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Bill Maher did have a point though with a lot of these 53%-ers: sure, a lot of them don’t blame Wall Street, but they still have nothing!
We need to see more stories of success from average Americans. They’re out there, we just need to hear from them. You’ve said yours, Pino, I’ve said mine, let’s bring in more!
The fact people can succeed doesn’t mean: a) that the big financial institutions haven’t messed up the US economy, with the wealthiest of the wealthy gaming the system for their own benefit; or b) the result of this crisis makes it harder for hard working intelligent people to get work and succeed. There always will be success stories. There will also be stories of people who worked just as hard things didn’t work out — there is always a bit of luck involved. Also, many of those who don’t pay taxes are very hard working, but just don’t get paid much. The distribution of wealth in the US is more skewed and unequal than any time since the 1890s. OWS is the kind of political reaction that kind of situation is certain to evoke, whenever wealth distribution becomes too skewed there is a backlash. There have been anti-Wall Street protests similar to this going back over a century.
a point though with a lot of these 53%-ers: sure, a lot of them don’t blame Wall Street, but they still have nothing!
Not sure I follow. To be a member of the 53%, you have to make enough to actually pay a Federal Income tax. It kinda means you are the richest half-ish of the country.
Scott Erb said:
A, We agree. There was massive failure and with it should go massive blame. And while I am willing to acknowledge that the financial “big guys” were complicit, I also hold significant blame on pure and plain government. In a properly working market, no bank in the world would borrow money to people who have no hope of paying it back. They simply don’t.
B. This is true. It is harder. Harder than it should be. Absolutely.
The distribution of wealth in the US is more skewed and unequal than any time since the 1890s.
But the quality of life for everyone is at its highest as well. More people have more and live better. If you were playing SIM City, would you rather have a population that was less wealthy over all but the wealth was more evenly distributed? Or would you rather have a wealthy society but it meant that the very very few were extraordinarily wealthy?
OWS is the kind of political reaction that kind of situation is certain to evoke, whenever wealth distribution becomes too skewed there is a backlash. There have been anti-Wall Street protests similar to this going back over a century.
I have no issue with protesting or making your voice be heard or with being sad at the system.
I simply make the case that camping out in private property, marching on individual citizens, getting arrested is counter productive. I would suggest that working harder would lead to more people being more wealthy.
For the record:
http://persephonemagazine.com/2011/10/dont-even-get-me-started-mythical-bootstraps-college-student/
For the record:
First off, I have to get a beer; this is one long ass post!
Second, I find it funny, without reading it yet, that Buster Blond would find such issue with this picture of the protest yet accept all the garbage being posted under “I am the 99%”.
Anyway..more to come.
Kristin Williams said:
persephonemagazine
Jeepers.
Buster Blond uses one of the most expensive places to live in the country; but she lives there, so that’s cool.
She couldn’t have picked living in Durham too, or Creedmore or Oxford. You can BUY a house for $400 a month there.
The larger point of the post, ignoring Blond’s blustering, is that OWS folks seem to think that they represent anyone and everyone NOT the top 1% wage earners. I’m not in the 1% either, but I don’t want to be associated with the group of people calling themselves the 99%. Rather, I resonate with the 53%.
And that Buster Blond doesn’t get this is silly.
The whole movement is about “points”. And Sally is making a “point”. We don’t want to depend on others to pay our way. While we understand that we need the farmer to farm, and the plumber to plumb, we want those craftsman to be compensated fairly for their labor. And me for mine.
The idea that someone would labor FOR me is insulting.