Even the right-leaning Canadian press can’t disagree that the Occupy Movement is a positive thing in and of itself. A new poll reveals that almost 60% of Canadians view the movement in a positive light, while some others tend to have problems because it is “leaderless”.
It’s great to see Canadians (who have not suffered as much as their neighbours to the south) talking about the concerns that the Occupy Movement has brought up. Issues like subsidies to big oil, the problems with current financial markets, joblessness, and even democratic accountability are all being discussed in the mainstream media.
Without the Occupy Movement these issues would in all likely hood not have been brought up. You should go to your locally occupied park and see what you can do to help.
Can’t get to a local occupy camp? Here’s what you can do online.
From the Globe and Mail:
Occupy activists have pitched tents in at least eight Canadian cities, building on a protest movement that started in New York’s financial district nearly two months ago. Participants have no official demands, but are advocating for a variety of social justice and economic issues, including nationalizing Canadian banks, closing tax loopholes for the wealthy and increasing the minimum wage. Most say they are frustrated that a small number of people control most of the world’s wealth.
“For many Canadians, they might not necessarily agree with those views, but they think that they are valid. Those are legitimate concerns that are being raised about our democratic and financial system,†Mr. Nanos said.
The most significant demographic that views the Occupy movement favourably is people who are between 18 and 29 years of age, the poll found, which may be reflective of a tough job market for new workers. Nearly 73 per cent of people under 30 said they have a favourable or somewhat favourable impression of the protests.
Still don’t know how to help? Here’s 10 simple ways to help the Occupy Movement.
All these things were talked about in the last elections. And will be talked about at the next elections. In between, we have blogs, micro-blogs and talking to friends and family. I’m not sure a quasi communist anarchist movement is going to convince people to vote NDP or, gasp, force the Conservatives to take more centrist positions.
I could be wrong, and perhaps I’m too much of an Internet geek, but I just don’t think occupying small public spaces will have much impact.
I thought of Occupy and decided to ask people if they knew about it. i asked about 10 people. NONE of them had a clue what it was… MADNESS, i filled them in with as much info as i personally know… I think more awareness is needed about the movement!