Understanding #OccupyWallStreet [Blog]

This has been all over the news lately. #OccupyWallStreet. What is it? Who is it? Why are they there? Why is this important to me, here, in Evansville? These may all be questions that you've been asking yourself. I've found some things that I think may help clarify...

We'll start with the What? and the Why? From the AdBusters website, which is where the organization for OWS movement started in back July:

#OCCUPYWALLSTREET is a people powered movement for democracy that began in America on September 17 with an encampment in the financial district of New York City. Inspired by the Egyptian Tahrir Square uprising and the Spanish acampadas, we vow to end the monied corruption of our democracy …

Why is this important? Regardless of whether you find yourself on board with the #Occupy Movemement, this is not something to turn a blind eye to. This is bigger than just New York. This is bigger than Wall Street. It's bigger than Evansville. This is Our Country. This movement will be remembered. It will be talked about in years to come. I won't be surprised if my grandchildren read about the Occupy Movement in their History books.

This video gives a clear picture of where our economy has come from and how it has gotten here in the last 50-60 years. It features:

Elizabeth Warren - an attorney, law professor, and United States Senate candidate. She served as Assistant to the President and Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Senator Byron Dorgan
Alan Greenspan
Senator Carl Levin
Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs
Senator Susan Collins
Daniel Sparks, Goldman Sachs POS
Representative Alan Grayson
Senator Bernie Sanders

The Who? The people of OWS are people just like you and me. They come from all walks of life. They are young and old alike. They are "working class citizens." You can see a profile of the diversity that can be found at OWS here. You can also see the 99%.

Even President Obama has expressed empathy to the people who are Occupying Wall Street.

These Occupations are NOT just happening in New York. In fact they are happening in cities all over the country. LA, Boston, Chicago, DC... The list goes on... There is even a facebook page that has been created to help organize an #OccupyEvansville event.

I don't know yet if I will be attending any events, but I can certainly tell you that I am watching this all very closely.