Sitting Around Never Got Anything Done

For the most part, I've stayed away from big news stories on my blog. My blog is about me - duh - so I haven't spent too many valuable resources (namely my time and energy) on giving my views of something the rest of the world cares very little about what my opinion on the subject may or may not be.

On my 'About Me' link on the left side of this page, I say that, "First and foremost, I am a journalist. The rest doesn't really matter." A journalist is someone who reports the news in an unbiased fashion to others. Unbiased means that all opinions, all words that may indicate one's feelings on a subject, are left out of the equation when reporting something that is, has, or is foreseen to happen. As I learned in journalism school, there is probably not a news outlet left on the planet that releases a single unbiased news story. After all, if it is fact, why do we call it a news story? I don't report the news on television stations or radio, but I do write articles and copy to be published on reputable websites and in trade magazines, and that, too, can be considered news. Therefore, I consider myself a journalist. And whenever I report news, I always strive for an unbiased account.

However, this is my blog, it is about me and the way I see the world, and my opinions and biases are a part of the deal.

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Occupy Wall Street is something that has been taking place in the USA since September 17th, 2011. It has been going on for almost a month. It is a group of people who are tired of their jobs being taken away, tired of social and economic inequality, tired of corporate and government greed, and tired of corporate money and lobbyists control on government. People are upset that their jobs have been lost due to lay offs that were brought on by the recession. People are upset that the recession was brought on by big banks giving mortgage loans to people who couldn't afford them and by lobbyists pushing for causes in order to get funding for the corporation. People are upset that the government hasn't changed.

It is here that I ask myself, "What else is new?" But please, feel free to keep reading.

People have taken to protesting now as they have many times before. These particular protests are referred to as 'Occupy Wall Street.'

Occupy - to engage the attention or energies of; to take or hold possession or control of

The occupation is of Wall Street because that is the hub of America's financial greed and corruption.

The goal:  "Beginning from one simple demand – a presidential commission to separate money from politics – we start setting the agenda for a new America."

I understand the reasoning behind the Occupy Wall Street movement. I understand the protesters. I understand that economics is global - the problems that the occupation is addressing affect people worldwide. But I do not understand the need to protest globally.

Today I received a Facebook invitation to attend the event Occupy Seoul, which is being held in Seoul, South Korea, on October 15th, outside the offices of the banking regulator, the Financial Supervisory Service, where the Korea Exchange and many major financial institutions call home.

While I understand the global economy, I do not understand why foreign expats would want to protest their own economic problems on foreign soil. When jobs were lost and never found again at home, expatriates applied for and received jobs in Korea and other foreign countries. None of us would be here if we didn't have a job. We came here to work. We were hired before we even got here - it is how we got the visa that allowed us entry. Sure, there are some of us living here who are married to a native Korean and not working, but that is most likely a choice, not the result of a job loss.

I don't understand why expatriates would want to "Occupy Seoul" because, while the sister occupation of Occupy Wall Street claims to be a peaceful occupation, over 750 arrests have been made in the United States alone. I don't speak Korean, so I don't know what Korean laws say about protests and demonstrations. After contacting the US Embassy in Seoul, a source stated the following:

"I did call the U.S. Embassy and asked if we were allowed to protest if we didn't make any comments about Korea. The guy said it should be ok. But we shouldn't get too rowdy and get ourselves arrested..."

Hmm. The first thing that comes to mind when I think protest, demonstration, and occupation, though, is not peaceful. I cannot imagine over 1,000 expatriates gathered outside of the Korea Exchange with American lay offs, big bank bail outs and government greed on their minds maintaining a peaceful presence and not mentioning the country in which they are now living. If an expat gets arrested by South Korean officials, it is likely that deportation is the next step. The country that has given them a job when the native country has taken it away will stop being so welcoming, take away status as a legal alien, and send them back to the country where all that they are protesting suddenly slaps them in the face. 

One last comment is that nothing was ever accomplished by sitting around. Sure, the occupation is meant to be peaceful, and sitting in a private park with arms linked is a peaceful way to demonstrate one's passion for a cause led by someone else, but there has to be another way. If everyone sitting down got out their smart phones and used a note pad app to write down some ideas for ways to get things done, I'm sure there would be a few good ones in the mix.

I also think it speaks volumes that the world-wide 'sister' events were planned for a Saturday when people won't be working.