Occupy Wall Street draft manifesto released

[Thunder]

Occupy Wall Street: The draft manifesto - Yahoo! News

It includes:

• Halt foreclosures for the unemployed, sick and elderly
• Increase funding to public services by taxing the richest 1 percent
• Forgive all student loan debt
• Reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act in order to control speculation
• Work with the other G20 nations to implement a 1% “Robin Hood” tax on all financial transactions and
currency trades.
• Ban high-frequency ‘flash’ trading and bring sanity to the markets
• Break up the “too big to fail” banks that threaten our future
• Arrest the financial fraudsters responsible for the 2008 meltdown and bring them to justice
• Ordain a Presidential Commission tasked with ending the influence corporate money has on our elected representatives in Washington

Its great that they are coming together with some tangible goals & an agenda. Though some of these things will have to be amended or scraped, as they will not be very popular with the majority of Americans.

 

[jambalaya]

Are they going to insist some politicians get arrested?

 

[Thunder]

Are they going to insist some politicians get arrested?

not sure what that demand is all about.

 

[TheDemSocialist]

I can support this.
Although in my opinion this is just a start...

 

[Thunder]

I can support this.
Although in my opinion this is just a start...

if this becomes their OFFICIAL platform, it may be the end.

how much money would it cost the Federal govt. to forgive ALL student loans?

$500 billion. We cannot afford to absolve folks of this much debt.

adjust interest rates and payment plans? sure why not.

but forgive all this debt? lots of folks chose to go to expensive private universities rather than less-expensive state schools. such decisions have consequences.

 

[Simon W. Moon]

• Halt foreclosures for the unemployed, sick and elderly ​

Under some circumstances this isn't even a bad idea for banks atm. There's an issue in some areas where banks are having to demolish homes because they can't afford the upkeep of the houses and/or are having issues with mold and vandals.
So, maybe

• Increase funding to public services by taxing the richest 1 percent ​

Um, maybe. Some public services and some taxes in some ways maybe.

• Forgive all student loan debt ​

I am not sure that this is a good idea, but I wouldn't mind being out from under mine. I am not sure what exactly this would engender for our country. Would the fed gov give money to the institutions holding the loans? Would the institutions holding the loans just eat the cost? Or what?

• Reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act in order to control speculation ​

There's an editorial in Forbes suggesting the same thing. Idk about it, but it didn't sound like a half-baked hippy idea when the guy in Forbes talked about it.
12 Ways Obama Could Make "Occupy Wall Street" Happier - Forbes

• Work with the other G20 nations to implement a 1% “Robin Hood” tax on all financial transactions and currency trades.​

The Forbes guy mentioned a transaction tax. IDK if these are the same things or not.

• Ban high-frequency ‘flash’ trading and bring sanity to the markets ​

Apparently, we did alright before we had them. Idk if there's any reason to keep them or not.

• Break up the “too big to fail” banks that threaten our future ​

Idk the implications of this, but it doesn't sound bad on the surface of it.

• Arrest the financial fraudsters responsible for the 2008 meltdown and bring them to justice ​

I am for prosecuting criminals.

• Ordain a Presidential Commission tasked with ending the influence corporate money has on our elected representatives in Washington​

I laud the intent, but I don't think that politicians are actually in a position where they could do anything about this issue. Hands and feeding etc.

 

[Sensibility]

How will reinstating Glass Steagall "control speculation"?

 

[Thunder]

How will repealing Glass Steagall "control speculation"?

I take it you didn't read the OP. They don't want to repeal it, they want to reinstate it.

 

[tessaesque]

I'm not in support of cancelling out billions in student loans just because a percentage cannot pay them back. The government damn sure doesn't have the money to cover the banks' losses on those loans, and you can bet all the losses sustained by the banks will be passed on to the consumer in decreased interest yields, increased fees, and other penalties.

 

[Temporal]

Gee... this sounds pretty cohesive to me. What happened to "these protestors don't know what they are even protesting about"?

 

[coolwalker]

They can have all the demands they want. In the end they'll go home and things will remain the same as before. People with money will not allow themselves to be screwed by someone who wants something for nothing. Their demands are childish...dial 1-800-waa-waaa

 

[Sensibility]

My bad. I mis-typed. Then let's ask it correctly:

How will reinstating GS "control speculation"?

 

[Simon W. Moon]

How will repealing Glass Steagall "control speculation"?

I think it's re-instate Glass-Steagall, not repeal. How do commercial and investment banks interact in that market?

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

****, if they write up a bill to cancel out student loan debt and it looks like it will pass.
I'm going to take out a **** load of student loans, to finance other things.

