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[kurtrussell]

Not much from what I can see.

- Nothing has changed
- Little to no actual debate has been stimulated amongst people who mattered
- The camps got too cold for the majority of the hipsters so they went back home
- There is talk of them joining forces with the Tea Party (lulz)
- Philadelphia Occupy march only attracts 400 people, 40 of which are students

So from what I can see, the Occupy Movement have completely wasted a golden opportunity to achieve something and make any kind of a difference. As a result of them not being able to agree on what their demands are, they have issued a constant stream of mixed messages to the point where nobody is really clear on what the movement stands for.

The 1% argument also seemed flawed to me. What would come after the 1%? The 5%? Would they protest against them, and then maybe it'd be the 20%/80%?

Either way, they are becoming less relevant by the day as the bulk of the "99%" seem to have moved on to the next fashionable protest/cause. The recent Philly march saw the movement being made up of around 10% students. Getting students to protest is like shooting fish in a barrel, and is hardly representative of the "99%"

So if you were able to influence the "99%" now, what would your next move be? What would you do, what would you aim for, how would you move forward and stop the slide into irrelevance to prevent the whole thing becoming an interesting 2011 trivia question in 20 years time?

 

[Casp0r]

Anyone who is worth a shit doesn't give a shit?

 

[Jenga]

I agree they wasted a ton of potential, but they did succeed in making the inequality between the top upper class and the rest of us a subject of debate in the national spot-light.

 

[Steelrain]

They got people talking at least. I know some of my friends starting getting kinda active.

I pretty much stopped following them after that whole student loan thing.

 

[Admiral Bone to Pick]

Yes, I suppose complaining on a video game message board would have been a much better use of their time.

 

[kurtrussell]

Yes, I suppose complaining on a video game message board would have been a much better use of their time.

It would have achieved pretty much the same amount of actual real-world change, but used a fraction of the resources...

 

[Mecha_Infantry]

What did you achieve for something you stood against?

At least they did something. Belittling their achievements seems so tough on an internet message board

 

[jamesinclair]

Inequality used to be something people only talked about in reference to the third world.

Like mansions next to slums.

Last fall, inequality in the USA was the cover article of every major news magazine in the country.

This came just months after one of the major political parties main campaigning point was raising taxes on the poor so "everyone has skin in the game"


If thats not "achieving" something than theres no point to anything.

 

[daviyoung]

Ironically, it would have achieved pretty much the same amount of actual real-world change, but used a fraction of the resources...

It was just an awareness movment, any effect will be seen in coming years and by then it will be spurious to try and pinpoint the revolution on only the Occupiers anyway. In part I agree with you, but I do love a good protest.

 

[daycru]

Inequality used to be something people only talked about in reference to the third world.

Like mansions next to slums.

Last fall, inequality in the USA was the cover article of every major news magazine in the country.

This came just months after one of the major political parties main campaigning point was raising taxes on the poor so "everyone has skin in the game"


If thats not "achieving" something than theres no point to anything.

Not good enough!

 

[kurtrussell]

What did you achieve for something you stood against?

At least they did something. Belittling their achievements seems so tough on an internet message board

I'm not belittling them, I'm just pointing out that they achieved nothing due to an inability to make their minds up, and they wasted an opportunity in terms of media space, awareness and presence that you couldn't ever buy. The question was: what would you do to switch this around? So far, nobody seems to know what the answer is.

However, in the spirit of the whole 99% movement, I'm going to start my own protest: Occupy Sega

I am in the 99% who want Shenmue 3. The 1% at Sega are stopping it from happening. I am currently on my way to purchase a tent so I can camp out at Ōta. Who's with me, comrades?

 

[DurielBlack]

If there's one thing to be learned, it's that writing your congressman/senators/leaders when they vote on shit you don't like (SOPA) is probably the most effective way to initiate change.

You also have to be vigilant, our government likes to sneak shit in during holidays or other times when people are too busy to pay attention. They sneak changes in at the last second as well.

You have to educate yourself. Don't just listen to one news channel/radio station. Listen to them all. Read multiple websites/blogs/etc, not just the ones that say what you want to hear.

Don't get sucked into media hype. Don't watch Fox News (or CNN, or MSNBC, or any other form of media) and just yell at the television when they make you angry or nod your head when they say what you want to hear. Televisions don't care. News stations only care about advertising dollars.

If the 99% would do the above it would probably be more effective than milling around a street blocking people from getting to their jobs and being able to feed their families. Really about the only time to take to the street is when shit is really bad and it's time for some good old-fashioned violent regime change.

