While most of the country takes an enforced pay cut...

[Dammy]

And yet they look to the 1% (Soros, Buffett, Moore, Obama) to fix it.

It's Soros' and the Tides Foundation's funds that started ONOWS, why shouldn't the protesters look to him to fix everything?

 

[Dammy]

if you really want change - at least in the political landscape - get rid of much of the Congress. There's some exceptions, like Sanders and Paul and a few others. But get rid of all those assholes who have been doing absolutely nothing while the country burns.

Sanders couldn't give a rat's ass, he is leading the charge to destroy America under a pile of massive debt that we can never pay off. Rand Paul is pretty cool, pity his father is such a nutjob, I came close to voting for him four years ago until I found out he is delusional.

get rid of all those asshole governors who hate teachers and firefighters and cops (ie, the middle class).

People earning in the $100K and higher (wages and benefits combined) are now middle class? If a cop marries a teacher, their total may exceed $200K (wages and benefits), aren't they those who you want to eat? Now please explain to me why government employees should be earning twice the average (wages and benefits) that who are paying them? I do not understand why you are so mean to the property owners and insisting they pay more to fund government employees who make twice what they make. BTW, I have known a Sgt who work a lot of OT who grossed over $100K in Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. If you go to PBSO employee parking lot, you will see Mercedes and BMWs all over the place. Whyzzat?

get rid of the koch bros.

Careful now, they also give to Democrats as well. I noticed you didn't mention Buffett nor Soros, whyzzat? If we take a look at the US Billionaires, majority of them are Progressives, whyzzat? You would think they would all be evil GOPers, but only a small minority are GOP, the rest of the Billionaires are using the Progressive movement as their toy to dominate the world.

get term limits. no one should be a career politician.

I agree, politicians and judges should have term limits.

corporations are NOT people. they don't have DNA.

Why are governments corporations? You better talk to the Trial Lawyers Association since they are a huge lobbyist for your side, I think they may have a bone to pick with you on that one.

corporations should never give politicians money
get rid of lobbyists

Does that include the unions that are typically exempt since they are apart of the Democrat Party apparatus?

Now exactly how you are Progressives going to pay off that $15T (17T+ by the time the next President is sworn in) national debt? I'm wondering how are you going to stop the budget deficit (in real money terms since you can't tax enough to make up that $1.3T annual deficit) and begin to pay back the debt and create jobs at the same time. I know you won't, because it's not possible and that is what America is waking up to, we are in the fast lane to complete destruction of our country because you all have had the peddle to the metal for $4T increase in national debt in three years time while losing 2 million jobs.

 

[Robert]

Exactly what business is it of yours what executives make? Seriously, it's none of your business. If anything, it's the shareholder's business because they own the company who is paying the executives. I don't see the ONOWSers complain about movie starts making tens of millions of dollars. I don't see the ONOWSers complain about athletes in football (American, not European), basketball, baseball, or hockey.

The money made by some sporting stars is ridiculous but that's hardly the point; a fitba' player has no say in what level of pay rise I get next financial year.

The general UK worker has faced several years now of being told by their employers that "due to difficult economic circumstances," they are either due no pay rise or will have to take a pay cut. When those same employers then award themselves 50% pay hikes because of the money they've saved, it can cause resentment.

I actually experienced this disconnect personally. Until a year and a half ago, I used to work for a UK based, multinational corporation, 100,000 employees in the UK. When I joined and for the following seven years, the general workforce received an annual pay rise which matched or bettered the prevailing UK inflation levels. (Usually between 2% and 5%)
Pretty good, eh? Well, at upper management and boardroom levels, the annual payrises were always at least double that. I always felt that this was skewed but it wasn't viewed as a problem by most as long as the firm made a profit and pay kept up with inflation. Then the "economic downturn" happened. Simultaneously the company made a huge loss on a disastrous and ultimately aborted major investment, share price plunged.

The director who had, by the firm's own admission, made a complete arse of this investment had previously been poached from another corproation with a £1m (yes, one million pounds) "signing on fee". A year and a half later, on the back of his almost single-handedly screwing the share-price, he left "by mutual consent" with another £1m golden handshake. The very same year, the workforce were informed that there would be no pay rise due to the company's economic struggle. Despite the absurdity of the obscene amounts paid to the failed director, most accepted them as contractual obligations that could be put down to experience.

Later the same year, the board all awarded themselves six and seven figure bonuses.

The next year - again, pay frozen for general employees and lower management. Board and upper management, seven figure bonuses and double figure percentage pay rises.

It was not long after that I left but you could sense the workforce were finally starting to wake up to the fact that they were being screwed over. What you are seeing with the Occupy campaigners, at least the ones in the UK, is partly (maybe only a small part) as a result of this type of behaviour.

 

[redrumloa]

Many banks operated at a profit for decades without charging debit card fees or reckless speculation.
You make it sound as though it is a choice between one or the other.

Exactly. Banks should be banks, period. Banks should not be a vehicle to enslave the population. People should close any accounts they have with unethical giant banks and join a local credit union. All jokes aside, a credit union is not a labor union. Vote with your dollars and tell these fat cats to {bleep} off.

