Well we certainly have a lot of discussion regarding the income inequality in our economy. That is a good thing. What has begun to rankle a bit is that even those in the media who are supportive of the message and the movement have focused upon the peoples anger at this. I need to explain something here that I'm not sure they are getting.
Ya, folks are a tad miffed about how much more these guys get. But most of us aren't exactly upset that they have done better; what sticks in the majority of folks craws here is that they got that way by buying politicians off, getting rid of reasonable regulations meant to protect the rest of us from predatory practices and rigging the system so that only those few who have could benefit to any real degree. All Americans want to have a shot at wealth and success. We do not hold another man (or woman)'s success against them unless we perceive that they have cheated to get it!
It is the cheating that angers people. Cheating and being able to buy ones way out of it with political contributions really steams people. That is what is bringing people out to protest the inequality; we are sick and tired of having a separate class in this supposedly equal nation that can get away with crimes that would get any of the ordinary proletariat into prison.
To the patriots and constitutionalists: remember that we went to war not against England alone, but against the monopoly held by the East India Company and the unfairness it's relationship with the government of England had imposed on us. The founding fathers discussed at length their belief that some by nature and personal effort, will benefit more than others and that these (themselves in most cases) deserved by natural right to be the ones who determined the main direction of society. But don't forget that they went to great lengths in the founding documents to ensure that those who did manage to succeed did so in as fair and honest a way as could be enforced and structured those documents and to allow for changes in law and policy to handle any future situations that they could not anticipate.
Modern times has seen an anti-constitutional movement away from regulations that protect the public and make for a level playing field. Beyond a loosening of regulations that have long protected the consumer, those law/regulations still on the books are not being enforced and their clear violation has yet to bring more than token prosecution if that. The arrogance of financial institutions who begged US for billions of dollars in bailouts only to then pay themselves ridiculous bonuses is another major influence for many at the OWS protests.
There is another aspect to all of this that I haven't heard too much discussion of. A large part of the nation self identifies as patriotic. In fact, I'd say most of us would say we love our country and would fight to protect it, even die if needed to protect it. Some have taken this further than is healthy, however. Unless you are a “native” or “aboriginal” American, you cannot claim any more right to the place than anyone else that is here. Having started entirely from immigrants from several nations, there is no one group that can claim any purity of ownership of this nation.
History is littered with examples of the last batch of immigrants a generation later decrying the arrival of the next batch of "foreigners". Surely we have grown past that, haven't we? Thankfully, most of us have. Most of us recognize the important contributions made by all who have contributed to our history and can see that they come from all walks of life as well as all ethnicities.
If you have trouble believing this, it would be a good idea to really study the history of the period around the Revolution. Patriotism does not include bigotry. With all of their failings, the founding fathers efforts were to establish a growing freedom for the nation's people.
Patriotism does not include ignorance either. Too many things are being said that are simply not true! When people in prominent positions are saying ridiculous things it is the place of an independent media, as specified in our founding document, to correct the record with actual information. They have failed lately at this responsibility and we have had to fall back on memory and the internet for answers.
Beware of who holds the records of the truth. It is not for any private corporation or group of them to hold the switch that connects us to our heritage. It is for US in the form of a free and open Government, to take responsibility for our history. Fortunately, the old records are mostly still available, but it has become rather a chore to find and apply judgment to what is found.
This last points to exactly why so many of us rely upon others in the media to consolidate the information for us, do the research and save us the time and hassle of doing all that ourselves. To do so requires some trust, so we tend towards figures and networks that are comfortable to us. This trend has accelerated as the information age has taken on a more and more rapid pace. It isn't necessarily a bad thing, as long as those sources can be trusted to actually provide valid data, but that hasn't been the reality.
As the pace of life and culture has increased, the influence of a few small groups of extremely wealthy corporations has grown exponentially. As stated earlier, there is no real issue with success or profits; they are the lifeblood of our economy. What has gone wrong during this time is that influence, in the form of financing of politicians and lobbying for less restraint upon their business through elimination of consumer protections. Then literally buying the media itself in order to keep the rest of us in the dark and spin the information for their own benefit.
That's cheating. And it makes people angry. It isn't really complicated. I am astonished at the flailing around in the media to understand the movement. Even the supportive members of the media and politics have missed the most important points here. We don't want to destroy banking. We don't really mind a properly regulated financial industry at Wall Street. We just hate the cheating and the people doing it getting away with it.
If you have the time, educate yourself. There are many documentaries by diverse groups. Look into the sources and their biases before believing anything or accepting anyone's interpretation of the information. If you don't, get to know people who do and find sources you can trust, but please become informed on all that is going on. We are at a critical time in this country. I think we have the will and the general smarts to work through this.
But I could be wrong.