I keep hearing idiots say they can't figure out what the OWS is all about.

[livingonearth]

Hell, I knew what it was about as soon as I learned of it. Let's see: it's taking place in the financial district, it's called Occupy Wall Street, not too long ago the banksters on Wall Street created a lot of trouble with crazy financial instruments like derivatives and had to be bailed out. Hey, maybe it's about how the big banks destroyed our economy. Duh! It shouldn't be that hard to figure out, even if the protesters have been slow with official goal statements.
:eyes:

[FarCenter]

1. In politics, like in business, the idiots are always right

The OWS would communicate better with the mass of voters with a simple primary message like "tax the rich" or "tax the 1%".

A more complex secondary message would explain how more tax revenue from the rich would benefit society.

The other side has used "no new taxes" to great effect.

[livingonearth]

3. How about a message of reform.

To me the tax issue is separate from OWS, although closely related.

[FarCenter]

7. How about "get the money out of politics" then?

Although now you have to go for a constitutional ammendment to limit free speech in a political campaign context.

[livingonearth]

11. Yes, that would be good.

And, you bring up a good point about the difficulty of going about it would be. The right would cry that their "free" or in this case "paid for" speech was being denied.

[Ship of Fools]

23. sign the petition at getmoneyout.com (sorry, I'm a techno-idiot re: links)

[ChiciB1]

9. OWS Is Actually Many Things. For One It's The Fed, For Another It's

foreclosure, others it's the 18% hike in education costs here in Florida. It's so many things that have left too many of us feeling like we don't count!

I could go on for a some time. But these are some of the issues we discussed at our meeting after our rally. I even asked how many people were registered to vote and how many people actually voted in the last election. Because you see, some of it is our fault. People in their community have to educate themselves on their politicians, know what their peddling and their issues and MAKE A CHOICE! Stop the APATHY & IGNORANCE and get out and vote. EVEN IF you feel it's rigged, and I have to admit that even I feel that way even if I can't prove it. But by not voting you're just making it easier for them to get away with so much.

This is just a small part of it all! We're just fed up and IT'S TIME! Just glad to be doing SOMETHING besides sitting here at my PC and complaining. What will come of it all I don't know, but I DO know that I'm involved and it feels VERY, VERY good.

JMHO

[livingonearth]

13. I'm hearing you about feeling good from doing something.

"Occupy Toledo" which starts this Monday. I plan on being there after work as much as I can.

[FarCenter]

16. Aren't the main problems the inequality of wealth and the use of wealth to rig politics and finance

The inequality in wealth can be redressed by reinstituting highly progressive income and inheritance taxes without a lot of loopholes.

The ability of the wealthy to rig politics in their favor can be reduced by limiting their spending on campaigns and lobbying, either personally or through corporations.

Once politics is reformed there is some hope for reforming finance, business and foreign trade.

Adding in other stuff like environmental issues, foreign policy, human rights, etc., detracts from the effort to solve the core problems.

[ChiciB1]

25. Isn't The Bottom Line Really THE ECONOMY? And What Has Happened

to all too many millions of people in a once SUPER POWER! Our POWER now seems to be FIGHTING WARS, OCCUPYING other countries and throwing our tax money AWAY on this futile military process!

There are many issues that need to be addressed, but WE THE PEOPLE need our voices heard! Get out and help as much as you can. If this is all I can do right now, then IT IS what I will do! In the future there may be more asked of me, I WANT to be ready and I want my country back!!!!

[KurtNYC]

8. this is a very different dynamic

it doesn't rely on the MSM or old school marketing techniques. If it was a one day protest by one group on one issue then a simple message would be appropriate. But this is a process being introduced. A discussion because there is MORE THAN one thing wrong. The lack of a singluar demand has allowed the protest to grow and attract more who now see it as a voice that has been otherwise denied to them. The MSM is not going to give people a voice. This is many-to-many communication. It doesn't need, and will replace, the MSM.

The NYC General Assembly released a list of demands early on. The MSM ignores this.

[99th_Monkey]

24. Actually, the OWS list of "demands"

was not so much demands as it was a very eloquent and accurate list of grievances and statements of
what is so wrong with our current collective situation as a nation and species.

But I agree, this valuable document has been almost completely ignored by M$M.

Keith Olberman did read it in it's entirety, for all CurrentTV viewers and it's on YouTube.

[truedelphi]

29. It's easy to have a simple statement if you have a destructive goal

"Weapons of Mass Destruction" = Death to Iraqis

"Pot Kills" = Prohibit marijuana and jail the users

"Too Big To Fail" = Make sure that Bernanke can continue to slip the Biggest
Financial Firms Trillions of dollars

"Stop Class Warfare" = Make sure the Bush tax cuts are extended.

