- Do you think it is fair that 1% of Americans receive 25% of all income and control 40% of all wealth?
- Do think it is right that CEO pay has increased by 298% in the last twenty years, while workers pay has only grown by 4%?
- Are you worried about who is funding our elections and influencing our government?
- Do you feel like your voice is being heard in our political system?
- Are you tired of corruption running rampant and rarely stopped or punished?
- Does it bother you that decisions are based more on financial gain than the good of the America as a whole?
- Are you worried about the lack of choices and competition in the market place and ever larger corporations that are “too big to fail”?
- Did you or someone you know take out a mortgage they couldn’t afford and didn’t understand, and are now losing their home?
- Are you bothered that essential Jefferson County services are being axed and sewer rates are climbing, while Wall Street banks raked in as much as $100 million from us in excessive fees on disastrous credit deals?
- What if Alabama’ new immigration law (HB-56) doesn’t save or create jobs, but instead strains education, police and foster care services that are already stretched thin, and costs us millions in legal fees and lost conventions, business and trade?
- Do you live paycheck-to-paycheck and worry that the typical payday loan borrower pays back $793 in fees and interest to the lender, all for the privilege of receiving $325 in cash?
- Are you a student or know a young person who will graduate with massive student loan debt and face diminished job prospects?
- Do you care about the Constitution?
- Are you sick of feeling pessimistic and helpless?
- Are you ready to take a stand and exercise your right to free speech to effect some real change?
6 Responses to “Why Should YOU Care About OccupyBirmingham?”
Excellent list. I consider your list to be a fine example of what “they” are doing wrong. But every day in the United States 5,000 to 10,000 are foreclosed upon. What can be done to ensure that those homeowners are being fairly treated.
A couple of ideas include shouting down the auctions of those homes. Another idea is demanding the right to restructure these mortgage debts without first being placed into default.
It sounds too simple, but the erosion and destruction of the 99%’s wealth starts with being placed into default for wanting to restructure debts that have been made impossible to pay back because of faulty economic practices by wall street and the banks.
I really don’t care how much CEO’s get paid or about bank fees and I don’t envy the successful. This is small potatoes compared to government corruption. If you want to change things for the better and protect liberties, freedom, and property, remove the power and money from Washington DC.
I see all this anger directed at the banks but no mention of Fannie and Freddie and the people who took excessive campaign donations from them. What’s wrong with this picture?
After dragging down the entire global economy, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac just voted their executives and directors a $13 million bonus package.
November 09, 2011
Occupy continue starting something; let’s get consumers, citizens excited, the people have allowed for too long, a few to decide their fate, the word is FED UP! every 99% should be fed up with politicks, it’s all about day to day living, making do but we gotta have something to make due with, 1% what we ask and need is a living wage, you can earn millions, but ensure all working employees earn over $68,900 yearly with yearly cost of living increases, employee work credits, incentives and bonus. If we all (listen up 1% includes you first) lived below our means, invest in the persons first, (to ensure our children, grand-children can provide for their households just as yours do) we all can turn the clock back on our own self-destruction. How can/does anyone comment; about any of this when this nation has never done the right thing. What/how do you say this or that, when those who should have been heard, who tried be heard daily was cast out! What/how can we tell our children, grand-children anything when there will be nothing left to tell? America, we must try create a tolerable world, WE. America God has given us all the riches for generations to come to suffice and enjoy; just enough daily provisions. America all you have shown is greed. America let’s not continue in our ignorance, let us recognize common values (common sense). WE can turn all this around; example: why should the 99%’s house note be over $400 a month when a weekly unemployment check is only $150, why should the 99%’s car notes be over $300 (this should be for 2 car notes) when this is a daily commodity for all who desire, why would all monthly utilities be more than a house/car note, why should daily food be unaffordable and unattainable, basic daily necessities such as soap, shampoo, lotion, deodorant, over-the counter medications etc., all in the name of profit/bottom line. America a few created all this destruction of another human-being. When will we wake up! What will it take for all of us to see this sink whole a few created for the entire world? Why are we so full of hate, so blind, we can’t see that “We” will be the cause of our own down fall? If this wisdom was not in me, I would not have told you so. No matter if Fannie-Mae, Freddie-Mac, J.P. Morgan/Chase, Wells Fargo, any Credit Unions who have members, but, won’t refinance their members mortgages or car loans because their credit scores are under 600 or less (doesn’t matter if credit unions not charging excessive fees yet, they are still not helping the community) but uses their members money to develop their own rate of return projects, but, you are not receiving any dividends, royalty payments, interests payment monthly or quarterly; and want us to stand back, and allow them invest as they see fit, but what return are you getting, so we need treat them same as all financial institutions we are protesting against. Yes! they can any/all Financial institutions can re-modify a home or automobile loan even if credit scores are below 600, “IF they want to”; just as well as they can finance a mortagage or car loan upfront, instead of letting homes become foreclosed, cars become repossessed, their system, their way. People all this shows us, is this is man’s way, was never the correct way in the beginning, it’s only one way, do right by all God’s people whether you believe or not, because no matter what, in the end, just a few the 1% and those in charge of decision making will continue corrupting and destroying this country. This is not about republican, democrat, independent, conservative etc., its all about human-life. Listen up 1% IF, you won’t, refuse not to correct your ways, man’s ways will continue to fall. No matter how much a company makes, sooner or later that company will fall as one above commented. Remember now prior to 2008 and back to the 1900′s when (all these restrictions, regulations, prohibiting were put in place against the 99%) this sore festered, not just recently, but between 2000-2008 this sore was a buried and hidden volcano beneath the ground erupted (a bubble that was predicted 60 plus years ago in every media broadcasted, but a percent of the world tuned deaf ear). Until we learn to treat, do right by our fellow man, the 99%, listen 1% you created these systems, capitalism, rules, regulations, creativity mathemetical calculations, jumbo and adjustable rate mortgages, creativity financing, etc, and you will have to answer the call, soon.
“Making do, but we gotta have something to make do with.”
I assume you’ve got arms and legs and (somewhat of) a head on your shoulders? That’s the something you’ve been God given to make do with.
You’re asking the wrong question. The question should be – Do you wish to live in a free society where you can someday be in the 1% if you choose to put in the time and effort to do so? In other words, are you free?
Do you realize that those flesh and blood indiviuals who make up the 1% changes constantly? The % of wealth in the 1% may stay there but the actual flesh and blood people don’t. IRS data show that actual flesh and blood people who were in the top one percent in 1996 had their incomes go down — repeat, DOWN — by a whopping 26 percent by 2005.
Similarly, do you understand that about half of the companies listed as Fortune 500 companies fall off the list in a 10 year period? Not much stays the same in the business world because you have to provide a sustainable product or service, you have to innovative, or you die. There is a natural weeding out process.
On the government side, however, this weeding out process hasn’t yet occured. It will though when we can no longer print money to cover our debts. We see that federal debt has increased to about the $15,000,000,000,000.00 mark, exploding over the last few years, with no sign of abating in sight. If the government were a business, even though it operates as a monopoly, it would be out of business. Of course, it’s short sighted solution is to make the customer pay more. This won’t work because the numbers don’t work and so the end is soon to come. Look at Europe…
Etc. Etc. Etc.