Never has it been clearer to me that there isn't an American Dream, there is an American Railroad.

     We're railroaded into the mold they've created, and it's only when you try to deviate from the mold that you realize exactly how screwed we are.

     For example, try being homeless for a few months. I don't care if you sleep in the streets, in your car, or you find some other location you prefer to sleep, as long as you're not living in a house or an apartment. Now, look at the world around you again:

     Where do you sleep?

     You're not allowed to sleep in public spaces.

     Even if it happens to be legal to sleep on the sidewalk in the town you happen to be stranded in, because as some like to forget most people don't choose to be homeless, you still face likely harassment from the local police for no real reason. Maybe you're panhandling, selling news papers, playing music, or any other variety of ways to ask for money, and the local shop owner, nearest to the location you've chosen with the most foot traffic, doesn't like the way you look. Maybe a cop with a superiority complex decides that it's his personal mission to toss you in jail as many times as possible. ( Over a hundred times and counting for one blind gentleman in Lawrence, Kansas. )

     If you choose to sleep in a public park, you will be arrested. Public spaces are only public spaces when the city chooses them to be public.

     If you sleep in a car, in almost any parking lot you choose to park you risk the chance of being trespassed and your car being towed. Even if you're in a parking lot which allows overnight parking and sleeping, you have the chance of police harassment. ( As we personally experienced in Newark, NJ. "You guys aren't. . . Homeless though, right?" )

     Camping grounds? Try again. We didn't find a single one along they way that didn't charge you just to sleep in a tent in the "wilderness". And that's only if the camping grounds are open, which is not year round.

     Sleeping in an abandoned building? Well, there's that, and all that comes with that lifestyle. I haven't experienced this yet, so I can't comment, but as soon as I've had that experience I will comment further.

     Sleeping in a tent on private grounds? As long as you're not "bothering anyone", by being seen or even simply existing, you might be able to get away with this for a while. ( Five years as was the case for this group in Rochester, NY) But, eventually, no matter how much you have kept to yourselves, and respected the private land you've called your home, someone will get a stick up their ass about your presence and you will no longer be welcome.

     Besides being homeless, lets say you want to live with a bunch of your friends, in a non-typical housing situation? It usually isn't allowed by local zoning laws for houses to have a setup in which many families can live on one piece of land. With apartments you're only allowed to have so many people on a lease, which binds you into a year long contract in which your money is invested into nothing and you incur penalties if you have to leave early, and if you choose to have more people than are allowed onto a lease then you risk being evicted and thrown out onto the streets.

     So, lesson one: You're only allowed to sleep in houses or in apartments in the manner in which the government and the corporations choose. 

     The next lesson, and my next article, will be on how we're forced into a "typical" career situation, as well as the laws that have been passed restricting local business and the corporations that control who gets the loans distribute the loans for which start-up companies depend on.

     After that I will discuss how we've been railroaded into reliance on credit and the utter control the banking system has over our lives.

     And then maybe how we've created a police force that isn't accountable to anything, because their motto is "Arrest first and then let the courts sort it out". They know that the people, protesters or people from poor neighborhoods, cannot afford the court fees and the lawyers, let alone the loss of work, and they constantly use this as a underhanded tactic to bully those they feel are beneath themselves and need to be controlled.

     The college factory and the debt machine that thrives on the new idea that college is mandatory to success in even the lowest ranks, as opposed to a privilege and honor that it used to be.

     Or, how about the fact that we've been driven away from any sort of ability to be apart of a community, besides church? The fact that I, as well as thousands of others, had no way and no one to connect to before this Occupation started.

     Next, will be whatever else comes to mind, because, to be honest, I'm trying to find ways in which my life is not being completely dominated by a "higher power" than myself. I'm looking for a way to live outside the box that's been created for me as its lid comes slamming down on my grasping fingers, and I'm feeling all the pain and frustration that comes along for the ride.

 I was having a conversation the other day with an ex-pastor. He now co-runs a shop called The Free Store, where you take what you need and give what you want, because he wanted to do something that he felt would be truly beneficial to the entire community, by changing hearts and minds. His goal is to teach others that consumerism is not a healthy state of mind and that there are alternatives for everyone, even those who are apart of the middle class.