 

[Zaptruder]

They're welcome to stick around IMO.

It's useful having policies and decisions made in the context of the world where the awareness of class differences is a literal backdrop in our social environment.

 

[Jenga]

Decentralization killed them. Fringe groups consisting of libertarians, communists, zeitgeist etc and etc drew attention away from the main message and diluted the potential of the message and the solution because it was all over the place ideologically.

They gathered like a storm and it worked for a time but eventually it simply dissipated.




if only they had listened to jenga

 

[Wolves Evolve]

The most popular attack on the Republican nominee for President is that he was good at being a businessman. It has moderated and frightened a political establishment that is by and large leaning towards Duma-style corporate malfeasance 99% of the time.

I'd say that's pretty fucking good.

 

[noah111]

Awareness that an opposition exists.

 

[kurtrussell]

If the 99% would do the above it would probably be more effective than milling around a street blocking people from getting to their jobs and being able to feed their families. Really about the only time to take to the street is when shit is really bad and it's time for some good old-fashioned violent regime change.

Yes, yes, a million times, yes!

I'm willing to wager that for all this "awareness" of equality that they generated, it's actually going to equate to precisely no real-world action. Band-Aid generated a shit-ton of awareness of third world starvation in the 80s (AND they actually did something!), but from what I can see, it's very much still there - people have diverted their "awareness" to the next burning issue.

If people want to effect change, rather than hanging out in a camp with their buddies for a few months, they should take responsibility for themselves and take active actions rather than passive ones.

 

[Admiral Bone to Pick]

It would have achieved pretty much the same amount of actual real-world change, but used a fraction of the resources...

I'll actually elaborate a bit on my last post.

See, I don't mind people being lazy. I'm lazy myself. I could go to Occupy DC today if I wanted to, but I don't want to. I'd much rather sit in my comfy warm house and complain about politics on sites like NeoGAF. However, I don't criticize people who actually do get off their asses and protest. I don't label them as hipsters or rednecks or any other kind of blanket insult. But I suppose doing that would make it easier to degrade the value of their message (as well as troll some other users). So, mission accomplished.

 

[Pie and Beans]

A completely aimless group that don't have the balls to be full-on anarchists. Protesting 'everything' has resulted in a very ineffectual message, and were it not for choice pepper-spray cop memes, so easily forgotten.

Makes you look back on the protests of the Vietnam War, civil rights movement and more and just realise what a wet whistle today's generation ultimately is. I've found the whole thing highly embarrassing.

 

[XMonkey]

Well it looks like you already have it figured out.

 

[Jamesfrom818]

I think im obligated to post in this thread.

 

[piddledy]

A completely aimless group that don't have the balls to be full-on anarchists. Protesting 'everything' has resulted in a very ineffectual message, and were it not for choice pepper-spray cop memes, so easily forgotten.

Makes you look back on the protests of the Vietnam War, civil rights movement and more and just realise what a wet whistle today's generation ultimately is. I've found the whole thing highly embarrassing.

I can't remember: Which generation was responsible for the economic collapse a few years back?

 

[alstein]

I suspect we'll see some more occupies next year when the weather warms.

Eventually it will grow tiresome, especially if the economy recovers, but I think people are a little more aware of the political power of large corporations and how they can destroy the free market.

 

[Jenga]

I think im obligated to post in this thread.

never heard of you

kosmo kramer def has dibs on dis shit tho

 

[Mecha_Infantry]

 

[kurtrussell]

Yeah. There is a world of difference between the protesters in Egypt who actually got shit done and the Occupy movement. Not to mention the fact that the protesters in Libya were risking torture and their lives by protesting. Wonder how large the Occupy movement would be if that was the case for them?

 

[Admiral Bone to Pick]

I can't remember: Which generation was responsible for the economic collapse a few years back?

Mainly older Republicans who led the deregulation efforts in the 80s and 90s. All of the co-sponsors of Glass-Steagal, Newt Gingrich, the Reagan administration and the ensuing Bush Sr. administration which carried over in large part to his son.

So, in other words, the Greatest Generation.

 

[Baraka in the White House]

Yeah. There is a world of difference between the protesters in Egypt who actually got shit done and the Occupy movement.

Time disagreed.

 

[Jamesfrom818]

Yeah. There is a world of difference between the protesters in Egypt who actually got shit done and the Occupy movement.

