With this occupy movement going on, you hear people talking about the 1% VS. the 99%. What really is the 1% or 99% anyway ? So many people relate these terms just to money wealth alone. I would add another angle to the terms. To me the term 1% has at least two elements involved, money and the right connections.
If you have X amount of money and can influence a government (local or federal) to pass any kind of law to fit your needs or your companies needs, then you’re in the 1%. If you have X amount of money yet you do not have any connections to have laws passed, then you are not in the 1%. Look at the entertainment and athletic industries for instance. You take the actors/actresses and musicians and athletes. Do they make a good amount of money ? Yes they do. Can they have laws passed to help their own gains ? I think not.
Now let’s take the movie executives and the owners of sports teams. They have great wealth and have connections to have laws passed to help their own gain. They have local governments give them tax breaks to build new facilities when they can pay for it themselves. They have all kinds of tax exempt laws in their favor, or they also get revenue sharing and so on. This also goes for big corporations. They get tax breaks to build in towns or cities, yet they make enough money to pay for it themselves.
Do you get tax breaks to build your home in cities ? No you end up paying more or covering their (1%) tax cuts. Personal wealth does not alone make you the 1%. It’s almost like the ones who do fall into the 1% act like the mafia. They are little chickens who have others do their dirty work. The 1% hitmen are the government officials who pass laws to help them out.
When someone who is in the 1% says , ” don’t blame wall street , blame Washington”. They are right to say that to a point. It was Wall street who puts the pressure on their buddies to pass the laws. It is the spineless people in Washington who cave and have the laws passed. These laws only help Wall street, that is why we are ion the mess we are in. The laws are to discourage competition , because the top brass are punks and are afraid of the mom and pop stores.
All of this in this blog post is my opinion, these are not facts. I promote personal wealth, we all need to live and have chances . The 1% have made both almost impossible any more with the laws .
QUOTE OF THE DAY ; Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action. ( Benjamin Disraeli ).
