Forum Post: May Day Came And Went, Yet Turn-Outs Were Puny
Posted 11 years ago on May 4, 2012, 8:09 a.m. EST by Grownup3
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This content is user submitted and not an official statement
It's time to call it like it is. OWS isn't the 99%, it's the 1% or 2% that's trying to persuade the 99%. That's fine, but let's be honest and stop the self-important over-sell. A day promised to provide huge international protests simply didn't. It was small groups of directionless 20-somethings, committed socialists, unionists and illegal aliens upset that we might dare to enforce our immigration laws. But that's it.
Sorry, debts are to be repaid, including student loans, foreclosure shouldn't mean the house just becomes yours, union control of government is corruption too, police provocation isn't cool, and illegal aliens make America poorer, so we should kick them out. I think that about covers it.
The only self-important oversell is you and your desperate cry for attention.
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The cry for attention was on May 1, but it was faint and mostly just came from some smelly hippies, socialists, and students that can't figure out why they should pay the student loans they borrowed..
Why are you the 3rd Grownup? Been spanked twice already? Does not seem real Grownup to me. When do you think we will see G4?
OWS doesn't like disagreement, but you need to hear it. The censorship is part of the reason you clowns are able to delude yourselves into thinking everyone agrees with you. You're the 1% or 2% that's trying the persuade everyone else. That's what the turn-outs say and that's what this board would say without the censorship.
Sorry to allow free spew by a troll - supporter of the greedy corrupt criminals - to try to undermine the movements against those same greedy corrupt criminals - would seem to be counter productive - don't you think?
Of course you don't ( think ) you are not paid to do that - just blind march.
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I know, that's what you do. It's all propaganda and group-think. If you keep enough of the same people next to you, you stop knowing the difference. You start thinking you're everyone. You start thinking you're the 99% and not merely a fringe group of nuts trying to convince the 99% (and not very successfully).
The turn outs speak for themselves. The types of people, the causes represented, and the tiny turn-outs all say a lot. May 1st was everything OWS had to throw at it. We saw what that was and it wasn't much.
Turn off the lights, the party of over. It's time to once again be grown ups.
Actually what you're talking about in the first paragraph is called epistemic closure. Usually that's more of a problem with semi-literate, slack-jawed right wingers, who view the world through the filters of propaganda windbags and believe most Americans agree with their close-minded, ethno-centric perception of "reality."
The main reason so many right-wingers oppose free college educations is that they're so poorly educated, they believe everyone else should share their miserable fate and live equally dreary lives. I encourage you to take advantage of educational opportunities in your area, so that you can see your surroundings in a knowledgeable, rational way.
nice post,. the way the ignorant so loudly proclaim the fact of their ignorance may be just a cry out for knowledge,. .
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It's time to call it like it is. OWS isn't the 99%, it's the 1% or 2% that's trying to persuade the 99%. That's fine, but let's be honest and stop the self-important over-sell.
You know that only 33% of the colonials supported the Patriots in the American Revolution. 33% were neutral and 33% were Loyalists to the King. It took 100 years for the Patriots to gather that kind of support.
If only since October we have gathered 2% as you say, we are way ahead of the game. Lets see how many there will be come this November.
We'll then you have a long way to go because you're no where even near 33%. Get busy. Oh wait, you tried that on May 1 and well, we saw (or didn't see) what we saw. Crickets, well, directionless 20-somethings, socialists, unionists and illegal aliens and crickets, but mostly crickets.
Thanks for making my point about the OWS over-sell. You haven't even made 2%. There's always been a fringe that's wanted socialism and someone else to pay the bills. There's always a fringe that heads to a protest because of simple needs to belong and not much else. There's always young people that want to fight their parents. You've done nothing, that's been around forever.
[-] -1 points by Grownup3 (-7) 5 hours ago
Get busy. Oh wait, you tried that and well, we saw (or didn't see) what we saw. We'll then you have a long way to go because You've done nothing. There's always been those that want someone else to pay the bills - greedy corrupt white collar criminals.
Crickets, well, directionless and crickets, but mostly crickets are what you will here in support of your attacks on the movements against the greed and corruption and crime.
You've done nothing and not much else [-] -1 points by Grownup3 (-7) 5 hours ago .
So thank you for being an interactive example of what we are fighting.
Don't ever change or grow-up Grownup3. You are positive motivation to keep on fighting.
Wow this comment practically wrote itself.
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Your funny.
It was huge crowds of people in many cities all over the world. The people who came out were of all ages, children to elderly. all walks of like from rich to poor, all races, many political beliefs. You can't make your opinion so by repeating it. The 99%'rs who came out were 99% non violent. And although the people that showed up made up only 1 or 2% of the (American) population (7million?) they are supported by vastly more, and that will grow. think about it. You have to be a special kind of ignorant if you support the people/corps that have crashed the world economy, taken control of your government, and continue to prey on you with loan shark level interest, poisoning food, water, air, and fraudulent foreclosures. you don't support that, do you? Support unions, and all working Americans, help your fellow citizens, support ows, Vote out anti ows politicians.!
