Editorial:
It started out as a group of disgruntled citizens who were frustrated with the economy and the way things had been going. They wanted to protest and publicly demonstrate against political decisions which seem to favor the rich over everyone else. So they organized an occupation of Wall Street – right in front of the NY Stock Exchange – which they saw as the epic center for greed.
Banks caused the economic meltdown and then got bailed out. Bank of America will soon charge customers $5 per month to use their debit cards. Cavalier attitudes are displayed by the wealthy corporate executives as they give themselves enormous salaries and huge bonuses, whether their companies succeed or not. Banks eagerly foreclose on homes which they were lending to in a predatory fashion only a few years ago. Corporations and the wealthy continually receive tax breaks or pay no taxes at all. All this has led to the middle class finally standing up and saying, “Enough Already!” As unemployment continues to rise, no foreclosure relief is on the horizon, and salaries remain stagnant, something has to change. Change should begin with Wall Street and with the banks.
The collection of people occupying of Wall Street did not start out as a single movement but a collection of like minded people stepping out to speak up, act up and demand change. This movement has grown from a few hundred to a few thousand people, including such folks such as airline pilots, teachers, homemakers, mechanics, the middle class, and unions. It has spread from Wall Street to Los Angeles and continues to grow every day.
Middle class American is fed up with the way things are going and has no faith in the United States government being able to do the right thing. Recent polls show that approval ratings for Congress are at the lowest levels in history. Now, ordinary citizens want to take control of the process.
Middle America is at a boiling point. If something doesn’t change soon, the pot is going to boil over.