Travis Roach
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What Percent Are You?

10/19/2011

 
I'll admit that the Occupy Wall Street campaign has lasted a lot longer then I expected it would. This article gives a little bit of a background on the "conflict", but is also cool because of the what percent are you tool. So, let's assume you have a monthly budget of $1,500 dollars that comes from either working, your parents, loans/scholarships, or a combination of all three. Work that out to cover a year and it looks like you make $18,000 a year. Plug that into the calculator (along with your actual "income") and see where that puts you. Are you suprised by this? Do you feel ashamed that about a fifth of America makes less than you (in this scenario)? If you could, would you go join the movement?

As a sidenote, Steve Jobs was comfortably in the top 1%. Are you happier that he created the iPhone, iPad, iEtc. or can you not "tolerate the greed and corruption" of this top percenter.
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Brandon James link
10/19/2011 05:39:27 am

When I think of "the 1%" I don't think of a bunch of greedy people who lied their way to the top. I think of guys like Steve Jobs and Robert Newton (Hoosier tires founder) who started their businesses in a garage. I look up to successful people and want to be successful one day. Sure the money might be nice, but for most people starting a business they want to revolutionize whatever industry they are going in to. I know many small business owners who are in the 1%, but I would by no means consider them excessively wealthy and I can't imagine growing up where I did with out their businesses. I've met Robert Newton's grandson, who is in the upper end of the 1%, and he was one of the most friendly people I have had the chance to meet. I think that if everyone in the occupy movement really wanted to make a difference they would try to start a business. In doing so some of their businesses would take off and others wouldn't. The businesses that do take off would be able to provide JOBS for the owners of the failed businesses.

Christian Arroyo
10/28/2011 03:09:03 am

Actually Brandon, I don't think any of the small businesses you mention are in the 1% of the movement. The 1% consists of the mega-corporations who show record breaking profits, yet don't pay taxes at all and have massive layoffs at the same time. That's the 1% we're fighting against.

Michael Barnett
11/13/2011 09:50:58 am

Required reading for any OWS supporter:
The Creature from Jekyll Island
By G. Edward Griffin
Economics in One Lesson
By Henry Hazlitt
Both are available free as PDFs (search).
The rabble on the streets are a disgrace to civilization.

Steve Radke
11/14/2011 02:00:01 am

So they're basically fighting greed with greed. Why is the 99 percent's greed more righteous? Because theirs never got fleshed out? Sounds screwy to me.


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