Forum Post: Finger on the pulse: It's the government
Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 13, 2011, 10:35 a.m. EST by Misfit138
(172)
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64% of the people feel that a large government is more of a threat than the companies on Wall Street. If you want to win the people over, it's time to turn OWS into Occupy DC. The corruption starts at DC. DC allows the "1%" to do as they please and their actions can only be changed through proper laws and enforcement. Wall Street has no motivation to change their ways as DC will bail them out. Change DC if you want to change Wall Street.
85% say corporations have too much influence over the political system.
95% say corporations spend money on politics to buy influence/elect people favorable to their financial interests
93% say there should be clear limits on how much corporations can spend to influence an election
93% say when corporations spend unlimited amounts to influence elections, it infringes on rights of rest of us by drowning us out
78% have unfavorable reaction to the Citizens United decision
85% of Democrats disapprove of Citizens United
78% of Independents disapprove of Citizens United
68% of Republicans disapprove of Citizens United
62% want Congress to find a way to place limits on how much corporations can spend to influence the outcome of elections
82% don't think congress will do anything
77% would support a constitutional amendment to limit corporations influence
66% would vote for a candidate who pledges to support such a constitutional amendment
and this poll was from June, 2010.
And Congress has the power to make these changes as Wall Street has no incentive to change their ways otherwise.
Every item on that poll has a higher result than your "big government" poll.
Congress has no incentive because they profit from corporate influence.
OWS is changing that.
If Congress is pushing through fascist bills soon to be laws. I think that we should have serious protests and marches in D.C.
However, I do agree with OWS the money trail leads to Wall Street, but since Congress has the power to pass laws that could hurt movements like this and violate our constitutional rights--we absolutely should be in D.C. right now.
Congress allows Wall Street to do what it wants. All of the tents and protests in the world won't change Wall Street, only DC has the power to do that. Protesting Wall Street is a distraction that will change nothing. I hear a lot of delusional people here claiming OWS has had major victories and has changed things, but is any lobbyist not lobbying Congress? Is any firm that needed a bail out being threatened to be broken up by Congress? Is Wall Street suddenly going to ignore NAFTA and start bringing jobs home? The problem starts and ends in DC. Wall Street is a symptom of DC and these protests are a distraction.
Whether sixty five percent of the population knows it or not, we live in a republic and get the laws we deserve. How many of those people who are sad about the state of our Union voted into office those that bent over backwards for Wall Street?
I agree, there is a huge disconnect between the people and those that are supposed to represent us. It used to be considered a patriotic burden to serve in the government and was not desired and certainly not seen as a career. Corruption has twisted our government into a self sustaining machine of career politicians and "legacy's" that have no clue about average American's. Until we vote them out or someone has the cajones to enact term limits, I don't see much changing. I think OWS is wasting their time with Wall Street and their anti-capitalist elements as that will never gain enough support to make a real change. Like them or not, the TEA Party got results in the ballot boxes. Too bad all of the TEA Party Republicans were just establishment hacks who just talked the talk.
Politicians may say they work for the American people, but in reality they work for those who paid for their elections. Those sixty five percent that are disillusioned need to pool their money and run their own senators. It is sad that so many people rally for a president, but they skip the most important elections of all, their senators; they are the ones who make the laws. The President just enforces them and champions them, but if the senators are not willing to compromise the President is impotent.
I would love to see term limits and campaign financing reform. It is high time we had regular people in DC.
That is a good and strong solution. A career in toeing the line seems weak and un American, and augmenting it by getting the money out of elections would also save our Union.
It fails to inform of the fact that corporations are, and have been running the government.
Occupywallstreet!!!!
SO, is camping out, blocking commerce and generally disrupting peoples lives somehow going to create laws that change the tax code, repeal NAFTA and other treaties that ship jobs overseas? Is crying about Wall Street going to prevent lobbyists from buying politicians? Is occupying small rallies going to stop Congress from being able to inside trade which gives them incentive to write laws and regulations that favor their investment portfolio's? Of course not, the corruption starts and can only be ended at DC.
Then how else does one peaceably assemble for a redress of grievances?
It seems to be the constitutional guarantee they fear most, as they have made it close to impossible, to do so effectively.
The 1st Amendment says we have the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances. So far I have not seen that from OWS. And as far as peaceably assembling, you must understand that you cannot step on the rights of others to exercise your rights. Is interfering with commerce, causing people to lose pay, blocking traffic, harassing people on the street peaceful? It would be nice to see OWS send more than a dozen people to DC rather than a thousand to block people from getting to work as these actions reinforce the image of OWS as simply being an anti-capitalist, ant-American movement.
That doesn't answer the question.
Plus it's full of falsehoods.
My rights have been stepped all over by corporations, buying laws and influence without my consent..
That's what OWS is all about.
I guess you missed that part in all the right wing noise about the movement.
Nice idea, blame the government, not the corporations. Go and drink your T.
Who gave out the TARP and bail out funds? Who allows themselves to inside trade and write laws that don't apply to them? Who writes tax laws that allow the richest to pay little in taxes compared to their take of the overall pot? Who drafted NAFTA that killed many of our industries in the US? Who has the power to write laws to fix these ills? Why would Wall Street ever change their ways when DC has their back? Wall Street is a symptom of DC corruption. Of course, as an obvious partisan (drink your T indeed), I wouldn't expect too much from you.
Who requests and blackmails DC to write these laws?
WallSt is the cause, not the symptom of DC corruption.
So you think that DC will stop insider trading among themselves, stop letting lobbyists influence them, stop taking campaign contributions and return the favor with their power because Wall Street is going to see the error in their ways? Laws need to change and that won't happen until DC takes the people seriously again. Hell, just the insider trading is incentive for DC to write laws favoring firms in their portfolio as well as picking winners and losers in the market. DC and Wall Street work hand in hand, but only one has the power to change that and they won't until they are made to. Wall Street simply takes advantage of the cards DC deals.
And the election system, but it might be useful to first target WallSt, rapicious capitalism.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-3hZsXrxaI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mkRFCtl2MI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SQqjTxI3vc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EewGMBOB4Gg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z9WVZddH9w
http://thezeitgeistmovement.com/
http://blog.thezeitgeistmovement.com/
http://www.thevenusproject.com/
Facts are too inconvenient I guess.