Deepak Chopra Meditates With The #occupywallstreet Protesters (Video)

I was sent a link to a moving YouTube video a few minutes ago.  I would like to share it with you.

Last night, Deepak Chopra visited the General Assembly of Occupy Wall Street.  The General Assembly is the nightly meeting that is held at Zuccotti Park every evening.  At the meeting, ideas are discussed.  Updates are given.  Plans are shared for the next day.  Bullhorns are prohibited within the park.  Instead, they use what is referred to as "the people's mic".  One person speaks, then everyone within earshot repeats what is said, so that the people in the back of the crowd can hear the speaker.  The occupiers have created a sanitation team, as well as a medic team, legal team and a team dedicated to establishing a web presence.  Each team sends representatives on their behalf to the General Assembly every night.

Chopra offered a short meditation to the group.  He said,

“I just want to do a two minute meditation, or even less. Put your hand on your heart and just ask yourself internally what kind of world do I want to live in? And listen. Do it now. And now ask yourself how can I make that happen? How can I make that happen from a place of love, compassion, joy and equanimity? Simple anger will only perpetuate what already is out there. It was created by greed and fear. We have to go beyond that, and come from a place of compassion, centered equanimity and creativity. Once again, ask yourself, how can I be the change that I want to see in the world? Thank you.”

Here is a video of Chopra speaking to the General Assembly:



While he quoted Gandhi ("Be the change you want to see in the world."), and at the same time, almost quoted Yoda ("Fear leads to anger.  Anger leads to hate.  Hate leads to suffering."), it was still a very thoughtful and moving moment with the demonstrators.  Think about this.  Deepak Chopra is one of the "one percenters".  In 2007, Forbes magazine estimated that he had earned approximately $22 million.  So, why was he there?  Simple.  He has a conscience.  He knows the difference between right and wrong.

He isn't the only celebrity to join the cause.  Susan Sarandon, Rosanne Barr and rapper Lupe Fiasco have all taken part of the protests in the last week.  Actor, and future Incredible Hulk, Mark Ruffalo, even spent last Saturday and Sunday camped out in the park with the protesters.

Deepak Chopra used the word equanimity a couple of times during his meditation last night.  I couldn't think of a more appropriate word.  It means "mental or emotional stability or composure, especially under tension or strain".  So far, this has been a peaceful protest.  The protesters need to maintain a level of composure, especially now, to ensure this has a peaceful outcome.  The NYPD is not seeking peace.  We have already witnessed their brutality toward unarmed, innocent men and women, exercising their First Amendment rights.  It's up to us to remain tranquil.

As the video mentioned, a walkout is planned with CUNY students tomorrow.  That, along with as many as 38,000 transit workers taking the streets to protest, could mean more than 100,000 people in the Wall Street area tomorrow afternoon.  Regardless, it will, by far, be the largest day of demonstrations to date for Occupy Wall Street.  It is unclear whether the transit system will be affected in New York City tomorrow.  Many are hoping that workers will protest during their off hours.  Others believe that workers across the city will be a "no show" at their jobs, crippling New York commuters.

Tomorrow should be an interesting news day.

Video: NYPD Pens Group Of Quiet Female Protesters, Then Maces Them

This is video taken earlier today, September 24, 2011.  A group of female protesters were near Union Square in Downtown Manhattan, part of the larger #occupywallstreet protests taking place.  As you can see by the video, the women are quietly protesting.  If they are speaking, they can't be heard.  Half of them were quietly taking pictures.

As they're standing, NYPD officers encircle them.  They get the females penned within a plastic orange barricade, then hit them point blank with pressurized mace.  Watch:

Breaking: Twitter Hashtags "#occupywallstreet/#takewallstreet" Being Censored Within U.S.

THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA IS HARDLY COVERING ANY OF THIS!!  SPREAD THE WORD!!

Massive protests have been underway on Wall Street in New York City for the last 36 hours.  Thousands of people are camping out, protesting not only corporate greed, but the role that many in Washington have in lining the pockets of those at the top of the corporate ladder.

Throughout the day, the hashtags #occupywallstreet and #takewallstreet have been used on Twitter in reference to the protests.

Within the hour, it has been learned that somehow, those hashtags that have originated from within the United States have been blocked.

Trendsmap.com is a website that tracks the location of where hashtags are trending.  If you go to the site, and do a search of #occupywallstreet and #takewallstreet, you'll find not one tweet coming from the U.S.  According to Twitter, neither of the two hashtags are even trending within New York City.  I'm only following #occupywallstreet, and have at least 20 new tweets every 30 seconds popping up.  Keep in mind, that it is currently after 3:00AM EST.  Something illegal is happening, pure and simple.

I will try to keep you posted as I get more information.

Correction: The #occupywallstreet protests have been going on now for 8 days, since September 17th.  There has been absolutely zero media attention given to these protests, even though hundreds of people have been arrested (93 on the 24th alone), and dozens have been injured by NYPD officers.  I first caught wind of the protest through Buzzfeed.com last night, after police brutality had taken a sharp up swing in recent days.  What outside media personnel that are trying to get into the protests are being refused entry.  According to numerous sources, two PBS journalists were arrested and detained Saturday morning.  Most information from the scene is coming from bloggers and amateur cameramen.

