Occupy Philly – Ignorant Americans or Americans Against Ignorance and Greed?

9Oct/115

Occupy Philly – Ignorant Americans or Americans Against Ignorance and Greed?

I originally had mixed feelings about Occupy Philly and Occupy Wall Street, or to be honest, I was negative about it. I mean I kept thinking to myself the protesters have it wrong, they should be protesting against Congress and Capitol Hill instead of big banks and corporations! So as usual, I am bantering on my Facebook and Twitter and have some threads that go 70 plus comments long with some very interesting discussion. It really gets me thinking - who are these "protesters" and who am I to say what the protesters should be protesting against?? So inspiration grows to the point where I clear my schedule, and my assistant Mary and I hail a cab down to City Hall to check things out.

And the big difference is when you substitute people versus ideas in your own head, your perspective changes a little bit (or a lot). I must be honest, I was originally thinking on my way down I was going to take a photo or a video of one or two "freaks" to mock the whole thing and dismiss it. I saw later that is what Erin Burnett of CNN (Erin Burnett video) did and I think she missed the whole point of this movement (on a side note, I loved Erin when she was on CNBC, but I think her CNN show will not last more than 6 months). When I was down at City Hall, the energy was palpable, intensity was in folks' eyes, and signs were everywhere expressing individual beliefs. You could feel the unrest, frustration and anger by listening to the stories of everyone there.

Various chants of democracy were shouted out from time to time and the unity would come together in full circle. It did not matter what race, sex, age you were. People united in Philadelphia and are coming together all over the country sharing the same message of frustration and discontent. The bottom line is that there is this huge underbelly of Americans who are disgusted with the way the country is being run - their anger may be towards corporations and bailouts or towards the political system. But for heavens sake, it is America and folks have the right to express themselves. I hope their message is heard by politicians from coast to coast. Neither Republicans nor Democrats really know what to do with these rallies as of yet, whether to embrace the "99 percent" or not.

And not for nothing, I am frustrated too. I have been mostly frustrated for the last 3 years with the tremendous gridlock in Washington, DC and with the political games that have been played that in essence has hurt our country. In the last 12 months, there has been severe wealth destruction in the stock market, especially in the last quarter which was the worst performing quarter since 2008 during the financial crisis. Hard working Americans have seen their largest assets - their 401ks and their houses depreciate. And Congress refuses to come up with a meaningful plan that will incentivize small businesses and the private sector to hire. Until the economy starts to grow, there will continue to be this unrest and frustration. And the biggest issue in my opinion is the fiscal policy coming out of Congress and the Obama Administration and the excessive regulation that is handcuffing corporations to grow. Those same corporations that people hate now they will love again once they are hiring and providing nice benefit packages. I guess that is the love/hate relationships of capitalism.

In the meantime, there needs to be immediate stimulus for the housing market. I will write about this in a future article.

For now, I want to say thank you to the folks who started the "Occupy" movement. And I want to say "Thank You" to my Facebook friends for starting a healthy debate. It is a lot different from being behind a computer and saying things in a quick instant versus talking to people face-to-face and seeing pain, frustration and anger in their eyes. I remember in 1990 (man I am old) when I graduated from college... it was pretty tough back then, it took me awhile to find a job even with a CPA license. I think it is much harder now for college graduates today. And to come out of college with debt and student loans only to struggle finding a well paying job has to suck. Period!!

If you have not had a chance to march around City Hall or participate in this movement, why not? Engage. I was skeptical. Yes, the message is garbled, scattered. So what... Obviously, the country has problems and Congress is a hell of a lot more scattered and they are getting paid a lot of money with lifetime health-care benefits. Sucks to be them... Now get the F*Ing job done!

What are your thoughts ?

Let's leave off on this classic Green Day song "American Idiot" , all 99 percent of us!

