I continue to marvel at the pettiness of the critics of Occupy Wall Street and their inability to understand underlying reasons why these demonstrations are happening at all.
Most of the criticism of the Occupy Wall Street crowd stays away from that key point. Instead it fixates on their hygiene ( which I suspect are isolated instances blown out of proportion). If anything, it is completely arrogant of the people who fixate on: sex and drugs (at least somebody is getting laid), the fact that people are sleeping the streets(unlike your average fat teabagger, a lot of these folks cannot afford an RV) the fact that they don’t respect teabag conservative values, the idea that everyone who supports OWS is not paying taxes and is a freeloader, the idea that they are all dirty hippies-and finally the idea that Wall Street is totally blameless and without their greed, we would not have nice things. Other than the fact that just about all of those statements are a lie-it ignores some basic fundamental realities of life here in the Whining States of America.
The folks who started Occupy Wall Street started a website called I am the 99 percent. It has taken off and become viral. Professional conservative douchebag activist and general all around twit, Erik Erikson, started an opposition web site called I am the 53%. It gets its name from the self serving lie that tebaggers in particular and the GOP in general seemed obsessed with-that “47% of Americans don’t pay taxes”. This, apparently, annoys them to no end. Even though it was their tax cutting policies that created this situation. The irony, or course, is lost on them. Part of the reason that over 40 percent of Americans don’t pay federal taxes is because of the continual push to lower them — a cause that conservatives have championed. And 86% pay taxes of some sort-a detail I am sure that most of the people making their pompous and arrogant statements on the web site are too lazy to actually do some research.
Its kind of sad really-but altogether too typical of the way our Galtian overlords think these days. The 53% folks believe that they and they alone are supposed to represent the opinions of the 53 percent of Americans who pay federal income taxes, and its ( very flawed) assumption that the Wall Street protesters are part of the 46 percent of the country who don’t. Besides the fact that the numbers are incorrect, there are all kinds of problems with the douchebaggers their approach here, including the fact that they seem to want to increase working-class taxes and also seem entirely unaware of the fact that it was Republican tax cuts that pushed so many out of income-tax eligibility in the first place. There’s also the small matter of some of those claiming to be in “the 53 percent” aren’t actually shouldering a federal income tax burden at all, but are apparently unaware of that fact.
But this is Eric Erikson-a man for whom facts are optional, so lets play everybody’s favorite game, “Rip Erik’s Strawmen to bits!”:
Take a look at Erick Erickson’s argument, presented in a hand-written message posted to the 53% blog: “I work three jobs. I have a house I can’t sell. My family insurance costs are outrageous. But I don’t blame Wall Street. Suck it up you whiners. I am the 53% subsidizing you so you can hang out on Wall Street and complain.”
Just for heck of it, let’s take this one at a time.
The very idea that Erickson works “three jobs” is rather foolish.
Blaming financial industry corruption and mismanagement for Erickson’s troubles selling his house is actually quite reasonable.
If Erickson’s reference to “family insurance costs” is in reference to health care premiums, he’ll be glad to know the Affordable Care Act passed, and includes all kinds of breaks for small businesses like his.
And the notion that victims of a global economic collapse, who are seeking some relief from a system stacked in favor of the wealthy, are “whiners” is so blisteringly stupid, it amazes me someone would present the argument in public.
If there are any actual “whiners” in this scenario, shouldn’t the label go to millionaires who shudder at the idea of paying Clinton-era tax rates?
A good rejoinder if there ever one was one, but I’ll go you one better why you should support the OWS crowd and not the selfish pig crowd over at 53% land. My own recent experience.
For starters, I too am part of the 53%. I pay federal income taxes, I pay state taxes, I pay gas taxes, I pay sales taxes, I pay property taxes, I pay utility taxes. When I travel I pay rental car “concession fees” and vendor taxes. I also pay hotel taxes. If hookers in Wanchai could charge taxes-I’d probably be on the record as paying those too. Do you hear me whining about it? (Just a little) I paid 19% of my income in federal taxes last year-on top of having my “wealth” redistributed in a form of outright theft of my military retirement to the tune of 37.7%- to be given to a fat, non-fucking, worthless whore who does not deserve dime one of it. Yet you don’t see one single solitary teabagger, or Eric Cantor type Congressmen lobbying for repeal of that “unconstitutional law”. ( Which it is-check out McCarty vs McCarty in 1981 if you don’ t believe me).
