This action is symbolic and a start. There should be a cost to those who would oppress others and commit violence. State sanctioned violence is pervasive and largely unexamined and unchecked. People have a right to defend themselves and this type of action shows that at least these people have chosen a more human response then many states choose. If they are captured the violence that the state will commit in punishing the individuals that through this brick will be far more severe then the violence they committed in there protest of the capitolist political machine that they fight.

There is a clearly defined yet mostly un-articulated hierarchy that defines what we call civilization. Violence done by those high up on this hierarchy against those lower down is often invisible to the public and society at large while violence done by people considered lower on this hierarchy scale is considered unthinkable, or crime and regarded with shock and disdain. What it is in this case is self defense.

Is in fact our way of living--Industrialized civilization and capitalism--based upon the commission of violence to survive? People in resource rich third world places do not willingly give up there resources so that we in America can drive SUV's. Iraq is about oil and our need to have it cheaply. Our judicial system is now a prison industry.

It would seem that the property of those people higher up in this social hierarchy I mention above is somehow more valuable then the property of those lower down on the ladder. It seem that those high up on this hierarchy feel entitled to increase the amount of property they control, i.e., to make money, by destroying the lives or opportunity or freedom of those lower down on the ladder, 400,000 civilian dead in Iraq or 2,000,000 people in the US under the control of the justice department for example. I guess this is all called economic growth and the result is those above can do as they please and those low on the hierarchy must accept it or be punished. This action is an act of those voiceless people who are low on the hierarchy taking back there power and speaking up!

Just 15 hours ago this report was filed on the AP. The question I have is simple. Why are Americans so apathetic when this happens here all to often? My thoughts are that it is because of a difference in political dynamic. In Europe the governments are afraid of the people. In America the people are afraid of there government.

In Europe people react to the wrongs committed by the state as in Athens where her we fear the harsh hand of the state and the punitive punishment all but the entitled will recieve at the hands of the law.

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — "Hundreds of rioters battled police in central Athens on Saturday, fire-bombing a credit reporting agency and attacking the city's Christmas tree two weeks after the police shooting of a teenager set off Greece's worst unrest in decades.

Saturday's violence followed a memorial gathering at 9 p.m. (1900 GMT) where 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos died Dec. 6, in the Athens neighborhood of Exarchia. The rioters, using the National Technical University of Athens as a base, launched attacks against police, throwing rocks and petrol bombs and erecting roadblocks.

Security forces are prevented by law from entering the university grounds unless the school administration gives the go-ahead, but so far no permission has been given.

Grigoropoulos' fatal shooting touched a nerve among Greek youth, who took to the streets to protest what they see as random police violence. The protests have been fanned by perceptions of corruption among politicians and poor job prospects as the economy takes a turn for the worse.

Saturday's clashes dashed the hopes of the government and police that protest fatigue would set in as Christmas neared."

Athens the birthplace of democracy rises to defend itself, Viva Athens!

Did you really think doing that would accomplish something, really? Did you think that the Fort Collins "capitalist community" would get together and say, "shit better close up shop, we got hit, better just fold." Things don't really work that way chief, and if you were older than 17 you might already know that. Wells Fargo? Really?

I am with you brotha every and any act against the state will hinder its plague! They have to pay to replace their windows right? this will cost them time and money and will slow down their process. Sure they will just make money out of thin air but none the less it will show others that their are people willing to go to the extreme of damaging property to regain their freedom. I do think there are better ways of awakening the masses though. I am burning zeitgeist DVDs and giving them to friends families and people in old town. The zeitgeist dvd may not be as extreme as direct action but I think that it has the power to influence and awake the sleeping masses. This is our greatest weapon; Strength in numbers!
In Solidarity
Chris
Ps. Has anyone ever thought of persuading the police to work with us and not against us?

Check out this terrorist threat propaganda from the mainstream news. I got it off of yahoo news. This was just published today. This is the exact fascist scare tactics that hitler used to take over Germany.

Do you think america is slowly becoming a fascist state?

