I am a longtime admirer of the Times, finding the editors and board in this highly partisan region to be level and fair in their observations of things political. I particularly appreciate the willingness to accept expressions of opinion across the whole spectrum.

I have been surprised, moved to anger and wonder at why in their Oct. 9 editorial they chose to blow off the Occupation Movement seemingly so casually. I hope they will take my polemics with a grain of salt and move on to give the kids another good look.

They are no longer content to be invisible. This is why those out of work and never able to find work are camping out. Gradually over the past 40 years or so, loopholes and advantages legislated by Congress and signed by presidents have given immense advantage to certain groups. This favorable treatment has been purchased by the multinationals and industrialists and those who service their money on Wall Street.

It seems obvious to me and, I would think anyone willing to take off their ideological hat, that the system as it has been operating these past 40 years is distributing — through transfer to and concentration of — money (and its power) among a smaller group of people. As a consequence, money and the quality of life it makes possible is being stripped from larger and larger segments of the population. There is no reason to believe that unchecked it will not continue to greater extremes.

For examples, our government has made no effort to change the basics of this system. It closes failing small banks and turns them over to the FDIC but simply pours money into failing big banks with virtually no conditions other than continuing as they have done to create this situation. Georgia Power ratepayers are seeing the example of the power of the nuclear industry to secure development funds with the blessing of the state government.

Everywhere one looks, the evidence of money and politics tilting the playing field is there. Ron Paul has said we are almost there as to his vision of pure laissez-faire economics. It is his vision, not Merriam-Webster's.

An industrialist was quoted the other day approving our wages now approaching equality with those of Asia. It is just dandy for the multinationals that average U.S. income has fallen over 10 percent in the past four years. That after it had been flat since the 1970s.

Anecdotally, I ask most of the young people who serve me when I eat out about their education and future plans. I have found the pool of college graduates that industry says aren't there to fill jobs they claim are open and they want to import cheap labor from India to fill — the only immigration bill now before Congress.

It is my hope that by making visible the way it is for so many people of worth as they struggle to do the right thing will be followed by creative and fair remedies.

Lorraine Watkins
Dawsonville