Wall Street Occupied and Preocuppied
Yesterday I read an opinion piece in the daily paper Página 12, a left-leaning paper published in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Usually, the news is very local and is centered around politics important to Argentina. Often the articles are about people I know little about. However, this great paper pushes my limits as I am learning to read and understand Spanish and provides me with interesting and challenging articles. I have to admit to more than a little thrill when I realized the back page opinion piece was about Occupy Wall Street.
I was even more surprised when I found myself learning new things about OWS... things I might have missed here at DailyKos. I thought you might be interested in them as well; things like Forbes Magazine inviting the 1% to visit Zucotti Park incognito; or the executive who has had his private security agency plan his escape in the event that the government topples; or of the list of rules that banks are handing out to employees in regards to all those protestors. I also found out that some big businesses are making money because of Occupy Wall Street. And, best yet, I learned that I can have a penpal! Haven't you always wanted to write letters back and forth with one of the 1%?
The opinion piece was written by Juan Gelman, a well known Argentine poet who has been publishing since 1956. Art and politics are close friends in South America.
It should come as no surprise that an opinion piece published in Página 12 is sympathetic with the protestors; but Gelman does something more. Rather than paint a picture of the people protesting, he instead fills in the blank faces of the 1%. He understands that the Argentines reading the paper will most likely comprehend the struggles of the 99%... the average Argentine is no stranger to struggle. And, although the Argentine have their own 1%, the richest Americans outshine the most prosperous Porteños. I believe Gelman wants to show that the United States has the potential to out do the vast inequities that exist here in his own country and he knows exactly where to point his finger.
He begins with famous Forbes magazine and their invitation to the 1%:
Forbes invitó a varios multimillonarios de sus listas a visitar de incógnito a los reunidos en el Parque Zuccotti, ahora de la Libertad, para conocer de primera mano las demandas de los ocupantes. Sólo aceptó Jeff Greene, magnate del negocio inmobiliario al que la revista le calcula un capital de 2100 millones de dólares, y éste fue su comentario: “Por ahora es como una manifestación estudiantil, una muestra de la frustración de la clase media, pero podría eventualmente desembocar en la violencia, el próximo paso a temer” (www.forbes.com, 19/10/11).
Forbes invited several billionaires of their [Forbes 400] to visit Zuccotti Park, now called Liberty Park, incognito to see first hand the demands of the occupants. Only Jeff Greene, real estate tycoon who the magazine calculates has capital of 2.1 billion dollars, accepted and this was his comment: "Right now it’s like a college sit-in, demonstrating middle-class frustration, but it could eventually lead to violence and that is the scary next step." (www.forbes.com, 10/19/11).
Gelman then continues that thread of fear planted so well by Mr. Greene:
No falta el ejecutivo que contactó a una agencia privada de seguridad “solicitando ayuda para planear su huida de EE.UU. en el caso de que el gobierno federal fuese derrocado”, informa el New York Times. Ni el banco que distribuye entre sus empleados un manual de seguridad ad hoc con instrucciones como éstas: “Evitar las zonas pobres o aisladas que los tornan vulnerables a un ataque”. O: “Eludir confrontaciones y contactos innecesarios con los manifestantes”, “No portar la identificación o algún logo del banco”, “No caminar o conducir solo”, “No razonar o argumentar con los manifestantes”, “Si le parece que está en peligro o si observa actividades sospechosas o ilegales, llame a la policía o marque 911”, “Sea un buen testigo y procure recordar al máximo posible los detalles de lo que ocurra” y otras del mismo tenor. (www.truthout.org, 16/10/11).
Do not forget the executive who contacted a private security agency "for help to plan his escape from the U.S. in the event that the federal government was toppled," according to the New York Times, nor the bank which distributed an ad hoc safety manual among its employees with instructions like: "Avoid poor or isolated areas that make them vulnerable to attack." Or: "Avoid confrontations and unnecessary contact with the protesters," "Avoid wearing Bank ID or logo items outside the bank if possible.," "Avoid walking or driving alone," "Do not attempt to reason or argue with the protesters," "If you feel that you're in danger or if you observe suspicious or illegal activities, call the police or dial 911," "Be a good witness and try to remember as many details of what occurred as you can" and others of the same tenor (www.truthout.org, 16/10/11).
If you're interested in background reading, the New York Times published, Protests are a Payday for Security Firms on October 18, 2011. The actual truthout article comes from October 9, 2011.
Gelman uses more from the NYTimes article of Oct 18:
Hay, sin embargo, seres felices en medio de esta paranoia: los fabricantes de dispositivos de seguridad y los directores de las agencias del ramo. Ejecutivos de bancos, compañías financieras y aseguradoras llaman cada vez con más frecuencia a las firmas que se ocupan de proporcionar seguridad. Paul M. Viollis, confundador de Risk Control Strategies –que vende protección a algunos de los ejecutivos más importantes de Wall Street–, espera “duplicar con creces sus ingresos este año” (www.nytimes.com, 18/10/11). Christopher Falkenberg, director de Insite Security, dice que los suyos aumentarán un 40 por ciento. Las tarifas son picantes.
There are, however, happy people in the middle of this paranoia: manufacturers of security devices and agency directors in the industry. Executives of banks, finance companies and insurers are increasingly calling more often on firms engaged in providing security. Paul M. Viollis, co-founder of Risk Control Strategies, which sells protection to some of the top executives of Wall Street, expects "more than double its revenue this year" (www.nytimes.com, 10/18/11). Christopher Falkenberg, director of Insite Security, says his revenue will increase 40 percent. Rates are spicy.
After reading the article, it is easy to see that the 99% supposedly have Wall Street scared... but perhaps not in the way we need them to be. They think we are going to come at them with pitchforks and axes; maybe it hasn't dawned on them that we are just going to stop giving them our money.
But we can do a better job of explaining ourselves - one on one. No, we probably won't be able to schedule any meetings with the Forbes 400 but Gelman shared a link with me, OccupyTheBoardroom. ¡Qué nivel! Both Gelman for sharing and the site itself!
Here are some examples of how your penpal might get your letter:
This piece in Página 12 is more proof that the Whole World is Watching. The United States and Occupy Wall Street are entering a profound new stage... one where we are beginning to see a change in national messaging, a change in media coverage, and even a slight change in the powers that be, though it is still very slight as some politicians who have always gotten it, like Bernie Sanders, speak out but so many more try to paint the movement with their own brush or demean the movement with name calling.
This movement will only succeed with mass support from everyday people like you and I. What do you say? Are on board?