Who are we occupying?

A week ago I visited the "Occupy Vancouver" protests, our local offshoot of "Occupy Wall Street". There was a mishmash of every cause you can imagine, which is typical of Vancouver protests. But despite the signs calling for 9/11 truth, a ban on psychoactive drugs for children, and the legalization of raw milk, there was a strong trend of dissatisfaction with the financial system, especially the "1%" at the top who are benefiting most. Though I stayed for some time, I didn't participate with the protests, mostly because I didn't see a coherent enough message to affirm that I agreed. But much of what they say is valid. Here are my main thoughts:

• That "1%" that everyone talks about do live in different reality. For example, most of us are still experiencing the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. However, the number of millionaires increased to 10.9 million last year, the greatest number in history and almost 10% more than the 10.1 million millionaires we had before the recession hit. A third of those millionaires are in North America. The sales of luxury goods are projected to increase 13% this year, to their highest levels in history, with the USA the leading consumer. Meanwhile, unemployment is still over 8%, the number of uninsured Americans is at 50 million, and the average wage in America is the same as it was back in 1997.
• This situation is not sustainable. In fact, it is going to blow up in our faces if something significant doesn't change. There's a lot more I could say about that.
• Unfortunately, many of the protesters haven't realized that they are a part of the problem. How many of the 99% wanted to be as rich as the 1%? How many are greedy for more?  How many seek after material possessions? How many want to climb the corporate ladder? How many have used their credit cards for non-essentials they couldn't afford, bought homes with payments they couldn't make, or spent money on cars, accessories, entertainment, and other status symbols that they didn't need? As this Christianity Today article states, much of the blame lies in our own hearts and in our own decisions, and until those things change, it won't really matter what happens to the people at the top.
• Finally, who are the 1% anyway? American protesters have focused on the top "1%", which in America basically means the millionaires. But do those same protesters realize that globally, most of them are much closer to the top 1% than they are to most of the other 99%? The very rough figures on the Global Rich List show anyone earning over $48,000/year in the top 1% of income earners. Are you protesting as part of the masses, when you are really the top 1% or 5% or 10% that the rest of the world is looking at and judging? Americans use over 30% of the world's energy and mineral resources, despite being only 5% of the world's population. What do you think the rest of the world thinks about you?

I think the protesters have an important point about the disparity of wealth and lack of justice in our society. I also think all of us, including myself and everyone reading this blog, have to realize how much we contribute to it. A couple months ago one of my best friends commented that she wanted to see more practical advice from me on what kinds of steps all of us can take towards more justice and Christ-like equality in society. I think I'm going to start doing that this week, because I think there's a lot that all of us could be doing, and I'd like to be doing it more intentionally. The world knows there's a problem with how things are going, and I want them to be able to look at Christians and see that there is a different way.