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Occupy Wall Street - A protest of huge proportions


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#1 ToxicS

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 11:39 AM

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I'm surprised no one has posted about this. It's been largely ignored by the corporate media or codemned by many Republicans but here it is.


It's the fight against the 1% of America who holds all of the wealth, and the 99% are the people protesting.
It's growing as well, we're not just in Wall Street anymore.

"Occupy" Protests Grow Across the U.S., Reported Gatherings in 847 Cities

Parallel actions inspired by New York City’s "Occupy Wall Street" continue to spring up across the United States. As of Friday morning, the website "Occupy Together," a hub for nationwide events in solidarity with "Occupy Wall Street" reported gatherings in 847 cities. On Thursday, activists kicked off the "October 2011" protest by occupying Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C.
Lydia, Protester: "We need to stop investing in privatization. We need to start worrying about the 99 percent of the population. We need to start investing our money into social welfare programs and worrying about the middle- to lower-class because we are not truly a great nation until all of us are strong and all of us are prospering."
Marilee Eusebio: "Well, I’m so appalled at the lies that go on at every level, and this was something I could do. Some of my friends said that this is a replay of what we did during Vietnam, but you know that did have some effect and I’m really hopeful that this and the people at Wall Street, that this will actually move us to do something."
As in New York City, demonstrators have come to D.C. from across the country, and some are taking part in their first-ever political demonstration. One woman who traveled from Kansas held a sign that read: "Lost my job, found an occupation."

Source: http://www.democracy...0/7/headlines#1
Here is a map of where all the locations of protest are. http://motherjones.c...eet-protest-map

Go to http://www.democracynow.org/ to watch the latest videos and see the thousands of people protesting about it.


Discuss. Did you protest?

#2 sircomflix

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 01:29 PM

Been keeping up with it since it started, and it's pretty sickening to see the media paint the protest as a bunch of hippies or attempt to dismiss them because they have "no central focus."

#3 Desmodius

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 02:10 PM

I've been loosely following it.. at least as much as I can.

I've found it interesting that it's spreading past Wall Street too. There's even an "Occupy Tampa" in my hometown. Kind of crazy lol.

#4 Shampoo

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 02:41 PM

the problem with this protest is that it is based entirely in jealousy of those that have more. if you want to protest greed, don't do it by saying "i deserve more stuff"

#5 Random

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 03:34 PM

I disagree with the movement completely.


The well being of others has no effect on my happiness or quality of life. Therefore, I don't want to diminish my own quality of life by giving to them.
I don't care about people not having the same opportunities as those who are more successful.

Don't get me wrong, I like charities for those with disabilities.

Call me selfish, because I am.
And I'm not fabulously rich, I'm perfectly middle class; so don't pull that card on me.

#6 Waser Lave

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 03:37 PM

I disagree with the movement completely.


The well being of others has no effect on my happiness or quality of life. Therefore, I don't want to diminish my own quality of life by giving to them.
I don't care about people not having the same opportunities as those who are more successful.

Don't get me wrong, I like charities for those with disabilities.

Call me selfish, because I am.
And I'm not fabulously rich, I'm perfectly middle class; so don't pull that card on me.


So do you think it's fine that working class people are paying for the mistakes of the super rich?

#7 Kat

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 03:54 PM

This at least gives me a little hope for the country.. some.
What some fail to understand is that this movement isn't because they/we resent success, but resent the fact the the system just doesn't work for them/us anymore.
This has probably been said a lot lately, but there is no reason why the top 1% should own over 50% of the wealth. Ridiculous, along with their ideas of what to do with their money.
It's a whole lot of other things.. corruption, greed, etc. The top 1% influence too much of our society for the people to be comfortable with.
It's just too much wealth disparity.. there's no "classes" anymore other than "I'm-so-rich-I-shit-diamonds" class and the "We all make similar wages compared to those guys" class.

Would love to talk more about this, but I have a headache.

