And what’s better? Listening to meaningless, cliche ridden PR speak from some politician or banker with a slick haircut and a shiny suit?

I agree with Conor. I am totally in favour of the Occupy movement and have watched videos from all over the world. Unlike Conor, I’m not put off in the appearance of the participants, but they need to field some people who can speak in joined up English/Polish/Lithuanian/Hindi or whatever. Everybody must have equal rights to speak, I agree, but surely there should be a requirement that the end result be coherent…

Of course Nick! My point is that meaningless BS is somehow more credible when it comes from the mouth of some well dressed overpaid moran.

“What is the point of saying we are protesting the fact that 1% of the world own 40% ‘in a global sense’? Honestly. Using that as an aim will alienate people from the movement because realistically, there’s nothing we can do about that.”

Why not? it’s unequal distribution of wealth that causes all the other problems – so unless you tackle that, and its causes, you’ll never achieve social justice. Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try! Though of course you need short and medium term goals that are more immediately achievable as well.

Allow me to explain, by people camping outside in protest, a message gets out, media take note, and slowly but surely people have an opinion on the situation and also people develop an opinion on how finance is managed in the western world. Basically for the first time, people begin to genuinely take note that there is shafting going on, and alot(not all) of financial investors are just lucky gamblers and not actually intelligent quick thinking entrepreneurs and that the tax payers pays the price for these gambles. Dont get me wrong I have my own issues with the protests, but I have the decency to at listen to a point the guy made there rather than just labelling them hippys.

Ok if you have time watch this documentary. It could explain the whole movement a little better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z9WVZddH9w

Simple fact is 1% of the world popluation owns 40% of the planets wealth

Surely the trouble, Adrian, is that by activities like Occupy Dame Street people have their “opinion on the situation and … develop an opinion on how finance is managed in the western world” that’s *negative* towards the position of the activists.

I think this documentary explains the whole movement better:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rgBufgoHiE

I didn label then hippys. Just saying that from the video the people they picked to talk will reinforce people’s perception.

Boo Hoo!

Hey, even the economists don’t seem to know what they’re talking about anymore..

Capitalism and socialism (communism too) have all failed and what we need is to either adopt what is useful from either and ditch the rest or – here’s a novel idea – find a new “ism”.

None of these systems allow for the fact that there are a large number of what the media terms “ordinary psychopaths” out there, they crave power and money (and aren’t necessarily murderers) – so where do you think they aspire to be? Heads of corporations, governments and organised religions or cults..

This is why socialism / capitalism and even communism failed. None of them took these people (who make up about 6% of the population) into account.. They ignored human greed and how it can be exploited by each of these systems.. They ignored just how compassionless these psychos can be when they get the power they seek.

Perhaps we need to let go of the old ways of doing things and try something new.. Something that is either less corruptible or accounts for the presence of psychopathy..

One way or another we all know that the isms have failed..

Not far off – from where I see it it knows very well what it’s not about, but is less sure what it actually is. This is a problem, imho. Very definitely.

“The barricades were up in Paris: everyone was talking about ‘instant revolution’: and when Cohn-Bendit held a question and answer session, I made myself immediately unpopular by asking: ‘What’s your strategy? What is the next step the students will take?’ Cohn-Bendit said impatiently ‘the whole point of our revolution is that we do not follow plans. It is a spontaneous permanent revolution. We improvise it. It is like jazz.’ Everyone applauded and reproved my carping.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/2011/10/dream_on.html

Still think it’s better than nothing, though, and has the potential to be something great.

Glad to see that unthinking fascism is still with us. I hope you will always be able to afford VHI and the Gym, Sinéad. Do you even know what these people in groups around the world are trying to say?

It looks like they don’t even know what they are saying, never mind us. A good bath is what they need

@Nick Caffrey I actually don’t have VHI or Gym membership – The medical card is a wonderful thing and I’d much rather spend the cost of a gym membership on something else.

I’m struggling to understand because like in this video above, ‘THEY’ don’t even know what they’re trying to say. It’s not the movement that annoys me, it’s the fact that they are on the streets and taking over public areas such as parks . If it was a halting site that was set up in Eyre Square for example, everyone would be all over it. These guys are just getting away with it.

That’s my clearly ‘uneducated’ opinion.

To be honest, any time someone secures their rhetorical position on the idea of a ‘silent majority’ that *really* agree with them, even if they *think* that they don’t , well that’s usually a sign the actual facts don’t bear up to scrutiny,

Good man Peter, nail on the head!

It’s hard not to focus on optics when the only two guys interviewed look like bloody hobbits. What do they want? They wants jobs and to be taken seriously? Scisors and a bath may yield some results here.

A “man has long hair” joke, what are you 12?

He could be in the Dail soon wearing a hemp suit!

Take a look at how our Senior Civil Servants that can’t count look dress and get back to me on that one.

Well said Simon. The new and unknown usually worries people . Remarks about long haired hippies are narrowminded too. We’ve been listening to people in suits with short hair for long enough and where has that got us ? Its what the Occupy movement is saying that is important. Power greed and corruption are causing the death of democracy.

yeaah, now that I’m one of the top 1%, I’m definitely against the crusty’s!

I think the 1% they mean to refer to is the dudes at the heads of multinational corporations who take home millions and due to tax loopholes give nothing back..

You can bet your ass if you are earning €38,000 a year, you are paying your tax and not getting half the allowances of someone who has far more spare cash than you..

I’m going with Bryan Butler’s definition of the top 1%. Crusties stay away from my 40% of the worlds wealth!

I understand what they mean and I kinda agree with the general concept. I think everyone does. Of course the world would be a better place if wealth was more evenly distributed. And it sucks the fat cats have the power to manipulate the world to suit their evil plans. But that’s as deep as the Occupy movement goes. It’s just fickle idealism. Get real. They should come up with some solid demands, not just depressing facts. As seen here, their main slogan is even ambiguous.

Entire nations have been founded on idealist notions :)
I take your point though, which was why I was saying above that all the “ism”s failures is their inability to be realistic..

Now that I think about it they got turfed out in the interests of capitalism and the despoliation of the architectural integrity of Stephen’s Green. Things don’t change much in the cut and trust of aggressive capitalism.

They’re not the whackos, Waffler.

Those who think everything’s ok, or that we can somehow “fix things” and make everything “like it was before” are the real crazies, if you ask me.

I actually think it’s more the case that the movement is hitting a moment of truth …. it can either mature and gain mass traction, or it will wither.

I know Willy, I’m sure he would. It’s a comment – which is why they placed the comment box here. The ‘camps’ are an absolute eyesore – on Dame Street, Eyre Square in Galway and even in Boston….. so once again – Bloody Hippies.

I think Oscar Wilde would have preferred the word Crusties. To be honest Oscar wasn’t short of a few bob himself…

Well…He ended up in the clanger didn’t he? For being true to his cause as I understand!

langer in the clanger..love it

Have you seen this, John. Prescient, definitely:

http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/all-watched-over-by-machines-of-loving-grace/

Coincidentally Niall Journal.ie had a video up yesterday about ‘murmuration’ an almost perfect example of a leaderless system. Look it up if you have not already done so. The human anthropological significance of these systems have long been abandoned by a ‘glitch’ in our evolutionary ‘development’. Until now!

clued in? have you listened to any of them?

Not as fantastic as you I’m sure!