8807
letters and counting!
letters and counting!
worthless education | 0
My life and credit has been ruined because I made the mistake of trying to improve my life and improve the lives of others by getting a naturopathic doctor degree. After graduating I learned that insurance would not cover my services until I had practiced a year. (Washington state) That puts new doctors at a disadvantage and very few salaried jobs were available. After a year of losing money trying to build a practice, I had to call it quits and moved back to Chicago. I was not able to find a job in my field and finally found employment with a temporary agency. I had to declare bankruptcy but am still being hounded by collection agencies for my student loans. I am paying one private and now will begin paying the subsidized loans. I haven't been on a vacation for over 10 years, cannot afford to live in my own apartment despite the fact that I am a very responsible and hard worker. I imagine you think it is all my fault. I should have tried harder, worked harder, etc. But then I have a conscience and would rather know that I have integrity than work for people who plot to squeeze as much money out of people as possible, buy politicians and judges, and take pleasure in others misery at worst and are indifferent to the destruction they cause at best. Yes, I am bitter. Some days are better than others. I resent the disparity in CEO salaries and workers pay. No one on earth is worth 400 times my pay. I hope that the movement results in changes. Crony capitalism is not a free market and the playing field is far from level. I am tired of inferior products made in China, of good jobs being shipped overseas, of fracking and dependence on fossil fuels that keeps us at war and destroys our environment, of corporate-owned media that has little journalistic integrity and divides rather than unites, of a healthcare system that doesn't work... I could go on and on. But I am only wasting my time and energy because the banks and Wall Street are full of narcissists and sociopaths. There is a total lack of empathy or concern for others, country, or planet. If there were, we would not be in the dire straights we are in. Joan Espana 60181
Excess salary and bonuses | 1
Personally I think that the folks at AIG instead of getting bonuses for fixing the mess they made they should have been given the alternative of clean it up or go to jail...no bonus period! Barbara Caso 06067
99% | 0
I work for a family law attorney and see the results of your greed and bad judgment every day through the divorce process. I get to prepare paperwork with upside down homes and list all the toys that have been purchased with home equity loans. Apparently the banks have allowed a majority of people "the good life". I used to watch these people walk out of the stores with big TV's, hot tubs, stereo units, lap tops, top of the line furniture - heck, they furnished the entire house all at once. They bought wave runners, speed boats, trailers, campers, you name it. Then we found out how they afforded such luxuries! Home equity loans. This was all well and good except they (you) didn't factor in downturns, they and you got caught with their/your pants down. But that really didn't affect you bankers too much. You got bailed out, shifted the burden to the middle class, and then gave yourselves bonuses. What a joke. Are you guys (and women) really serious? Yes you are, aren't you. You think we're not paying attention. I believe the Occupy movement will sustain and I will be transferring my bank accounts to a local credit union because your banks are going to charge fees to make up for your losses. And your bank fees aren't the only charges that are going to be loaded on to of the middle class. In my community we can't afford to keep the library open because of this downturn. A local group is trying to get the property owners (what are left of us) to consent to a tax increase. Most of the voters in my community don't own a home, nor do they have a job. I don't think they should be allowed to vote. Just the real people who are affected by an approval of this type of tax. It's an emotional issue in our area. But guess who's going to pay - the same people who kept the bankers afloat. This has all trickled down from your greed and I'm so glad someone has had enough guts to form a coalition to protest against the 1%. Mad as hell! Patti Speer, Ukiah, California p.s. I haven't received a raise in 5 years and my health insurance costs keep going up. I hope you sleep well at night. Patti Speer Redwood Valley, CA 95470
The cost of living | 0
Because of the recession health care has taken a bit hit. Reimbursements have been cut but, more importantly, with so many people out of work with no insurance they can't pay for medical care even when it is an urgent problem. That means I haven't had a raise in 3 years and my husband's Social Security hasn't been raised either. Then when it is his Medicare premium is also raised and, no increase. All our bills keep going up but with no extra money to pay them. We also can't afford a secondary insurance for his Medicare so when he went into the hospital that left us with big bills to pay ourselves. It has turned into a never ending battle with our credit ruined and bills we can't pay. Sandi Clark 16509
between closing and late fee | 0
Bank of America. If I made a payment close to the end of the closing date, the payment would magically be add to the month before. No problem with the accounting apartment receiving and entering a payment. Thus no payment was made in the intended month. WA LA, a late fee. If I waited to catch the window, the accounting apartment was so over whelmed, that the payment could note be recorded until after the late fee was added. The window of payment was too small. Then they kept buying up banks and changing the address where payment was received. Late fee again, Enough is enough, I closed out the account and have been using a local bank. . Billie Sue Blythe 38237