Update 4:07AM EST:  It appears that #takewallstreet is finally starting to show up on Trendsmap.  When looking at an image of the globe, you cannot see the United States.  It is completely covered with the hashtag.  #occupywallstreet still is not showing.

Video: State Farm's 'Empire State Of Mind' (Remembering 9/11)

Today State Farm is debuting a heartwarming new commercial.  Directed by acclaimed New York City director Spike Lee, it features nearly 150 NYC area schoolchildren between the ages of 8 and 11.  They walk throughout the city, stopping at four firehouses along the way, singing 'Empire State of Mind'.  It's an extremely touching tribute to the city of New York, and to those that risked, and lost, their lives to save others ten years ago.

Grab a tissue.



For those who were wondering, many of the kids in the video were part of the PS22 Chorus at one time.

Video: Paul Simon Performs 'Sound Of Silence' At 9/11 Memorial

At today's dedication of the 9/11 Memorial in New York City, Paul Simon was asked to perform 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'.  At the last minute, he decided to sing 'Sound of Silence'.  As you can see from the video, the lifelong New York area resident looked devastated.

After ten long years, we still have not "healed".

CLOO - The First IPhone App That Will Likely Result In MURDER

While somewhat interesting in theory, CLOO is a new app that is destined to end with someone strangled in their bathroom.



Yes.  THIS IS REAL.  The developers of this app expect you to open up your apartment to a complete stranger, and let them take a shit in your bathroom.  "Oh, you know Sally too?  Come on in.  Drop a deuce."

Are you fucking kidding me?!?

In six months, CLOO will not be known as an innovative social experiment, but synonymous with "dead hookers".  New York City will soon have a "CLOO Ciller" (They'll change the K in killer to a C to make it look better in the headlines.)

This can't end well.

Video: New Yorkers Knew Of Earthquake Via Twitter Before Ground Shook

For a seismic wave to travel the 230 miles from Washington D.C. to New York City, it takes approximately 30 seconds.  That's roughly 27,600 miles per hour.

It only takes 25 seconds for someone to feel the ground shake, and post a tweet that says "I think we just had an earthquake", that can be read by someone in New York.

That is exactly what happened last Tuesday when a 5.9 earthquake struck near Richmond, Virginia.  When buildings shook near Washington Tuesday afternoon, the internet exploded, primarily on Twitter and Facebook. Twitter claims that readers in other areas were aware of the coming quake via their site before local seismographs registered any readings.  They're so proud of it, in fact, check out their new promotional video:



Twitter announced Wednesday that the D.C. earthquake created more site traffic for them than the death of Osama Bin Laden, and tied the level of traffic that they saw at the time of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March.  This tells me one of two things.  Either Twitter has quickly gained a large number of users, or Americans seriously have their priorities fucked up.

As an interesting side note, Eric Fischer created an animated map of the earthquake related tweets that afternoon.  The green dots represent earthquake related tweets.  Gray dots are tweets about other topics.  During the 28 second piece, each frame is one second.  The entire piece represents 12 minutes of elapsed time.

Video: 'Goodnight Irene'

To close out the weekend, I thought it would be nice to play one of my all time favorite tunes.

This was recorded Saturday night at O'Flaherty's, in NYC's Restaurant Row.  As Hurricane Irene was approaching, a group of Broadway performers had gathered to sing...and drink the night away.

The video's performers are Alex Harvey on guitar, and Chris "Mr. Sullyphane" Sullivan on ukulele and vocals.  Sullivan is currently on featured in 'Chicago' as Amos Hart.

Pay close attention to the improvised lyrics in verses three and four.  Very nice.  Enjoy.

Hurricane Irene Could Threaten 9/11 Memorial

In the event that a hurricane should ever hit New York City, the city is set up in "Zones", depending on how close they are to the water, and the topography of the city.  "Zone A" are areas that would be in danger in the event of a Category 1 hurricane.  "Zone B" is for Category 2, "Zone C" is for Category 3, and so on.

With Hurricane Irene expected to make landfall in New York City tomorrow morning, mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered mandatory evacuations for those living in "Zone A".  That comes to roughly 370,000 people that have been asked to leave their homes by 5PM today.  To make things worse, all public transportation (subways, buses) were stopped as of noon, in advance of the storm.  They will not be back online until Tuesday.

At the bottom left hand corner of Manhattan (Manhattan is the area that is entirely wrapped in "Zone A"), you'll see an area that looks like a notch is cut out of the island.  Between the spots on the map that say "Battery Park City" and "Bowling Green".  This is the location of Ground Zero.

Next month, on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, the 9/11 Memorial is being dedicated at the site of the former World Trade Center location.  The memorial was designed to have water gently falling, from ground level, into the imprints of the towers.  Here are a couple of photos taken during construction showing how massive this project is.  Since completion, developers have tried to keep a lid on photography of the memorial until it's official unveiling on September 11th.

