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Protesting


Rizzo

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May be ignorance, may be stupidity, but I honestly don't even have time to follow politics and/or this kind of thing. Staying ahead in life while enjoying family, fishing, friends and sometimes even work... along with a little Big Bang Theory, Dexter, OFC, eating and sleeping... I can barely find the energy during or at the end of the day, for dwelling. :blush:

 

Bang on! I echo everything, except I prefer Boardwalk Empire.

Edited by Harrison
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O please, some of you don't beleive anything unless a liberal PM tells you to.

 

This is a complicted issue, and I think some of the protest has merit. Capitalism might be the best system there is, people have the opportunity to improve their lives through work and often some luck. At the same time bad luck or laziness can sink you, but the system is being pushed into extremes, constant downward pressure on wages so we can compete with china and ceo's making 100's of millions while their company is being bailed out by the middle class, that is simpy wrong, indefensible. The governement has failed to regulate these corporations, in fact they have enhanced the problem by reducing barriers to outsourcing and making it easier to bring in cheap goods from asia.

 

It is really complicated, but as an earlier poster pointed out, the idea of the american dream where you work hard and get rewarded is becoming harder and harder to attain, more of the wealth associated with that hard work is now being accumulated at the top of the pyramid while the bottom is being squeezed out.

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30 years of deregulation has brought about bigger and bigger financial disasters, bigger and bigger cases of fraud along with stupid useless war and you wonder why people are pissed and why they just don't go to work and bury their heads in the sand?

The wealthiest and most powerful people in a nation have always ended up doing the same thing. They end up squandering the accumulated wealth of that nation in an orgy of greed and egotism. This has happened since the time of the pharaohs.

 

Sometimes the people get angry enough to stop them as just happened in Libya.

Only a strong set of laws and regulations can prevent this.

Edited by hammercarp
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Was speaking with a financial reporter from a business daily and he told me it was staggering the amount of money that corporations have tucked away in offshore accts. I think there was a link earlier but if they could get these greedy pigs to pay taxes on this, the Euro crisis would be more like a small blip on the radar.

 

I have no problems with creating wealth (and wish I had bank stocks) but it's the tax dodges like offshores they employ that burns me.

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Here is an interesting article from the globe and mail. Not really directly related to the protests but something we have all protested at least a little at some point in time taxes. Enjoy

 

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/tax-isnt-a-four-letter-word/article2201690/

Edited by torco
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Sorry for bringing a thread back from a few pages ago. I saw this in today's Globe and Mail and figured it was relevant.

 

The Facts and Arguments section is unsolicited essays submitted to the paper.

 

 

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/the-essay/yes-im-the-man-but-i-support-the-kids/article2209713/?from=sec434

 

 

By RICK WHITE

 

Yes, I’m The Man. But I support the kids

 

From Monday's Globe and Mail

Published Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011 4:00PM EDT

 

I vividly remember being 17 in 1967. I wore bellbottom pants, a leather braid around my shoulder-length hair – and I truly believed that my generation would change the world.

 

The slogan “don’t trust anyone over 30” was not about ideology so much as our generation’s observation that once you had kids and a family, the aspiration to be rich (or at least comfortable) would supersede any aspiration to be fair.

 

Part of our momentum came from our parents, who seemed so out of touch – seemingly devoted to maintaining the status quo (and, in hindsight, understandably so). Unlike today, their status quo was not about protecting monster homes, private schools and German cars. It was driven by a need for stability after two decades of depression, war and uncertainty.

 

We dressed differently, our music became our anthem and we insisted on peace and love over war and hate. In retrospect it all seems naive now. Or perhaps that’s the smugness of growing older.

 

There is certainly nothing naive about what today’s youth are concerned about – unemployment, the distressing gap between rich and poor, the exploitation of cheap labour, the sustained war in the Middle East, the chemicals and pesticides throughout our food chain, to name just a few of today’s calamities.

 

I am wondering if I am still naive because, like most boomers, I forgot about our right to protest and demand change. I became part of what we used to call “The Man.” Back then, “The Man” maintained the status quo. He wore a suit and tie or a uniform – and had an uncompromising desire to keep things the same.

