Occupy Denver Elects a Dog as its Leader

Despite Occupy Denver's efforts to remain leaderless, the city's mayor has asked that they appoint one so that officials know who to go to when they need assistance, information, etc.

"At the DNC riot, we were able to locate a few of the leaders and talk to them directly, but for Occupy Denver we can't go around and talk to everyone in the park directly," Matthew Murray, public information officer for the Denver Police Department, said in a Westward post.

"That's one of the issues of this style of hierarchy."

So how did demonstrators react to the city's request? They did what any sane and logical group would do: they elected a Border Collie-mix named Shelby as their leader.

Wait, what?

See the video of the election that was posted on YouTube:

Part of the reasoning behind the selection was posted on the YouTube page (either the caps lock button is broken or the author is really, truly excited for this development):

SHELBY IS THE FIRST ELECTED LEADER OF ANY OCCUPY MOVEMENT. WE ELECTED HER ON NOVEMBER 5TH BECAUSE SHE IS MORE OF A PERSON THAN A CORPORATION IS AND LESS CORRUPT THAN MOST PEOPLE. SHE IS THE YOUNGEST, FIRST, AND ONLY DOG LEADER OF THIS REVOLUTION.

"She's the youngest leader of a revolution in history and the first of any occupation so far, but she's smart, so people know she won't make any situations,” said Peter John Jentsch, the dog’s owner, in the Westward story.

“We just have to make sure she doesn't get arrested."

Jentsch promised to be her “bodyguard,” but not to speak in any meetings with officials (which will most likely result in extremely one-sided conversations).

But the reasoning for nominating the dog went beyond symbolism: one of the Occupy Denver organizers wanted to stick it to filmmaker Michael Moore.

Organizer Aaron “Al” Nesby says he nominated Shelby because he was annoyed when Michael Moore recently visited Occupy Denver and "acted like the movement’s leader."

He figured a canine leader would be more down to earth, writes Westward.

Shelby is “a smart and fun dog,” Nesby told his fellow protesters.

Plus she “can breathe, bleed, and show emotion. These three things alone obviously prove she’s more like a person than a corporation."

(h/t Newser)