With only two weeks to assess and repair any damage made to the memorial, the city is going to be on a tight schedule.  As is, the site has been embroiled in a mass of controversy concerning designs and countless delays.  It has been a struggle for crews to meet their ten anniversary deadline for the memorial.

I will keep you posted.

Photo Of The Day

If you live in New York City, rats are part of the territory.  Sadly, there is no way to avoid them.  But, this is ridiculous.

The rat, killed Wednesday in a housing project in Brooklyn, is approximately three feet long.  Experts believe that it is a pet rat that was at one time imported from Gambia.  They're unable to reproduce.  The worst part of the story:  the Housing Authority worker that killed it said there were two more just as big that got away.

(Shudders)

In related news, there are tens of millions of rats that call the New York City subway system their home.  As Hurricane Irene approaches within the next 24 hours, many city officials realize that there is a distinct possibility that part of the subway network may be flooded after she passes overhead.  With that in mind, an MTA official announced yesterday to expect the possibility of millions of subway rats "seeking higher ground".  Lovely.

Maybe New York City should just change it's name to the Fire Swamp.

New York Starts Marriages Of Same-Sex Couples

At the stroke of midnight, gay, lesbian and bisexual couples in New York started making their legal, lifelong commitment to each other.  What a historic day to witness.

Kitty Lambert, 54, and Cheryle Rudd, 53, became the first couple to be married at Niagara Falls as the clock struck 12.  At 9:02AM, Phyllis Siegel, 76, and Connie Kopelov, 84, became the first same-sex couple to be married in Manhattan.  Siegal, who has been with her partner for 23 years, later said,

‘‘It was just so amazing.  It’s the only way I can describe it. I lost my breath and a few tears.’’

23 years!  I cannot imagine being with my wife for the last 23 years, and only being able to legally get married to her today.  Unbelievable.  Siegel and Kopelov are one of the 823 couples scheduled to be married today, just in New York City.  The following video was shot by the Associated Press.  It shows dozens of couples in line to exchange their nuptials.  It also shows a number of people from Westboro Baptist Church trying to spoil the party.  As of the moment, they seem to have been largely ignored by marriage supporters.  One suggestion:  I wouldn't watch the following video on Youtube, unless you're prepared to read a large number of disgusting and hateful comments.



New Yorkers have fought hard for this.  It's only fitting that marriage equality finally comes to the birthplace of the modern gay rights movement.  My favorite gay couple can get married now, after over 40 years of being together.

All joking aside, congratulations, New York.

Soundtrack Of My Life - 05/02/2011 'Everyday'

Last night, with the news that Osama bin Laden had been killed, it was near impossible for many of us not to think of September 2001.  If anything positive was gleamed from the events that tragic day, it was that people became more neighborly.  For a short time following 9/11, though the vast majority of people were severely depressed, they were friendlier than what they were on September 10, 2001.

I found that people would say hi more often, when passing them on the street.  Someone would hold the door for you, or would hold an elevator, when before they wouldn't take the time to.  The nation, for lack of a better term, was polite.  In time, the civility went away, and everything went back to normal.

It was an atmosphere that I hoped to see return last night.  Instead, the scene outside the White House looked more like a Grateful Dead concert.  People were throwing beach balls and climbing light poles at two in the morning, chanting "Na na na na.  Hey hey hey. Good bye."  To the rest of the world, especially the Middle East, the citizens of the United States looked like jagoffs.

On September 11, 2001, the Dave Matthews Band was coincidentally scheduled to release the song 'When the World Ends' as their third single, off of their album 'Everyday'.  Based on what happened that morning, the single was pulled, and the video was scrapped.  The band and studio decided to release the album's title track, 'Everyday', instead.

The video featured (then unknown) '30 Rock's' Judah Friedlander, walking through the streets of New York's Greenwich Village asking random people for a hug.  It was filmed shortly after 9/11, and features a few cameos from some New York celebrities, such as Conan O'Brien, Blue Man Group, and Tiki Barber.  At the time, it was very touching and heartwarming to watch.  Even with his relative television fame, I don't think Judah Friedlander would be able to get enough hugs to fill three minutes of video in 2011.  It's sad how people have grown colder in the last 10 years.

Prepare To Cry - Somewhere Over The Rainbow

A vigil was held tonight in New York City, for the gay teens that have committed suicide within the last month.  Instead of candles, the crowd brought glow sticks.  At one point of the vigil, Broadway actor and Glee alum Cheyenne Jackson led the group of thousands in a heart wrenching rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.  Grab a tissue.  I was sobbing while watching the video.

Creepiest Thing You'll See All Day - Guaranteed

This is the kind of stuff that horror movies are made of. A man in New York City noticed his food was disappearing from his refrigerator. He thought his girlfriend was eating it. She denied it. So, he set up a hidden camera to catch her. This is what the camera caught:



Police believe this woman has been living in his crawlspace for weeks. They don't know when, or how, she arrived. She was arrested, of course. Imagine, though, if this gentleman didn't set up the hidden camera with the intent of catching his girlfriend sneaking a bite of food here or there, how much longer this squatter could have gone unnoticed. Some scary stuff.