09-17-2021, 09:00 AM
Today is the tenth anniversary of the takeover of Zucotti Park in New York by a band of folks who labeled their movement as Occupy Wall Street. It’s goal presumably was to call attention to the vast inequalities that have taken place since the Reagan heyday of the 1980s. This is when what I often refer to as a Creed of Greed took the helm. Though not exactly stated this way, the movement challenged what could be referred to as our Halloween economy, as it has been predicated on treats for Wall Street, tricks for Main Street.
Sadly the movement accomplished little except to bring greater awareness to a problem which had been festering for some three decades, now four. Many if not most of us feel restricted of dejected when it comes to relationships and work. Many go to our workplaces in fear, wondering who will try to undo what we have been trying to build. And while what one poster here stated about the rank and file workforce being treated as livestock at best, vermin at worst may be a bit of overkill, what is left of our hard fought for labor laws are the only thing that has saved many from reverting to wholesale sweatshops. But our big labor unions of yore had one major fault, and that is while being formed to combat the greed of corporations, they ended up becoming too greeedy themselves, which led to their downfall and near extinction. And for many folks their self-esteem has taken a big hit as they can no longer count on a job being there for them over the long haul and being able to retire with a lucrative pension. We were for long told that if you keep putting in the effort that it will pay off. For most this is no longer the case. For the most part not much has changed for the better in the ten years since Occupy.
So, what do you see as the legacy of the Occupy movement and could a resurrection become possible
Sadly the movement accomplished little except to bring greater awareness to a problem which had been festering for some three decades, now four. Many if not most of us feel restricted of dejected when it comes to relationships and work. Many go to our workplaces in fear, wondering who will try to undo what we have been trying to build. And while what one poster here stated about the rank and file workforce being treated as livestock at best, vermin at worst may be a bit of overkill, what is left of our hard fought for labor laws are the only thing that has saved many from reverting to wholesale sweatshops. But our big labor unions of yore had one major fault, and that is while being formed to combat the greed of corporations, they ended up becoming too greeedy themselves, which led to their downfall and near extinction. And for many folks their self-esteem has taken a big hit as they can no longer count on a job being there for them over the long haul and being able to retire with a lucrative pension. We were for long told that if you keep putting in the effort that it will pay off. For most this is no longer the case. For the most part not much has changed for the better in the ten years since Occupy.
So, what do you see as the legacy of the Occupy movement and could a resurrection become possible