The story that he tells is inexorably linked to what we are as a movement. We believe that greed at the expense of others is inexcusable, as well as the beliefs of sharing and equality, but he has found yet another way to bring these ideas into the public eye. This store is ran on the principles of our movement, a linear hierarchy that is supported by those who feel that when there is a need within the store they can just step up and take care of that need themselves. There is no certain class or creed this store is targeting, if you're a middle class mother and you need a new pair of shoes you are as welcome to it as one of the hundreds of homeless living within the city limits. The flow of goods regulates itself this way, as many drop items off at the doorstep to be dispersed.

This store has touched the lives of those who shop there in a personal way as well, with the decision to help a man who hadn't seen his family in over a decade and had been living on the streets to realize he has a talent as a painter and to get him in touch with those he lost contact with years prior.

We're all on the same page, we just have different ways of helping the world, but we could learn something from these stores, and even find ways of helping one another. Charlotte, NC choose to start up Food not Bombs once again, and when I explained what it was to the owner of The Free Store he immediately wanted to form a connection. And this is what keeps the movement going.

A video in which him, and others who run the store, speak, will be available online soon. I'll let you all know when you can check it out.

     We started this project, back in December, by attending the Florida People's convention. It was a statewide convention, in which everyone who attended could speak with others about current issues that were particular problems for the people of Florida. As the convention came to its climax there was a mass GA where people spoke on these, and other issues, as a group. They came to a decision on matters to bring back to their local occupations, with the next step being to come to consensus as a state, so they could bring these issues to the capital. The goal was noble, and the intentions were well placed, but no one really knew how well the process would work when it was attended by all sorts of people who had never met one another. In the end, it was a victory for our entire process, because everything ran smoothly. The General Assembly format worked like a charm. Everyone understood how it was supposed to work, so even though they were in a completely new location, with completely new people, along with new issues, they were able to work together as well as they could back home. It felt refreshing, and the hope for real change was thick in the air.

     Today was just as impressive, if not more so. The North Carolina statewide General assembly was ran a little bit differently than the one in Florida, but not with any negative consequences. They asked all the Occupations in the state to send as many delegates as they wanted, but to bring with them any ideas for proposals that the state-wide General Assembly, NCGA, could come to consensus on. So, many Occupations came to consensus on proposals to send to the NCGA, and once there all of these proposals were felt out by consensus to be brought back to their individual occupations. There is a plan for another state-wide general assembly, after any friendly amendments or blocks to certain proposals are made, so that they can finally verify where North Carolina's Occupations feel as one.

     There was talk a while back about a nation-wide general assembly, to be held in Pennsylvania, where every occupation was supposed to send one male and one female delegate, and they would make decisions on what to send to Congress as a group, with no other representation from their general assemblies besides themselves. Many believed there were problems with this format, so much so, that this event was essentially blocked. There are very good lessons to be learned from how Florida and North Carolina made their events successful, and one of the key ideas behind both of them was whoever wanted to attend could attend. There are many voices in this Occupation, and at the core of our ideas is that a person needs to be able to represent themselves as they wish to be represented. You cannot ask someone to sum up the ideas of an entire camp of people by sending two delegates to a convention. This is almost universally agreed to be one of the major problems with our government as a whole. We've created a form of direct democracy that makes every person truly feel as if their voice is heard, and through the process that Florida and North Carolina use their voices stay intact. This is the true beauty of the Occupation and I feel very proud. Today we participated in Direct Democracy and we should all be proud.

       I spent one day with the people at Occupy Raleigh, and while I was very happy with a lot of the people that I met, and enjoyed the conversations that I had, at the end of the day, I was asked to leave.

       Around 3:00 am, three members of Occupy Raleigh and I were sitting around the fire enjoying the warmth. Two men, in their early twenties, walked up to the park and started taking pictures. I approached one of them, he told me he was press, and showed me his badge, giving me the story that he worked for three different websites and just wanted to get some pictures. I could tell that something wasn't right about him, that he wasn't at the camp to support us, but I knew I had to be nice, show him around, and invite him to take all the pictures he wanted; as Occupy, we believe in transparency and have nothing to hide. His friend had been approached by two of the people from Occupy Raleigh, and he said he didn't have any credentials and just wanted to take pictures for a friend of his. At that point, when the two men were in the camp, right next to the fire pit, things got out of hand. The three protesters from Occupy Raleigh started yelling at the men. They were threatening to beat them up, kick their asses, and in doing so, forced the two men to flee, across the street, back to their car. It only got worse as the protesters ran after them, all screaming, as one of the men continued to take pictures over his shoulder. As they finally made it to their car, the protesters continued to harasses them by standing in front of their car, demanding a fight. When the two men were finally able to leave, they were smiling. They got the story they wanted without ever once threatening anyone with any violence.

