Occupy, What are they trying to do?

[BlaqueKatt]

And, honestly, I'm not sure that's not exactly what the Haves want, so they have an excuse to be even bigger assholes, particularly since they know they're so far above the fray that they likely won't even be hit by the blood spatter when it starts.

yup "occupy Madison" is a few blocks from where I live, in an abandoned car dealership parking lot. Last thursday at around midnight they decided to march and bang loudly on metal trash cans(the cops stopped it post haste-to much screaming and attempted confrontation by the protestors). Not through the gated community where the madison 1% live, but through my neighborhood, which is considered "campus", underemployed college students living 5 and 6 to an apartment to afford rent. What damn purpose did waking up and angering us serve? They would never make it past security to protest by the governor's neighborhood.

[jackfaire]

See I am not mad. I make less than 20 grand a year and wouldn't consider myself poor because I am not. I have a roof over my head that I pay for. I eat three meals a day. I can easily afford all the necessities of life.

Everything else are luxuries. My netflix account, gamefly, and going out are all luxuries. I am not poor.

I dont care if someone else can afford more luxuries than me more power to them. The day I can't afford the necessities is the day I will worry.

I feel sympathy when someone explains to me that they just paid their rent, and can't afford food that sucks.

But someone that tells me they just paid for (insert luxury item here) and they can't afford food makes me want to Gibbs them.

If we don't like the disparity we need to vote smarter. We need to research career politicians and check their voting record something that would be in the public archives.

When someone says a sound bite we need to research the context of the sound bite and find out what they really mean.

When someone on a TV says, "This is how it is" We need to ask for sources.

I was "forced" into a car loan I couldn't afford but I never ever blamed them because it wasn't their fault I didn't do my research it was mine.

Their job is to sell me a car and make as much money as they can doing it. My job is to make sure I can afford what I buy. They shouldn't just give me a car because I feel entitled to one and I am not entitled to any of the luxuries I have.

I will never be foreclosed on because I will never buy a home that is outside of my means. Oh and that means a mortgage because if I have to use credit to buy something then I can't afford it.

Rent to own is different because you can walk away.

The funny thing about the Haves and Have nots is the Have nots still have more than the homeless, more than real poor people etc.

The Have Nots are still trying to play Keep up with the Jonses.

That's what it looks like. Everytime I hear, "God those obscene bonuses" It's rarely been followed up with, "They can afford food and I can't" "They can afford health insurance and I can't"

It's always been "They can afford a big house, private jets, huge TVs what about me!!!!"

I know people that drive really nice cars that I can't afford to drive who are complaining about Wall Street. People who lead good lives with plenty of money in their pockets and yet they are angry?

It's like professions that make twice what I make yet constantly complain they are underpaid even though they make more than enough to support themselves and have plenty of luxuries.

[Rapscallion]

This isn't the scale of thing I've been talking about. I have no sympathy for anyone claiming they can't afford a second skiing holiday and are thus impoverished. I don't see any use for action there.

There's a huge difference between that which you describe and a large percentage of retail workers forced to work two or more jobs because the pay in one is laughably low and head office won't allow them to work full time hours because they might get full time benefits, such as health care. Every time I hear about that on CS, I'm appalled.

What does spur this action is the abuse of the 'lower' class and the system that keeps most people down, and the way the wall street bankers have fucked up the few savings that such people were able to make, didn't face criminal prosecution, cried poor to the government, were bailed out by the same government out of taxes that they paid far less to, and then gave themselves nifty bonuses that they paid less tax on.

Look at some of the tales on CS. There are people who are likely to lose their homes over the antics of scum who aren't affected, and even make a profit out of it in some cases. That's not, "Oh, we can't afford a second car." It's often, "Can't afford to replace underwear," or, "Can't afford to have nutritious food and have to rely on food banks at the local church instead." (Both are examples I've seen recently). It's people leaving higher education with crushing debt that funds the huge bonuses for the bankers, and they're crushed by this for a lifetime.

Rapscallion

[blas87]

I apologize for the rudeness of this, but "Fuck you, I got mine" is fine for me, because if I start giving to anyone else, just because they may have it worse than me, it'll be "Fuck me, I'm evicted" or "Fuck Me, there's the repo man!"

My "fuck you I got mine" is still coming from a working poor perspective, and I'm protecting what I have and doing what I have to do to keep from ending up homeless or without a car, or the gas to put in it.

I'll help by donating tons of old clothes to Goodwill or giving it to a coworker or their family, and sure I can spare some money to buy some food for a drive, I donate to the fuzzies at the animal shelters, but fuck if I'm sharing anymore of my earnings than is already taken out in taxes.

