Since the Occupy Wall Street movement's momentum began increasing exponentially, I have been examining it from various angles.
I recently created a Tumblr account and added some pages to my daily list of places to visit for news, information and thought-provoking posts to fuel my analysis of Occupy Wall Street.
I recently came across the “We are the 1 percent, we stand with the 99 percent” Tumblr blog, and my mind hit warp speed.
To help with my analysis, I’d like to share a little about my background. My mom and dad come from blue-collar families.
My father put himself through Catholic high school and college by working summers as a caddy, a carpenter and in a Ford plant.
He’s worked 60-plus hours per week for 40-plus years. My mother stayed home to take care of the children, even when times were tough.
I now am blessed to work for my father, am able to make my rent and car payment every month and I mostly live paycheck to paycheck. I donate to a few charities that I’m supportive of, all with no trust fund to assist me.
I clearly did not grow up with a silver spoon in my mouth like those on the Tumblr page, but I didn’t grow up poor either.
The picture I found to be most interesting was one that read, “My family has two houses. Seven cars. A small business. We are three people. My college is paid for, no loans. I have more money than I know what to do with. Tax me more. Help me give back.”
This guy definitely sounds like he lives a comfortable life, but it doesn’t sound like he worked for it beyond going to school. The most striking parts of his statement are the last two sentences, largely because taxing and “giving back” aren’t necessarily synonymous events.
The whole motivation for this protest is the disgust with the wealthy and the kickbacks the financial sector (and others) received from the government. The taxes paid by everyone bailed out those who created this mess.
The government, the same institution that forcibly collects these tax dollars, rescued the banks. Considering the billions of dollars in question here, it’s safe to say the government doesn’t make a valuable charity.
Given this, the logical conclusion for those feeling guilty about the silver spoon in their mouth would not be to give their money in the form of taxes to the government that built and enabled the extravagance of Wall Street.
It would make a lot more sense for these socially-minded youngsters to direct their funds to charities like Persecution Project and Food for the Poor.
If the protests are directed toward the wasteful rich, they should be taking place at the source of the problem: in front of the White House and Congress.
If the privileged life rich people live frustrates others, they should stop asking to pay more money to a body that has no compassion or desire to be fair. Start fighting to give money to those who need it, instead of being willing to hand it over to those who do not.
Occupy Wall Street should really be Occupy Washington, D.C. Redistribute money to charities since the government only redistributes it to the people that the protesters hate so much.
Reach the columnist at page.gerrick@asu.edu
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