Small Business Multitasker.... | 0
I am a small business owner/college grad/grad school student and I have worked hard to get where I am, and when I see banks making record profits and paying out excessive bonuses it really worries me about society. It makes me think that we live in medieval times under a feudal system. I get charged ridiculous overdraft fees from banks that make no sense other than just being a cruel penalty. When it costs the bank nothing (no man hours, no products out the door) for me to incur and overdraft for whatever reason it really pains me. I do not charge customers any kind of fees in my business for anything. I charge a retail price and I have costs of goods sold…….It boils down to greed and just simple unfairness. I would hope that you can dig down deep in your human core and at least try to understand how difficult it can be and how disenchanting it is to watch all of this unfold. It really makes me not want to not even bring children into this world because I can hardly stomach the way things are now……
Hey sweetie! | 0
Hi Laura! Hope things are going great for you and yours! I mean that; I really love to hear about people being successful, comfortable, and most of all HAPPY! Too bad most of the people I come across regularly aren’t really any of these things. They work hard, but it just NEVER seems to be ENOUGH! They saved their money and invested it like they were told, and it all went “POOF!!!” in what seemed like an instant. They went to college, followed the law, and didn’t act too eccentric, but now wonder if they will ever taste success. Why is that, Laura? Can you help me understand? Why are matters of public interest like healthcare, criminal justice, environmental concerns, economic regulation, food, drug, and product safety, and education being dismantled in the public sector and swallowed by the private sector, leaving millions of lives at stake? Surely you and your friends are not robots who only care about stealing the American Dream away in the name of more and more and more and more money. You aren’t that bad a woman. I just know it. You would refuse to comply with unfair and unsound practices that crippled families and destroyed lives. You have more integrity and love for humanity than that, certainly! Well, Laura, I’m rooting for you! I know your goodness will prevail and you will make choices that honor us all! If you need any help figuring out how to do this, I’m here for you! Sincerely, Kat
The 99% will no longer be silent | 0
We, the American 99 %, have had enough! We will no longer be silent. We will no longer be abused by the 1 %. Stop what you are doing now. You are destroying out country and it is going to affect you too. Linda Gallie
Our savings are disappearing due to Wall Street greed | 0
We are a retired couple who are watching our savings disappear due to the greed of Wall Street. We worked hard and saved to be able to retire before we got too old. Pay your fair share of taxes and give the rest of us the democracy we used to have. Susan Zalon
Don't blame the poor | 0
I'm angry that ignorant, intentionally misinformed people blame the poor for the country's problems, resenting welfare benefits, immigrants and affirmative action rather than corporate greed. There are many wonderful wealthy people but I have heard a shocking lack of compassion and empathy in some I have known who also happen to be religious and conservative. Brooke Myers
End of a culture of greed | 0
We are changing the things that are important to us. Many of us have found that the harder we work, the more money we spend to try to make ourselves happy. I think the basic decency in the average person is surfacing with disgust and outrage that is mainly (at the moment) directed towards large corporations. Once people become interested in honest representation in congress/senate and local government, then there will be a shift in your power. Some of you will pass for the definition of a monopoly, some of you are already going down because people are not using your services because you disgust them with your bribes, bonuses and outrageous profits on the backs of hard working people. This is the time for change. bruce hermes 85716-1805
=?utf-8?Q?Will_there_be_good-paying_jobs_for_our_grandchildren=3F?= | 0
My husband and I are both retired and can still count on social security and (diminishing) savings. We're OK but we're speaking our for our children with their college debts and, especially, our grandchildren: Will there be good-paying jobs for them? That is why we will continue to join the 99% of indignant citizens who are daring to speak truth to power! So open up your eyes, unplug your ears and listen! Ursula Casanova
What we want. | 0
If you can't make capitalism work for everyday Americans, the 99%, and if you won't allow us to use the political system to make the modest reforms that would allow capitalism to work for all of us, then I'm not sure capitalism will work. What could you do to help? Accept regulations designed to prevent the economy from blowing up again. Accept a little shared sacrifice. Maybe even accept a little responsibility when the system you help create doesn't work well for the rest of us. We're not asking for anything that will actually cause you any real suffering. We simply want you to work with us to create a system in which everyday people who are willing to do their part are able to make a decent life for their selves. Jeff Taylor 60626
