This morning I ran across this post , “Why I Support #OWS as a Reformed Theologian” , and early on in the post I was reminded of the “meme” to which occupy opposers have taken hold, that of the “unclear message”. I actgually heard two Tennessee legislators actually say they had never heard an articulation of who the 99% and the 1% are. I thought to myself, how do people take hold of such floating rumors and own them without so much as an actual readfig or hearing of any very basic explanations of what Occupy is about? It’s more of the “Foxygen” phenomenon; an automatic meme-following without any connection to any of the most fundamental facts.
Although understanding has increased, it remains common to find folks committed to the notion that #OWS has no message
http://justiceunbound.org/journal/current-issue/why-i-support-ows-as-a-reformed-theologian/
An OccupyNashville friend, Bill Howell, described this phenomenon well. He likened it to people who put their hands over their ears and yell “lalalala”. Here’s the link to the segment where Bill says this in the video interview I posted a couple weeks ago
Actually, Â the best way to “hear” the message is to “listen” and “read”. Â It’s a common theme throughout this blog, Â and on numerous summaries posted at various Occupy meetings. Â Visit an encampment.
That there is a 1% holding an unprecedented amount of the entire wealth of the U.S., Â and that the economic players in this economy are tilted that way (and on the increase). Â “Banks got bailed out, we got sold out” Â is a common chant, which is but one of the economic “strategies” of the 1% to further siphon money from the people to the very top. Â Banks and Wall Street not being held to account, Â but actually REWARDED with bailouts is the root of the protest, Â but the effects are wide ranging. Â
That’s just one way to come at the question of “what is the message”?
What is the message?
I think I already replied to this, but I just upgraded my comments plugin , and so I’ll do this again (or “finally” do it if I somehow missed this). But the message is this: The wealth inthis country is increasingly being funneled to the top 1%. The gains of the national wealth are only being realized by those 1%. The rest of us have lost the share of the gains, and that process is continuing even now, regardless of what Obama might seem to be saying. This has been happening for over 30 years now. Instead of the rest of the country GAINING along with the richest when the GDP increases, the benefits of those gains has been steadily falling. This is due to political manipulations by those with the means to spend money on political power.
It is called Occupy Wall Street because the financial sector, most represented or embodied by Wall Street and highly damaged by the reckless trading and deceptions of peddling known-bad “credit default swaps” that became widespread under Wall Street’s nose, precipitated the economic crisis in which we now find ourselves.
That is the message, expressed in a variety of ways and a variety of emphases focusing on various effects of this income ineqaulity, buying of politcal power, and rampant irresponsible actions by the financial “leaders” of our country.
it also never hurts to ‘RE-articulate’ things after a time. 10 months ago, there was yet more to learn about how true the initial “charges” were (and, as subsequently learned: ARE)