Mr. Reynolds can watch all or any news media he wants. My point is that he only takes away what he agrees with. He is an example of the “My mind is made up, don’t confuse me with facts” syndrome.
In order to be an effective person in this society you have to look at other people’s views and choose what part of them are more workable than the ones you presently hold. Some people constantly tote the Republican Party line and their talking points.
There was a time when Republicans were less influenced by the money of lobbyists, their corporate patron and the gospel of greed of the religious right. The Tea Party, which started out with some good ideas, was bought out by the Koch brothers and co-opted by the Republican Party.
Occupy is a movement whose time has come. It is like nothing we have seen since the civil rights movement. It comes from the frustration of the 99 percent of Americans who feel they have or are losing control over their lives.
The occupiers are remarkable in that they have managed to keep the whole movement non-violent on their part. They have been peppered-sprayed, pushed, shoved, arrested, beaten with batons, shot with rubber bullets, teargassed and had flash bangs thrown in their midsts. Yet they come back for more because they know they are right. Much like our ancestors did against the British.
And like our ancestors, the occupiers will prevail because they have a just cause. It might take awhile for more people to get involved and start ousting politicians who are selling us out, but it will happen.
My British ancestors first came here in 1620, my Irish ancestors came here in the 1800s, and my father came in 1922 from Germany. They all had a vision and a hope. The first ones were running away from persucution from the Church of England. The next group fled from famine and economic oppression. And my father came to America looking for a better way of life for his family.
From its very beginning, America has been a grand experiment in creating a better life for all who live between our shores. If we do not work together for a solution to our current economic malaise, created in large part by the growing disparity between idle rich and working poor, we as a nation will fail in realizing the vision we were founded upon.