In short, I'm hoping the movement extends the across the country and broadens across both parties, not just "left wing hippies."

#8 Random

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 03:59 PM

So do you think it's fine that working class people are paying for the mistakes of the super rich?


The rich are taxed too. 30% is a hefty amount of an income to take.

#9 Desmodius

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 04:06 PM

I disagree with the movement completely.


The well being of others has no effect on my happiness or quality of life. Therefore, I don't want to diminish my own quality of life by giving to them.
I don't care about people not having the same opportunities as those who are more successful.

Don't get me wrong, I like charities for those with disabilities.

Call me selfish, because I am.
And I'm not fabulously rich, I'm perfectly middle class; so don't pull that card on me.


Read Kats' post.

The issue isn't "You're rich, I'm poor, give me your money!"

The issue is that the wealthiest 1% of the population has more than half of the total wealth in the country.

If you don't see that as an issue, I wouldn't call you selfish, I'd call you stupid, because you are in that bottom 99%.

It's not not a left vs. right issue like people are trying to make it. There are plenty of left wing billionaires in that 1%, and they are just as guilty as their right wing partners in business.

It's not a rich vs. poor issue, it's a super rich vs. everyone else issue. The point is that the "fabulously rich" are out of touch with the rest of the country, and as such shouldn't be trusted to make decisions on our behalf. And it can't be argued that they've done the job fine so far, because our current economic position is proof that they haven't.

#10 Waser Lave

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 04:08 PM

The rich are taxed too. 30% is a hefty amount of an income to take.


I wasn't actually referring to tax, I was referring to the austerity measures being implemented in order to pay for the economic downturn and the lost jobs and housing repossessions which all have hit the working and middle classes hardest while the rich and super rich have barely seen any impact on their wealth or quality of life. On the subject of tax, however, in America the super rich are proportionally taxed less than the working and middle class, billionaires can pay as low as 15 per cent tax on their earnings (Warren Buffett only paid ~17.5% tax on his earnings last year, for example).

#11 luvsmyncis

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 04:38 PM

The well being of others has no effect on my happiness or quality of life. Therefore, I don't want to diminish my own quality of life by giving to them.
I don't care about people not having the same opportunities as those who are more successful.

Don't get me wrong, I like charities for those with disabilities.

Call me selfish, because I am.
And I'm not fabulously rich, I'm perfectly middle class; so don't pull that card on me.


This makes me absolutely sick, and I refuse to believe you are that callous. I don't much care for people, but if I have something I can afford to lose that can make someone else's life better, I'd lose it. I know what it's like to be hungry. I'm doing well enough now (I can afford cable!), but it hasn't always been like this and might not always be this way. I've pounced on every opportunity to advance in my life, and I'm getting paid $12 an hour.

Honestly, compared to a lot of people, you are fabulously rich. (I know how much you've paid for clothes, mister! :p) I certainly don't feel that everyone is entitled to the nice things you have, but there are people who are starving in our country and struggling to pay their rent. There has to be some sort of balance. Yes, there is government assistance, but that system is so flawed. It's not like all poor people are all lazy motherfuckers having babies left and right. There are people working their asses off and getting paid jack shit.

On a side note, would you be interested in purchasing a Nyan Cat blanket for like $200? ;)

#12 ShadowLink64

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 04:47 PM

I wasn't actually referring to tax, I was referring to the austerity measures being implemented in order to pay for the economic downturn and the lost jobs and housing repossessions which all have hit the working and middle classes hardest while the rich and super rich have barely seen any impact on their wealth or quality of life. On the subject of tax, however, in America the super rich are proportionally taxed less than the working and middle class, billionaires can pay as low as 15 per cent tax on their earnings (Warren Buffett only paid ~17.5% tax on his earnings last year, for example).

