Here’s the problem I see with this:
She talks about following her passion, and doing what she wants to do. Good on her for that. The second half of what’s written here is a well-formed statement, and I agree with it. She asks not for sympathy because of moving into that field, which is fair enough. Thing is, she hasn’t even gone to college yet. She has not experienced (at least, judging by this post) trying to get a job, or applying for health insurance, or anything else that determines whether or not she’s part of the 99% or 1%. Showing your support is great, but isn’t it a little ignorant to call yourself the 99% when you aren’t technically anything at this stage? Even writers can be a part of corporations. She also mentioned “being smart enough… too bad” which connotes to me that she chose to be the 99%. Here’s the other problem here: Human agency. A lot of us can do better, but sometimes, we do not try. Emotions sometimes get in the way of rationalization. For every person who genuinely has something to protest, there are ten others who are more often than not, jumping on the bandwagon.
I’ll clear things up: I’m in college, I have no health insurance, I’ve been unemployed since March and I’m living only by the grace of my mother, who is supporting me. Also what I meant by the “I chose to be in the 99%” is that I chose not to be a greedy manipulative asshole, though I’m sure somewhere inside me that person exists (I think that person exists inside some of us).
Your last statement is just rude. I’m in the 99%, I’m pissed about distribution of wealth and the income gap and corruption and Wall Street types doing illegal things and getting away with it for no reason, and the lack of taxes on the top 1% and corporatocracy. I’m tired of struggling and having no money, I think it’s unfair that my family has had to struggle and it breaks my heart to watch the middle class (and below) live the way they do when there’s a better way of life out there that could be financed by some financial assistance on the part of the mega-rich.
How could you have gotten all of that from one photo and one paragraph? I suppose you could not have, but you certainly also could not have arrived at all of your conclusions without having ascribed them to me to convey some larger anger at a faceless idea. I don’t think there’s anyone in the 99% who doesn’t have one reason to be angry at the 1%. You don’t need to have six cancers and $1,000,000,000 in medical bills and four kids who you’re trying to put through Harvard in order to be a part of this movement, you just need to be in the 99%. And judging people for being otherwise, even if your judgement turns out justified, is not only a show of utmost douchebaggery, but it’s against the very ideals of the movement: we stand together, no matter what. Everyone’s voice is welcome here. We are the 99%. Et cetera.
Reblogged from wearethe99percent October 16th, 2011 25 notes #>:( #ows #submission
