Editorial:

The Occupy Wall Street movement has spread across the nation and around the world. Those involved with the movement are scared, they are frustrated, and they feel angry about the economic malaise. They are acting out in the only way they know how to draw attention to their concerns: they have taken to the streets.

   Part of their frustration lies in the fact that they have no control over the circumstances that are affecting their lives and they want empowerment, they want to have a say in the direction their lives are going.

   This, in a sense, is what fueled the Chicano movement of the ‘60s and ‘70s, the necessity to march, to protest, to raise awareness of the issues affecting them. The streets were the only avenue to bring forth these issues. All other avenues were either blocked or did not exist. We also saw this frustration and action demonstrated during the Vietnam War, when the only way for opponents to the war could be heard was when they took to the streets.

   A silent majority is on the streets once again on Wall Street and now around the world.

   The question is, is anybody listening?

   The protestors have made a significant showing of their discontent, but their message is unfocused. We know they want change, accountability, and the rich/corporations to pay their fair share in taxes, but is Wall Street going to react to the protesters?

   Where are the politicians? If there is going to be a change it has to begin at the political level. It is the politicians who create the tax laws and provide the loop holes for the rich to slip through. Yet the politicians are doing a pretty good job of ignoring and avoiding the thousands of people who have come out to voice their concerns. If anything the only time we hear from a politician is when they are directing the police to shut down the protest and move them off public property.

   But the politicians should be listening. These protestors are not a bunch of left wingers out there raising their voices. They are middle America, the voters who put these politicians into office, and they are pissed off. They want change and if change doesn’t come from Wall Street then change will happen on Election Day. In San Diego there may be only a few hundred actually camping out, but each one represents a few thousand who feel the same exact way.

   This is what is so frustrating, politicians are beholden to the corporations and the rich but are elected to represent the silent majority. President Obama at his $5000 a person fundraiser doesn’t address the issues raised by the protestors. All that the Republicans do is put down and try to embarrass the efforts of these hard working people who are practicing their constitutional right. And locally you don’t see any politicians stepping out to address these protestors or talk with them about their concerns. At best the protestors are ignored as the politicians wait for the day they just go home.

   As Thomas Jefferson wrote of the colonists’ right to rebel, all men are created equal and have the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These are rights that today’s politicians need to reflect upon before they have another revolt on their hands!