OPINIONS: Wall Street Occupied

_It’s been awhile since I’ve wanted to return to New York having left in 1997. Now seems a great time. The Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protest makes me kind of proud to have spent 9 years in the Big Apple. The OWS movement isn’t the first of its kind and it is still relatively small. Inspired by the Spanish Indignados and the Arab Spring, itself ignited when a courageous Tunisian man set himself on fire in protest of a system that disenfranchises the poor, OWS has a powerful message that is resonating with the masses. It has emboldened people across the U.S. and around the world and is scaring the hell out of the rich and powerful. How much? Well, the 2nd richest man in the world, Warren Buffet has been begging U.S. politicians to tax him and other super-rich folks more. Months before the occupation of Liberty Plaza, he understood better than most of the super-rich that the anger of the ordinary people had reached a tipping point.

The people that are occupying Wall Street are from different walks of life, races, cultures, and even countries. Some have come from recent protests in Egypt and Spain to lend their support and advice. But the movement itself has a singular vision: to restore democracy. It’s hard to say where all this will end up. My hope is that people power will transform society through massive changes to the political, economic and social systems in those societies that have the greatest disparities between the haves and the have nots. I wholeheartedly support the OWS and the Indignados movements. Many are on the sidelines not yet sure what to make of it. Some just don't like what they're doing. Where do you stand?

How the Rich Subverted the Legal System, by Glenn Greenwald
The death that sparked a revolution
www.occupywallstreet.org
www.occupytogether.org