'Peaceful' Wall Street Protesters Increasingly Court Confrontation, Arrests

Now that Chief Organizer Barack Obama is publicly behind the agitation he began, his goons are feeling emboldened.

Among the 92 arrests made Saturday in connection with the Wall Street protests, several took place after a group of demonstrators tried to topple police barricades at Times Square. The incident resulted in three officers being treated for injuries at Bellevue Hospital before being released. Additionally, 14 protesters were also arrested in Washington Square Park, refusing police orders to leave at midnight, when the park closes.

Although protest organizers say it was not planned by them and happened spontaneously, they acknowledge that after a month of demonstrations there is an increased willingness to confront the police during marches, even if it means getting arrested.

"They're going to jump a barricade here or there," said protester Brendan Burke, who oversees security at Zuccotti Park, "and they're going to keep this a protest rather than a balloon-carrying sidewalk march."

Sandra Nurse, a member of Occupy Wall Street's direct action working group, argued that "the envelope needs to be pushed" by demonstrators, but said the means of doing that are heavily debated.

"There is a very contentious argument within this movement about 'What is non-violence?'" she said. "And because the concept of non-violence is such a loaded conversation to have and everyone has a different perspective on it, it's very difficult to mobilize a lot of people to step up and push the envelope."

According to Ashley Cunningham, another direct action organizer, "there are people that would kick over a barricade and say that's non-violent, there are folks that would call that violent." She said the discussion among protesters had also included the breaking of windows, which took place during the weekend protests in Rome.

For Cunningham, confrontation with the police is necessary in order to ultimately change such laws.

So like good little agitators, they'll provoke the police and do their best to cause a scene, which neatly sets up things for next weekend.

Occupy Wall Street protesters yesterday kept things low-key after storming Times Square only a day earlier -- but vowed to start stirring things up again this week to drive home their anti-corporate-greed message.

The group plans to possibly occupy Lincoln Plaza on the Upper West Side tomorrow -- and is gearing up for a worldwide rally against police brutality Saturday.

Wait a minute. I thought they were against "corporate greed"? Now it's so-called police brutality?

Is this on the advice of their media enablers?

These clowns are really becoming full of themselves, to say the least.

"It's an upward trajectory," said John St. Lawrence, a Florida real estate lawyer who took part in Saturday's Occupy Orlando protest, which drew more than 1,500 people. "It's catching people's imagination and also, knock on wood, nothing sort of negative or discrediting has happened."

Really?