       When everyone got back into the park, I wasn't going to keep my thoughts to myself and I told them that the way they handled that situation was wrong and then explained why. I reminded them that this movement is dedicated to being peaceful and that threatening to attack people, whether they are there for your cause or not, is not okay. Adding in the fact, if you give someone in the media something bad to report, that is all they have to show the rest of the world. I also informed them that I, myself, am independent media and have been following the movement very closely, and in reply, two of the protesters began attacking me verbally. I was told that I could not be trusted, told that I had no right to tell them that they need to remain peaceful, and told that they will use violence against anyone who walks into the park and wants to take pictures. I was told all of this over the course of an hour and a half, and in the end, told that I was not welcome at Occupy Raleigh. I was threatened with violence, shoved away about a foot by one of the protesters, and told to leave.

       This is why I will not return to Occupy Raleigh. Although most of the people that I met were very nice, respectful people, the ones who acted that night are just as much a part of their Occupation. They have forgotten why we occupy and have no regard for our principles or our dedication to non-violence. If Occupy Raleigh cannot figure out and resolve their situation they will only fail, and if they continue to allow individuals from their camp to threaten to use violence against the media, then they will only end up hurting the movement in the end. I am BLOCKING the existence of the Occupy Raleigh camp as part of the Occupy movement until all of their camp can accept the principles of non-violence. I am sure that the people outside of the camp are genuine people, who only want to help this movement grow, but that is not the case for some of the people who occupy at the camp.

 This is something I've wanted to write for a while, but I've never quite had the words to express it until now: You have no voice. You can scream at the top of your lungs into the night and no one will hear you.

Our forefathers, who fought in an all out war to gain the freedom of a voice, were fighting the same tyranny that Occupiers are fighting against today. They fought to make it so that we are Constitutionally protected to have that voice so we never would have to fight a war against the right and greedy for our unalienable rights as human beings. Now, as always, some is never enough. They will take until there is nothing left, if left unchecked, and we are the only ones willing to do the checking.

Government is useless. Police are corrupt and over-reaching.

I don't want to live in this country anymore. There is no real dream left, there is no opportunity. Everyone is drained to the point of exhaustion and only kept alive by the drugs and chemicals they feed to us to keep us productive. Happiness is the ability to take life at the pace best for yourself and to help society in the ways you are best able. Happiness is knowing that you're going to be able to eat and sleep each day and that you will be able to guarantee your children the same.

Instead of being able to live this life, I've been thrown into a sickened would that claims the more you work the better of a life you'll have. I, and so many other, know the truth. We've worked as hard as we could, giving more than our bodies could handle, and all we gained in return was the expectation that we continue, with constant promptings to increase our productivity further. All that and not even a living wage in return. Only catastrophic health insurance that many can't afford or, as most would find, no health insurance at all. No real chance at promotion, because only those who will be clones of the greed and selfishness above will be allowed to climb the ranks. And there is so much more I could add here, but I will expand upon that all in the future.

The point is, I may not want to live in this country anymore, but I will fight for it. I'm not going to give up on it just because the road ahead of us ranges from hard to next to impossible. My brothers, sisters, and I are in it for the long haul, and one step at a time we are changing the world for the better. I may not have a voice to this establishment, so, if necessary, we'll start another establishment. My dream is that my children will be born into a world where they have a chance and, if they work hard and prove themselves, they will be given what they deserve in return.

Boston, Massachusetts. I can't say I've ever been to an Occupation, thus far, that is more dedicated to process and democracy, but they're much more than just that. I see something akin to a well-oiled machine here. I don't know if it's because they don't have a camp, or in spite of it, but there is a balance going on between protesters, those who are in working groups, those who are the financiers, and the general assembly that works wonderfully for all those involved, even if they are too stuck in the details to be able to see it themselves.

