On Real Time host Bill Maher accused the right of living in the past when it comes to Occupy Wall Street, but most importantly, he explained to them why Occupy Wall Street is going to win.
Here is the video:
After debunking the right’s hippie characterization of Occupy Wall Street, Maher said, “There’s not going to be a repeat of what happened last time the hippies were in the streets. Those hardhats that you’re depending on to turn against the lousy hippies, here’s what they’re doing now. They’re cheering them on, because now the hardhats are just as broke as everybody else. These people down there, they’re not the counterculture. They’re the culture. They don’t want free love. They want paid employment. They don’t hate capitalism. They hate what’s been done to it, and they resent the Republican mantra that the market perfectly rewards the hard working and punishes the lazy, and the poor are just jealous mooches who want a handout. Yeah, because if there is one group of people who hate handouts, it’s Wall Street.”
The right has tried everything to turn the tide of public opinion against Occupy Wall Street. They have claimed that the protests are filled with crime and drugs. They have labeled the movement anti-Semitic, and the people involved in it lazy, dirty, hippies. Despite their daily attacks this movement has continued to grow, and Bill Maher put his finger on exactly why.
Occupy Wall Street continues to be successful because it isn’t a movement of people, it is the people. The right does think that this is the 1960s all over again, and they can get those middle aged white suburban Americans to rally against the youth, but the Occupy Wall Street movement isn’t divided by age. This isn’t old versus young, or white versus black. The Occupy movement is something different.
The economic devastation caused by the corrupt behavior of Wall Street impacted Americans across age, race, and geographic lines. The only people who profited from the great economic collapse of 2008 are those who caused it. The rich have gotten richer, and they have seized control of our political system in order to not only maintain their status, but also to take away resources from those beneath them.
What really pushed the 99% over the edge wasn’t that rich have gotten richer, but that the one percent has turned capitalism into a weapon to be used against everyone beneath them.
The right keeps assuming that there is some sort of large natural constituency out there waiting to be mobilized against these protests. They dream of finding the magic words that will stop the protesters and protect their beloved one percent, but there aren’t any magic words. There isn’t a talking point out there that can derail Occupy Wall Street.
The exploited class is rising up to seek justice, and whether Bill Maher realizes it or not, he perfectly explained why Occupy Wall Street is going to win.
Related posts:
- In Less than a Minute Alan Grayson Explains Occupy Wall Street to the 1%
- Paul Krugman Explains How Occupy Wall Street Is Refocusing America
- Russ Feingold Explains Why Govt, Media, and Banksters Fear Occupy Wall Street
- Van Jones Praises Occupy Wall Street As The Onset Of An American Autumn
- 15,000-50,000 Occupy Wall Street Protesters Have Flooded Times Square
Damn straight! The right, who had a tiny little movement that they co-opted with Koch talking points and Koch dollars, is terrified that real Americans, real, patriotic, hard-working Americans, are finally speaking out, and loudly. These people are not only mad, but they are mad enough to vote out every stinking Republican they can. And we are with them! Out with the GOP, and in with caring for our fellow Americans, taking care of the poor, making sure we are all healthy and educated. THAT is the American way,
AMEN, Sista!
AMEN AMEN!
Power to the people. And amen, amen. After 30 in the USA, it’s sad but it’s happening!!!
One thing they can’t get their heads around OWS for is that to them the optics are so totally different — they don’t see the buses, financed by Koch Bros and Dick Armey, rolling up at 2pm with the people carrying the misspelled signs for a 2 hour event. At 4pm the financed buses then roll out, returning the ‘don’t step on my social security’ Amuricens home in time for the ‘early bird dinner specials’ and bedtime at 9 pm.
Enough is enough already. They(the powers that be) have deliberately attacked the working class, overtaxed and underpaid us. When more people who thought their jobs, benefits were secure then you will see change. But too many still “got theirs”! Until then we can only educate them on the facts not the fiction they call news. A revolution like in Egypt, Greece etc.. is going to be the only way. Down with the stauts quo!!
The American way is to educate ourselves on facts and issues,taking all sides into consideration and not simply alloying emotion and others to dictate the political choices we make…THEN GO VOTE!!!
The “two party” system of democracy is supreme at absorbing the revolutionary energy of the dis-enfranchised without affecting the status quo. Voting for the candidate who is “not republican” does nothing. Look at your current president, who is making Bush look like a boy scout. In the current state of affairs, voting is next to meaningless. Systemic change is needed. Will the powers that be allow it to happen peacefully? That’s the trillion dollar question.
