Forum Post: What did you think was going to happen?
Posted 13 years ago on Nov. 15, 2011, 11:12 a.m. EST by justaguy
(91)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
With the big call to shut down the cities subway system and interrupt the work of millions of regular people just trying to get along, in a city that is under constant threat from terrorism; did you all really think that was a call that would be ignored by the city?
You are calling for an occupation that will certainly disrupt the lives of people that are going to work, to school, to doctors, to restaurants, all to make yourselves feel like you are some kind of guerrilla force.
Is that really the way to get people to back you?
A city that is in a financial hole, spending millions it doesn't have because of you, that will have to come from taxes or fees or some other cuts to services.
We got to where we are by the government and "we the people" all spending money we didn't have. You are keeping that going in the name of the 99%.
You cost the everyday Joe and Jane to lose time at work because of you, and you won't even have the .9% that you have now.
Go to D.C. - that is where all problems stem from.
The banks and other corporations have done nothing illegal, apart from a very few people that when found out, are prosecuted.
All of their activities, while certainly not a good thing, were not illegal.
If you ignore voting and protesting the mechanism (congress and the White House) by which the "criminals" are allowed to continue on, then you will be nothing but a nuisance.
Your post is correct right up until you got to the "Go to D.C." line.
It is the case that there needs to be an active presence in DC.
But that is not where the problems stem from. That is where the solution sleeps, but that is not where the problems stem from. The problems stem from Wall Street. The subversion of democracy is a money trail, and it leads back here. The core of the movement needs to remember that, and it needs to be here.
We already know that our votes do not matter, especially when local ballots change the content right before we vote on them.
People keep saying "go to DC" as though it's a magical solution to any problem. DC is regularly full-up on protesters and other people chanting and shouting about one issue or another. The location isn't quite as important as the message. In fact, it's better to choose a more symbolic location. Even more importantly, it's better to demonstrate in areas that will attract the attention of the public at large and raise awareness of the issues.
As for the banks and corporations doing nothing illegal, that's kinda the problem. It's not illegal for them to be acting in ways that are destructive to the majority of the American population. Law has been written (or unwritten) in such a way that they can get away with these things. Therefore, it is unacceptable that such practices continue and none be held accountable for their actions. There will be no hiding behind technicalities.
One of the goals and results of the Occupy movement is to raise awareness and facilitate discussion. Despite the name of the movement, the blame is also on Congress and the White House and their interaction with Wall Street, corporations, unions, etc.
The city doesn't have to devote money to a police presence at OWS. We aren't carrying guns--that's what the Tea Party does. Yes, working people should be supported and we don't want them to lose wages or work time. Hopefully, the short term inconvenience and/or sacrifice will be worth it. Valid point though. As for going to Washington, no, the problem is with the financial powers that control Washington. The banks and Wall St. firms are universally recognized to have rigged the system with mortgage securities and the whole derivatives mess. We just want those people to be accountable the way you or I are held accountable when we do anything, and I mean anything wrong--as in, double park and you lose over a hundred bucks in a ticket. We aren't trying to destroy capitalism, merely to improve
He sort of has a point unfortunately. The problem is that banks are for-profit, which encourages this legal greed to flourish. Banks should still do what they do but be less profit-oriented. Banks should not be businesses, end of story
Do you think they could be controlled with stricter regulations?
They should be publicly owned, with voting to be had on how to spend that money on a local level. Right now, they are private and are basically also deemed corporations, though this is less true with credit unions. I would love for them to be basically nonprofit. What I mean is that they SHOULD generate and pull in money, but only to help increase the causes of communities and businesses. They should have strict payment guidelines to the people who work there and should not give exorbitant money to CEOs for the money they help to pull in. It would also help if they were to invest in machinery and such and lease it out to the community as the community deems fit. It would help to further sound construction and development in delapidated areas among other things. I think they should just be converted basically into community organization tools, through which communities could better have a voice into what happens around them, which doesn't always have to do with profit. That is just a part of what I think should happen in terms of democracy in real time across the whole country. I would love to see decisions being made in real time through the internet at a local and national level. I don't think our voices are heard effectively, since the process is so muddied.
"Go to D.C. - that is where all problems stem from."
No, why don't YOU go to D.C., you lazy asshole? Occupy Wall Street is already carrying more than its own weight here, while little shallow, TV-addicted drones like you sit on the sidelines and bitch about the "inconveniences" that the protesters are causing, and worse, defend the pig-factories on Wall Street as having done "nothing wrong." LOL...you're just a lazy, pathetic piece of shit, and you know it....
lol yeah that's it. Gotta be me.
I would call you a moron, but that would not be nice.
Why don't you just answer the question--why are you telling OTHERS to go protest in D.C.? Why aren't you down there yourself?
Typical ows supporter guy is yes calling him a loser is to nice
well :( well, when my car breaks down I usually protest it. day after day I tell it my demands and I blame it. then I go to the mechanic ( and wait my turn in line. seems to me Obama is the mechanic, though no one in their right mind would have hired a mechanic with ZERO experience or Skills. we thought Obama would come forth and fart a rainbow we could walk into heaven on.
we are still waiting
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