The Greatest Show Currently on Earth

by | posted in: Commentary, External Images, External Infographic, The Economics Devision | 0

This weekend you can go see a movie or go watch a little bit of history play out right in front of your eyes. Actually, there’s plenty of time to do both. You know where the movie theaters are, so here’s a directory of all the places currently being Occupied.  Somewhere in your town, there’s a good chance some people are out camping in tents to protest… the way of the world.

If you’re still wondering what Occupy Wall Street is all about, here’s an incredible cheat sheet…

(click image to get in close)

We work for the economics of scarcity despite living in a time of plenty.  At this point in history, competing for the necessities is unnecessary and, as such, barbaric.  It’s time for corporations to evolve from cyclops with an eye for money to creatures with the depth perception and humanity implied by their personhood.  We can’t all be the 1%, but there’s no reason their profit motive should dictate or endanger the lives and livelihoods of everyone else.

While you might take issue with any or all of OWS, there’s a 99% chance you’re in the same boat.  Go meet some fellow passengers.

[Chart by Rachel Schragis via Hyperallergic]

“Growth” in “Real” After-Tax Income

by | posted in: External Charts, The Economics Devision | 0

The Economist gave a nod to the 99% by way of some numbers from the Congressional Budget Office that make you go, “Ouch.”  Those are some tough percentages to defend.


But how do you stop it from being easier to make a lot of money when you have a lot of money?

[graph from the CBO’s Trends in the Distribution of Household Income Between 1979 and 2007 (PDF)]

United in Disapproval

by | posted in: Commentary, External Charts, The Political Devision | 0

It’s not quite 99%, but if 80% of Americans can agree on anything, even something as nebulous as a disapproval rating for two bodies of 535 representatives from 50 states, it’s worth taking a moment to notice.

Unfortunately, all we’re going to hear about the next year is the presidential race when what we seem to need is focus on the states.  But where is everyone going to get the information they need about their state, much less their representatives and other candidates?  Who has the time to go through it all?

Should we stop worrying so much about what’s going on in Washington and figure out what is actually happening in the states?

[Polling data from Real Clear Politics]

Corporate Voltron Forms Giant Ironic Bow-Tie

by | posted in: External Images, The Economics Devision | 0

Whether you  think the world is too large and diverse to be controlled by a relatively small group of gigantic companies or assume that it’s not and they do, a small team in Zurich has finally done the work to find out.  The short of it?  It’s not and they do, sort of.  Here’s what it looks like:

What is that?  It’s 1,318 companies in 26 countries and their 12,191 links.  At the core of this network, the study found that 147 transnational corporations (TNCs) form a “super entity” with control over 40% of the economic value of all 43,060 TNCs in the world.

Who would be the tight-knit group at the core of a “giant bow-tie structure” of TNCs?  That’s right, financial institutions. It’s not really a surprise though.  Banks are financing this little tragic comedy we’ve got going on here. The goal of the study, The network of global corporate control (PDF), was not to unearth a conspiracy, but to confirm the existence of such an economic Voltron so that we might further assess it’s nature and potential risk to the global economy.  And considering the banks’ track record, it’s about time.

[via Boing Boing]

Say Hello to Your PostNatural World

by | posted in: Ape Con Myth, External Viz, Maps | 0

Don’t let the continued debate over genetically modified foods fool you.  Field tests of GMO’s have been going full steam ahead.  Below you can see what was tried out in April 2007 alone.

If you missed yesterday’s Millions Against Monsanto in honor of World Food Day, there’s still two weeks left in October, which just happens to be Non-GMO Month.  Remember, knowing is half the battle, even with genetically modified foods, and that’s the half we’re still working on.  Tell the FDA that the least they can do is label it.

[Map from Center for PostNatural History (Thanks, Mason!)]

The Internet Makes It Easy For You To Profit Off Of A Resistance Movement, Ask Me How!

by | posted in: Commentary, Features, Smog, The Political Devision | 0

As Occupy Wall Street balloons beyond the Big Apple to include protests and meetings in over 800 cities around the world, there’s one question on everyone’s lips: “How can we make some money off of this?”

Welcome to the Ape Con Myth guide to starting a business off of people pissed off about business!

As any entrepreneur will tell you, the first step is always the same: start a grassroots political movement.  It might sound difficult, but all you need is one page, some images and a little text.  Call it something like The Occupy Party of the United States, and you’re done.

[This is why stock photography should be a regulated industry.]

Okay, almost done.  One site can be disavowed easily.  Besides, what’s a national movement if it’s not everywhere?!  It’s time to buy some domains!

Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about.  Use the same content on each site to save time.  Then, all you need are ads.  There’s no need to research your audience, just focus on known weaknesses, such as what suckers people in Corpus Christi, Texas are for the San Francisco Ballet.

And you can’t go wrong with a mix of dating and criminal record website ads to even it out.  Remember, these protest kids love irony.  Let them soak in it.  They’ll click through.

What’s the catch?  There is none.  You can start this business in Australia if you want.  This thing is international.

As Abraham Lincoln said, “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.”   …  Abe, you had me at ‘you can fool some of the people all of the time’.

If you’re interested in what’s happening, stick to the real thing:  Occupy Wall Street, Occupy Together