Why Occupy?

      So...
Everywhere you look in the media, the news is all about Occupy someplace. Most people only get snippets of news coverage that reflect the political leaning of the news source's parent group. The media also seems to always find the most deranged, irrational protester available. I am fortunate enough to live in the vibrant counter culture rich metropolis of Portland, OR; consequently, I am able to witness the whole spectacle first hand. My feelings on the movement have changed like a speeding roller coaster. At first, I thought that they made some good points, and supported the movement. Then, some 30 days into camping in the local parks and turning them into filthy cesspools, I thought, "go home and get a life!" Then the city cleared out the parks and ran off the riff raff. This action seemed to invigorate the true Occupy protesters resulting in a clarification of the message. I am once again leaning toward supporting the movement. I feel like my journey of discovery reflects the uncertainty experienced by most mainstream Americans. What I would like to do is explain to you what the media has failed to do. Why occupy?
     The U.S. government bailed out big businesses to include multiple big banks such as Bank of America, Citigroup, Capitol One, Wells Fargo, Chase, and Regions to name a few. Meanwhile, over 6 million Americans lost their homes. The government dubbed these banks "too big to fail" while apparently dubbing the average American "too small to care." The banks have since recovered from their financial woes; in fact, Bank of America reported a 6 billion dollar profit last quarter while unemployment is at record levels, and most everyone else is feeling the pinch of the poor economy. Much of the outrage by members of the Occupy movement stems from the fact that these banks got massive bailouts, but failed to pass that second chance on to mortgage holders. I am well aware of the fact that many of those who lost their homes had no business having a mortgage that large to begin with. They were doomed to fail because there was no way they could consistently make the huge payments. Having said that, banks made loans to these individuals knowing full well that the buyers were unlikely to be able to pay them back. Many people simply lost their jobs in the economic downturn and were unable to pay their mortgage. There was no bailout for these people. Another point of contention was the gaudy salaries drawn by the CEO's of these banks despite having been bailed out by the government. Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis was paid almost 10 million in total compensation while his bank required a 45 Billion dollar bailout at taxpayer expense. JP Morgan Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon received 20.8 million dollars in total compensation in 2010, less than 2 years after his bank had to get 25 billion in taxpayer funds to stay afloat. The bailout of these huge banks and corporations was supposed to have a stabilizing effect on the economy. I think we can all agree that despite the infusion of 700 billion dollars of taxpayer money into these "too big to fail" businesses, our economy is far from stable.  The bottom line is that the only affect the bailouts had was to line the pockets of these corporate owners and executives while you and I continue to suffer. This SHOULD piss you off!
     Another concern of many Occupy members is something called income inequality. This refers to the disparity between increase in wealth between the very rich and everyone else. Terms like redistribution of wealth make many people cringe. I too took offense to the term for a while, and still oppose the outright "Robin Hood" concept of taking from the rich and giving to the poor; however, there are ways of making things better for the average person without gutting the rich guy. This will require all of us to satisfied with enough, and end our constant pursuit of more. Those with much wealth must take the lead in tackling this problem, for if they continue to pursue greed, the American people will demand that the government tax them into helping. I would rather see them choose the right thing themselves. I am not optimistic about that prospect. The American Dream must change from one of making it big on our own to one of making it together. Since 1979, the average American has seen a very modest gain in wealth. This gain has been essentially erased by inflation resulting in a net loss for most families. In the same time period The top 1-2% have seen a nearly 400% increase in wealth. This wealth has been achieved either by the labor or consumption of the average person. In the worst case scenarios, U.S. owned companies have moved jobs overseas to increase profits while continuing to sell products to U.S. consumers without a drop in retail price commensurate with decreased labor cost. The constant manipulation of the stock market by individuals and corporations has also played into the abysmal state of our economy. Some of the blame rest squarely with you and I. Over the years, we have demanded lower priced goods, higher wages, and higher returns on our 401ks and other investments. These demands have driven some jobs overseas in an effort to remain competitive. This is where you and I must become content with enough. Another sticking point in the income inequality realm is the tax code. Tax breaks for luxury items like second homes, yachts, and sports cars are just insulting in a time when most people are struggling to make ends meet. These and many other tax breaks designed expressly for the rich allow them to avoid paying much of their tax burden. I don't want to increase taxes on the rich so much as ending some of the ridiculous tax breaks. The rich will argue that this equates to a tax increase, but that doesn't wash with me. Those given much have much responsibility. I believed for most of my life that rich people earned their money, and some did, but the truth is that most earn their money by the labor of others. Yes, workers are compensated for their labor, but the disparity between the compensation for working class and the owning class / executive class is massive. I do understand that the rich employ people, and I am grateful for those jobs; however, in this time of record unemployment, couldn't those with great wealth create more jobs? I think they could and should.
     Although there are dozens of reasons occupy supporters cite for the movement, the last one I will present is health care. The Declaration of Independence states that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienably rights of all mankind. It is difficult if not impossible to have any of these things without good health. This is another issue that I have had a change of heart on. At one time, I thought there was no way I should have to pay for the health care of those who refuse to work, or destroy their health through bad habits like alcohol, drug and tobacco abuse. Then one evening a bright young friend of mine named Devon said, "we pay for those people one way or another." As I pondered this statement over several weeks the truth of it became more and more evident. Do you think that the hospitals just eat bad debt when people don't pay their bills? No way! They pass it on to you and I through higher cost for services or write it off on their taxes decreasing corporate tax revenue leaving you and I to pay for medicare and medicaid bills. Many posit that we can not afford to cover everyone. As things stand now, that is true. The answer lies in a total reform of our health care system to include ending fraud, waste, and abuse, reducing cost of care, and tort reform. I will address the health care issue in more detail in another blog, but this issue should concern us all. It's easy to say we shouldn't have to pay from the comfort of your living room. I see people suffer face to face each day. I see people who were trying to do the right thing and not get care they can't afford wait until they were so sick they had no choice. This resulted in an even higher cost for care. I have seen families have to decide between financial ruin or the health of a family member. No one should have to make that choice...
     My aim in this post is to bring you some real issues that effect us all in an environment free of shouting, posturing, and sensationalism. These issues are at the heart of the Occupy movement and motivate me to support the movement. While you may not support each of these positions, I hope each of you will consider ditching partisan politics and come together as Americans to demand change. The status quo is not sustainable. Change will come through either a complete collapse of our current economic and health care system or the concentrated efforts of a majority of Americans. I prefer the latter, and I trust that you do too.
 

