Al Hilal advances to AFC Champions League knockout stage despite 1-1 draw with Al Sadd    Finance minister: All Vision 2030 projects have sustainable funding that won't affect public finances    Crown Prince announces medium-term debt strategy to diversify funding sources "A resilient economy capable of overcoming challenges reflects progress towards achieving Vision 2030 goals"    'No excuses' for Israel to not accept ceasefire deal, EU foreign policy chief says    Alkhorayef highlights role of National Initiative for Global Supply Chains in boosting Saudi economy    Saudi Arabia signs investment deals worth SR35bn with foreign firms to strengthen global supply chains    Saudi Arabia unveils updates on Expo 2030 Riyadh master plan at 175th BIE General Assembly Riyadh Expo Development Company established to oversee strategic planning, operations, and legacy development    Riyadh Season draws 8 million visitors in 6 weeks    Saudi FM attends Quadripartite meeting on Sudan in Italy    Gangsters block aid distribution in south Gaza    Russian deserter reveals war secrets of guarding nuclear base    Georgia's new parliament opens first session amid mass protests and boycott    Best-selling novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford dies    Cristiano Ronaldo's double powers Al Nassr to 3-1 win over Al Gharafa in AFC Champions League    Al Ahli edges Al Ain 2-1, bolsters perfect start in AFC Champions League Elite    Al-Falih: 1,238 foreign investors obtain premium residency in Saudi Arabia    Most decorated Australian Olympian McKeon retires    Adele doesn't know when she'll perform again after tearful Vegas goodbye    'Pregnant' for 15 months: Inside the 'miracle' pregnancy scam    Do cigarettes belong in a museum?    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Wall St action part of global ‘Arab Spring'?
By Peter Apps
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 12 - 10 - 2011


Reuters
AFTER the “Arab Spring” and unrest in Europe, New York's “Occupy Wall Street” movement may be the latest sign of a global, popular backlash against elites with increasingly shared rhetoric and tactics.
On almost every continent, 2011 has seen an almost unprecedented rise in both peaceful and sometimes violent unrest and dissent. Protesters in a lengthening list of countries including Israel, India, Chile, China, Britain, Spain and now the United States all increasingly link their actions explicitly to the popular revolutions that have shaken up the Middle East.
The slogans on the streets of Manhattan and other US cities also show a host of other intermingling influences, from the British student protests last year to the “indignados” (indignant) anti-austerity demonstrations in Greece and Spain.
What they all share in common is a feeling that the youth and middle class are paying a high price for mismanagement and malfeasance by an out-of-touch corporate, financial and political elite.
When hundreds of protesters blocked London's Westminster Bridge on Sunday in anger at upcoming changes to Britain's National Health Service, they took on slogans from US protesters who describe themselves as the “99 percent” paying the price for mistakes by a tiny minority.
With the economic outlook darkening just as the growth of social media helps disparate groups around the world knit together a global narrative of anger, there may be more to come.
“This is most definitely going to be a multi-year trend, perhaps even a decade,” says Tina Fordham, chief political analyst for US bank Citi.
“What's interesting is the way you're increasingly seeing these ... strands come together. So far the policy impact has been minimal, but that could change. An extended period of low or no (economic) growth could galvanize these emerging movements into political forces.”
While those largely leaderless groups taking to the streets might be getting better at articulating what they are against, they still struggle to define what they actually want. But they are still gaining traction.
Already, the tactic of occupying a location – be it a park, the central square in an Arab city or a university common room – appears to be becoming commonplace, allowing debate and providing a focal point from which to engage the media and authority. So too are “days of rage”, a term first used during the Middle East risings, not to mention the use of social media and messaging systems to stay one step ahead of authorities.
When English student and occasional fashion blogger Jessica Riches, then 21, began posting twitter updates from a student sit-in at University College London late last year, her postings and online interactions inspired like-minded students elsewhere. That led to a string of other “occupations” across Britain and fueled further protests against planned tuition fee rises.
This didn't stop the coalition government pushing through the reforms – part of a wider debt-reduction strategy – but now Riches feels she is seeing the beginnings of something more. __


Clic here to read the story from its source.