To be fair though, Warren Buffet agrees that the billionaires should pay more tax. So I suppose the system could use some fixing. :p

http://www.bbc.co.uk...siness-14533987

#13 Waser Lave

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 05:24 PM

To be fair though, Warren Buffet agrees that the billionaires should pay more tax. So I suppose the system could use some fixing. :p

http://www.bbc.co.uk...siness-14533987


I was just using him as an example of system failure/prejudice since it was in the news recently, I wasn't judging him personally. :p When you've got billionaires being taxed less than the working/middle class there's something going wrong somewhere at least morally.

#14 Guest_jcrgirl_*

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 05:34 PM

I still don't get why multi billion dollar companies are taxed less than my upper middle class parents lol
They export labor and production overseas anyway that it's just greed at this point...

#15 Random

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 07:05 PM

Read Kats' post.

The issue isn't "You're rich, I'm poor, give me your money!"

The issue is that the wealthiest 1% of the population has more than half of the total wealth in the country.

If you don't see that as an issue, I wouldn't call you selfish, I'd call you stupid, because you are in that bottom 99%.

It's not not a left vs. right issue like people are trying to make it. There are plenty of left wing billionaires in that 1%, and they are just as guilty as their right wing partners in business.

It's not a rich vs. poor issue, it's a super rich vs. everyone else issue. The point is that the "fabulously rich" are out of touch with the rest of the country, and as such shouldn't be trusted to make decisions on our behalf. And it can't be argued that they've done the job fine so far, because our current economic position is proof that they haven't.


People who are super rich have earned it. They deserve the money they have. They have made contributions or have simply found ways to make that money that has earned them their wealth. Why the fuck should they have to spread it?

You may think I'm stupid, but I disagree. I never said they can be trusted to make all of the decisions, I just don't think that they should be penalized for being more successful than others.



I wasn't actually referring to tax, I was referring to the austerity measures being implemented in order to pay for the economic downturn and the lost jobs and housing repossessions which all have hit the working and middle classes hardest while the rich and super rich have barely seen any impact on their wealth or quality of life. On the subject of tax, however, in America the super rich are proportionally taxed less than the working and middle class, billionaires can pay as low as 15 per cent tax on their earnings (Warren Buffett only paid ~17.5% tax on his earnings last year, for example).


People find tax loopholes, they exist. I honestly don't think those should be changed either. I don't really agree with companies like Google and GE that practice tax avoision strategies; they should definitely be taxed and the loopholes that they use should be limited.

This makes me absolutely sick, and I refuse to believe you are that callous. I don't much care for people, but if I have something I can afford to lose that can make someone else's life better, I'd lose it. I know what it's like to be hungry. I'm doing well enough now (I can afford cable!), but it hasn't always been like this and might not always be this way. I've pounced on every opportunity to advance in my life, and I'm getting paid $12 an hour.

Honestly, compared to a lot of people, you are fabulously rich. (I know how much you've paid for clothes, mister! :p) I certainly don't feel that everyone is entitled to the nice things you have, but there are people who are starving in our country and struggling to pay their rent. There has to be some sort of balance. Yes, there is government assistance, but that system is so flawed. It's not like all poor people are all lazy motherfuckers having babies left and right. There are people working their asses off and getting paid jack shit.

On a side note, would you be interested in purchasing a Nyan Cat blanket for like $200? ;)


Punk, sadly, I am that callous. I prefer that most people don't know what I believe economically or politically because my views are very limited to those people who I'm around. Due to where I live and go to school, most people are just like me so I don't catch any flak there.

I like to help certain people; it's not that no one matters to me. I just don't think that I should have to help everyone because I make more money. I prefer to donate my money to causes that are close to my heart. For example, the Muscular Dystrophy Association. I'd much rather donate to someone who was born with something that depletes their ability to increase their quality of life. I've always felt really close to people with MD because I have friends with it, so maybe that's why. I just don't believe in welfare or anything of the sort.

