amirdread

The official Occupy Wall Street list of demands describes the demands in too complex detail. People are used to bumper sticker messages. Let's dump our elitist tendencies: we don't need to quote M. L. K. Jr: we don't need to point to videos "to inspire you".

Demand #1 is waaaaaaaay too convoluted. I hate it with a passion. It reads like it was written by an infiltrator bent on discouraging all who read it.

And we must point to what we will do if our demands are not met, i.e. we will continue to occupy places like Wall Street; we will organize specifically to vote people out of office; we will have runs on banks; we will boycott businesses; we will block traffic during rush hour when our crowds are too big to crush, things like that.

We also need to make use of our conscience, especially since we are specifically asking Wall Street to HAVE a conscience. Here's how I propose we rewrite our demands:

-Demand #1: Stop all the wars and bring 100% of our troops home; shut down illegal/immoral military bases around the world, including warships threatening countries, and repel the Patriot Act. How can we be taken seriously if we say nothing about the killing and crippling of innocent people being carried out in our name using our money, and if we sacrifice our civil liberties to provide cover for war profiteers?

The money we save from the wars and bases can immediately be used to take care of our returning troops with medical treatment, infrastructure jobs, , business loans, etc. We want our military on our side, not on Wall Street's side. If riots break out, we want our military to refuse to shoot us.

-Demand #2: Cut the "defense" budget in half and use the money we save to hire troops and other Americans on infrastructure development jobs (schools, bridges, roads...)

-Demand #3: Prohibit investment banks which issue securities and commercial banks which collect deposits from merging or overlapping and reinstate conflict of interest prohibitions against investment bankers serving as officers of commercial banks. (That's all we need from the originally published demand #1)

Demand #4: Reverse the Citizen United court decision by banning ALL corporate political contributions.

Demand # 5: Pass the Buffet rule on fair taxation; close all corporate tax loopholes and prohibit hiding funds overseas. The money saved must be used to develop jobs.

Demand #6: Appropriately regulate the Securities and Exchange Commission and create serious oversight with clear penalties.

Demand #7: Remove 100% of access of PAID lobbyists to the White House, and to our congresspeople and senators...with clear penalties.

Demand #8: Make it illegal for former or current government regulators to work for industries which they regulated...with clear penalties.

Demand #9: Eliminate "personhood" status for corporations.

Demand #10: Prosecute the criminals who crashed our banks and illegally took our homes from us.

--Please contact Amir Dread on Facebook or write to nydread@yahoo.com

Joined Oct. 11, 2011