The Occupy Wall Street movement is morphing into something that hasn't been seen in America for decades. What started as a well-intentioned critique of unpunished fraud in the finance sector now has the potential to do as much damage to economic life in this country as any malfeasance on Wall Street.
Occupy Oakland has called for a general strike tomorrow, November 2, 2011. Their stated intent is to shut down the Port of Oakland, one of the largest in the United States. These activists fail to realize that the Port of Oakland is a vital transit point for goods headed to Asia. The port exports an enormous amount of meat, fruit, nuts, cereals, and grains essential to healthy diets. Even a one-day shutdown endangers the global supply chain for Asian retailers and will have unpredictable effects on the lives of American producers. Any resultant food shortages in Asia will be the moral responsibility of Occupy Oakland's strike participants. Any collapse in revenue from American exporters of food and finished goods will be on their heads as well.
Loyal readers of this blog know that I have often criticised Wall Street firms myself. I started my own firm as an antidote to the tainted investment products I saw from dysfunctional firms. Entrepreneurship can solve whatever core problems afflict capitalism. Activists who can't see the second-order effects of their actions will disrupt the economic lives of entrepreneurs who are not at all responsible for Wall Street's excesses.
Alfidi Capital will remain open through any general strike. My business will never shut down due to social unrest or political extortion. I stand in solidarity with other entrepreneurs and self-employed creatives who know how to make free market capitalism work.
Occupy Oakland has called for a general strike tomorrow, November 2, 2011. Their stated intent is to shut down the Port of Oakland, one of the largest in the United States. These activists fail to realize that the Port of Oakland is a vital transit point for goods headed to Asia. The port exports an enormous amount of meat, fruit, nuts, cereals, and grains essential to healthy diets. Even a one-day shutdown endangers the global supply chain for Asian retailers and will have unpredictable effects on the lives of American producers. Any resultant food shortages in Asia will be the moral responsibility of Occupy Oakland's strike participants. Any collapse in revenue from American exporters of food and finished goods will be on their heads as well.
Loyal readers of this blog know that I have often criticised Wall Street firms myself. I started my own firm as an antidote to the tainted investment products I saw from dysfunctional firms. Entrepreneurship can solve whatever core problems afflict capitalism. Activists who can't see the second-order effects of their actions will disrupt the economic lives of entrepreneurs who are not at all responsible for Wall Street's excesses.
Alfidi Capital will remain open through any general strike. My business will never shut down due to social unrest or political extortion. I stand in solidarity with other entrepreneurs and self-employed creatives who know how to make free market capitalism work.
