OCCUPY WALL STREET

[MsMerrick]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

I can live this. Although, one has to study the key organizer's biographical information. Middle-class does not only contain white people would be another point I would like to make. Funny how we take don't recognize POC that are middle or also upper-middle-class.

.

Perhaps you do not, but I certainly do, and that would be why I specifically mentioned White.

[SoNotHer]

Ah, as if I needed confirmation that the OWS movement was touching a nerve and on track:

From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/1..._n_999853.html

WASHINGTON -- Top House GOP leaders assured attendees at the 2011 Values Voter Summit Friday morning that despite all the attention on fixing the nation's economy, they remain committed to pushing the priorities of social conservatives, including defunding Planned Parenthood and defending the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in court.

[Linus]

Originally Posted by SoNotHer

Ah, as if I needed confirmation that the OWS movement was touching a nerve and on track:

From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/1..._n_999853.html

WASHINGTON -- Top House GOP leaders assured attendees at the 2011 Values Voter Summit Friday morning that despite all the attention on fixing the nation's economy, they remain committed to pushing the priorities of social conservatives, including defunding Planned Parenthood and defending the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in court.

Eric Cantor is a maroon. The fact that the Republicans are continuing business as usual (that is, there is no economic problem and that it's all about the "moral fabric") is not surprising.

His comments here are more telling:

"This administration's failed policies have resulted in an assault on many of our nation's bedrock principles," he said. "If you read the newspapers today, I, for one, am increasingly concerned about the growing mobs occupying Wall Street and the other cities across the country. And believe it or not, some in this town, have actually condoned the pitting of Americans against Americans. But you sent us here to fight for you and all Americans."

But when he spoke at the Values Voter Summit in 2009, Cantor expressed a very different sentiment toward another movement that was arguably "pitting Americans against Americans" -- the Tea Party.

At that time, Cantor praised those protesters as "fighting on the fighting lines of what we know is a battle for our democracy.”

"People are beginning to wake up and see a country they don’t really recognize," said Cantor.

[SoNotHer]

Originally Posted by Linus

Eric Cantor is a maroon. The fact that the Republicans are continuing business as usual (that is, there is no economic problem and that it's all about the "moral fabric") is not surprising.

His comments here are more telling:

I like your spelling, Linus. In fact he is a marooned moron. :-)

[SoNotHer]

Corny, faded, dated and more relevant than ever:

[SoNotHer]

The French have a gotten a few things right: cheese, wine, and a nice bloody revolution. They've also endured cycles of largesse and abject poverty. They've seen dynasties rise and fall, and they've said some of the most amazing things about this, namely, that all property is theft and that behind every fortune is a crime. Something to think about.

And then there are the scenarios given to us by writers like Orwell, Bradbury, Burgess and others who envisioned ruling empires like Britain or the US in the full hot mess of post-peak dystopia. Liberty is generally the first casualty. Civility, personal safety and anything like joy are not long behind it.

I posted a link earlier to the bumper sticker artwork that read: Fascism is Capitalism in Decay.

So while we debate who's responsible for what and who's involved and who isn't, and whether or not we want socialism, capitalism or communism, we need to realize, and quickly, that fascism is always the default, and it's ready to assume control in the absence of any other organized and cohesive movement.

Linus is right. It's time we started calling this a depression. And it's also time we started to realize that we may well be on the precipice of gaining or losing everything. Let us hope the unprovoked police brutality in the OWS NYC protest is not a sign of the latter.

[atomiczombie]

1. The Top 1 Percent of Americans Owns 40 Percent of the Nation’s Wealth
2. The Top 1 Percent of Americans Take Home 24 Percent of National Income
3. The Top 1 Percent Of Americans Own Half of the Country’s Stocks, Bonds and Mutual Funds
4. The Top 1 Percent Of Americans Have Only 5 Percent of the Nation’s Personal Debt
5. The Top 1 Percent are Taking In More of the Nation’s Income Than at Any Other Time Since the 1920s

Link:

http://www.alternet.org/economy/1526..._of_americans/

[Martina]

The prime mortgage market tanked too, folks. There was a bubble. People were encouraged to borrow and refinance. Money was cheap. Every trustworthy source encouraged it. When the bubble burst, responsible folks were put underwater.