Ideally speaking, people have all the right to camp out in order to protest as long as they do it peacefully.You'd teach that to kids in elementary school on how the government works." For the people, by the people......" yeah right! That is my reaction and I am sure of many of you out there who read the news of the police clearing out The Occupiers from the heart of Los Angeles early Wednesday morning.That 30 tons of debris being cleared from the area is not debris consisting of clothes, razors, soda cans etc but the debris of the shattered hopes and strangled voices, voices of frantic requests for attention to issues at hand. I am surprised it weighs so less coz' the weight of denying constitutional rights to the 99% has got to be much more than something so quantifiable as mere 30 tons!
To quote one of the protesters,"we are peaceful and we are the 99%".They had every right to be there, to voice their concerns over the rising corporate control of our government and yes, they are the 99%. For all of us who feel from their hearts for the cause but are reluctant to go out there and put up a tent, or parade with a banner, these protesters should be viewed as nothing less than heroes. They are the ones who are risking whatever is left in their lives to draw attention to the hard facts as they are to a system which right now is fraught with apathy over the plight of the 99%.Somewhere down the ages, I hope, the kids in school will read about THE OCCUPIERS who opened the eyes of the world to this rising menace and stopped it in its tracks before it was too late.If that day comes, maybe, there will be a monument listing the names of these very people who were concerned enough and proactive enough to live in a tent for almost 2 months only to be evicted by the police in the wee hours of a morning and labeled as "trash creators"! Who then is driving this, what is the nexus, how does it connect and intertwine coz" intertwine it does for things to be like they are."Yes, we can and we will" is the motto coz" only we can bring change when change is due.I submit humbly my salute to the people who are braving it out there trying to bring about this change.
Well, said, Anu! You are right when you depicted the "occupiers" as heroes. They certainly are enduring many hardships in order to have their voices heard. It is easy for us to sit in our warm, dry homes, but these "heroes" are out there in the most inclement conditions. Their passion for change gives them the strength to continue.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, there are so many "changes" that the Occupy Movements throughout the world are hoping to accomplish. I have yet to see any clear focus. I see a lot of frustration with their economic plight while the 1% remain the "fat cats". I also think they resent strongly that these Wall Street Bankers who contributed to (if not caused) the dramatic downturn of our economy are apparently above the law. The Occupiers want some retribution.
I would like to see the Occupy Movement clarify what "changes" they want. If anyone knows, please add a comment.
True, that has been the unfortunate fate of the general populus so many times as they are not shrewd enough to pen down in legal ways what they exactly are all about.
ReplyDeleteA well written, clear precise statement coming from any one of the 'Occupiers' laced with raw, hard data or numbers/statistics would have left the mark so needed.
It is not just the Occupiers who are feeling that the law is to be obeyed only by individuals and not conglomerates!Ask the man who is sentenced for robbing a 7-11, what he feels about the CEO of ..........going free!No,lets back up a bit as we are not even there yet because we did not even charge the CEO for his wrongdoing quite the right way yet, for it to get to the point where he can be charged or not.Meanwhile, the regular guy robbing the store is sent away to uphold the law. Doesn't matter if he has kids that would be under foster care or worse thereafter.He, oh yes the common man is not above the law.
You pose a very important question, if not an accurate observation. Justice is not equal nor fair! There are cases of the "rich" getting their due justice under the law (i.e. ponzi scheme criminals, junk bond criminals, etc.), but the number of white crime individuals that are NOT brought before the courts is staggering.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the real estate meltdown and economic collapse in America was caused by several factors (the "perfect storm") that were created and fostered by some very wealthy individuals (bank executives, hedge fund operators, insurance executives, etc.) who have escaped true justice to this point. When the "99%" see the laws of the land being applied unfairly so that the "1%" walk away with millions if not billions of dollars, the sense of tremendous injustice is so strong that they will endure severe winter hardships to protest that inequality of justice.
I support the ninety-niners' right to have their voices heard, but I am also pessimistic whether the law will ever reach those responsible for the economic meltdown in America.