I guess the first thing to know when considering this subject, is just who are the 1%? Well, it varies from year to year depending on many factors, but for the most part the 1% earn between $350,000 to $500,000 per year, just to join the club. They consist of 1.4 million households in America and pay over 37% of all taxes collected in the country. So, do the math. But, my concern for the 1%’s isn’t the hard working stiff (think small business owner, engineer or longshoreman) or celebrity that makes way too much money for very little work, my concern for the 1%’s are the politicians and CEO’s that run this country.

For some time now, we have been listening to Occupy Wall Street and their ranting about “We are the 99%!” Well, woop-dee-doo!

At first glance it may be easy to agree with them, after all, we all need someone to blame. And unless you’re a Socialist, sharing the wealth isn’t an option. And I’m not sure that these protestors even know who the 1% is. And if you slow down and think about it, aren’t you glad that the 1% is in charge? Consider for a moment how many people you meet in a month. 100? 200? What about all the people you deal with at the grocery store or all the people driving on the roadways? 1000?  3000? Now consider how many of them appeared level headed enough or intelligent enough to actually “run the show” so to speak.  10?  20?  4?  0? Okay, starting to make sense isn’t it? Do you really want the “99%” running the country? I’m not so sure I do. Hey…I know my place. I too am part of the 99%. But I wouldn’t want the job of running the economy even if it were offered to me.

Okay, you’re thinking that I must be a social misfit, bitter and unable to maintain any semblance of a relationship with any human on the planet. And while that may be true, the fact is that I like people. It is never a dull moment when it comes to people. Nothing entertains me more that sitting in front of Costco enjoying a hotdog and watching the vast array of strange and exotic people coming and going. The same is true with friends and family.  I have lots of friends and close family. But I wouldn’t want any of them running the country either.

The simple fact is that we can’t all be in charge. “Too many chefs in the kitchen”, so to speak. And 1% seems to be what it takes to effectively run an economy. Could we do any better? Suppose for a moment that somehow we were able to rotate the 1% every couple of years. Eventually it would be your turn to be a part of the elite. Could you do any better? Would you want to share your wealth with the other 99%? Would I?

The 1% (in most cases) are highly educated and have a lot of experience in economics and politics. And unless you’re my uncle Bob, (who seems to know everything there is to know about how to run an economy without moving farther up the educational ladder than a semester at the local community college) the fact is that we, the 99%, really don’t know what it takes to effectively run an economy. Armchair Quarterbacking is very simple, but actually going onto the field and running the plays, is an entirely different experience.

Another aspect of the 1%, is that we put them too high on a pedestal. They are not all powerful, all knowing gods. They are simply people, just like you and me. They make mistakes and bad judgment calls just like the rest of us. But at least they are making judgment calls (in most cases anyway). I would rather a bad call be made than no call at all. Okay…. okay…I know what you are thinking…”but they are making calls that benefit themselves and not me”.  Yeah…yeah…. yeah…. I’ve heard that one before. And you may be right, but consider this; would you do it any differently? That fact is, we are all a bit self-centered. When you think about it, most of what we do is to benefit ourselves. How many of us, the 99%, are out there trying to make a real difference for America? Are you volunteering at soup kitchens? Do you donate money to needful charities? Are you volunteering as a Big Brother or Sister? Or for that matter, are your rearing your own children to be good and beneficial members of society?

Maybe if we stopped looking at the yards of the 1% and pay attention to our own yards. Perhaps then society can get back on track and 100% of us can move forward.

And for those of you protesting at Wall Street…..”Get a haircut ya’ hippies!””Get a job, or at least look for a job, and start being a benefit to my country!” Go back to school. Do some volunteer work.  Stop whining and pointing fingers and do something!

And one more thing to consider, in America, we might be the 99%, but to the rest of the world, we are the 1% !

So I say “Hats off to the 1%!”  Keep up the good work!

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