The fact that an Occupier was used for the the Shepard Fairey piece has gotta count for something. She's also pretty cool...and cute too.

 

[DY_nasty]

Time disagreed.

Huh? I'm pretty sure even Time noted the difference between the two as well.

 

[kurtrussell]

Time disagreed.

Time can suck my balls

 

[Baraka in the White House]

Time can suck my balls

Insightful.

 

[Admiral Bone to Pick]

Yeah. There is a world of difference between the protesters in Egypt who actually got shit done and the Occupy movement. Not to mention the fact that the protesters in Libya were risking torture and their lives by protesting. Wonder how large the Occupy movement would be if that was the case for them?

The protesters in Libya "got shit done" because they were fighting a civil war against a dictator and a national military. Please tell me how the overall situation of the Libyan protests applies to Occupy Wall Street. We have the benefit of living in a free society where people can protest without being shot. It's a right which we should exercise.

 

[RevDM]

It gave us the pepper spray cop meme

 

[DY_nasty]

The protesters in Libya "got shit done" because they were fighting a civil war against a dictator and a national military. Please tell me how the overall situation of the Libyan protests applies to Occupy Wall Street. We have the benefit of living in a free society where people can protest without being shot. It's a right which we should exercise.

And they still got less done.

Because people don't even show up and some don't even know what they're protesting.

 

[ToxicAdam]

It gave us 10,000 more Manos posts?

 

[elrechazado]

gave use great memes. That's about it.

 

[Karma Kramer]

does it have more mainstream awareness in its period than any movement in the last 30 years in the US?

 

[kurtrussell]

The fact that an Occupier was used for the the Shepard Fairey piece has gotta count for something. She's also pretty cool...and cute too.

So wait... Time magazine used a picture of the 1% of the 99%?

 

[Mortrialus]

We already have an Occupy Wallstreet thread, kurtrussell. I know you know about it because I remember you posting a series of embarrassing, incoherent, babbling diatribes.

 

[Meadows]

I find it almost insulting that they include OWS in the same sentence as the Arab Spring and Russian protesters.

 

[DY_nasty]

I find it almost insulting that they include OWS in the same sentence as the Arab Spring and Russian protesters.

Glad I'm not the only one...

 

[Karma Kramer]

Just because some protests are for a far greater inequality, doesn't mean you ignore protests focused on corruption causing lesser inequality.

 

[piddledy]

Glad I'm not the only one...

I see your Arab Spring and raise you a Russian Revolution!

 

[ssoass]

Well I think people in general are starting to get more and more tired with the government and the establishment.

I'm not American, but just look at Ron Paul's success... he and Mitt Romney are pretty much the only ones in the race for the GOP nomination at this point, and a huge percentage of Ron Paul voters are people who are fed up with the status quo.

So I think the Occupy movement is just one of the many outings of this disenchantment.

 

[Baraka in the White House]

Huh? I'm pretty sure even Time noted the difference between the two as well.

Sure it noted the differences. It also talked about everything from the riots in Europe to discontent in Russia. Yes, it even talked about Occupy and no, it didn't just go, "... And then there were these idiots lol."

 

[Masaki_]

I find it almost insulting that they include OWS in the same sentence as the Arab Spring and Russian protesters.

Why insulting? Are you one of the Arab or Russian protesters?

I mean, you do realize feeling insulted for someone else makes you a massive tool, right?

 

[Spire]

They came, they saw, they sat around, nothing happened, they left.

 

[Seraphinianus]

Maybe it sowed the seeds for something else to happen? Maybe it just put the topic on people's minds?

Otherwise, I don't know. But I do know, if you were expecting Obama himself to parachute into the protest and declare "I have just signed the bill that puts an end to all inequality!" then you are stupid. OWS is a step in a process that will take longer than our lifetimes to sort out.

 

[RevDM]

Well I think people in general are starting to get more and more tired with the government and the establishment.

I'm not American, but just look at Ron Paul's success... he and Mitt Romney are pretty much the only ones in the race for the GOP nomination at this point, and a huge percentage of Ron Paul voters are people who are fed up with the status quo.

So I think the Occupy movement is just one of the many outings of this disenchantment.

Something you must understand about American politics, all people are fed up with the government in some way or another. Politicians know this and cater to a particular crowds' interests. It does not mean things will actually be better. The most recent example is probably the best. Obama ran on the campaign of 'Yes We Can' and his administration has made strides in healthcare reform and other things, but no where near the hopes of his supporters.

Edit: great, post 50 I'm going to be ignored