 

[Paschendale]

****, if they write up a bill to cancel out student loan debt and it looks like it will pass.
I'm going to take out a **** load of student loans, to finance other things.

Then you will promptly find yourself in jail for fraud. Enjoy!

Fortunately, there are a lot of people whose mentality isn't about "how much can I screw other people out of", but instead just want to be a meaningful part of society.

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

Then you will promptly find yourself in jail for fraud. Enjoy!

Fortunately, there are a lot of people whose mentality isn't about "how much can I screw other people out of", but instead just want to be a meaningful part of society.

Not.
As long as some portion goes to my education, I can spend the rest on whatever I want.

Btw, taking out loans for education and demanding them to be forgiven is screwing people out of money.

 

[mike2810]

Can I get reimbursed for my student loan that I paid off in late 70's? Seems it would only be fair.

As far as home forclosures, I do support banks/lenders working out a way to keep people in their homes.
So if the extra tax on the 1% goes to these demands, how does that fit in to what the Administration / Congress would like to do with the extra revenue. Or is it now 1% for Occupy Wall Street and 1 or more percent for Uncle Sam?

 

[Simon W. Moon]

Then you will promptly find yourself in jail for fraud. Enjoy!

Yeah, there're rules about how and where you can spend it. I think room and board, educational expenses, and childcare are about it.

If we do something like that then we should overhaul the whole system rather than piecemeal stuff together over the decades

 

[neocon1225]

Why should student loan debt be forgiven? It's a choice to go to college. It's a choice to take out loans. Take out loans, repay them, period. It's a matter of personal responsibility. I can sympathize somewhat with those who got meaningful degrees and things haven't worked out, that does suck. But to those who went to expensive private schools and Liberal Arts degrees I have no sympathy, none at all. If you go to a school you can't afford and get a degree that has no meaning then you will face the consequences of those actions. Don't whine about it later.

 

[alexa]

Not.
As long as some portion goes to my education, I can spend the rest on whatever I want.

Btw, taking out loans for education and demanding them to be forgiven is screwing people out of money.

How do you guys pay off your loans? In the UK it's like a graduate tax. You don't pay until you are earning a certain amount and then it goes up gradually with your earnings and if you haven't paid it back by a certain time it is written off.

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

How do you guys pay off your loans? In the UK it's like a graduate tax. You don't pay until you are earning a certain amount and then it goes up gradually with your earnings and if you haven't paid it back by a certain time it is written off.

Depends on the loan guidelines.
Some are immediate payments, while others are deferred.

Nearly all student loans are already subsidized by the government, though.

 

[Simon W. Moon]

As long as some portion goes to my education, I can spend the rest on whatever I want.

The federal gov is of a different opinion than you. But, if you like, they offer a great venue for airing your differences. You can get someone to help you with your case and everything. And there's a judge there to let you know how persuasive you were.

http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/attachments/siteresources/11-12YFSL.pdf

What can I use my federal student loan money for?​

You may use the money you receive only to pay for education expenses at the school​

that awarded your loan. Education expenses include such school charges as tuition,​

room and board, fees, books, supplies, equipment, dependent child care expenses,​

transportation, and rental or purchase of a personal computer. Talk to someone​

at the financial aid office at your school if you need more details.http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/attachments/siteresources/11-12YFSL.pdf​

 

[alexa]

Depends on the loan guidelines.
Some are immediate payments, while others are deferred.

Nearly all student loans are already subsidized by the government, though.

I think ours is a good system. If you in the States have graduates now who can't get a job and they need to pay back loans that will be difficult.

Edit: How subsidised?

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

The federal gov is of a different opinion than you. But, if you like, they offer a great venue for airing your differences. You can get someone to help you with your case and everything. And there's a judge there to let you know how persuasive you were.

http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/attachments/siteresources/11-12YFSL.pdf

What can I use my federal student loan money for?​

You may use the money you receive only to pay for education expenses at the school​

that awarded your loan. Education expenses include such school charges as tuition,​

room and board, fees, books, supplies, equipment, dependent child care expenses,​

transportation, and rental or purchase of a personal computer. Talk to someone​

at the financial aid office at your school if you need more details.​

Take student loan money, put it in separate bank account, write checks from that account to pay my mortgage.
Take money from my paycheck, that I would of spent on my mortgage and spend it on whatever I want.

I've just made a paper trail, that proves I spent the money on what it is supposed to be.
Case closed.

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

I think ours is a good system. If you in the States have graduates now who can't get a job and they need to pay back loans that will be difficult.

Edit: How subsidised?

Interest is lower than it otherwise would be, plus students who aren't being claimed by their parents can qualify for education grants, that don't have to be paid back.