The reason is simple-paying taxes in those numbers means I brought in some comfortable money-certainly more than I ever saw during any of my time on active duty in the Navy. Rather than complain about it-I rejoice in the fact, that I was granted that opportunity. And that I was able to turn a great percentage of what remained after taxes into equity in a house, savings and retirement investments. Hell, if you think about it-the “safe way” would have been to continue to struggle away as a wage slave making good money and living the suburban Alabama life.
Except of course-it was stifling my soul and driving my spirit into the dirt. Especially in the last year-where you literally have to navigate your way through fat and stupid people every single day. A change was required-and while it was not the “safe” way-it was the necessary way, if I hope to keep my sanity.
Yet, not one bit of that money stopped me from losing my job, thanks to some incredibly short sighted thinking by the worst agency in the Federal government. Nor it did prevent, me from being forced to re-examine a whole bunch of different options and fall back strategies to avoid falling back into the trap of near bankruptcy. It did not keep me from having to take a decent sized pay cut in order to keep working-all so I can still have 37.7% of that “wealth” redistributed.
Maybe its because I have already stared into the pit of bankruptcy once-that I understand , perhaps better than most, how easy it is to slide right back to that precipice. The ingratitude and sheer shelfishness of retired Air Force weather forcasters ( who have a guaranteed government pension, guaranteed health care, guaranteed educational benefits, and probably a preference in hiring) just appalls me. Especially when you consider that him and many others like him are just one serious illness, just one stupid decision by an arrogant three star that hasn’t been in the line since he was a Cpt, one natural disaster that wrecks his home, or just one downturn in the ( stock market, housing market, or any other source of growing savings income), from going from the 53% over to the 46%. Or to state it more accurately, that 35% of Americans who make 30,000 dollars or less and are just a stone’s throw from the poverty line. As I have pointed out before-the reason these folks are not more grateful and wanting to help others is they earnestly believe it cannot or will not happen to them. Well I’m here to tell the other “52%”-that it can and it will if you are not careful. Even if you are careful-it can still happen to you, you arrogant swine, you.
As E.D. Kain points out, ” More than a few of these people would benefit from the government stepping in against the people who are the cause of their economic distress. ‘Making your own way’ when the deck is stacked against you instead of calling on the government to get rid of the game-rigging seems illogical to me.”
But of course, they won’t dare think it through. These supposedly hard working people would actually benefit if the bankers were kicked in the teeth. Its they and a lot of others who are being charged to use their own money-so that banks can pay 11 million dollars to employees who fail.
Get back to the facts my tri-corner hat wearing ignorant ” friends”, no matter what your thoughts are on Obama, the facts are still the facts:for the majority of Americans wages and real earning power have declined in the last twelve years. During the same time period the earning power of the top 1% skyrocketed. In the long run that kind of income inequality hurts overall growth and prevents a recovery of any meaningful sort. That is something to be angry about. If your friendly neighborhood teabagger had even a lick of smarts or sense-they would be supporting the crowds in New York, and thankful that the youth are actually informed enough to take the time to get angry. These folks know more about the realities of our current predicament than most of the flag waving fatties knew about health care in 2009. They are being screwed too-they just don’t realize it yet.
I AM PART OF THE 53%! HOWEVER I SUPPORT THE 99%. ITS ABOUT TIME SOME FEAR WAS PUT INTO THE 1%.
The more the selfish crowd whines-the longer this is going to go on. Didn’t you guys learn anything from the 60’s?
P.S. Erik Erikson can go fuck himself!
Your out of work, why not go hang with them? Then you can see the 99% upfront and personal! An even better use for your time? Start OSM-USA (Occupy Shopping Mall-USA)
I thought about it-they actually had an Occupy Huntsville this past weekend. But I was fixing things up so that I don’t slide even farther down the poverty ladder than I am now. But if I could go to New York I would.
Unfortunately, I need to keep plugging on my plan to escape from the Whining States of America.
