I have not posted about the Wall Street Occupiers because I have been unsure about their aims, or if they have any potential for lasting influence. But they have seemed to be from the start to be remarkably ignorant of how the real world works for people who presumably have college educations. The following quote says it better than I ever could:
Reader Harold Theurer sees another angle. Noting the passing of Steve Jobs, he wonders how many protesters carrying Apple products understand how those gadgets came to exist.
“What started out as two men in a garage with ideas and passion would have been nothing more than two guys in a garage with ideas and passion had it not been for an IPO on Dec. 12, 1980, when Apple went public at $22 per share,” he writes.
“Big Bad Wall Street raised $101 million for Mr. Jobs to expand his ideas, create jobs and change the landscape of technology. The next time any of the Wall Street occupiers makes an iTune purchase, it can be traced back to some Big Bad Banker’s belief in Mr. Jobs and his company.”
Owned!Class dismissed.
1 comment:
FACT-CHECK:
Apple Computers left the garage in January 1977, nearly four years before their IPO in Dec 1980.
They had nearly one thousand employees before they went public, and had shipped thousands of products. They were already growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to hard work, ingenuity and private investors.
This meme implies that a company has no chance of leaving a garage or basement without Wall Street's help. This is patently false. There are many large and successful American companies that remain private.
Another claim of this meme seems to be that the Wall Street finance sector should be excused for blowing a gigantic hole in the world economy (by pushing toxic financial products packed with bad loans) because Wall Street firms often provide investment capital. This is like saying we should never protest the government because government serves several useful purposes. This is just ignorant.
Another flaw -- the people who bought Apple stock in 1980 were not all Wall Street executives. Anyone can buy stock. You probably knew that, yes?
I could go on and on, but it's a beautiful day outside. So, class dismissed.
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