And we do not need a Sarah Palin or a fake Bachmann caucus to tell us what we believe.
Right on!! Power to the People, enough of the right wing Pigs!
I don’t usually watch videos, but that was GREAT!
TeaBaggers could not say or do anything unless they received their daily Rethug/Koch talking points and marching orders. Even then, they looked and sounded like walking/talking zombies.
The right is having total fits. They don’t know what to do anymore to discredit OWS. O’Reilly who calls himself reasonable (he is anything but) keeps dragging Glenn Beck into the conversation about OWS.
If Fox would really believe that OWS does not amount to much more than a bunch of hippies, they would not run down there daily trying to find the most crazy looking guy or girl and then making fun of the whole movement.
Credibility is strengthened by correct grammar and spelling.
no: STOP CORPORATE INTERFERENCE OF THE SUPER COMITTEE
yes: STOP CORPORATE INTERFERENCE IN THE SUPER COMMITTEE
Credibility is lost by being a spelling /grammar cop.
Shiva, I respectfully disagree. The first time I saw that misspelled message I wondered how many right-leaning readers pointed to it as typical of those careless and ignorant people on the left.
Every time I see poor grammar, I see the failure of our education system and a perfect example of how Wall Street has corrupted our primary institutions.
We are all different. Being a spelling / grammar cop will not get you any gold stars for your forehead
You have a great point. Gold stars are not necessary, the educated of each country are noted by their proper speaking of their own language. This includes being ale to use all verb forms and having a vocabulary above popular street expression. Our education system is a sad indicator of our decline as a nation.
My point to the frail of mind is, if you have nothing to say that pertains to the issues at hand, then please refrain from making a fool of yourself over grammar. There are forums where one can go to practice being a spelling cop
Encouraging people to proofread carefully before displaying their work in public is not “making a fool of oneself over grammar” or being a “spelling cop.” It’s common sense.
As a high school English teacher (yes, one of those to blame for the failure of the education system) I tell my students that, like it or not, at some point in their lives they will be judged by their ability to speak and write standard English.
For example, I myself have been guilty of making judgments about the intelligence of Tea Partiers holding signs with poor spelling and grammar.
Encouraging people to proofread carefully before displaying their work in public is not “making a fool of oneself over grammar” or being a “spelling cop.” It’s common sense.
As a high school English teacher (yes, one of those to blame for the failure of the education system) I tell my students that, like it or not, at some point in their lives they will be judged by their ability to speak and write standard English.
I myself have been guilty of passing judgment on protesters holding signs displaying errors in spelling and grammar. The popularity of FailBlog would seem to indicate that I am not alone.
Please explain to me how Wall Street has corrupted our primary institutions and why this is related to poor spelling and grammar. People use the word ‘like’ incorrectly or spell “your/you’re” as “ur” because they are lazy, not because of financial institutions.
actually ur is totally acceptable today. Although I dont much approve of it unless I am on twitter
Right on!! W/o good teachers, we’re totally lost!!
And without parents who take part we are lost. They are a far larger number than the # of bad teachers
I hate grammar Nazis. I see mistakes like this on the New York Times for god’s sake. Get a grip.
This is a line that should become a meme:
“The only people who profited from the great economic collapse of 2008 are those who caused it.”
Amen
We profited from 2008 because we did not panic and pull our money out of the market. In 2006 we bought a new house and put down the largest down payment we could afford, despite the fact our mortgage broker ADVISED AGAINST this.
The average investor who profited from stock market roller coaster of 2008 and 2009 in no way caused it – we’re investors, we have 401ks, we have diversified portfolios. We were doing the things every rational investment advisor had been telling small investors to do for years.
And many of us who invest reasonably in the stock market do believe we should be taxed more, even though we aren’t millionaires. Most investors hate the way America is becoming a third world country, and understand the only way to fix that now is to increase taxation for people making above, say $100,000. We want a stable, educated America. So many millions of investors agree with most of the the Occupy Wall Streeters. The time is to take the power from financial companies. If you hold stock in BankAmerica, Citi, etc., dump the stock. Invest in small companies rather than in banks.
I too am an investor,butI also understand a little of investing finance.The c e o’s and their board yes men appear to be saving the bottom line by paying themselves merely high wages instead of their obscene ones,but their options and shares are taking profits from the ordinary investors. They receive thousands of shares and as it is not one person one vote,but the investor with the most shares has the most votes, and when they that company, volentary or involentary they can sell the shares giving themselves huge bonuses, diserved or not.