I really am not fabulously rich. My family is middle class, but we live in an area dominated by those who are extremely rich. While I do spend an exorbitant amount of money on things that I don't need, I've earned that money through businesses that I've created and generated. I don't want people to be hungry, but I also don't want to pay for people all over when I've seen that so many people with food stamps use money for things that they shouldn't have. I worked in a deli and tons of people would come in with food stamps but have iPhones, Sidekicks, and custom cars. If you have the money for these things, you don't need food stamps.

I realize that there are people working their asses off, and I respect them. Some people are just dealt a bad hand and they can't afford the opportunities that others are able to have. This makes sense to me. At the same time, however, there are tons of opportunities to do well. I come from an Italian family with one of those typical "off the boat with no money" stories. Obviously, times were different then; but, it is still possible.

If you were anyone else, Punk, I would buy that blanket for $200 and sell it online for profit; but, I care about you.
You can get much more than $200 for that, in my opinion, especially with the right marketing. There are so many nerds online that would love that :p



#16 luvsmyncis

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 07:59 PM

I don't agree with you Random, but it's easy for me to sit here judging you in my pajamas eating a deviled ham sandwich. So I will. *shakes fist in air* Ya goddamn yuppie!
The thing about the blanket was jokingly a last ditch effort at getting your sweet sweet money. ;)

#17 Kat

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 08:15 PM

People who are super rich have earned it. They deserve the money they have. They have made contributions or have simply found ways to make that money that has earned them their wealth. Why the fuck should they have to spread it?


What about those that inherited their money? O_o Glad to know I pay proportionately more taxes just because I popped out of the wrong woman.


Anyway, you're turning the argument the wrong way methinks. You do know that you're in the 99% percentile, right?
I'm not upset that people make more money than me. I'm perfectly happy with other facets of life.
The point of this is wealth disparity. Compared to them, you aren't rich at all. This isn't class warfare between lower and middle class.
I'll continue to try and make a point of that, but I've already tried a few times. I can only say it so many different ways. :p

Edited by Kats, 07 October 2011 - 08:21 PM.


#18 Random

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 08:41 PM

What about those that inherited their money? O_o Glad to know I pay proportionately more taxes just because I popped out of the wrong woman.


Anyway, you're turning the argument the wrong way methinks. You do know that you're in the 99% percentile, right?
I'm not upset that people make more money than me. I'm perfectly happy with other facets of life.
The point of this is wealth disparity. Compared to them, you aren't rich at all. This isn't class warfare between lower and middle class.
I'll continue to try and make a point of that, but I've already tried a few times. I can only say it so many different ways. :p



Their ancestors worked for their money, therefore the family deserves it.

I obviously realize that I'm in the 99th percentile.
I understand the points everyone is making.
I just completely disagree.

#19 Desmodius

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 08:49 PM

Wow, Random...

I still don't think you understand the issue at hand. I feel as if you're painfully misinformed, if not ignorant.

Yes, those people are rich for a reason. However, their wealth should not give them the disproportionate level of power that they hold because of it.

I'm not here to get into arguments over who deserves to have money and how they should attain and/or keep it. That's for a different thread.

The point of this thread is the occupy wall street movement, which is a protest against the fact that there is a growing wealth disparity in this country, separating the rich from the poor even farther than it already is now. That 1% will become 0.1% and it will still hold over half of our money, and by relation, power.

The rich man should not be more powerful than the poor man just because he is rich, however that is how the current system works. That's what's wrong. Not the fact that people are rich, but that they abuse their money to attain power over those who are not.

Yes, the rich have always been more powerful.. that's been a fact of life for as long as there has been wealth. The protesters want to change that. It's possible. Whether it's accomplished by taking away money from people who have no reasonable use for it or otherwise.

#20 WharfRat

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Posted 07 October 2011 - 09:15 PM

I just want to jump in to say that you guys are calling Random dumb/stupid/etc. but in reality, you just have differing opinions. Some believe in the myth of Horatio Alger and others do not.