Reply and let me know what you think. I am very interested to know.
:-)
Chris

WASHINGTON – The terrorism threat to the United States over the next five years will be driven by instability in the Middle East and Africa, persistent challenges to border security and increasing Internet savvy, says a new intelligence assessment obtained by The Associated Press.

Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear attacks are considered the most dangerous threats that could be carried out against the U.S. But those threats are also the most unlikely because it is so difficult for al-Qaida and similar groups to acquire the materials needed to carry out such plots, according to the internal Homeland Security Threat Assessment for the years 2008-2013.

The al-Qaida terrorist network continues to focus on U.S. attack targets vulnerable to massive economic losses, casualties and political "turmoil," the assessment said.

Earlier this month, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the threat posed by weapons of mass destruction remains "the highest priority at the federal level." Speaking to reporters on Dec. 3, Chertoff explained that more people, such as terrorists, will learn how to make dirty bombs, biological and chemical weapons. "The other side is going to continue to learn more about doing things," he said.

Marked "for official use only," the report does not specify its audience, but the assessments typically go to law enforcement, intelligence officials and the private sector. When determining threats, intelligence officials consider loss of life, economic and psychological consequences.

Intelligence officials also predict that in the next five years, terrorists will try to conduct a destructive biological attack. Officials are concerned about the possibility of infections to thousands of U.S. citizens, overwhelming regional health care systems.

There could also be dire economic impacts caused by workers' illnesses and deaths. Officials are most concerned about biological agents stolen from labs or other storage facilities, such as anthrax.

"The threat of terrorism and the threat of extremist ideologies has not abated," Chertoff said in his year-end address on Dec. 18. "This threat has not evaporated, and we can't turn the page on it.
"

These high-consequence threats are not the only kind of challenges that will confront the U.S. over the next five years.

Terrorists will continue to try to evade U.S. border security measures and place operatives inside the mainland to carry out attacks, the 38-page assessment said. It also said that they may pose as refugees or asylum seekers or try to exploit foreign travel channels such as the visa waiver program, which allows citizens of 34 countries to enter the U.S. without visas.

Long waits for immigration and more restrictive European refugee and asylum programs will cause more foreigners to try to enter the U.S. illegally. Increasing numbers of Iraqis are expected to migrate to the U.S. in the next five years; and refugees from Somalia and Sudan could increase because of conflicts in those countries, the assessment said.

Because there is a proposed cap of 12,000 refugees from Africa, officials expect more will try to enter the U.S. illegally as well. Officials predict the same scenario for refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Intelligence officials predict the pool of radical Islamists within the U.S. will increase over the next five years due partly to the ease of online recruiting means. Officials foresee "a wave of young, self-identified Muslim 'terrorist wannabes' who aspire to carry out violent acts.
"

The U.S. has already seen some examples of these homegrown terrorists. Recently five Muslim immigrants were convicted of plotting to massacre U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix in a case the government said demonstrated its post-Sept. 11 determination to stop terrorist attacks in the planning stages.

The Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah does not have a known history of fomenting attacks inside the U.S., but that could change if there is some kind of "triggering" event, the Homeland assessment cautions.

A 2008 Interagency Intelligence Committee on Terrorism assessment said that Hezbollah members based in the U.S. do local fundraising through charity projects and criminal activity, like money laundering, smuggling, drug trafficking, fraud and extortion, according to the homeland security assessment.

In addition, the cyber terror threat is expected to increase over the next five years, as hacking tools become more sophisticated and available. "Youthful, Internet-savvy extremists might apply their online acumen to conduct cyber attacks rather than offer themselves up as operatives to conduct physical attacks," according to the assessment.

Currently, Islamic terrorists, including al-Qaida, would like to conduct cyber attacks, but they lack the capability to do so, the assessment said. The large-scale attacks that are on al-Qaida's wishlist — such as disrupting a major city's water or power systems — require sophisticated cyber capabilities that the terrorist group does not possess.