But, can anyone explain what “winning” would mean without using non-specific terms?
Winning is getting the last bit of cornflakes while the rest of the family is still sleeping
If you have to ask that question, you wont understand the answer
Really, you’ve proved my point: you don’t know what “winning” would mean. You just have vague ideas of “fairness”, “justice”, “coolness”, etc.
I mean, what do you specifically demand as legislation? People can’t give into demands unless they are stated.
Unless Occupy Wall Street gets coherent it’s just going to be regarded as a mob and not a political force.
Oh please, stop making me yawn.
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-wall-street-protesters-are-so-angry-about-2011-10#so-did-the-banks-keep-lending-um-no-bank-lending-dropped-sharply-and-it-has-yet-to-recover-29
You are just carrying on like trash because you think you are expected to. You have done no research at all and come here expecting someone to hold your hand.
Furthermore it’s pretty obvious that you approve of corruption, you enjoy paying higher prices because of corruption in the speculative arenas and you love how the banks treat you. You want to pretend that you’re a free capitalist free-market person but you have no clue what it is. If this is all you have then please find the Walt Disney forums where you will no doubt be welcomed
You assume I’m a Pro-Wall Street person; wrong again! I’m anti-mob. Don’t take it personally. What I’m saying is that the Occupy Wall Street campers are diffusing the message by not giving a coherent message.
(And I will not stop making you yawn until you do the right thing!)
Ive done the right thing, gave you a link to occupy your mind with
Let me help you. What you mean to say is that you hope it will be perceived this way. You are probably also thinking that they are a “mob” which is sort of today’s version of “hippie.”
If you don’t know what justice means, then you have serious problems. Where did you go to school? You never read about the civil rights movement, the french revolution, the american revolution? You really don’t know what the PEOPLE mean when they talk about justice?
One link won’t help you.
Let me explain. A mob has no coherent message.
And you still can’t define what “winning” would mean. (Everyone has a house with a white picket fence? Everyone has a job they like at the same pay as everyone else?) You keep thinking just because I question the efficacy of the OWS campers that I’m against reform of the financial sector. If you can’t answer the question, that’s fine, but don’t keep railing against an assumption.
Pea, you got one more chance to do some research instead of coming here and asking what the message is. obviously the link I gave you made no mark on you, possibly it was over your head. Your next post better have some content or Im sending you to c4pea
Here is a better link http://www.businessinsider.com/what-wall-street-protesters-are-so-angry-about-2011-10#lets-start-with-the-obvious-unemployment-three-years-after-the-financial-crisis-the-unemployment-rate-is-still-at-the-highest-level-since-the-great-depression-except-for-a-brief-blip-in-the-early-1980s-1
There are 41 charts and reasons for the movement
Shiva,I GET the grievances,the reasons,but what is the desired end? The government cannot legislate the IDEA of “justice”,only specific laws. What are the laws the OWS wants? You keep pointing out the situation but not any solution the OWS proposes. Once more(and only once more, I promise!) I ask what are the specific demands of the OWS?? Not WHY they’re camping, but what will END it to their satisfaction?
good heavens pea, its the fairness in the financial estates that control our lives. And no, this will not achieve the end, but it may put it on track. The middle class is waking up and it has the purchasing power.
Does it matter what their specific demands are? Do you see where they protest? Are you getting the drift? There will be no negotiations with the group, but the politicos that matter better wake up and take notice that the financial areas need deep regulation or we lose everything. They are trying to get people to take notice. Its about citizens united and all the rest of the political garbage
Yes. It matters very much. Because without specifics demands, all we sympathizers can do is go, “Yeah, I’m also filled with self-righteous indignation! Go OWS!” And put a lame bumper sticker on our Camrys.
Reinstate Glass-Steagall, both parts.
Reverse Citizens United
Replace the now defunct fairness act with something like Canada’s you can’t lie and call it news law
Corporations pay taxes like everyone else
tax rates for the top 1 percent should not end up lower than what ordinary americans pay (after write-offs etc)
Do you have a clear explanation about *your* specific demands on how to improve the situation? Or, are you only concerned with the actions of the occupiers>
I HAVE specific demands. If they’d “improve the situation”,I don’t know.But I wouldn’t gather supporters to block traffic and camp out unless they all knew the goals. (I suggest the official slogan of OWS should be “Justice- Duh!”)