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Why should we support unions that suffocate our government and whose excessive benefits crowd out other activities of government? Why does OWS support an entrenched class of government workers over the non-government workers that get stuck paying for it? Why not support even more workers and demand that government be reformed instead?
govt can be reformed. no problem. more workers are great. I support unions because they represent working american families. They brought us 8 hr workday, 5 day week, child labor laws, vacation/holiday pay, overtime. thats why.
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But unions are a leading obstacle to reform. They're relentless advocates for an entrenched class that works for government, tax hikes, and an expansion of government. To serve the people? Nope, to serve the employees.
Government unions may represent working families, but they get paid by OTHER working families, working families that just don't happen to work for government. What makes government workers better off, makes non-government workers worse off. That's the part that seems to escape notice.
What's funny too is that liberals think government is the superior model, yet government is somehow this exploitive employer where employees had better have union protection. Of course, it's ridiculous. Reality is that unions pay off democrats which in turn give them what they want and sell out the taxpayer. But many democrat voters hear "union" and fall in line nonetheless.
Unions are critical. its the only way people have any power against management. Government lead the way to improved working conditions for private workers. If gov workers have a better work condition it should spread to private workers not taken away from gov workers. thats ridiculous. We need all workers to have improved conditions.
No, you have power against management by making choices of where you'll work. But government is the ideal. How is it that this ideal is such an exploitive employer and that unions are the remedy?
So, non-government working families should be happy to sacrifice themselves to fund government working families living better than them because it sets a standard? No, it simply erects a system of transfer payments to the entrenched paid for by the non-entrenched.
Again, it's bizarre how OWS-types bitch about corporate control of government, but then see union control of government as appropriate. They kinda forgot about the simple idea of government serving its people, not just its employees.
The individual has no leverage against corps. He can quit thats it. Corps know it, so mgmt dont have to improve working cond. We have only had improved working cond when indiv. workers organized together, support each other, and make demands by threatening strikes. Mgt/corps then must listen. Thats how it works. You dont stand with workers you stand with corps! Support OWS! Vote out anti worker politicians.!!!
Wrongo. He/she can quit, but can then work somewhere else. You can also control your dependency by things like not going into debt up to your eyeballs. People throw away their flexibility by the choices they make.
But companies listen to their employees all the time. They have to if they're going to have the staffs they need. My company watches the market very closely and is quick to notice turn-over among people they don't want to leave. They don't do that to be nice, but to protect the business. And far and away most people don't work in unions.
But then talk government unions. So, private sector workers pay taxes so that government workers can live better than they do as some hoped for follow-the-leader game? Is this some screwy government union trickle-down game that we're supposed to believe in? We prop up government workers and somehow that helps? Huh? My taxes go up (and therefore my retirement security goes down) to make sure government union employees don't compromise a dime and can become pension millionaires and that's good for working families? Really?
Vote out anti-worker politicians. Those siding with government unions are siding with an entrenched minority of workers living at the expense of the majority of workers.
It's not "some follow the leader game". It's how workers get improved conditions. Don't begrudge your fellow Americans their good deal. Most people don't work in Unions because Republicans have been attacking and destroying them for 3 decades. Unions give workers leverage they don't otherwise have. I stand together with my fellow workers! You can stand with Corps. Support OWS!! Vote out union busting republicans!!!
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government expansion is bad ?
private business should be transparent
What have the Romans ever done for us
If it's done to serve the population, maybe not. But when it's done just to serve the entrenched class that happens to work there, yes, clearly. All the talk about "working families" just slides right past the fact that it's non-government "working families" that get stuck paying for it.
What's ironic too is that most OWSers, by definition, will hold non-government jobs when they grow up. Yet they want to sacrifice themselves apparently for the benefit of those that do. Why? Could it be simple ignorance like much else of what they say?
the entrenched class needs to be taxed
Take a look at employee turnover in whatever form of government you'd like. Then have the discussion about "entrenched". LOL.
Most working families don't work for government. So, favoring government unions and saying it's looking out for working families is complete nonsense, although typical of OWS. Corporate control of government = bad. Union control of government = good. OWS = bizarre.
government unions set an example
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May Day parade has been going on forever, its not an Occupy event.
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sigh
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99% = marketing slogan. But it’s not working, the public has woken up to all the craziness and destruction. Every kook who hates has attached themselves to OWS. It’s done. And, this is an objective opinion from a former OWS friendly.
Well said. It was a self-iimportant marketing ploy. They also declared themselves a "movement" day 1. No, it isn't that either. It was all spin and now it's all over. May 1st made that clear enough. The public now recognizes them for what they are and we've seen it all before.
So, shower up OWSers, move on to complaining about ozone, Tibet, or whatever else, and see if your parents' basement is still available. They've at least had time to clean it up and to get the smell of pot out of the house. LOL.