Ham on Wry Award-Occupy Oakland's Scott Olsen

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As regular readers know, Ham on Wry doesn't use photos that depict graphic violence, but this week, I'm making an exception to emphasize the point of this post. Tuesday night, Occupy Oakland engaged in a war of words with police that devolved when some of the protesters threw paint, bottles and rocks at hundreds of officers wearing riot gear.  The demonstrators had gathered to express their disgruntlement about the dismantlement of one of their encampments.

In retaliation, police used tear gas and projectiles that included rubber bullets and possibly flash-bang grenades.  According to Wikipedia, a flash-bang grenade emits a flash of light that momentarily activates all light sensitive cells in the eye, making vision impossible for approximately five seconds until the eye restores itself to its normal, unstimulated state. The loud blast produced by the grenade adds to its incapacitating properties by disturbing the fluid in the ear.  Some type of projectile hit Scott Olsen, sending him to the hospital in critical condition with a fractured skull and brain swelling.

Olsen has served two tours in Iraq and is active in Iraq Veterans Against the War.  He spent time in the Occupy San Francisco movement and went to Oakland Tuesday night in support of the effort there.  Olsen has improved to fair and can understand everything that people tell him.  He has received many wishes for his recovery from around the world.  Police officials have launched an investigation into exactly what happened to Olsen.

Ham on Wry fully understands the law about peaceful assembly and the need for police protections. The fact that Olsen's injury was photographed in real time reveals the underbelly of police actions such as the one that injured Olsen.  Olsen's status as an Iraq war vet boldly symbolizes the widespread support for the Occupy rallies that have attracted a cross-section of Americans.  Thank you, Scott Olsen, for acting as a giant wake-up call to every American who still believes, "Everything is beautiful."

It is far past time to abandon the ridiculous belief that it's a person's right to take as much as s/he can with absolutely no regard for its effect on others.  Unfettered capitalism has proven a dismal failure, and this is not the first time in history capitalism has run amok.  The fall of many great societies occurred when greed ruled the nation and integrity disappeared.  Are we there yet?