I DO agree with Sarah Jones on re-instating Glass-Steagal; repealing THAT was a big mistake. I would go for tiered income-tax rates, with a top rate of 24% with no deductions. Deductions is where the revenue is lost, not the cuts.
Agree with you re tax deductions and loopholes – that ‘s where most of the money is lost.
This…brought butterflies to the stomach, a tear to my eye, goosebumps to my skin. “Occupy Wall Street continues to be successful because it isn’t a movement of people, it is the people.” THIS is why I am proud to be an AMERICAN!
There was another article which referred to Marines joining the movement. It is a source of inspiration and hope that this movement continues to grow in spite of all the right’s worst efforts. The increasing ugliness of their attacks are in direct relation to their growing fear that the movement will go a long way toward undermining their ability to pull the wool over the eyes of Americans. This in turn will weaken their ability to get people to vote against their own best interests.
Consist and to the point Bill, well done.
Maher is a great comedian, but it doesn’t take a comedian to make fun of right,
I have to say it’s heartening to see Americans finally beginning to realize what a mess they’ve allowed to fester in their midst. Granted, other nations aren’t all that much better off but the worst of the rot definitely seems to flow from the US banks and the total Plutocracy approach that has been adopted, with near-zero regulation to temper the banks.
Now if Americans could just keep going along this train of thought and realize that it’s not going to be enough to reenact Glass-Steagall or putting some other regulation in place, not if we want to save the world. And yes, I mean literally – because of the profit motive and the warping effect of a money-based society, we’re destroying the world with pollution and rampant consumerism. And there’s no need for that anymore, not with the advanced technology we have at our disposal. Every human could live well if we just ditched the notion of “earning” the right to survive.
The movement will fail because there really is no cause. Even the protesters don’t know what they want. They just want to protest.
I finally saw a specific list of actions that they want.
They want Socialism.
They BETTER fail. Without exception, Socialism is failure. It does not redistribute wealth, it simply destroys wealth.
The protesters are a whiny bunch of losers that want the money of the people that earned it.
Of course, capitalism means that politicians should sell themselves to the highest bidder. Anything else (like democracy) must be SOCIALISM [dramatic music, everyone gasp and cringe together].
No matter what or who gets elected: NOTHING! I Repeat NOTHING WILL EVER CHANGE when it comes to Americans being replaced with cheap cheap H-1B/L1 scabs. Jobs are not just going overseas, they are going to H-1B/L1 Scabs who are from overseas.
It’s not “We the People”, It’s the Business who runs this country now, and when it comes to getting cheap cheap labor, the business and all the rich are addicted to slave labor. They can’t have enough.
Weather its the ReThugolCons or the DumORats, its all about flooding the US with the dirt poor from all over the world for cheap cheap slave labor.
Americans are being replaced with scabs from all over the world in every state and industry. The British Parasites (BP) scabs are getting all the media, movie, TV Ads and TV slots.
The Philippines are getting all the nursing jobs while all the American nurses are being laid-off and replaced. The Indians are the largest influx; they are bent on total takeover by any means including any and all kinds of Fraud. The Indian have been used to replace more American in every industry then all the other countries combined with H-1B/L1 visas. The Indians also have the largest influx with Visa over-stayers and Anchor Babies. Just between 2003 to 2008 over 75 million Indian entered the US and never left.
The Irish also have a very large influx of Visa over-stayers and illegals mostly in the north-east. And yes we all know about the millions of illegals the from south and north of our borders.
With over 30 years of open border and free pass to all business to do whatever they want, we are in the midst of becoming a third world just like all the cheap cheap labor we have allowed in.
thank you Bill
What I can’t help but call your attention to is that I see hardly any morbidly obese asthmatic congestive heart failure patients there. Who’s lazy? Not OWS!
“There’s class warfare, all right, Mr. (Warren) Buffett said, but it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making war, and we’re winning.”
“There has been class warfare going on,” Buffett, 81, said in a Sept. 30 interview with Charlie Rose on PBS. “It’s just that my class is winning. And my class isn’t just winning, I mean we’re killing them.”
Now, now, now that’s not nice about Wavy…he’s a businesssman and has been for many years, running a family camp in Sonoma County, CA that has wide appeal and getrs rave reviews from attendees of all ages.
I like him, think he’s funny, and he has dead on talking points.. But he’s a bit old to be talking about grandpas and old people.
[...] Read More [...]