[Rapscallion]

I apologize for the rudeness of this, but "Fuck you, I got mine" is fine for me, because if I start giving to anyone else, just because they may have it worse than me, it'll be "Fuck me, I'm evicted" or "Fuck Me, there's the repo man!"

Nobody's expecting those with little to give. It's when the bankers and the like get huge pots of cash on which they pay far less in taxes than people with little that protests start.

My "fuck you I got mine" is still coming from a working poor perspective, and I'm protecting what I have and doing what I have to do to keep from ending up homeless or without a car, or the gas to put in it.

I have no issue with this. I have issue with the fatcats who fuck up your life economically, maintain a system whereby hard workers such as yourself are rewarded with as little as they can get away with, get bailed out, and pay less money into the system without facing criminal charges for their antics.

I'll help by donating tons of old clothes to Goodwill or giving it to a coworker or their family, and sure I can spare some money to buy some food for a drive, I donate to the fuzzies at the animal shelters, but fuck if I'm sharing anymore of my earnings than is already taken out in taxes.

I certainly don't expect you to. I expect the fatcats on Wall Street to pay their rightful share, not to scream foul when the tax break they illogically had comes to its planned end, and for them to be contributing members of society instead of leeches.

Rapscallion

[blas87]

If it works, that'd be great.

On the homefront, more locally, I myself gave up that battle, because I was stressing myself out more than anything else. I'd worry over a bonus or I'd get all engraged when another "perk" was taken away, and it would just affect me so much it'd spill over to when I got home or had time off of work.

I still have coworkers who are adament that they'll do whatever it takes to get our "fair share", but what it really equals is pushing everyone harder and harder to try and get that unobtainable goal, and we'll still not get that big of a bonus, so we all got into fights and people cried and I went home homicidal again for no good cause

Anyone who is strong enough to fight the fight and not be affected by any consequences, well, go for it. I fly the white flag because I can't afford to be without what I have

[Sleepwalker]

I can't afford health care.

[Greenday]

Raps, where do you set the line as to who should be paying much more? $1 billion a year? $100 million? $1 million? $100,000?

[Rapscallion]

nyone who is strong enough to fight the fight and not be affected by any consequences, well, go for it. I fly the white flag because I can't afford to be without what I have

I can't blame you. Some things at my workplace are decidedly off, to the extent where it cost me sanity and friends. I've not both of those back, but my situation is where I'm still reasonably rewarded (above the local average and I've not lost out financially). Sometimes it's not worth it.

Rapscallion

[Andara Bledin]

I apologize for the rudeness of this, but "Fuck you, I got mine" is fine for me, because if I start giving to anyone else, just because they may have it worse than me, it'll be "Fuck me, I'm evicted" or "Fuck Me, there's the repo man!"

You're part of the "lower class." It's because those at the top, those with the wherewithal to spend $10,000 on a watch, are saying "fuck you, I've got mine, and what's mine I keep" that you have to worry about your rent or car repairs, or health bills.

Raps, where do you set the line as to who should be paying much more? $1 billion a year? $100 million? $1 million? $100,000?

How about the fuckers start paying the same. The bastards don't even do that much.

And that's before you get started on capital gains, which Constitutionally speaking, are the only sort of monetary gains that are even supposed to be taxed in the first place. What we have now is a true perversion of what the founding fathers intended.

^-.-^

[NateSean]

All I know is that if I were still unemployed now, I'd have joined them in Boston. The Occupy Boston campsite is much better run than the shelter I was living in and I actually had a plan in place whereby I would offer my skills as a writer to chronicle the movements of Occupy Boston.

I might still do that on my days off.

[Greenday]

How about the fuckers start paying the same. The bastards don't even do that much.

Which fuckers are we talking about? This certainly doesn't answer my question.

[bara]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...NYhL_blog.html

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/...ecretary/1616/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tubgM...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu5B-2LoC4s


Warren Buffet pays an effective tax rate of 17.7%.

The people in his office who work for him pay an effective tax rate of 34%.
I beleive he is the thrid richest man in the world and he says that he should be taxed more. He even offered to donate 1million dollars to charity if some one listed on Forbes could prove they pay a higher effective tax rate then thier employees. Hasnt been any takers.

[Gravekeeper]

Which fuckers are we talking about? This certainly doesn't answer my question.

Dude, we're not arguing nebulous figures here. These are all concrete tax rates on different tax brackets and areas. Stop arguing like this is some fanciful ill defined ideal. It's not, it's just math.

The entire base concept of taxation is that the more you make, the more you contribute to support the society allowing you to make it. Its basically reversed in the US right now. This is what Warren Buffet has been going on about. He's the third wealthiest human being alive and pays a lower tax rate than the woman who cleans his toilet.

How can you not seeing something wrong with that? -.-

[Greenday]

Dude, we're not arguing nebulous figures here.

I am. Numbers matter to me.