American flags were burned. ATMs were destroyed. Occupiers were hit by cars as they jaywalked across the street. In other words, Occupy Oakland’s general strike turned into lawless mayhem as anyone  with an ounce of common sense would have predicted.

True, the Occupy Oakland general strike was not entirely violent. Throughout most of the day occupiers only terrorized shoppers, destroyed private property, and shut down commerce at the Port of Oakland. The real mayhem didn’t begin until protesters occupied an abandoned building near San Pablo Avenue and 17th Street. The occupiers erected barricades using tires, pallets, and garbage cans and set them on fire when riot police began evicting them from the building. An all-out battle followed with police using tear gas, flash grenades, and bean bag rounds on the occupiers, and the occupiers responding with firecrackers and bottles.