Green Day - American Idiot by Warner-Music

Tagged as: america, city hall, democracy, erin burnett, housing market, occupy new york, occupy philly, occupy wall street, philadelphia Leave a comment

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csomers
October 16th, 2011 - 08:29

Michael – thanks for visiting and thank you for your comment. I think sooner or later the Occupy folks will realize that their voice will be heard the loudest at the polls. And at the end of the day, it is the fiscal policy that is the reason why the job creation has not been able to grow even with a modest growth in the economy. There is just too much uncertainty with regulation coming out of Wash DC and not enough incentive or demand for corporations to hire. The bank bailouts happened three year ago. Yes, it sucked. But at least they paid the money back unlike who the Federal Government is lending money to today as part of their “Green jobs” program which seems like speculative money “rolling the dice” program. Nothing against green jobs and solar panels, but they could just as easily get their money from venture capital like every start-up company does as well. And if they cannot, then perhaps the business model pretty much sucks!
Michael Morning
October 16th, 2011 - 08:18

Well, said! Americans need to speak out, but I do feel that their anger and angst should be directed toward Washington D.C. We know that corporations and executives only care about the bottom line, but government has a mandate to watch out for the people (that whole “government of the people, by the people and for the people” thing). Instead, everyone from the President to Congress and the various regulator agencies are watching out for industry – and using our money to finance and subsidize those same industries. Wall Street is just 1 of many industries this applies to. And neither the Democrats nor the Republicans have an answer. I truly hope Americans start to look elsewhere for real “change we can believe in”. Thanks for the great point of view!
csomers
October 11th, 2011 - 06:28

Jeff – Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I agree with you. Politics aside, small biz is the lifeblood of the economy and they have been given no incentives to grow, only the opposite. Congress does not seem to get it nor does the Obama Administration. Same with the private sector. I think once the economy starts to expand, consumer confidence will start to go the other way as hiring will increase. You are so right that Government employees have all the benefits in the world. Why in the world should a Congressman serving a few years have healthcare for life? That makes no sense to me, very expensive and costing taxpayers A LOT of money. Perhaps the people calling corporations “fat cats” should look in the mirror. That is part of the problem. And the other part is fiscal policy that pro business – especially pro small business. Every cost of running a business (especailly healthcare) has gone up while demand (revenue) is tough. I appreciate and respect these protestors as there are problems and issues in the country that need to be addressed. Perhaps the Obama Admin needed to be firmer with the banks in terms of punishment with the bailout. But they were not. And there is not much that can be done now. The Dodd Frank bill will only make it more difficult for small to medium sized banks and make the big banks bigger. The unintended consequences of that bill will be horrible. What are your thoughts of that bill, especially for mortgage origination?
Jeff Belonger
October 10th, 2011 - 16:34

Chris,

I agree in a way that I always have mixed feelings about protesters. I think there are always some that have no idea, but because it’s a large group that gets to scream about something. I have even seen some of those same when interviewed, they really have no idea. But I will agree with the one main fact. We need our voices heard and heard loud. I want to see more of corporate America in these types of protests. I have some other thoughts, but I don’t want many to think I just hate the Obama administration. But the record has shown that they aren’t allowing small businesses to grow. It’s written in the sand…. hey, we know the administration was dealt a bad hand in a way, but they haven’t help any, and have made it worse. Overall, congress seems to get greedy just like many large corporations and thinking of themselves. They are proving this to me in regards to how they are protected with their pensions and health care…. no matter if they do right or wrong, they will have it for life. Sorry, but that part makes no sense. The military or police don’t get that same treatment…

Thanks, Jeff
Jeff Belonger
October 10th, 2011 - 16:33

Chris, I agree in a way that I always have mixed feelings about protesters. I think there are always some that have no idea, but because it’s a large group that gets to scream about something. I have even seen some of those same when interviewed, they really have no idea. But I will agree with the one main fact. We need our voices heard and heard loud. I want to see more of corporate America in these types of protests. I have some other thoughts, but I don’t want many to think I just hate the Obama administration. But the record has shown that they aren’t allowing small businesses to grow. It’s written in the sand…. hey, we know the administration was dealt a bad hand in a way, but they haven’t help any, and have made it worse. Overall, congress seems to get greedy just like many large corporations and thinking of themselves. They are proving this to me in regards to how they are protected with their pensions and health care…. no matter if they do right or wrong, they will have it for life. Sorry, but that part makes no sense. The military or police don’t get that same treatment… Thanks, Jeff