Let this hard working Democratic Senator explain America's basic economic/governing problem:
So far this session, Sen. Dick Durbin has stood behind consumers like no other public official in Washington. He has served as the Senate Democrats' de facto point man on student aid reform, mortgage bankruptcy reform, usury reform, financial product safety, and consumer credit abuse. And around every corner, he's been met with resistance by banking industry lobbyists. In an interview with WJJG's Ray Hanania on Monday, the senior senator from Illinois stated outright that the banks "own" Capitol Hill. Listen (full audio here):
DURBIN: And the banks -- hard to believe in a time when we're facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created -- are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place.
Durbin On Congress: The Banks "Own The Place"
by Adam Doster, progressillinois.com -- April 29th, 2009
That kind of raises the Question:
Do Banks exist to safeguard the Wealth of our Nation,
Or does the Nation exist to insure the Wealth of the Bankers?
Hard-working Americans (and under-employed Americans) quite seriously, want to know ...
I've heard/read that the Protesters on Wall Street -- They don't know what they want; that they don't have any Clear Goals ...
Well with a little bit of research, I discovered that Event Organizers DO have some Goals:
OccupyWallStreet
A Message From Occupied Wall Street (Day Five)
Posted 2011-09-22 by OccupyWallSt
This is the fifth communique from the 99 percent. We are occupying Wall Street.
On September 21st, 2011, Troy Davis, an innocent man, was murdered by the state of Georgia. Troy Davis was one of the 99 percent.
Ending capital punishment is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, the richest 400 Americans owned more wealth than half of the country's population.
Ending wealth inequality is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, four of our members were arrested on baseless charges.
Ending police intimidation is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, we determined that Yahoo lied about occupywallst.org being in spam filters.
Ending corporate censorship is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, roughly eighty percent of Americans thought the country was on the wrong track.
Ending the modern gilded age is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, roughly 15% of Americans approved of the job Congress was doing.
Ending political corruption is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, roughly one sixth of Americans did not have work.
Ending joblessness is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, roughly one sixth of America lived in poverty.
Ending poverty is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, roughly fifty million Americans were without health insurance.
Ending health-profiteering is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, America had military bases in around one hundred and thirty out of one hundred and sixty-five countries.
Ending American imperialism is our one demand.
On September 21st, 2011, America was at war with the world.
Ending war is our one demand.
[...]
Here's is the link for ... A Message From Occupied Wall Street (Day Six) as posted 2011-09-23, by OccupyWallStreet
.
.
.
Hey Occupying Patriots, Great work! Great peaceful demonstration of Unity. Great exercising of your 1st Amendment rights.
Here are a few more clearly-stated Goals you might want to add to your Talking Points list, especially as the Reporters finally showing up, to get your views ... to find out what you really want ...
The Wall St. Bill Doesn’t Protect Us From Banker Abuse: 5 Essential Reforms Are Still Needed
by Zach Carter, alternet.org -- July 21, 2010
On Wednesday, President Barack Obama signed into law the first serious effort to regulate Wall Street in decades. The bill has much to be said for it, but the unfortunate truth is that it ducks several of the most critical reforms needed to protect our economy from banker abuse.
[...]
1. Break Up The Banks
Not long ago, breaking up the banks was viewed as an impossible pipe dream, but when the Senate finally weighed in on the matter in May, a surprisingly high number of Senators supported it, with even a handful of Republicans voting to bust ‘em up [...]
2. Tax Wall Street Gambling
The financial crash of 2008 was a direct result of wild and unrestrained speculation on Wall Street—raw gambling that creates big risks while doing nothing to boost the broader economy. There’s no law of economics that says this kind of activity needs to take place, and taxpayers can make serious money by reining it in. In London, financiers are subject to a tiny tax on their securities and derivatives trades. The tax is small enough that it doesn’t discourage serious long-term investment in productive businesses, but significant enough to make traders think twice about buying huge volumes of securities only to dump them a few minutes or hours later.
[...]
3. End The Foreclosure Nightmare
The foreclosure crisis has been deepening unabated since 2006. That is a public policy obscenity: politicians rushed to rescue bankers who pushed predatory garbage loans on the public, while leaving troubled homeowners to fend for themselves.
[...]
4. Prosecute Fraud [...]
5. Stop Subsidizing Risky Business
The bill Obama signs today includes two critical measures to rein in big banks—an end to taxpayer subsidies for derivatives dealing, and a ban on risky proprietary trading. The trouble is, both measures were punched through with tremendous loopholes at the last minute, rendering them extremely weak. [...] But after Congress ripped away the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999, banks started engaging in all kinds of other businesses that weren’t essential to the core financial functions of accepting deposits and making loans. [...]
If hedge funds want to speculate, fine (though they should be subjected to a financial transactions tax), but economically essential banks shouldn’t be subsidized for injecting enormous risks into the economy. If banks want to hedge risks with derivatives, that’s fine too, but they shouldn’t be getting subsidies for dealing derivatives to other firms and amplifying speculative activity in the financial system.
When all else fails, just remember this simple concept
Do the Banks exist to safeguard our wealth,
Or do We exist -- to safeguard theirs?
Our "captured" congressional committee members, should want to know ...
Exactly WHO do they work for again? Is it US or THEM?
The swindlers, or the swindlees?
--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------
[Editorial Note: initially I referenced the goals of Days of Rage organizer Alexa O’Brien, but I was informed that those goals did NOT represent the same goals of the current OccupyWallStreet group: occupywallst.org.
You have my sincere apologies. Sorry, for not checking on this further, earlier today before posting.
For the record, here were those initially referenced links, for "Days of Rage" organizers:
Wall Street Invaded
by Victor Thorn, AmericanFreePress -- Sep 23, 2011
The Outrage Begins: Wall Street -- September 17th
by Chaz Valenza, OpEdNews -- September 10, 2011