Does Cain misunderstand Occupy Wall Street?

On a radio show Wednesday, Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain, once again criticized the Occupy Wall Street movement saying that it almost makes him angry to see their rallies.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - On Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Cain said, "Blaming Wall Street and blaming big banks, and blaming those that have succeeded in America under our free market system is never going to make you happy, and it's never going to make you rich. If you really want to do something to create jobs in this country, why don't you go and picket the White House.

"That's where we have failed economic policies. That's where we have policies that have kept unemployment up over 9 percent. You're picketing the wrong source. It's not those that have produced in this country. It's the failed policies of this administration."

However articulate this criticism may appear to many, critics of Cain's comments say that it is factually inaccurate.

Here are their claims:

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For one, the current financial crisis began prior to Obama's administration. Second, many Wall Street firms that the protesters are rallying against, only continue to exist because Presidents Bush and Obama bailed them out at the start of the financial crisis.

Anyone who knows about free-market economics should understand that a government bailout has little to do with "free market" economics, for in a truly free market those firms would be left to fail without government intervention.

Some of the firms that Cain is defending, were even suspected of, or outright guilty of, criminal activity. They are not the paragons of freedom that Cain seems to suppose.

To frame this issue as a conflict between left and right ideologies is a gross oversimplification.  Occupy Wall Street is gaining mainstream support across the entire social and political spectrum. And it must be noted that, exercising freedom of speech to protest perceived inequities and injustices in society, is the living embodiment of the First Amendment. People, regardless of their political persuasion, have the right to "petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Also importantly, the movement is establishing a public discussion on the moral and social obligations that firms have towards people. Although firms have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize long-term profits, they also have a substantial social responsibility. It is morally right to simultaneously endeavor to earn profits and to improve the lives of the people with whom they do business. They also have a moral obligation to respect life and protect all people. 

These moral obligations are entirely consistent with the philosophy of corporate personhood. If a corporation is a person, then its rights end where the rights of others began. No corporation has the right to make profits at the expense of others' welfare. The Occupy Wall Street protesters charge this very thing.

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The protesters blame several firms for the financial crisis which has resulted in widespread unemployment, substantial national and household debt, and a bleak economic outlook, particularly for the nation's seniors and youth. And corporations have willfully engaged in behavior that contributes to these problems, yet not a single executive or politician has been taken to account for it. 

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Of course, if Presidential contender Herman Cain believes these demonstrators are merely masses of left-wing agitators, there is a prescription he could try, and that is if he is elected--to help to create jobs. After all, people with jobs and benefits are far less likely to complain and protest than those with a bleak outlook towards the future.

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