Class Warfare and Unrighteous Rage

Two years ago, a young bank employee in Greece named Angeliki Papathanasopoulou went to work to put in an honest day's work as a financial analyst in the height of the economic crisis. With Greek's financial system teetering towards bankruptcy, the leadership were left no choice but to agree to a financial bailout package with fellow European Union which would save Greece from bankruptcy, but would require sacrifices from the Greek people, notably freezing pension payments and public sector pay wages. Christmas, Easter and summer bonuses were abolished and taxes were raised.

Unions called for a general strike to express their outrage, and on May 5th, 2010, around 50 masked and gloved protesters armed with 150 molotov cocktails brought the "war against the banks" to Angeliki's bank. Despite protests from some of the protesters to spare people inside the bank, others' chants of "F**k them, burn it, burn the rich!" prevailed. Three bank employees, including Angeliki, were killed in the blaze.

This account on CNN.com is interesting in that a significant focus of the rest of the article is:

A series of failings by a bank executive, the bank's external health and safety consultant and two managers -- including asking staff to remain inside and locking the main doors during the riots -- that contributed to the tragedy. [That] the staff were unable to access an emergency exit, with a door for disabled people that could be used in an emergency blocked by the fire. Further, the bank did not have a fire safety certificate, unbreakable windows, or security shutters drawn in readiness for the riots.

Hmm... you think that the protesters who actually caused the inferno by hurling molotov cocktails into the bank might be somewhat responsible, as well? You think?

The publication of this article is timely in that it comes at the same time when the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement is trying to gear up for a brand new year of revolutionary mayhem, starting with the May 1st "May Day" protests. The movement has contributed to "constructive dialogue" and "civil" disobedience by vandalizing businesses and cars in Oakland, destroying small businesses, stores and cars in San Francisco, and similar bad behavior in Seattle (so much for the mellow vibes on the west coast).

Naturally, the OWS folks are quick to blame either "infiltrators" or (even more laughable) police instigation for being the root cause of the destruction.

This isn't to say that people don't have a right to be frustrated about the state of the economy. This isn't to say that people don't have a right to peaceful protest. But it's becoming clear that the Occupy Wall Street movement has not been and will not be effective in its means of enacting the change that it seeks. In fact, it'll be probably be as effective as effective in enacting change as those Greek protesters who burned down banks and killed three innocent bank workers. Let's just hope it doesn't come to that for people to stop the madness here in the United States.

This is why it's important for the restoration of sanity. Don't like the tax code? Write your congressman and use back a politician who holds your position (or run for office yourself). Don't like banks? Vote with your wallet and use a credit union. Use your brain and partner with other like minded individuals to come up with ideas which will create solutions to social and economic problems. But the glorification and promotion of any fruitless movement which leads to the destruction of people and property must end. And the politicians and pundits who have thrown support and encouragement to these class-warfare anger movements are already complicit in the wasting of these individuals' time and the destruction of innocent people's property and small businesses. Let's just hope that we never have the tragedy of blood on their hands when a "splinter" member of OWS decides to throw a molotov cocktail in a Wall Street subway station.