Thursday, October 13, 2011

Being the People We Have Been Waiting For

While we need to draw attention to legislation that have made investment banks and corporations such as GE and AIG like commercial banks with depositors with the protection of the government that are themselves now too big to fail, why don’t communities do something about this? Commercial banks couldn’t survive without our deposits and investment banks couldn’t subsist without our investment. Goldman Sachs, for example, is heavily invested in cities throughout the country and many throughout the globe. We have to get creative and rebuild smaller thriving communities and essentially create the likes of Black Wall Street. But this time the segregation will be by choice. (Desegregation, by the way, helped to destroy the concentrated wealth of Black Wall Street.) We need to collectively segregate our capital and pool it in ways that will directly benefit the communities where we live. We are indeed the people we have been waiting for and in this regard it has nothing or little to do with elected officials and chief executive officers.

3 comments:

Big Mark 243 said...

Judy, Judy, Judy! How are you? I wish that I could have met you before I left the Metro... c'est la vie!

I agree with you 100%. But given how manipulative the 'other 1%' is, I don't think that all the elements that make up the remaining 99% can get together long enough to take positive measures to begin any kind of unified action...

chesapeake said...

Judith! I love this post.

I completely, 100% agree with you. It's this kind of non-victim, proactive thinking and ACTING that gives me hope. I'm a big believe in voting with your wallet. So many people think that can't possibly be the answer, but what other choice is there? Apathy?

Was just reading some news editorials and thought of you. Thought I'd check in...hope all is well.

-Jessica

Pamela Cone said...

I see Big Mark's point about the 99% not coming together to move in a positive direction needed to make a significant change.

I do see a rise in small like minded establishments coming together to re-establish their companies and for economic growth. They find they are better when they join together. The key is still trust. It takes time to build a network of like minded independent business owners who can and will support one another and they both grow from the association.

On the larger scale, my husband believes foreign banks will take advantage of the opportunity the American banks are leaving on the table by not lending because of the low rates. We will have to wait and see if his perdiction comes to pass. Interesting!

I believe an economic break is soon to come. The 99% will force the hand of the 1%. We saw this recently with the attempt to charge to use your own debit card. The banks soon retracted. We have the power--we are the consumer! If we do localize ourselves and not look to them the powere they posses will diminish.