But al-Qaida has the capability to hire sophisticated hackers to carry out these kinds of attacks, the assessment said. And federal officials believe that in the next three to five years, al-Qaida could direct or inspire cyber attacks that target the U.S. economy.

Counterterrorism expert Frank Cilluffo says the typical cyber attack would not achieve al-Qaida's main goal of inflicting mass devastation with its resulting widespread media coverage. However, al-Qaida is likely to continue to rely on the Internet to spread its message, said Cilluffo, who runs the Homeland Security Policy Institute at George Washington University.

Officials also predict that domestic terrorists in the forms of radical animal rights and environmental extremists will become more adept with explosives and increase their use of arson attacks.

no, the attack of a single bank isnt going to bring the capitalist system to it's knees, but think of the message destructive attacks like this one send. it definetely disrupted the bank for atleast a small time, making that attack not worthless and not something only a stupid 17 year old would do. any individual attack against the state is effective even if it does not bring about immediate change, but if the will is there that change will come eventually. every revolution has a bloody and non bloody side to it. not only should we be smashing windows, spray painting and lighting shit on fire, but we need to do community outreach. we need to educate the general population and try to open their eyes (most get their news from corporate media remember!) so whoever did attack that bank, your efforts were not in vein, and you have my solidarity comrade!

keep it going, dont stop at banks.. army recruitment stations, corporations, etc...

(A)

by the way, not all 17 year olds are nimwitted little rebels, attacks such as these are valuable and those who disagree are hindering the progress made by us all.

SOLIDARITY FOREVER!

To me, its an insult to the history and principles of Civil Disobedience and Direct Action to even label this brainless act with the same words we ascribe to concerted, conscientious efforts of people who have committed their lives to social change.

Its easy and empty to throw a brick. Its far easier to destroy than it is to create something. I realize and value that we don't all agree on this topic, but I see this as an act of violence, and I view violence as the game of the elite. Anyone with money has an immeasurable advantage in the game of violence. The only approach I can support is nonviolent Civil Disobedience and Direct Action that involves cooperation among multiple people.

I don't want to live in a world where people who disagree with my approach to life are supported in throwing a brick through my window. That's fascism. That's using violence to control people. I want to live in a world where people use information and communication to convey their opinion and help educate others when they feel the world needs to look at something from a new perspective. As mentioned above, distributing Zeitgeist Addendum is a great example... that's CREATING something and takes a lot more concerted effort than throwing a brick.

There may be examples where hurling a brick is a form of self-defense. But i seriously doubt those examples exist in Fort Collins.

Are you idiots serious? It's a damn broken window. Bored kids with nothing better to do. To somehow morph this into an attack on capitalism or solidarity with someone else is nothing short of sheer stupidity- and then encouraging more of the same? Post your address so I can reject capitalism at YOUR house!

The comment entitled 'What?' implies that resistance to the consumption based for profit machine we call capitalism is futile. All forms of resistance are needed to fight against this force which dehumanizes people, puts our environment behind profit, exploits the poor and distroys diversity of thought and culture. The act was a small one granted. It non the less was an act of courage! It was a political act and as such it would not be prosecuted as vandalism--a misdemeanor--but instead an act of terrorism. The individual would spend years in prison for doing this and then letting it be known that it was a strike against banking interest done in solidarity for those in Grease.

Yes it was a small act. It is still an act of courage done in the face of a public that is asleep. Sometimes the small thing are the ones that over time lead to bigger things. What have you done to help make a better world? At least this person took great risk to act. So many just talk but in the end do nothing.

that have stolen so much money from society and its individuals are owed millions of bricks. look at what they have done to this country alone in the last few years. one brick is a good enough start but we have to think toward the time when we occupy the banks and take all of this wealth back.

cliff

Your petty acts of vandalism don't hurt the bank in the slightest, but makes takes you further out of the mainstream and they just pass the costs on to their customers. WWGD - What Would Ghandi Do? He wouldn't throw bricks through a window. How sad.

So sad indeed that so many have bought into the lie that is capitalism. Fight back people even if it's only in a small way resist!