Time to shut down Occupy?

UPDATE: Intense pressure is building all over the U.S. to shut down Occupy as the encampents have become increasingly squalid and dangerous.  NEW – Deaths at Occupy Camps Bring Pressure for Shutdown (ABC)

The Occupy movement is still licking their wounds over the Santa Ana’s justifiable decision to not allow them to camp out overnight in our downtown.  They will be in Irvine again this Saturday if you want to see them in “action.”  They  may also be in Santa Ana, in smaller numbers.  Click here to see their Facebook page.

In the meantime, here is a wrap-up of Occupy news from around the nation – and it isn’t good news:

• Man Shot at Occupy Oakland – A young man was fatally shot Thursday evening just yards from the Occupy Oakland encampment outside City Hall. (San Francisco Chronicle).
• Suicide at Occupy Vermont – Police say preliminary investigations show a 35-year-old military veteran fatally shot himself in the head at an Occupy Wall Street encampment in Burlington. (New York Times).
• Dozens arrested at Occupy Cal – Wednesday night, campus police arrested dozens of students and clashed with others to end a student occupation. (MSNBC).
• Gresham Mayor bills Occupy Portland for damage to police cars – Gresham Mayor Shane Bemis wants Occupy Portland to pay for damages to two of his city’s patrol cars. The damage was allegedly caused by one of the movement’s members. (Katu.com).
• Man arrested at Occupy Toronto – One man has been arrested after allegedly throwing hot soup at another man at the site of the Occupy Toronto demonstrations Thursday evening. (Globe and Mail).
• Occupy Wall St. protester arrested for kicking medic – An Occupy Wall Street protester was arrested early Thursday morning after allegedly fracturing an EMT’s ankle, officials said. (AM New York).
• Occupy Wall Street: Protests Unsafe, Sexual Assaults and Violence on the Rise –  Occupy Wall Street has been going on for a little over two months, but protests are becoming controversial as news of sexual assaults and other criminal activity are marring its humble efforts. (Christian Post).
• “Squalid” camp undermining Occupy Vancouver: mayor –  We’ve been patient with the encampment side as it was considered a key element of the larger protest in over 1,700 cities around the world, until serious life safety concerns emerged with two critical incidents and a death, with the fire department discovering propane bottles and flammable materials in tents and the tarping system and access problems. It was clear that conditions in the encampment had seriously deteriorated, and the city needed to intervene to put safety first. (XTRA).

Remind me again why the heck we want to do this in Santa Ana?