Finding Common Ground

Communism: a : a theory advocating elimination of private propertyb : a system in which goods are owned in common and are available to all as needed. (Merriam Webster Dictionary)

Acts Chapter 2 ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, (New International Version Bible)

The above is a prime example of a concept espoused by two very different groups that exist on opposite ends of the political universe. Most religious groups believe communism to be inherently evil while many proponents of communism find the religious community to be foolish magical thinkers. It amuses me to contemplate the disdain these groups have for one another despite this common ideological concept. Political divisions in this country continually pit Americans against one another. Meanwhile, the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, the powerful gain more power, and the powerless have even less. These political divisions serve big business, big politics, and big government while continuing to bleed the average citizen of their labor, liberty, and even their lives. These divisions are created by a combination of rhetoric, fear, ignorance, and misinformation just to name a few. I myself have been a victim of divisive politics in the past, but no more. My mission is to seek out candidates who are willing to set aside partisan rhetoric, and work for the common good of all by introducing legislation that benefits the average American; additionally, we as a society must change some of our thinking and values while making a few sacrifices. 
     There are many problems in this country that, if resolved, would go a long way toward making everyone's lives better. Two of the biggest, in my opinion, are corporate and personal greed (which are more closely intertwined than many realize) and entitlement. I am sure that both conservatives and liberals alike are bristling about now. The sacred cows of social programs and free market capitalism are close to the heart of their proponents. The truth of the matter is that both need some tweaking to make the average person's life better. So let's examine greed first. Voltaire said, "The perfect is the enemy of the good. "  
To paraphrase this in financial context, you could say that more is the enemy of enough. Nowhere is this more evident than in today's free market economies. The current Occupy Movements site "Corporate Greed" as an object of their protest, but does corporate greed exist? A corporation by definition is a legal entity formed by people that insulates it's members from personal liability. The truth is that personal greed is always the catalyst for "corporate greed." The corporation simply decreases the risk while allowing gain. The next question is, who are these greedy individuals enslaving America's working class? The answer is likely found in your mirror. If you own a 401k, 403B, IRA, Annuity, or any other form of retirement savings, then you are part of Corporate America. Who among us is not always looking for the best return? Maybe you are saying, "well, it's the wall street stock brokers who are so greedy." Guess what, they work for you. Those guys earn money by making you money. The demand by stockholders, ie. 401k, IRA types, for higher returns drives corporations to increase profit margins. I posit that the problem is not corporate greed, but the average American's refusal to be satisfied with enough. This can also be seen in American workers constant demand for higher wages. We have made decreasing cost a necessity for our industries and corporations. The primary cost in almost every industry is labor. Our drive for more has caused our companies to move work overseas to cut cost and increase profit margins. Our economy's wounds are self inflicted. The vicious circle of consumerism has nearly killed what was once the world's most powerful economy. How? It starts with the American Dream. The dream in the contemporary sense is owning lots of stuff. The only way we can afford more stuff is buy either earning more, or using credit. The latter always leads to a need for more earnings. These increased earnings drive up labor cost for employers making increasing profit margins, which we demand, more challenging. At first, most employers attempt to cut cost by finding more competitively priced resources such as office supplies, equipment, and raw materials. One guess where all that comes from? Products made overseas. This adds to the sense that the economy is in trouble as U.S. companies either fold or move their operations overseas in order to compete. This almost always ends up being a band aid on an arterial bleed. In the end, cutting labor cost is the most effective way of cutting cost. Another aspect of this cycle is marketing practices used by corporations to encourage us to buy more, thus increasing sales and profits. The problem is that those buying all the stuff are also the employees who in turn demand more income to pay for the stuff they are being unwittingly coerced into buying. This cycle is not sustainable as evidenced by the current financial climate in the free market world. Something has to give if the American economy is to survive. We as a people must be satisfied with enough.  Now that I have ticked the conservatives off it's on to the liberals!
