© Joe Marino / New York Daily NewsThe Occupy Wall Street camp in Zuccotti Park is entering its 2nd month. Zuccotti Park remains a tent city, here a camper was grooming himself earlier in the morning.
Occupy Wall Street protesters are going all out for Thursday's two-month anniversary of their movement, vowing to "shut down Wall Street" and hold marches, strikes and rallies all over town - even underground.
Cops say they're ready.
The ambitious day of action, billed as getting them "Out of the Park and into the Streets," is likely to set up new confrontations with the police.
If necessary, the NYPD will activate a mobilization plan that would throw 400 cops who work in headquarters into action, a source said.
The day is to start with an early morning "street carnival" outside the Stock Exchange - highly symbolic real estate that has been zealously guarded by the NYPD.
The group promises "a block party the 1% will never forget."
Mayor Bloomberg scoffed at the idea that the protesters might disrupt the opening bell, something they would dearly love to pull off.
"The New York Stock Exchange will open on time. People will be able to get to work. You can rest assured," the mayor told reporters.
A handful of restaurant managers and downtown residents gathered at City Hall for a small counter-protest demanding that Bloomberg launch a crackdown.
"I want him to protect his citizens. We are overrun," said Melanie Schilt, 39, who works for a hedge fund and lives on Maiden Lane.
"He's going to pick a side Thursday. Hopefully it's the right side. It's time for us to take our city back."
OWS's plans to ramp up come as offshoots in other cities are being shut down.
In Oakland, Ca., cops arrested 32 people and took down more than 100 tents early Monday. In Berkeley last week, sheriff's deputies struck women in the stomach with their nightsticks as they shut down a protest there.
"That could never happen here," said Zuccotti Park protester Chris Rider, 49, from Freeport, L.I.
"We delegate between the police officers and the general people here. Communication is the biggest thing. We won't let anything escalate."
Thursday's OWS plans include a greatest hits of sorts: another big labor rally at Foley Square and another march across the Brooklyn Bridge.
This time they are also planning to "Occupy the Subway" - deploying teams to 16 key MTA hubs in all five boroughs at 3 p.m. to "take our own stories to the trains."
There is also supposed to be a student strike in Union Square.
It was unclear how big the demonstrations would be on a chilly weekday.
A Facebook page for the protests urges: "Take a sick day, come out from the darkness surrounding Wall Street and into the light!"
Protesters were enthusiastic.
"It should be the biggest day yet. It could take it to another level," said Dolores Blake, a retired teacher from Queens.
"It's gonna be bigger than the day with all the union members. We have more people involved since the last big day."
At least 1,000 people have been arrested in the two months of Occupy Wall Street, but the Zuccotti Park sit-in is notable for being allowed to continue.
Over the weekend, police cleared out camps in Salt Lake City, Denver, and Portland, Oregon.
Protester John McIntosh, 30, from the Upper East Side, said New York just naturally deals better with opposing views - and chaos.
"The police in the other cities are more backwards," he said. "They are resistant to change and to what's new. In New York, there's more tolerance because it's a lot bigger and more urban. It's hustle and bustle here."
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer echoed the same sentiment.
"New York City is unique in the sense that we have a different tolerance of protestors. It's just part of the New York City culture of opinion," he said. "I actually think that the Oakland and Portland situation actually leaves a bad taste in New Yorkers' mouths."
He praised the way Bloomberg has navigated the rights of speech versus public order.
"I think the mayor has been very smart and strategic as it relates to Occupy Wall Street. Deputy Mayor (Howard) Wolfson has been touching base with elected officials and community-based groups on a regular basis. I don't have a crystal ball that can look into the future, but...I don't think we will be influenced by the actions of the other cities."
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