Versus Occupy Wall Street

I find the people who have joined the “I am the 53%” contingent really miss the point of OWS. It’s not just that they work hard to get what they earn, and they perceive those protesting are whiners, it’s that whatever they earn can be (and has been) stolen out from under them by the (mostly) legal actions of the 1% in those big banks. It’s the wanton speculation—the result of the government of the United States de-regulating their banking system—which caused the financial collapse in that country, as well as the exportation of lower-skilled jobs in the manufacturing fields. It’s the encouragement of mass consumption without production which has driven North America’s economy towards these actions by Wall Street gamblers in the first place. Gordon Gekko famously said, “Greed is Good.” No, no it’s not–at least, not for most of us.

Similar conditions are what caused the Great Depression, which had global impact. The New Deal was proposed by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and its implementation, plus the outbreak of WWII are what helped pull American, Canadian, British, German and French economies (the five most important at the time) out of the morass of debt and poverty by making it possible for manufacturers to begin making new products. As much as I respect President Obama, he is no FDR, and his hands are severely tied. They are tied by a multitude of things:

a) Opiated and indifferent masses. Although the OWS movement has grown, the truth is, most people are just staying at home, watching TV and playing video games. Those of us not in the 1% have been encouraged to try and emulate them, bankrupting our wallets and our souls in the process. Celebrity “reality” shows emphasize the wealthy, beautiful and extravagant, and make it seem a standard way of life. Most of us have middle-class incomes, middle-class homes, and middle-class values, but we have been sold a bill of goods that says we have to have the latest, greatest and least accessible. If we get these things, our lives will somehow be better—happier, more fulfilled, maybe even that least accessible commodity of all, perfect. It is very hard for someone of my generation, and the generations that follow us, to understand how privileged we already are—even without hair straighteners, HumVee limousines and personal stylists.

b) The U.S. and Britain are already fighting a war against Afghanistan and Iraq with no clear exit strategy. It hasn’t improved the economy. If anything, it has contributed to the drain on finances through a continuance of the conflict and all the attendant resources such an enterprise requires: men, machines, weapons, etc. All of these things need money, money that might be better spent taking care of, for example, veterans (who I understand have seen their benefits and government support decrease in the past decade). So war has not, and probably will not, kickstart any new industries which will add to the economy.

c) Most of the biggest North American companies have exported their manufacturing and lower-skilled jobs to India and China. At the same time, getting a university (or even a college) education has become increasingly so much more expensive. There is a potential workforce that has been spurred to believe they are too good to do “menial” labour, but can’t afford to get the kind of education that would ensure they have jobs. In past decades, that means a lot of those workers would end up in the manufacturing sector, physically producing goods and services. Now those exact jobs are in other countries. Add to this the true fact that big corporations become bigger by buying smaller and mid-size companies they would otherwise buy resources from. While it makes smart business sense to cut out the middleman, this action also results in cutting out a lot of semi-skilled jobs. As Springsteen sang in “My Hometown:” Foreman said ‘these jobs are goin’ boys, and they ain’t coming back’.

When the banks were bailed out, did they restructure to make it easier to loan money to emerging businesses and industries? No. They kept on as they had been. It was almost as if the U.S. taxes were a Wall Street slush fund. This is what has caused people to congregate in New York City and protest.

I hope things can get better, but I am not at all confident they will. Like the people in the 53%, I question the effectiveness of these protests. Unlike them, however, I know those congregated in the OWS movement are right, and they do represent my views, for the most part.

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