Forum Post: Are You There, America? It's Me, Scott Olsen
Posted 12 years ago on Oct. 27, 2011, 12:17 a.m. EST by opensociety4us
(914)
from Norwalk, CT
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
I suppose Scott Olsen, former Marine and two-time Iraq war veteran, is one of those lazy bums who doesn't want to work and just wants a hand-out from the government. Q: What exactly did he risk his life in Iraq for? A: To have what his OWS detractors belittle as his "kumbaya circle" violently dispersed by Oakland police. Where are you America?
It makes me chuckle sometimes when I hear people say things like, "Get a job or join the military." In the end we are all held down by the same system. I served in the Air Force as an Avionics Specialist after 9/11, I worked in manufacturing for 2 years after I got out, then changed jobs and went to school for Electrical Engineering. I am graduating in the Spring and I have to tell you, unless you give up 25 years to the military and sell all of your freedom to the government, you are not gauranteed a decent life. Between me and my wife, we had to live off of roughly 40k/year just so we could both get through school, then we racked up about 100k in debt for student loans. And some people will tell me it was my decision that I went to school and acquired all of that debt. That's bull shit. I had the choice of working a shit job when I got out of the military or going to school, hoping for something decent in the future. Luckily I chose a degree that will eventually pay off, but at what price?
While I am better off than many Americans, is this the "good life" I should have expected from hard work? Society has told me that hard work will reap rewards for everyone and because of this mindset, I have sometimes asked myself, "Am I poor because I was lazy?" No. Hell no I wasn't lazy! This post is in defense of Scott Olson, the "lazy" OWS protesters and the rest of us "lazy" veterans. To the people that think others are angry and poor because they are dumb and lazy, think again. I have worked extremely hard, am very intelligent, a great husband and a caring person. I hope as least one person that has questioned the work ethic of these protesters reads this post and really thinks hard about what this movement is all about.
I asked radio host "Normangoldman" to explain this situation to me of no avail. First, the unionized police, fire, first-responders embraced as a key entity dismissed by the 1 percent- think Madison, Wisconsin. Now, through some strange vortex, the police/keepers of order have become "boots on the ground". Yet, there is no empathy to the fact that local budgets and resources are being stretched to keep the OWS encampments safe. Likewise, the local business entities and people which reside in these zones have been rather giving. I in no way condone brutality in any guise or form. When resources are being diverted from accidents, homicides, and other unseemly local events in order to placate the needs of OWS......stress is mounting. Just another vantage point.
And, I pray this young man and others are well.