That, to me, speaks volumes about the primary challenge of opposing the 50-headed hydra of Wall Street corruption, which is that it's extremely difficult to explain the crimes of the modern financial elite in a simple visual. The essence of this particular sort of oligarchic power is its complexity and day-to-day invisibility: Its worst crimes, from bribery and insider trading and market manipulation, to backroom dominance of government and the usurping of the regulatory structure from within, simply can't be seen by the public or put on TV. There just isn't going to be an iconic "Running Girl" photo with Goldman Sachs, Citigroup or Bank of America – just 62 million Americans with zero or negative net worth, scratching their heads and wondering where the hell all their money went and why their votes seem to count less and less each and every year.
No matter what, I'll be supporting Occupy Wall Street. And I think the movement's basic strategy – to build numbers and stay in the fight, rather than tying itself to any particular set of principles – makes a lot of sense early on. But the time is rapidly approaching when the movement is going to have to offer concrete solutions to the problems posed by Wall Street. To do that, it will need a short but powerful list of demands. There are thousands one could make, but I'd suggest focusing on five:
And he suggests breaking up monopolies, taxing stock, bond, and derivatives trades, prohibiting companies that take public bailout money from lobbying, eliminate the carried-interest tax break, and eliminate cash bonuses for bankers in favor of stock options.
These are all great ideas...and I'd go further and add reinstating Glass-Steagall, give the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau real power, regulate commodity speculation if not eliminate it altogether, eliminate the ratings agencies and oh yeah, actually prosecute the assholes that cost us trillions.
Idea number eleven of course is remember to vote in November.
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