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Does Anyone Take 'Occupy Wall Street' Seriously?
US News and World Report ^ | October 11, 2011 | Peter Roff, Contributing Editor

Posted on 10/11/2011 2:16:26 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

Is anyone following the "Occupy Wall Street" protests and, if they are, taking them seriously? It's hard to imagine that anyone is. Other than echoing President Barack Obama's pseudo-populist attacks on corporations and anyone who has a lot of money its hard to understand what they want.

The best comment so far probably came from ABC's Jimmy Kimmel, who recently aired faux new footage of angry demonstrators chanting "What do we want? We're not really sure! When do we want it? Now!"

It's not clear who is paying for the signs and statutes and giant puppets the protesters are carrying or if anyone is paying to bus them in, but it's hard to believe this is the type of artesian phenomena that some commentators would have you believe it to be. It's also not, as some folks have suggested, a sort of left-wing Tea Party portending a yet another shift in the political winds.

One wonders where these folks come from and, more over, why none of them have to get up and go to work in the morning. Looking at the television most of them seem healthy, reasonably well-dressed (for protesters that is), and able bodied. And smart—if their ability to managing their smart phones and apps and iPads are any indication. So why aren't they working—unless this is what they are getting paid to do.

There are some themes emanating from the protests that may have a larger impact on the political culture—but the hate the rich message doesn't seem to be working. It's not that there are more rich people than poor (unless you go by global standards of living—in which case even the poor in America are rich) as it is that everyone probably wants to be rich. As they get older and acquire the things that most Americans do—a job, a family, a car, a home, some investments for the future—their attitudes about all this change. They might not be able to make it into the top 1 percent—as opposed to the 99 the protesters seems to like to talk about—but they can still shoot for the top 10 percent, the top 20 percent, the top 25 percent or even just the upper half, all of which are nice places to be.

These "children of privilege" demonstrating against the "malefactors of great wealth" are but a pale echo of the '60s-style, Saul Alinsky-trained and influenced protesters whom they seek to emulate. In fact they're really just pawns in Obama's effort to win re-election so that he and the rest of his Wall Street friends (Go ahead—check his campaign contributions from 2008 forward at www.fec.gov—I dare you) can continue to make out like bandits at the expense of the middle class.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Politics
KEYWORDS: economy; obama; occupywallstreet; teaparty
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I always take enemies of freedom, the Constitution, and America seriously. I hope for an early cold winter to drive the vemin off the streets.


21 posted on 10/11/2011 3:51:10 PM PDT by dynachrome ("Our forefathers didn't bury their guns. They buried those that tried to take them.")
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To: 2ndDivisionVet; All

Well, yes, the Democrats do. Let’s see, Obama, Pelosi, and other lesser Democrat luminaries have all personally endorsed the idiotic OWS protesters.

But, equally as damning, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), the official campaign arm of the House Democrats officially endorsed OWS on their web site:

http://www.dccc.org/pages/occupy

Though they keep changing the page now on a daily basis trying to pull back their endorsement. For instance, the following lead paragraph that appeared there on 10/10/2011:

“Protestors [sic] are assembling in New York and around the country to let billionaires, big oil and big bankers know that we’re not going to let the richest 1% force draconian economic policies and massive cuts to crucial programs on Main Street Americans.”

has been consigned to the virtual flames of the Internet memory hole today (10/11/2011).


22 posted on 10/11/2011 3:53:08 PM PDT by catnipman (Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: ealgeone
What’s scary about this movement is the media backing.

Which reminds me of the riots and protests of the sixties and seventies. Virtually no one supported them -- except the [liberal] media and, by extension, academia and the Democrat party. The protestors ended up exerting a huge influence on American policy because of that support.

The same danger exists today, to be sure, but we have a voice now. We didn't then. I'm not convinced the Occupiers are anything that will survive the first snows.

23 posted on 10/11/2011 3:53:55 PM PDT by BfloGuy (Even the opponents of Socialism are dominated by socialist ideas.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Mittens Romney.


24 posted on 10/11/2011 4:21:53 PM PDT by chris37 (Heartless.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
I actually do, as it will take days if not weeks to power wash and stream clean that park back to a usable state. Past that point, nope I don't take those idiots seriously, in fact been hoping for a sudden cold misting rain followed by a very strong snow storm.
25 posted on 10/11/2011 4:29:27 PM PDT by SledgeCS (I will vote for Obama when he says "The F'ing MUSLIMS attacked the USA and are the enemy")
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Obama’s just trying to scare Congress into soaking the peoductive even more.


26 posted on 10/11/2011 4:32:45 PM PDT by Cementjungle
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To: Cementjungle

oops... soaking the productive


27 posted on 10/11/2011 4:33:42 PM PDT by Cementjungle
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To: Cementjungle

I take em seriously, Any day now I expect to turn on the TV and hear of one of them detonating a bomb in one of the brokerage houses.

those people were planted there by the Soros crowd to start trouble and bring on martial law so barry can pass whatever he wants.


28 posted on 10/11/2011 4:37:02 PM PDT by Armedanddangerous
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Yes-—Glen Beck for one.

He seems to think that the assclown convention should be taken as seriously as a heart attack.

As if to say that the creeps validate all his alarmist pontificating by presenting the US with a follow-on to the “Arab Spring,” the European riots, and represent a genuine, dangerous threat of eventual leftist takeover.


29 posted on 10/11/2011 6:47:02 PM PDT by Scanian
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To: Scanian
the more people cover this nonsense the more the misfits are happy....that's all they want....attention....

sadly, an occupier misfit was hit by a car last night in my area.....not seriously, sadly.....and no charges since he was dressed all in black and crossing the street and not in the crosswalk......I am sooooo sad about it.....NOT!!!!

30 posted on 10/12/2011 2:59:02 PM PDT by cherry
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