"The protesters taunt people who are on their way to work," said James Fernandez, 51, whose apartment overlooks the park.

That may be the most important thing that has been observed about Occupy Wall Street thus far: They taunt people who are on their way to work.

This gem of a quote is from a New York Post report on a meeting of Community Board I, composed of people who live near the increasingly pungent Zuccotti Park, where Occupy Wall Street is in full swing.

Here is another vignette:

One elderly woman told a protester to stop screaming and was met with an even hgiher volume. "Get some earplugs!" retorted David Spano. "This is the street. I can say whatever I want! I can't calm down, I've been struggling for 30 years!"

Reportedly, Mr. Spano is 30 years old.

And here is Ms. Forceful speaking:

"They have to have some parameters," said Tricia Joyce, also a board member. "That doesn't mean the protests have to stop. I'm hoping we can strike a balance on parameters because this could be a long term stay.”

There were also complaints of protestors defecating at the doorsteps of residents, which is my idea of being severely lacking in parameters.

I wish President Obama hadn't embraced this movement. It is not conducive to civility, which the president purports to admire,  when he not only condones but encourages people who behave this way.  Michael Gerson has a good column today in which he contrasts President Obama’s suppport for Occupy Wall Street with Ronald Reagan’s more adult response to an angry protestor:

When a student protester confronted Reagan’s car and shouted, “We are the future,” the then-governor of California wrote out in response: “I’ll sell my bonds.” The silent majority cheered.

Gerson notes that Occupy Wall Street exposes a cultural fault line:

The reaction to Occupy Wall Street reveals a gap of perceptions in America. Many liberal politicians, along with many in the media, see tent cities and clashes with the police as evidence of idealism. Many others, however, define idealism as something different from squatting in a park — as voting, walking precincts, volunteering in the community, supporting good causes and persuading their neighbors.

And going to work.

(Hat tip to Jamie Wearing Fool, who spotted the New York Post story)