds from Oakland Police during brutal Oakland PD crackdown against protesters on Oct. 25, 2011.I said previously that there would be blood in this uprising. I was hoping I would be wrong. I was not. Sometimes I freaking HATE being able to foresee the future!

This is a picture of one of the protesters from the #OccupyOakland protests. His head is wounded from an attack by Oakland Police last night which involved the use of rubber bullets and/or beanbags fired at protesters, as well as tear gas and flash grenades. 

I have spent all night spamming the Oakland Police Officers' Association Facebook page and the Facebook and Twitter Accounts of Oakland Mayor Jean Quan (@jeanquan on Twitter) with outraged posts and commentary, and as of about an hour ago, the Oakland Police Officers' Association Facebook Page was taken down and/or deleted. 

Shit's getting real now. At least one Police Force has declared war on Occupation forces, and bloodshed, there has been.

Those of you taking part in Occupation activities, be warned. This could happen to you. I'm perfectly willing to bleed for what I believe in, but I understand completely that there are many who do not share that particular level of dedication. If the Cops start showing up and start looking like they're going to bring the violence, I would recommend that you leave the scene of the occupation if you do not wish to be brutalized, and come back at a later time. But understand this, blood there will be. This will, sadly, not likely be the last incident of this nature before the end of the Occupy Uprising. More and more Police Departments will fall back on brute tactics like this, and they will make us bleed. Be prepared to either stay there and get injured for the sake of your belief in Democracy and Constitutional Rights, or be prepared to retreat and regroup and try again if you do not wish to bleed. 

But either way, understand this: Not one of the Protesters of the Occupy Movement has resorted to violence. It was not WE who perpetrated this outrage. It was the Police, the security forces of the Status-Quo, the jackbooted thugs which defend the interests of the uber-rich and uber-powerful. This is what Revolution is about. Thomas Jefferson was not lying when he said that the Tree of Liberty would be watered by the blood of patriots. The only real question left to most Americans is...how much blood are you willing to shed to purchase a future for you and the ones you love?