Political Mommywriter, that's who. (I started this post ages ago, but never fully completed/posted it.)
I've been working up to a post about Occupy Wall Street for ages, but it's been difficult for me to articulate my thoughts on the matter. I'm going to try.
As any reader of this blog knows, my views tend toward the left on social issues and more centrist to rightist on fiscal issues. Having worked for a commercial and investment bank for 10 years, I'm here to tell you that the vast majority of people in the industry are neither evil nor wealthy. However. Even the ones who ARE wealthy are largely not malicious or without moral compasses. They do, however, drive our economy as a whole. And if some not very well informed college kids want to vilify them for that, well, it's a free country. But since it's a free country and since this is my blog, I am free to respond.
My main thoughts on Occupy stem from the fact that two of my three brothers work on Wall Street. One of them is firmly in the 1%. And you know what? He's worked his ASS off to get into that 1% and he fully deserves everything he has. He worked his way through two degrees. He worked his way up the ladder at the grandest of Wall Street firms and then began his own venture. He is one of the smartest, hardest working people I have ever known or will ever know. He is honest and lives his life with an enormous amount of integrity. Additionally, he is absurdly generous, to both those of us he loves and to people in need. Each year when you all see the March for Babies banners on this blog? He is, every time, the single biggest donor to my fundraising effort. And that's just ONE of the charities he gives to. There are many.
My youngest brother, who is obviously a more junior type on the Street, has blossomed and matured in his time working there. His work ethic has developed, as has his attention to detail. His already strong sense of integrity has been cemented.
The company I worked for was full of decent, hardworking people who did the right thing every day. The first several positions I held gave me an unusual amount of access to senior executives at the company and what I learned was that, for the most part, they were honest, forthright people doing their best for a company they believed in. Sure, there were exceptions...and several of them got the boot for it.
Lastly, I would like to point out that I worked my way through college. My husband paid for his education himself. Neither of us had it easy at the time, but we both gained a healthy respect for money and the importance of being responsible with it, and I like to think our family benefits from that.
So, with these not insignificant frames of reference, you can see why I think the Occupy Movement is largely utter nonsense. Just because my brother has worked really, really hard to make a lot of money doesn't mean he OWES some slacker college kid a damn thing. If said college kid wants to be in the 1%, all it requires is a brain and a work ethic. This I know beyond doubt.
8 comments:
"Just because my brother has worked really, really hard to make a lot of money doesn't mean he OWES some slacker college kid a damn thing. If said college kid wants to be in the 1%, all it requires is a brain and a work ethic. This I know beyond doubt."
Are you trying to suggest that the people at the top 1% are the only ones who work "really really hard"? Lots of people work really really hard and have a brain and an incredible work ethic and are making $30,000 per year.
No one is asking for handouts here, people are looking for change. Go over the facts.
Three years since the financial crisis the unemployment rate is still at the highest level since the Great Depression.
CEO pay is now 350X the average workers, up from 50x at 1985.
CEO pay has skyrocketed 300% since 1990. Corporate profits have doubled. Average "production worker" pay has increased 4%. The minimum wage has dropped.
The top 0.1% in America are doing way better than the top 0.1% in other first-world countries. In fact, income inequality has gotten so extreme here that the US now ranks 93rd in the world in "income equality." China's ahead of us. So is India. So is Iran.
So what does all this mean in terms of net worth? Well, for starters, it means that the top 1% of Americans own 42% of the financial wealth in this country. The top 5%, meanwhile, own nearly 70%.
Remember the REASON we were told we had to bail out the banks? We had to bail out the banks, we were told, so that the banks could keep lending to American businesses. Without that lending, we were told, society would collapse...Bank lending dropped sharply, and it has yet to recover.
So, what have banks been doing since 2007 if not lending money to American companies? Lending money to America's government! By buying risk-free Treasury bonds and other government-guaranteed securities.
And, remarkably, they've also been collecting interest on money they are NOT lending—the "excess reserves" they have at the Fed. Back in the financial crisis, the Fed decided to help bail out the banks by paying them interest on this money that they're not lending. And they're happily still collecting it.
Meanwhile, of course, the banks are able to borrow money FOR FREE. Because the Fed has slashed rates to basically zero. And the banks have slashed the rates they pay on deposits to basically zero.
I can go on and on but just wanted to point out some of the basic facts of why the occupy is going on. This is a much larger problem then what you think (college kids looking for handouts).
