Wall Street Protests

[classicman]

9% (10%-1%) is 9x > 1% ....

[classicman]

Protester in the face by police projectile at Occupy Oakland protest

[classicman]

hmm...

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by BigV

You might be seeking parity, or equality, but no one I've heard from the OWS movement has said that. I have heard that they're seeking less unfairness. I agree that there will never be parity, and that's fine. But that someone who's making your coffee at Starbucks needs to be making enough money to live and thrive. There needs to be greater opportunity for your barrista to improve their standard of living.

Starbucks are generally located in urban areas. Housing is expensive in the city. Transportation from areas with less expensive housing to the place where the Starbucks is located costs money, everything costs money. Starbucks is extremely progressive in that they offer their employees full health benefits, regardless of their employment status. But that's a rare exception. Healthcare costs money. The standard of living for someone making your coffee will be extremely restricted. For you to get your coffee made, you should support a system that makes possible for Starbucks to thrive, and that means happy productive employees.

It's in your self interest to do so.

[TheMercenary]

"I am the 99%"!

Who are not wasting their time thinking that the current protests are going to change a God Damm thing....

[DanaC]

That's right Merc. You are part of the 99%. You're the part who colludes with a (small 'p') political movement whose sole function seems to be the political and economic disenfranchisement of the majority of Americans.

Practically everything I see you say in this thread is exactly the same as what i hear from Fox News. I understand why they take the stance they do. You, however, baffle me.

[Trilby]

Dana - merc does NOT see himself as part of the 99%.

He is deluded. He thinks he's rich. He's also afraid somebody is going to take his hard-earned money away from him. His position in society is so precarious that he screeches his fear and hate at shadows. He's convinced there isn't enough to go around and, like a dragon guarding it's gold, hoards his little piece of the dream. If anybody gets something he feels like it is taken from him, specifically, and it somehow diminishes his life.

It's weird, I know.

[ZenGum]

IMHO, this is the danger of group think.

According to the police, earlier protesters had thrown bottles and rocks at them.

Therefore anyone in the protest is fair game.

What we see here is just uncalled for.

[Aliantha]

I saw that on the news tonight. I was shocked.

[Trilby]

typical jack-booted thug mentality.

[DanaC]

They appear to have been taking lessons on policing methods from the London Met.

[Stormieweather]

So Merc, if these protests won't change anything, does that mean everyone should stay home, keep quiet, suffer in silence and be a good little minion?

You do realize that millions are suffering, don't you? The voiceless, the overlooked, and the powerless...

“Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph.”

Haile Selassie

Criminal actions by corporations, politicians and wall street need to be brought to light. If nothing else, these protests are helping to do that. What are you afraid will happen? Why does this disturb you and so many others?

And seriously, we all have the right to speak up about any damn thing we want to...or at least, that's what I grew up believing.

[sexobon]

Flash mobs flash dancing to flashbangs sounds like the makings of a Broadway hit! Off Broadway on Wall St., not so much. The numbers of participants would have to be much greater; or, their organization centralized under an effective leader to make the movement work outside the electoral process. At this stage, within the process they may achieve goals as has the Tea Party by organizing their priorities, actions, and getting accountability of their numbers. Then they can take to the streets as necessary to increase their numbers. For now, they're just marking time as the dog and pony show that is reality TV. Waste not, want not.

[Undertoad]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

(Also, these numbers are for households instead of per-capita, which is misleading, as the household income may be a household of one, or an extended family.)

See the "earners per household" row.

[Undertoad]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

The gain from 2003-2007 is rather large, but if we continue this graph from 2007-2011, I assure you the drop-off will be similarly massive.

Or even more massive. Here are some early figures up to 2009. This chart is not measuring the same thing as the original, but the curve will be the same. It shows you why, if you want to tell a certain part of the story, you stop at 2007.

Over time, the Top 1% has claimed a bigger share of the income pie. In 2007, they earned 22.8% of the nation's income, more than double the amount in 1986, according to IRS data. The recession has since brought that slice down to just under 17% for 2009.

The top 1%'s slice of the pie fell dramatically... by a full quarter in only two years! But note that this massive dropoff in their share did not result in more money for the less fortunate.

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