The first thing we did when we came into town was to try and find out when Occupy Boston's working groups were meeting. Normally, we've had problems with this, and it seemed Boston would be no exception. Their camp had been dismantled and there was no longer a central location in which groups could congregate. I was happily surprised, however, when we looked at their website and not only found a full agenda of activities on their calender, despite no central headquarters, but also fairly detailed instructions on the times and meeting places for working groups and protests. It would have been nice, as an outsider, to have had clearly listed addresses for these locations, so I could look them up on a map or GPS, but it was clear that, within the area of Boston itself, these were known hubs in which meetings took place regularly. Truly, despite small concerns such as that, this Occupation is the most highly organized, and on the ball, Occupation compared to the others that we've visited so far, including Occupy Wall Street.

When we were at Occupy Wall Street there seemed to have been a massive distance between those who were involved in working groups and those who attended GA. Most who were involved in working groups honestly didn't have the time to attend GA and many groups even decided to meet at around 7pm, a time when many were available, so more people could be involved. In fact, it seemed that many working groups only attended GA when they needed the Assembly to approve a proposal or to ask for more money. Here in Boston, when GA started, those who had updates from their working groups lined up immediately as stack opened. They made their announcements quickly and concisely, and as soon as the next group was called they were up front and ready to go. From what I remember, there were close to ten groups just updating and informing everyone on the status of future and past events as they related to the working group and the Occupation itself. All in all, the entire process gave a clear picture that this Occupation doesn't just sit around. It focuses the energy of those involved into productive ventures, and allows everyone the chance to participate in helping the movement the best way that they can offer. This also allows those who do donate their time, and money, to the Occupation to see a snapshot of everything that is going on, which, in turn, gives everyone a sense that things are moving forward and not just at a standstill.

At this point in time, it looks like General Assemblies are an important networking tool that some Occupations aren't using to their full advantage. First off, even if a person believes they are loud enough to not need a mic check, something is lost when it isn't used. There is a sense of true understanding of a subject when you are forced to only be able to speak in 4-5 word phrases, but also , on the other side of the picture, if you are forced to repeat a concept out loud it gives your brain that much more time to be able to process the concept before you have to move on to the next. Secondly, there are many people who can only make it to general assemblies, and rallies and protests that happen to be held during times they aren't working, that loose a lot of feeling of connection when the general assembly has degraded into a means to an end rather than a gathering place for people to be involved in the Occupation. Neither of these complaints is just my opinion either. I've listened to people as we've traveled and these are two complaints that I've heard a lot and people have felt very strongly about.

I can't say that Boston does things perfectly, however. I believe in their attempt to stick whole-hardheartedly to process, that they may be becoming a little too bureaucratic. There are ways to move the process along more quickly, as long as the General Assembly itself wants to move the process along more quickly, and it doesn't seem that Boston believes in using any of those tools. For instance, there was a proposal last night in which people were allowed to voice their concerns against. There were very few people who voiced concerns for the proposal, however, they still went through the process of allowing the 15-20 people who wanted to voice how they felt this proposal was going to be good for the movement as a whole to all speak, and it took so much time, even though it was obvious that everyone was for the proposal, that they couldn't even get through all the proposals on stack before they had to stop GA because the church they were allowed to use was closing for the night. In other Occupations they would have just asked for a temperature check to see if the assembly wanted to come to consensus on the proposal and, if the Assembly voted such, the proposal would have immediately moved into the consensus process. About an hour of saying exactly why everyone liked a proposal wasn't exactly necessary in this case and could have been easily avoided, and if they had still wanted to spend that hour they could have voted against moving into consensus, but either way the choice still should have been given.

It also seems that, even if they don't believe it, Boston also has a much better stream of funding and financing than other Occupations we've traveled to. Occupy Wall Street may be receiving tens of thousands of dollars, but they pay out much more per month than they receive. According to the woman speaking for OB finance last night, currently Occupy Boston is receiving about as much per month as they are spending. They aren't necessarily being able to save, but they are sustainable. Many groups are also feeling out how to fund raise without alienating members of the group who feel they shouldn't sell items to make money. I don't know how that conflict will end, but I believe that people realize it's importance and that will figure out a happy medium.

There is no real end to this article, no happy conclusion to tie it together, but that's because everything is always fluid. We are headed out to speak with more people, sit in on more working groups, and who knows what piece of information will change or tie-in with something that's already been written.