 

Part of it was inevitably moving beyond 30 myself and wanting to earn an income that could support my family of three kids. I work in the financial industry, having no doubt “sold out” long ago. But thank goodness there is a new generation who realize that the politics of corporations and governments are too closely aligned and that there are bigger issues to solve than next quarter’s earnings.

 

Today, young people are gathering on Wall Street and occupying our downtown parks and squares in the same spirit as their parents, who occupied university presidents’ offices or marched to end the war in Vietnam. It was an expression of freedom. Then, as now, the government had lost relevance.

 

But today’s protests aren’t an expression of freedom. Something different is happening. The media seem confused about how to portray this movement. Inconsequential or significant? Politicians are uneasy and I am sure we won’t hear any speeches about ethical oil or other spin-doctored concepts during this period.

 

The mission is not as clear-cut as it was back then. Even with the relatively weak world communications of that time, My Lai and Kent State came to express part of the fabric of what was terribly wrong. I am sure the iconic images and stories for this time will also become apparent. But it is so much more complicated. Collateral damage on top of collateral damage means that the real cause of any one issue of our time is difficult to identify.

 

Take global warming – it’s not just about burning oil or driving cars or the plight of rain forests or our reluctance to adopt alternative energies, but rather the cumulative effect of all these detrimental decisions. It’s not the protesters’ fault they don’t have a single message. How can you choose a single message when there are so many?

 

Personally, I am relieved that people are protesting. Many of us know that things just aren’t right. Capitalism shouldn’t come at the expense of democracy, and corporate might shouldn’t eclipse the rights of everyday folk.

 

I know in my heart that our tremendously compromised political system will not make the tough choices unless there is a groundswell of protest. I am sure I am not the only one my age who feels this way, though we don’t talk about it enough.

 

I bought into the Canadian dream of getting comfortable and somewhere along the way realized that comfort could be wonderful indeed. I never gave enough thought to all the social costs. But of course it’s now so obvious. In fact our kids, those who are protesting, don’t even know how much things have changed because they were born long after our pristine environment became so murky.

 

I fervently hope this wave of protests is not just an autumn season but the real deal that will form a coherent political force for the future. I also hope that it will become the voice of reason and the inspiration for a generation that needs to repair the damage of the past 50 years and not perpetuate our rationalizations. We need facts, not politics. And in good conscience we should be lending our best voices, our most effective media and our passionate belief in the rightness and timeliness of this movement.

 

I remember one of the anthems of my youth, a Janis Joplin song: “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” The young generations of today have everything to lose.

 

Rick White lives in Toronto.

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The most curious aspect (to me) of this whole thing is just how much animosity some people have towards these protestors. If you don't agree with those protests, don't take part in them...problem solved.

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I feel fairly indifferent about the whole thing. I don't see the point in personally participating, but at the same time, I also don't feel the need to hurl insults at them or question how they spend their free time. If their efforts are pointless and bound to fail, as seems to be the consensus, and they're not hurting anyone, which appears to be the case...why give them a moment of thought, let alone spend time focusing animosity?

 

so you are saying don't protest the protesters

 

the protesters can say what they don't like about things

but if people don't like what the protesters are doing/saying they should keep their mouths shut.....LOL

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<object width="480" height="360"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

"In a speech on the Floor of the House of Representatives in 1999, Congressman Dingell warns against repealing the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. He argues that repealing the law would allow banks to become "too big to fail," which would cause instability in financial system. Nonetheless, Congress repealed the law and the nation suffered the tragic consequences of the 2008 financial crisis about a decade later."

 

I copied and pasted this. I guess if your government wont listen to common sense from it's own members, taking it to the street is one alternative.

Edited by hammercarp
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<object width="480" height="360"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2RzRv8yQXQ?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

"In a speech on the Floor of the House of Representatives in 1999, Congressman Dingell warns against repealing the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. He argues that repealing the law would allow banks to become "too big to fail," which would cause instability in financial system. Nonetheless, Congress repealed the law and the nation suffered the tragic consequences of the 2008 financial crisis about a decade later."

 

I copied and pasted this. I guess if your government wont listen to common sense from it's own members, taking it to the street is one alternative.

 

 

All good stuff, but what does it have to do with Canada? What exactly are people in Toronto protesting against?

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