Is healthcare a social program? If Life is a right guaranteed  
by the U.S. Constitution, then healthcare has to be considered a part of that. Healthcare is, in my opinion, a right mandated by the Constitution.  
So the multi-trillion dollar questions are: What are the root causes of dependence on social programs, and how do we fix them?
I think we can all agree that the key to escaping your current lot in life is education. There is no one thing that our government does that is more important than education. We must return to funding our educational institutions as if our future depends on it, because it does! Funding by itself is not the complete answer. We must also reform the way we educate. I am sick of my kids being taught to a standardized test. I want our schools to teach our kids to think. My wife and I do this at home, but not all parents do. If you are wondering why they are being taught to a test, I will tell you. The current system provides extra funding based on performance on standardized test. The intention was to improve our schools. Of course the government can not do anything without statistical data, so the standardized test became the vehicle for proving statistically that education is improving. The problem is that despite increased funding, American students continue to lag behind their peers in other developed countries; in fact, the gap continues to grow. The next question is why do our kids continue to fall farther behind? The answer I believe is multifaceted. In the effort to increase funding we created part of the problem. As I said before, the government, faced with demands for accountability with education funds, decided the standardized test would be the vehicle for measuring success. This approach allowed for politicians to point to readily available statistical data to prove how successful the program was. The data was used to distribute educational funds based on test scores. The schools, already underfunded, could not justify turning these funds down, so they were forced to join the program. Where our educators failed us was by not recognizing that teaching to a standardized test was decreasing the quality of our children's education. Sure, many scores came up on these standardized test; however, our students performance levels continue to decrease in relation to their international peers. The answer I believe is to increase funding at every level of government for education while encouraging our teachers to teach our kids how to think. The ability to find information and apply it properly is vastly more important than wrote memorization. I think making all test open book test with open ended questions requiring the student to extrapolate meaning from the text and apply it to formulate an answer would greatly improve student's ability to think. There will be no data or statistics on this effort for 10-15 years, but I guarantee you that we will catch back up with the world. As far as funding goes, we must simply give our educators what they need to get the job done. This applies to all levels of our educational system. If that means that Tunisia has to take a cut in foreign aid, or we don't have as many bike lanes, then so be it. Education is the key to greatly reducing dependence on social programs.  
     It is time for us all to come together and do what is best for America as a whole. Being satisfied with enough and funding education is a start. We have dug ourselves a hole so deep that we are unable to escape it as individuals, but collectively we can pull together and rescue America from certain doom. This will take sacrifice and concessions by all, but in the end, we all win. Time to let the Dems and Repubs know that the party is over. This is the people's time!!!


  

      


      

         

Welcome To The Great Divide

     My name is J.R.
I am an ER nurse in Portland,OR, and grew up in the deep south in the great states of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. I am inviting you to join me in the grey, unrepresented realm of The Great Divide that separates so many Americans. If you are disgusted by the status quo in Washington D.C. and the games all of the current political parties are playing with this country, then this is the place for you. I am personally tired of having to label myself as left or right, Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal, because each of these labels comes with a package that it's members feel obligated to consume hook, line, and sinker. I am sick and tired of being controlled by platforms designed make the rich richer and the powerful more powerful. Join me on a journey of discovery and freedom. A journey where we discover that the people we consider our enemies aren't that much different than we are...A journey through The Great Divide.