Will Occupy Wall Street last?

Occupy Wall  Street appears to have survived the winter and seem to be gearing up for a long summer of activity to further their political, economic and social goals.  The question many are asking is, will they last?

• The movement began with the belief that the rich, or 1%, took and maintain their power on the backs of, and to the detriment of, the other 99% of the population.  This perception is most notable in the way members of this movement view bankers and other occupations generally associated with Wall Street, hence the name and location of their original protest.

• Unlike the TEA Party, Occupy Wall Street has been seen by the general public as being abrasive, violent, and engaging in criminal activity to gain attention and get out their message.  They seek to annoy and disrupt, rather than partake in the traditional means of public debate and discussion.

• Also unlike the TEA Party, Occupy Wall Street has made little attempt to utilize the American political system to achieve their goals.  While the TEA Party has been influential in local and national elections and policy, the only connection to the political process for Occupy Wall Street has been a small number of far left politicians giving quiet words of support and encouragement.

• The Occupy Wall Street Movement, while claiming to represent 99% of Americans, are not supported by nearly that percentage of the population for partially due to their methods.  They interact within society in a way that from the beginning (occupying Zucotti Park) was illegal and generally understood to be an anti-social strategy.  They never sought legitimate, structured discussion, and continue to avoid such debate.

•  Their method is one aspect, but more important is their message.  Of the many messages (often mixed) the main one is the need for equality in income and a lessening of the power and money (that they believe was gained illegitimately) of the top 1% and the influence it provides them within government.  They, seemingly, wish to have this goal achieved through government action, which adds to their hypocrisy.

•  On their hypocrisy, there is much to be found.  They dislike the influence that money, especially Wall Street money, has over our political system and government, but rather than turn off government's ability to sell influence, they seek to have government (the one profiting from the influence selling) to legislate it away.  Beyond this, they overwhelmingly support Barack Obama, who has accepted more financial support from Wall Street than any candidate for office ever has and has appointed many former Wall Street executives to influential positions in his administration.

The the most basic goal of Occupy Wall Street is to lessen the divide in incomes in America while removing the influence that money has in our government, which is a good one.  Their means to that end is where the problem arises, and is where they lose much of the population.

Whether Occupy Wall Street lasts to achieve their goals depends on their ability to tailor their message and delivery to fit what the majority of the population understands to be civil and proper.  This means acting within our political and social norms and working through the election process to present their ideas to voters and let the general public decide.  If they do this, they will be around for a long time, but if they continue their current methods and degrade into increasing criminality and violence through this summer, they will not last long enough to achieve their goals.