Forum Post: An Open Letter to Wall Street and the Far Right

To Wall Street: You Guys are the worst. Gordon Gecko wasn’t right….in fact if you remember the movie, he ended up in jail. Probably a good place for a lot of you after plundering of the citizenry, the manipulations of the economy and disregard for the well being of society that you’ve exhibited. Just remember who allowed you to aspire to the positions you occupy.

PS to Wall Street: By the Way, you’re screwing us with our own money! Those stocks and other investments you are trading in aren’t owned just by rich investors. Most of the value is owned by US through our pension funds (what few are left after you decimated them), our 401(k) funds (what little of those is left), the Social Security Trust, and the individual investments we hold. We’ve entrusted Fidelity, State Street, Vanguard, Schwab, and others to be the stewards of our money so we would have a solid future. Instead we’re getting pigs at the trough enriching themselves while impoverishing us.

To those who want to close our borders: Unless you are 100% Native American or come from a Hispanic family from the Southwest whose roots pre-date the arrival of the Conquistadors, we all came here from somewhere. We’re the melting pot. Remember the inscription on the Statue of Liberty? There’s a better than even chance I’d win a bet that your family has been in America for less than 150 years. So ask yourselves if your great, great grandparents had been forced to get a green card and be sponsored by someone who wanted to hire them before they could come to America, would you be living here? Accepting the huddled masses who want nothing more than to have a chance at the American Dream has always been a wellspring for what makes this country great.

To those who insist we are a Christian Nation: Yes, most of us are. Most of those who immigrated here come from a Judeo-Christian tradition. But the republic wasn’t founded on Christiantity. It was founded on religious freedom and freedom from religious persecution, not matter what your beliefs. It was founded with a Constitutional guarantee of separation of church and state. “In God We Trust” didn’t appear on our currency until 1864. It wasn’t until 1954 that “under God” was added to the Pledge of Allegiance. We have a strong heritage of religious tolerance and of opening our arms to others. Even though the Founding Fathers were Christians themselves, they were smart enough to achieve that openness by avoiding an official state religion. Let’s keep it that way.

To the Right Wing: Read the PS to Wall Street. The economy is driven by consumers, stupid. It’s not driven by corporations or big investors. Nearly ¾ of the economy comes from our shopping habits and most of the remaining 25% is somehow involved in an economic chain that trickles down to or relies upon our 75%. Most of the investments in the country are owned by the people, not by the rich you are protecting and portraying as the Masters of the Universe. Get over yourselves.

PS: Read Also the threads "An Open Letter to Democrats and Republicans" and "An Open Letter to Washington"