Posted by
ApolloSpeaks on Saturday, October 29, 2011 11:20:50 AM
"
Those who see their lives as spoiled and wasted crave equality and fraternity more than they do freedom. If they clamor for freedom, it is but freedom to establish equality and uniformity." Eric Hoffer, True Believer.
Yesterday Samuel posted an interesting but wrongheaded comment about the true meaning of the OWS movement where he said, and I quote, "Many in our ranks have come to the realization that we lack a meaningful control over our lives," and that OWS was simply "appealing to the 99% of Americans who are in the same boat as us... and need to take back our governance [from the top 1%] (see)."
To this I reply:
Oh really now Sam. Where do you come off assuming that I and every single living American, other than the 1% super-rich, are in the "same boat" as you and the rowdy, filthy, foul mouthed mob of frenzied, radical Occupiers? In so far that all of us are not millonaires and billionaires you are right-in that respect we share the same economic boat. But it is the height of arrogance and folly to presume that every one of us non-super-rich, all 99%, "lack a meaningful control over our lives." You can make that judgment for yourself Sam, but not for me and others on this blog. Though I'm far from being "super-rich" I do not like you "lack a meaningful control over my life." In fact, if I were at the bottom of the economic scale, the lower 1% (which I'm not), I'd still have this meaningful control, or at least a large part of it. George Soros making billions every year, and the wealthy getting richer, do not make me or you or anyone poorer in this free, dynamic, upwardly mobile, entrepreneurial society. It has absolutely no bearing on the values, principles and ideals that govern my life and enrich it with meaning. And what is true for me goes double for you and every sad and sorry soul in your mad, out of control, anti-capitalist movement.
If you're a lost and broken soul Sam whose life is lacking direction, purpose and meaning, if you're a nowhere man and one of these losers (needing to lose yourself in the anonymity of a reckless mass movement to feel whole and alive), it's not the top 1% who are to blame; you are not their wounded victim needing justice; they didn't do this to you whatever their crimes and corruption. The absence of meaningful values and principles guiding, shaping and directing your life is your fault, your choice, your responsibility and failing, not theirs. If you're leading a miserable, frustrated aimless existence the cause of this originates inside you, in your unused or misdirected moral and mental powers, in the bad choices that you've made and are making in your life; in your flawed value code and world view that's never worked well for you. Heck, you can be in the top "controlling" 1%, the elitest of the elite, and live in utter misery and degradation; live a wretched, meaningless, empty, boring, purposeless existence bordering on madness and suicide-or going off the cliff. There are many, many examples of this-Michael Jackson comes to mind.
Occupy Wall Street is a hate and envy driven fringe movement of self-pitying leftists on a sinking ship making lots of noise who blame, demonize and scapegoat the rich and free market capitalism for their failings and woes-for the absence of a meaningful, purposeful, happy, rewarding, fulfilling life; for their mental, moral and psychological confusion; for their existential despair and sense of worthlessness. Rage against the rich and capitalism all you want Sam (deprive them of the riches you can't earn) it won't improve society or enrich your inner being; it's just a distraction from the spiritual problem that people like you lack the courage to face.
Major websites linking this piece are as follows (click and see):