It only gets difficult to make those simple statements when people are being constructive and have to first list:

Overcome tyranny, re-establish progressive tax rates, get the trillions back from the banks, have a Single Payer Universal Health Care System put in place, stop the wars, decrease the military budget, put money back into our infra structure, re-establish manufacturing by employing people to work on alternative energy projects, and dozens of other such concerns.

Then it is difficult to articulate a mission statement in one small sentence.

[izquierdista]

2. They have trouble with piss in a boot too

How am I EVER going to get this out of here??? :freak:

[alittlelark]

4. The problem is that the message must be muddled.

If it were not muddled 99% of the country would 'GET IT'.

[livingonearth]

5. I don't understand. Sorry, I must be slow, or maybe it's because it's late.

[ChiciB1]

6. How Many Times Have We Heard... Why Aren't The People Fighting Back?

And now we are! I for one am simply thrilled, and I joined in with our local rally on Thursday. One of the best political feelings I've had in such a long time

And I'm looking forward to helping to keep it all rolling! Kind of got P.O'ed at Maher tonight too. How many times have we heard HIM say where's the other side?

If they don't get it, I have a feeling they will. We actually passed out the Manifesto that was drawn up by the NYC group and WE UNDERSTAND! It's too new to them I guess. As a Hippie it took time for them to understand way back then too!

Of course, I do realize there was a clear "war" focus, but OWS isn't all that difficult. I personally saw a fat cat banker come out and feel the heat. HE was the one grumbling about us... we got to feel better just because of it, but we were very nice. He and his wife clearly felt some heat even when we let him know, NICELY that we were fed up with what has happened to so many of us.

And so it goes...

[Lucinda]

10. I see where you made your mistake

You took the time to think it through... :P

[pacalo]

12. If the protesters could figure out what's wrong on their own -- without our dysfunctional media

doing its duty to INFORM the public -- then the media is making a fool of themselves by feigning ignorance. They're fooling no one but the Fixed News viewers.

How embarrassing it is to have the media we have today.

[livingonearth]

14. I scream at my radio daily. I really should just turn it off.

I'm always listening for that one person to come on and make so much more sense than the host that they have to suddenly go to a break. It happens, but not often.

[OHdem10]

15. Pretending not to understand is a direct attack with intent to marginalize.

If you listen to Fox you would think they are
foreign language station and cannot understand
English.

Since Income Disparity and the Wealth Gap in the US
is an issue, Republicans do not even wish to have
say anything about this--they cope by calling
the OWS, disorganized,and confused

Not to mention "Mob", Coulter calls them Demonic
and weavess warped tale about how violetnt they are
She predicts that if the OWS is successful, we will
become a Totalinarian country. Ddan you believe
this crazy stuff.

I say OWS must be scaring the Bejeebus out of the
Republicans because they are working so hard and
activley to marginalize.

[EFerrari]

21. Yup. When you hear someone say that in the media, you know they're not your friend.

[kestrel91316]

17. This is who is saying that:

[Nederland]

18. Try reading the New York group's Declaration

http://nycga.cc/2011/09/30/declaration-of-the-occupation-of-new-york-city/

You claim that the movement is about how big banks destroyed the economy, and yet only 3 of the 21 points in the declaration have anything to do with banks.

You wonder why people say that they can't figure out what the OWS is about, its because of posts like this one by people that claim to understand but are contradicted by other people that claim to understand.

Get it?

There is not, repeat NOT, a consistent message.

This post is proof of that fact.

[FarCenter]

20. That's mostly a long list of complaints -- OWS is about kvetching?

[Zorra]

27. All of those complaints stem from problems that arise from

a single source:

Control of our government and legislators by wealthy private interests
:banghead:

[livingonearth]

28. You sum it up.

[Populist_Prole]

19. I heard a few I know say that

Ones I know personally. They're typical low-information types that just parrot what they heard while watching their 15 minutes of talking heads on the MSM. They don't follow it any deeper than that.

Amongst those I mentioned above there does seem to be somewhat of an innate bias against the protesters due to many of them being quite young. I don't know how they are able to throw away the message just because they aren't as grizzled and bitter as they. Damn! They're on our side!

[Zorra]

22. Someone has to be extremely unaware of what is going on in their world

if they can't figure out what OWS is all about.

Extremely perceptually impaired and cognitively challenged.

[Zax2me]

26. This THREAD can't figure out what OWS is all about.

Go ahead - read all the replies.
There are unlimited reasons.