The OWS complaints remind me of the conservative complaints/whining re: intergration, the 60’s and generally every movement that has subswquntly been adapoted into our culture. No change in the rhetoric. No cange in how wrong thye were proven to be.
BTW count me in the 53% who supports the 99%.
Let me urge you to go to http://www.freakonomics.com and scroll down a tad, they lay out the “facts” of who is to blame for the current malaise. The blame falls not just on the shoulders of the right, or wall street or even the TB’s.
What are the facts.
How to fix it.
How many jobs will Obamas jobs bill create?
At what cost per job?
are the jobs sustainable?
Japan, BTW, needs farmers..it seems only old people farm anymore.
The young flee to the cities.
I wish you good fortune in your quest to emigrate but having been on a foreign retirement hunt myself, i can assure you there is NO paradise, anywhere, UNLESS you have a lot of money.
Except, maybe Korea, after all they do have Kimchi.
and KPOP,….
I of course am always struck by the progressive attitude of Skippy et al with regard to me being forced to give away my hard earned money to dirt bags and contrast his and their arguments with Skippy’s approach to being forced to give 38% of his pension to the X. A somewhat less relaxed and tolerant attitude to being shorn by the state to his detriment and his money in another person’s pocket.
I’ve never understood the argument advanced by the progs that I must be the selfish one. I’m manifestly not the one demanding that anybody give me their money so I can go to college, drive a car, buy an iPad, etc.
There is a difference between paying taxes and getting money taken as property that is not property-but retainer pay in exchange for my continued availabilty to serve the nation. ( Which by the way-they ought to recall guys like me to flip power points for Army two and three stars rather than dragging young serving Sailors away from the jobs they signed up to do. The wars would end tomorrow if they did). When I pay taxes I get services or I provide services that will also be mine to claim when the time comes. For the loss of my retirement-do you see her providing any useful service? Is she cleaning my house, cooking my dinner, sucking Mr. Woodward? Nope.
Most of your tax money goes to pay for our wars and the miltary to fight those wars. The second amount goes for Medicare-a benefit that we will get ourselves when the time comes-especially if they keep screwing with Tricare.
And soon-your tax dollars may be paying my salary. 🙂
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=1258
20% of tax rev. goes to the DOD.
etc see above.
Why didn’t you know this being so well read as you are? and so easy to check unless you dispute these figures?
Just to make a point?
oi vey…
In order to have any sort of cogent debate/discussion,all parties need to agree on the “facts” eh?
You shouldn’t lambast your mortal enemies unless you yourself are equipped with the truth and verifiable truth at that.
Actually the number is closer to 25%-especially when “off the books” expenses are included. That is a lot more than what goes for “welfare” payments to
supposed free-loaders. I know all of the statistics about the federal budget. My point remains valid-to presume that all taxes go to “someone else” is a flawed interpretation. The real question is what level of services and what quality of life do want the government to make possible for its citizens.
What I said was very much the truth. its the wars that increased our overall level spending and the tax cuts, combined with the recession that created the lack of revenue . The only people benefiting from this situation are the Wall Street types-AND THAT is what the OWS folks ( and a lot of other people) are angry about.
I think a lot of people miss the point that people who pay no income tax are happy to pay for and vote for their amusements out of Obama’s stash and fail to see it as real people’s money. I vote to make every American put the same skin in the game and continue to vote for cronytheft such as Solyndra and most other public expenditures of the income of the state. Every single audit shows up massive fraud and waste.
Curtis,
Quite simply, the facts don’t bear out your assertion that all the “47%” are Democratic voters. There are plenty of non-taxpayers, who don’t believe they are, and listen to right wing talk radio and fell they ar over taxed and loathe Obama. I see it eve ry day here in Alabama. They rant and rave, but if you were to pull the string on their 1040’s they would not be in the so called 53 %.
I never even mentioned Democrats this time. I don’t happen to believe that anybody who pays no Income Tax deserves a vote. Simple yeah? So yes, it is kind of a Poll Tax but you know what, it is like owning property once. You could not vote without it or if you were a girl or black and shit like that. Of course the US Constitution once utterly forbade an Income tax. That progressive aint going to war snake Woodrow Wilson slithered through that one. Do we recall what finally sent Al Capone to jail? Countless murders and he went to jail for income tax.