NOVANEWS
By: Dr. George Krasnow
RT (Russia Today TV News Network) has covered the Occupy Wall Street movement so extensively and boldly that it begs the question: What does the Kremlin have to do with the OWS movement?
From what I have observed in both Russia and the USA, the answer is: Very little or nothing at all, to my regret, which I’ll explain later.
More than a month– from September 17 when the OWS started in New York to October 21 when I returned from Moscow to Washington–I watched OWS the way Russians see it, through government-controlled TV channels.
I was struck by how little attention Russian media paid to this massive explosion of discontent that was clearly embarrassing to US government and media pundits who would much rather talk about “lack of democracy” in Russia than American about 1% “plutocrats.” After checking online reports from Truthout, I realized that in OWS did not receive a coverage it deserved.
So I had remained unaware of the movement’s huge scale until I came back to my Alexandria home—and to a new TV set supplied with dozen channels, including RT. Now I’m glued to RT every morning. And what do I see?
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A dapper Iraq war veteran, US Marine Corps sergean reminds policemen after their brutal assault on peaceful occupiers that “this is not a war zone.”
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Another veteran is struck with a tear-gas canister on his head so viciously that he required hospitalization.
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Horror-stricken face of an 84 year old woman occupier disfigured by pepper spray.
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A row of students, peacefully sitting, heads down, arms interlocked, in a gesture of defiance against the overwhelming force of 1% conscience; and policemen dozing them with pepper spray.
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Dozens journalists arrested and manhandled by police.
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Retired Philadelphia police captain among the protesters in New York; he says his comrades could also be laid off, and many obey their orders only reluctantly.