By Marian Wang/ProPublica

When the Securities and Exchange Commission struck a deal with Citigroup over a failed security that the bank sold to investors, we asked whether regulators had handed Citigroup too sweet a deal.

Today in Manhattan, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff appeared to reach that very conclusion: “If the allegations of the Complaint are true, this is a very good deal for Citigroup,” Rakoff wrote as he refused to sign off on the $285 million proposed settlement agreement.

While the full opinion is worth reading, here’s a summary of the judge’s objections:

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Posted on November 29, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

This is what democracy looks like.
1. “It behooves President Obama to put his Justice Department to work going after those police departments which have broken the laws and which have teargassed and beaten American citizens for exercising their constitutional rights.”

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Posted on November 28, 2011

And What To Tell Butterball About It

Stomach this.
1. Stomping on heads.

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Posted on November 22, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

This is what democratic comedy looks like.

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Posted on November 21, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

This is what democracy looks like.
1. “We’re just tired of it.”

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Posted on November 18, 2011

By Steve Rhodes

“Chicago aldermen are expected to pass Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s $6.3 billion budget plan by a wide margin today,” the Tribune reports.
It’s a budget the media is declaring a “win” for Rahm instead of a loss for the city’s most vulnerable citizens. Because the political implications for the boss man are always more important to the MSM than the real-life implications for real people.

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Posted on November 16, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

1. From Arise Chicago:
After Receiving Only Tips for Years and Losing Thumb at Work Accident, Latino Car Wash Worker Demands Back Wages
Community supporters join with worker to demand car wash clean up labor practices
CHICAGO – Carlos Ruiz, who reports working for 11 years at Little Village Car Wash at far below minimum wage for only tips and losing his thumb in a workplace accident, will be joined by Arise Chicago and 50 community supporters on Tuesday, November 15, at 3:15 P.M., to lead a delegation from the parking lot at 2551 W. Cermak Rd. to his former employer to demand payment of the wages stolen from him. His action is part of a national week of action against the crisis of wage theft in a dozen cities across the country.

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Posted on November 15, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

This is what democracy looks like.
1. “Veterans celebrated Veterans Day by joining Occupy Chicago protesters downtown to protest the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Samantha Abernathy writes for Chicagoist.
“Multiple veterans groups joined the march, including Iraq Veterans Against the War and We Are Not Your Soldiers, an anti-war organization that works to keep military recruiters off of high school campuses.”
2. “Two mass arrests of Occupy Chicago protesters in mid-October obliterated the much-lauded mutual goodwill between city law enforcement and the movement, according to Occupy spokesperson Dan Massoglia,” the Nation reports.
“The arrests occurred as large groups of protesters attempted to camp out overnight in Grant Park, a public space with a city curfew. Massoglia says some Occupiers were denied phone calls, food, water and medicine while they were held in jail.
“These arrests stem from what remains Occupy Chicago’s most urgent task: finding a home. Though stationed at the corner of Jackson and LaSalle in the heart of Chicago’s financial district, police have told the group to remain mobile and to keep their supplies on wheels.”
See also: Occupy Chicago’s new cart!

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Posted on November 14, 2011

By The Beachwood Occupation Affairs Desk

This is what democracy looks like.
1. “The Occupy movement received a boost [Tuesday] from senior citizens. To send a message to Congress about plans to cut Medicare and Social Security – cuts that will likely come out of the Gang of 12 – hundreds of senior citizen patriots occupied a downtown intersection in Chicago,” RT reports.
“They were joined by nearby members of Occupy Chicago and other grassroots organizations – as well as a few members of Congress including Representatives Jan Schakowsky and Danny Davis.
“Ultimately, police moved in to break up the demonstration, hauling away 47 people – mostly senior citizens – in handcuffs.
“We can add their names to the growing list of 3,362 patriots who’ve been arrested since the Occupy movement started more than a month-and-a-half ago.
“But these mass arrests of patriots instead of banksters don’t jive with the attitudes of most of the American people.
“A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows Occupy Wall Street popularity surging with 60% of Americans supporting the basic sentiment of the occupiers. That’s twice as much support as the Tea Party received in the same poll.
“So while more and more Americans seem to be ‘getting it’ when it comes to the 99% movement – there’s still one group that’s woefully ignorant . . . the corporate media.”

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Posted on November 11, 2011

By The Grassroots Collaborative

Community leaders, joined by Ald. John Arena (45th), rallied against Mayor Emanuel’s budget proposal Wednesday, citing cuts to city services and expanded fees for city residents at a time when a $240 million surplus will remain in the city’s Tax Increment Financing (TIF) coffers. With many of Chicago’s families facing a harsh economy, organizers believe the budget asks those with less to sacrifice more.
“Chicago needs jobs, not layoffs,” said Charles Brown, a member of Action Now. “It’s a crime for the city to be cutting programs while United Airlines and the Mercantile Exchange get $45 million of our money.”
Coalition members taped yellow crime scene tape across the entrance to City Hall to make their point.

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Posted on November 10, 2011