I Protest ... The Protest!!
Am I missing something? Until now, the Occupy Wall Street movement, for me anyway, has been little more than a fun recap on the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. Now I understand there is a movement starting here in Myrtle Beach, with its first rally on Saturday, 10/22/2011.
I wouldn't be so shocked if the movement's purpose was so undefined. Even the information on the Occupy Myrtle Beach First General Assembly Facebook page is, besides lacking spell-check, very vague:
This will be the first meeting of the Occupy
Myrtle Beach general assembly, which will consist of anyone who shows up. At
that point decisions will be made by group concensus unless the group concensus
is to pick another method of runing things. Everyone will have a voice. Bring
your signs, because once the meeting wraps up, we hope to actually find a spot
to Occupy and protest.
"Find a spot to occupy and protest"? Protest what??
I believe the message is, or at least should be "give power to the people, not the corporations or the top 1% of earners", which would make a great sound bite for the news. It could be said, and then we could all go home.
But what I've seen and heard, and what appears to be the underlying message is, "blame the rich for our societal issues". There is a good amount of animosity pointed toward the wealthy, as if every wealthy person is culpable for the economic mess we find ourselves in these days. They are not, or at least not completely, and in fact, the vast majority of the other 99% are as culpable (how many of you have debt or purchased a more expensive house than you could afford?) This is a dangerous message to create a movement around, because unlike the Arab Spring, there is no outcome that will suffice this mass. If the elimination of capitalism in favor of socialism is the end goal, then this is the wrong place to mess with.
Everyone Needs A Little Revolution (see "Define Your Cause")
I believe we live in a great country that offers rare freedoms and privileges seldom found outside the US. Opportunity is the key word. Opportunity is what shines a light down the path for anyone seeking to be in charge of bettering his or her life. While we may all have to work harder to achieve prosperity these days, the overwhelmingly greatest opportunity for greatness exists in the US.
So, while I believe in free speech and liberty, I do not believe that disrupting the businesses of hard working entrepreneurs or loitering in a public place without following public rules is an amicable means of relaying a message. And, please stop saying that you represent 99% of the people, because if you did, then 99% of the people would be protesting with you. I am part of that 99%, and you do not represent my point of view.
Let the debate begin ...
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Parks and Demonstration | ||||
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| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Wall Street Under Siege | ||||
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