“We are the 99%!” That’s not just the rallying cry of protesters down on Occupy Wall Street, it’s its own affiliate movement, born on Tumblr September 8th. Started by activists Priscilla Grim and Chris (no last name), it’s become one of OWS’ most visible online communities. Of course, being the biggest also makes it the easiest target for mocking, as evidenced by Buzzfeed’s recent list, “The 12 Most Depressing Photos From ‘We Are the 99%.’”
The site has now inadvertently given Conservatives a way to hit back on the Occupy movement in a cohesive fashion. Welcome to Tumblr’s latest flame-war: “We Are the 53%.”
This is basically the “Get a Job”-ers getting mobilized. As Annie Lowrey from Slate pointed out, the name comes from the idea that only 53% of homes in America pay federal income tax. Their mission statement is a little less clear than the site its ripping from: “Those of us who pay for those of you who whine about all of that… or that… or whatever.”
The 53% Tumblr has the same style has 99%, with people holding up letters in front of their computers explaining how they belong in their respective field. When you come down to it, it gets kind of hard to tell the two Tumblrs apart by just looking at the writing.
Here’s the game: we removed the numbers from the post, now you try to guess by the stories what percent these people put themselves in. It’s fun! And sort of depressing!
Just another reason to think that a lot of people in the world have no heart. Even if the exact percentages are incorrect, the fact remains that hard working people are suffering because of circumstances beyond their control which where directly caused by corrupt politicians on both sides and corporate interests.
Don’t bother replying to me, I won’t be checking back to see what people think, this is just one mans opinions.
I like the direction you went with the article, but unfortunately it’s not as difficult to see the difference as you imply. With the exception of one picture, the difference between the 99% and 53% were pretty obvious. The 99% stated the problems, in some cases asked for help, but mostly asked for change to a corrupt system. The 53% stated the problems, but instead of asking for change, instead quickly and proudly pinned on their badge of stoic acceptance while looking down their nose at anyone that dared want change.
The fact that they BOTH have nearly the same problems, but only one group actually says, “This isn’t right. Something needs to change.” is baffling.
The thing is, most of these 53%ers probably aren’t– if their stories are true, they DON’T owe federal income tax, or not very much, anyway. And if they ARE paying federal income tax and not getting a full refund… they’re not doing their taxes right. We don’t tax broke students in this country.
I honestly guessed every single one correctly. It seems kind of obvious.