An associate of mine forwarded me a website from a group called Adbusters calling for a massive public demonstration on Wall Street in September. They hope to occupy this tiny district of Manhattan for months, a la the demonstrators in Egypt. Apparently, they feel the Mecca of capital markets is to blame for the corruption in Washington.
They claim America is a "corporatocracy," not a democracy. They're calling for the president to establish a commission to end "the influence money has over our representatives in Washington." They imply a certain disgust with the "too-big-to-fail" corporations' undue influence in our legislative arena and demand the reinstatement of Glass-Steagall (and, oh by the way, the closing of 500 military bases – perhaps unintentionally revealing their true intentions).
I had to laugh. I actually agree with their basic premise that "too-big-to-fail" rules our Capitol, (q.v., Dodd-Frank), but their intention to occupy Wall Street makes about as much sense as occupying a farmer's market because restaurants serve oversized portions. Not only does this strategy play into the hands of their targets, it puts at risk the very "victims" they're trying to help. In this case, by focusing on the creation of capital and not the Capitol, these progressives not only harm America's legitimate businessmen, but potentially damage the retirement savings programs of millions of everyday investors.
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