-Edit-
Do you have credit unions in the UK? I am sorry if that is a dumb question, I honestly don't know.

 

[Robert]

Exactly. Banks should be banks, period. Banks should not be a vehicle to enslave the population. People should close any accounts they have with unethical giant banks and join a local credit union. All jokes aside, a credit union is not a labor union. Vote with your dollars and tell these fat cats to {bleep} off.

Amen to that, brother!

-Edit-
Do you have credit unions in the UK? I am sorry if that is a dumb question, I honestly don't know.

Indeed we do.
My girlfriend and quite a few friends use the Credit Union.
Perhaps to my shame, I've been meaning to join one for years but haven't done so yet.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

People earning in the $100K and higher (wages and benefits combined) are now middle class?

No, they are in the 5% or so. They are upper middle at best, more like upper. At $100K a person is making 4 times the median income.

If a cop marries a teacher, their total may exceed $200K (wages and benefits), aren't they those who you want to eat?

Not if you are talking about the 1%. At $200K a household has just cracked the top 3%. That household is making slightly more than 4 times the median household income. So, in burger terms that would be like, if you could only afford a regular cheese burger, these guys could afford a Big Mac!! Hardly a big deal. However, once you get to the 0.01% then you will find that while you can buy a cheese burger, the really rich can buy the burger joint and still have change left over for a new car.

Now please explain to me why government employees should be earning twice the average (wages and benefits) that who are paying them?

You are looking at it backwards. Why are YOU making half of what you should be making? Because you can't get along to go along, you'd just rather stab people like yourself in the back for your own advantage. If people could get together then they could get the power but the power works to keep people divided over meaningless things like red or blue and sports.

Know what people can do when they stick together?

If we take a look at the US Billionaires, majority of them are Progressives, whyzzat?

Please list them and then justify that statement.

Now exactly how you are Progressives going to pay off that $15T (17T+ by the time the next President is sworn in) national debt?

How is anyone going to pay it? It's completely artificial, just numbers based on trust that is undeserved.You could try not spending a cent from the government next year and it also won't get paid back. You can stop collecting all taxes and it won't get paid back. But debts can get paid back over decades, it doesn't have to be in one year and that is a canard the guys who have all the money like to fly past the gullible all the time. The debt is what the people are left with after the positive side of the equation is transferred to the rich (but worse, because of all the bets placed against the debt). If you buy a house you may incur a debt equal to 10 years income - so there is no way you can pay it in a year and yet no-one gets too bent out of shape about that because you will earn the money over time. And you won't even pay it back in 10 years because there is interest to pay and you also need to eat. Perhaps you get a 30 year or 35 year mortgage - and countries generally have life expectancies somewhat greater than individual humans. The - there isn't enough money to pay back the debt) is always true and always has been. The same is true for any debt you take on.

I know you won't, because it's not possible and that is what America is waking up to, we are in the fast lane to complete destruction of our country because you all have had the peddle to the metal for $4T increase in national debt in three years time while losing 2 million jobs.

When a debt is impossible to pay back it won't be paid. It's that simple.

 

[redrumloa]

Indeed we do.
My girlfriend and quite a few friends use the Credit Union.
Perhaps to my shame, I've been meaning to join one for years but haven't done so yet.

My credit union is great, no nonsense at all. $5 minimum savings account balance and true free checking with nonsense like service fees. The credit union is owned by its members. I don't pay close attention to it, but some years I get a small dividend just for being a member. This is a huge difference from what the monolithic giant monstrosities are doing.

 

[ilwrath]

1) Restore the Constitution
2) Restore the Bill of Rights
3) Charge politicians with treason if they violate 1 & 2
4) True campaign finance reform
5) Enforce the laws on the books and prosecute all of the known players in the financial crisis, including the Fed and Bank CEOs. Charge the worst offenders with treason.
6) Roll back all unconstitutional laws and regulations of the last decade and restore ones that were eliminated (true uptick rule, Glass Steagall, margin limits)
7) Ban high frequency trading outright and prosecute those who profited on it's abuse

Ah... See, I don't disagree with any of these. And not too many people would. The anger comes from looking back... Who dismantled the Constitution and Bill of Rights? (1&2, therefore also would never allow 3) Who buys the politicians? (4) Who profits from the financial crisis, deregulation, and "very fast trades"? (5,6,7)

Oh yeah, those are all the tricks of the 0.001% we're pissed off at.

Number 8 is the only one within our power. And that is counting on the hope that the extreme amounts of pooled wealth won't buy election results.... (Honestly, I'm not sure how rational that hope is.)

 

[Robert]

Ah... See, I don't disagree with any of these. And not too many people would. The anger comes from looking back... Who dismantled the Constitution and Bill of Rights? (1&2, therefore also would never allow 3) Who buys the politicians? (4) Who profits from the financial crisis, deregulation, and "very fast trades"? (5,6,7)

Oh yeah, those are all the tricks of the 0.001% we're pissed off at.

Why'd you have to go and ruin things by bringing common sense back into the thread?