We are one. There is nothing to fear. | 0
Money is dying. And you are afraid. I understand, but the only way that this thing, which for the moment is called OWS, will stop is if things change. You may believe that it can "be stopped" with violence and detentions applied by the police and the armies, but what will really happen is that you, the 1% , will eventually become the .01%. Then you will be 1.) The hated, and, finally... 2.) The hunted...You are inadvertently planning for your own destruction. The death of this system is as inevitable as was the death of divine-right monarchy...If not by the overwhelming numbers of angry, hungry, and hurt people, then by the people with guns...police and armies... Guns that you pay for now. Your police forces and armies will eventually turn and point those guns at you, as soon as a few of them get angry, hungry or hurt. Capitalism, particularly this current flavor of anonymous, Corporate plunder must die, as did feudalism, as did theocracy(God willing...) and as did Communism. Let it die and join us as we move into the next phase of enlightened, human behavior. Money is dying. Don't hang on and be the cause for all the pain, bloodshed, anger, hatred, and evil that accompanies this greed...this fear is yours. Overcome it... We are one. There is nothing to fear. Nick Martielli
By the People for the People | 0
This government is supposed to be by the people for the people, not by the corporations or banks for the corporations or banks. Marilyn Mayers New York, NY 10128
Be a true American and help fix the economy for all of us | 0
I have been fortunate enough to have a defined pension benefit as I am retired. However because this is not enough to live on I continue to work at what work I can find to pay bills. Just this week I again got copies of how my investments are doing and they went down dramatically. If I did not have health coverage and or got very ill and needed nursing home care I and my loved ones would lose everthing I have worked so long and hard for. I am fortunate compared to those who are losing their homes, are on unemployment insurance or it has run out, who have no jobs and no prospects of a job, whose children are cramed more and more into larger and larger classes and whose children have gone to school, have huge debts and little prospect of work in their field or a related field where they can make enough to live off of and to pay off their debts. We need more than the tired old retoric that the only way for main street to prosper is for the very, very wealthy to get more tax breaks, are able to have their money off shore, get salaries and or benefits that are huge compared to ours and hope that maybe someday there will be enough to trickle down to the rest of us. We fought long and hard to get this curve to shift with the New Deal and subsquent changes by both Republicans and Democrats so that more Americans could benefit from our economic wealth. Now the game is to shift this all back to the "good old days" when my grandmother lived off of what her children could afford to give her which was one room with an outdoor shit house, no running water and no transportation other than what neighbors, friends and others could provide. This trend of more and more wealth going to a smaller and smaller group of people is obsene and not my idea of the American Dream. Commit yourselves to shifting the paradigm back to a situation where average people could expect a decent life where they could have housing that was decent, where there was some medical care available that was affordable and where their children could expect to improve themselves by education and hard work. These paths are getting smaller and smaller for more and more Americans. You are part of the problem and need to be part of the solution. The solution is not to just be involved in a few gesters of "good will" but in systemic policicies that will hire more workers at decent salaries with benefits. Whoever reads this please listen to clear cry of most Americans who see our system broken and want you to be part of a healthy solution that benefits all of us and not just some of us. This is not socialism as you charge it is fairness for all of us. That supposidly is part of a key value I have as an American. I also expect you not to continue to control our political system and rig it in your favor at our expense. That is happening more and more with the obsense amounts of weath you have under your control. This is suppose to be a country of the people, by the people and for the people. This is currently not our reality. Be a true American and help fix it for all of us. Peter Schweizer
amoral brutish crooks breeding in the usa | 0
one law for all under God a crook is a crook the time behind bars should be fitted to the crime amen! betty buchanan 93308
Facing Retirement with less and likely no health insurance. | 0
To the !%, Why do you feel the need for more profits? I am 65 yrs old and have lived through the last 30 years as society has changed. Free Trade has ruined this country. Companies that move their production to another country give all their wages to foreign workers. So what comes back to the US economy? Only profits into your pockets. I don't understand why you think it's okay to pay the lowest taxes since the 1930's? I don't feel like our votes will matter when money and false information is what makes an election. Some of you are the biggest criminals. Where is your sense of anything but what is better for you? Thanks to ALEC initiatives the governor in my state is ruining the middle class and everything we worked have for, Judy Pigg Behrendt 49009-1844
Prosecute | 0
We'll see you in court! Robbin Zella 06516
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