Wow, great reply! I mean, except for the complete inaccuracy of most of your "facts", you make some great points. Let's start with those facts. First, the unemployment rate was higher in the early 80s and mid 70s. On your CEO to average worker pay ratio, you use the (clearly unbiased) statistic from the AFLCIO. There is no question this ratio has risen, but the number referenced has much more to do with how the CEO "pay" is tabulated. To quote a favorite movie character, "yah suspect". Regardless, what should matter are policies that promote wage growth for all (which has happened). Additionally, why decry success? Do you care if your neighbor makes more money than you do or do you care how your efforts translate into your own success? The average corporate CEO works 80-100 hours/week and lives a life wholly unrecognizable to the average "worker". But, let's spend out time suggesting there's something wrong with them rather than the decline of the American worker. Wages are set on a global scale. If our "workers" want to make more money, they need to be competitive with those in other countries. It's that simple. Your comparison of wealth equality in the US to China and Iran is laughable. I'm sure either country would be happy to have you emigrate if you believe their systems to be superior. Let's move on to your comments about banks. Banks were lent money by the US government during and after the financial crisis because interbank lending (and lending generally) froze. The US government (and therefore, the taxpayer) made BILLIONS on those loans. It cost us (the taxpayer) nothing. We benefited. Period. What has the government done since? Publicly state that they want banks to lend and then turn around and force them to reduce their balance sheets. Both noble requests. Unfortunately, they are completely incongruous. You can't lend more and reduce your balance sheet. Of course, the Feds are willing to let the banks buy more of their securities (so they can keep on spending our money - admittedly I'm presuming you are one of the 50% of wage earners in this country who pay taxes, which may be a mighty big assumption based on your post). Banks are borrowing at lower rates as a result of the Feds actions - and so are all of us. Every consumer lending rate measurable has fallen to all time lows. It may be harder to get a mortgage (as lending standards have moved back up to something resembling normalcy), but it's also a lot cheaper. As for those lending standards...you know what HAS cost the US taxpayer billions upon billions? Loans to the auto manufacturers (which will never, ever turn a profit) that bailed out union workers. You know what that cost us? About $150k/job. What did the taxpayer get in return? I don't know. Oh, and how about Fanny and Freddie? We've lent them hundreds of billions to bail out mortgage borrowers who in some cases ran into back luck, but in most cases borrowed more than they could afford. So, who got that bailout again? Joe Average did and it's costing us billions. I'm glad my taxes are going to skyrocket because some "average worker" decided that he/she "deserved" a 5,000 square foot NOW rather than save for 10 years and enter into a transaction that they could afford through good times and bad. In all my dealings with hundreds of companies over the years, I've come to two conclusions. One, most senior executives have EARNED their spot at the top. They've made enormous sacrifices in their lives to put work first. And I don't think I've ever seen someone work as hard as a CEO and NOT achieve tremendous success. Stop bitching and get to work.
I think the response above makes a lot of the points I would make, but just to be clear, let me answer the question about whether or not I'm suggesting that people in the 1% are the only ones who work hard. Of course I'm not suggesting that. Where in my post did I even imply that? I am not in the 1% myself, yet I definitely have a very strong work ethic, as does my husband (as outlined by the fact that we both worked our way through school). If you were a reader of this blog, you would know that before working for a banking institution, I was a teacher. My mother is a retired teacher as well. I'm more than aware that there are tons of hard working people in this country who are not making big bucks. However, two points - 1) I have seen the kids camped out in the Financial District in downtown Boston over the past several months and they are not working hard. And 2) My point was that if people WANT that kind of success, it's complete nonsense to say it's not possible for them. I am fully aware that I generalized a group of people - my intent was to show how absurd it is to generalize. I'm exhausted by people insinuating that people like my brother either lucked or cheated their way into their fortunes. It's untrue and insulting.
Just a quick second note - as far as "no one is asking for handouts" goes...every, single video I have seen includes at least one person asking for, for example, tuition money. How, exactly, is it not a handout to ask for tuition money? Could you clarify for me? Because that confuses me.
Great job! Well Said!
"And I don't think I've ever seen someone work as hard as a CEO and NOT achieve tremendous success. Stop bitching and get to work."
This comment is wildly offensive. I work with men and women who work 2, 3, 4 jobs and cannot heat their homes or feed their children. Just because someone is busting themselves cleaning your toilet and cooking your food doesn't mean that they don't work hard.
As for your "get to work and stop bitching" comment, perhaps you can tell this to the 20+ men I see standing in the freezing cold at 6:30 am every single day. They will do ANY work, but the jobs aren't there.
It is an injustice for any American to suffer in this way. However, this type of judgment and "blaming" is truly shameful.
MB, as always, I very much appreciate your comment and your viewpoint.
For one thing, I think we need to broaden our definition of success. Yes, CEO's work hard and achieve monetary success. But aren't there other metrics, as well? Even within the business world, there are different kinds of success, aren't there? Take my dad - he has worked SO, SO hard for his 25+ years at his company. And, it being a small company, he hasn't made a large salary (comparatively). But he HAS done a lot to keep the company alive and has made an enormous difference TO the company. And I think that's success, too.
I agree with you that judgment and blaming is out of place. That was a big part of the point I wanted to make, and I hope that came across. There are SO MANY places to point fingers where the hardships Americans are having are concerned. None of them is solely responsible. And there are people like my brothers and my former coworkers trying their very hardest to improve America's economic situation. And it saddens me to see them vilified.
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