No opinions of my own to leave in this thread at this time... Just want to remind you all to keep the discussion civil. :)

-Cody

#21 Waser Lave

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Posted 08 October 2011 - 02:19 AM

People who are super rich have earned it. They deserve the money they have. They have made contributions or have simply found ways to make that money that has earned them their wealth. Why the fuck should they have to spread it?

You may think I'm stupid, but I disagree. I never said they can be trusted to make all of the decisions, I just don't think that they should be penalized for being more successful than others.

People find tax loopholes, they exist. I honestly don't think those should be changed either. I don't really agree with companies like Google and GE that practice tax avoision strategies; they should definitely be taxed and the loopholes that they use should be limited.

Punk, sadly, I am that callous. I prefer that most people don't know what I believe economically or politically because my views are very limited to those people who I'm around. Due to where I live and go to school, most people are just like me so I don't catch any flak there.

I like to help certain people; it's not that no one matters to me. I just don't think that I should have to help everyone because I make more money. I prefer to donate my money to causes that are close to my heart. For example, the Muscular Dystrophy Association. I'd much rather donate to someone who was born with something that depletes their ability to increase their quality of life. I've always felt really close to people with MD because I have friends with it, so maybe that's why. I just don't believe in welfare or anything of the sort.

I really am not fabulously rich. My family is middle class, but we live in an area dominated by those who are extremely rich. While I do spend an exorbitant amount of money on things that I don't need, I've earned that money through businesses that I've created and generated. I don't want people to be hungry, but I also don't want to pay for people all over when I've seen that so many people with food stamps use money for things that they shouldn't have. I worked in a deli and tons of people would come in with food stamps but have iPhones, Sidekicks, and custom cars. If you have the money for these things, you don't need food stamps.

I realize that there are people working their asses off, and I respect them. Some people are just dealt a bad hand and they can't afford the opportunities that others are able to have. This makes sense to me. At the same time, however, there are tons of opportunities to do well. I come from an Italian family with one of those typical "off the boat with no money" stories. Obviously, times were different then; but, it is still possible.

If you were anyone else, Punk, I would buy that blanket for $200 and sell it online for profit; but, I care about you.
You can get much more than $200 for that, in my opinion, especially with the right marketing. There are so many nerds online that would love that :p


Reminds me of a quote by Winston Churchill:

Any man who is under 30, and is not a liberal, has no heart; and any man who is over 30, and is not a conservative, has no brains.


It's entirely your choice, I'd rather be in the heart category though, personally. :p

#22 Kat

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Posted 08 October 2011 - 12:16 PM

Their ancestors worked for their money, therefore the family deserves it.

I obviously realize that I'm in the 99th percentile.
I understand the points everyone is making.
I just completely disagree.


Just so you know I totally respect your opinion and don't think you're stupid, etc.
But I'm going to judge you anyway. :p
Apologies. I still enjoy talking with you. *patpat*

#23 sircomflix

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Posted 08 October 2011 - 10:08 PM

I disagree with the movement completely.


The well being of others has no effect on my happiness or quality of life. Therefore, I don't want to diminish my own quality of life by giving to them.
I don't care about people not having the same opportunities as those who are more successful.

Don't get me wrong, I like charities for those with disabilities.

Call me selfish, because I am.
And I'm not fabulously rich, I'm perfectly middle class; so don't pull that card on me.


It's perfectly fine to look after your own interests rather than others and I don't feel that it is selfish at all but rather, human nature.

I feel that you've misunderstood the movement completely however. Can you explain what you think it represents?

#24 Desmodius

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Posted 09 October 2011 - 12:00 AM

I feel that you've misunderstood the movement completely however. Can you explain what you think it represents?



This. Please :)

#25 ToxicS

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Posted 12 October 2011 - 10:32 PM

Sign this :D

http://www.avaaz.org...all_st/?cAHssbb


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