"The Church of England and the Church Universal have a proper interest in the ethics of the financial world and in the question of whether our financial practices serve those who need to be served – or have simply become idols that themselves demand uncritical service." - Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury (link)

"Our financial industry has grown so large and rich it has corrupted our real institutions through political donations. As Senator Richard Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, bluntly said in a 2009 radio interview, despite having caused this crisis, these same financial firms 'are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they, frankly, own the place.'" (link)

"Democratic power is an organizational, relational affair. If there is any hope of creating a balance of power in our society, one that can hold elites accountable to the rest of us, it will have to come from grassroots organizing." --Jeffrey Stout

"Countercultures and alternative systems can be nurturing, educational, illuminating, inspiring — and these are not small things — but they do not bring about fundamental change. Food co-ops, for example, make a difference, but they won’t much alter the way Big Food operates. Historically, the route to fixing broken systems goes through struggle, confrontation and even revolution." --Mark Bittman (Source: here)

"You can view both the Tea Party and Occupy as affirmative answers to the question, 'Is there a power imbalance in our society?' when we consider business, government and populace. They agree that the populace has been disempowered and disorganized (the Tea Party was primarily a reaction against the power of government, Occupy as a reaction against the power of business). One could argue that the Tea Party moved too quickly to assert its relevance (and one could wonder about how being bankrolled forced this) and that the movement would have gained more traction if given more time to develop their own senses of power and to think about how to be political in ways other than voting. The time that Occupy is taking may allow them to learn not to ask from others what they can do themselves and to be more imaginative. There's a power in that."

"We are speaking to each other, and listening. This occupation is first about participation. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers streamed into Foley Square on Wednesday—labor unions rolled out, students walked out. The occupation of Wall Street grew to resemble the city we live in. What race, age, religion, occupation did we represent? None of them. All of them. Barricaded in by steel pens, surrounded by a thousand cops and NYPD helicopters above, we saw our power reflected in their need to control us. But just as this is our movement, it is our narrative too. The exhausted political machines and their PR slicks are already seeking leaders to elevate, messages to claim, talking points to move on. They, more than anyone, will attempt to seize and shape this moment. They are racing to reach the front of the line. But how can they run out in front of something that is in front of them? They cannot. For Wall Street and Washington, the demand is not on them to give us something that isn’t theirs to give. It’s ours. It’s on us. We aren’t going anywhere. We just got here." (Source: here)

"So who’s really being un-American here? Not the protesters, who are simply trying to get their voices heard. No, the real extremists here are America’s oligarchs, who want to suppress any criticism of the sources of their wealth." --Paul Krugman (source: here)

"We don’t want higher standards of living. We want better standards of living." --Slavoj Zizek (reported here)

"Going in the right direction...go further! Democracy now! Shift to community owned and guided financial institutions, employee owned enterprises, investment toward a green economy, and proactive creative citizens who don't act like slaves!" --Romand Coles

Between the loci of power in our country (business, government, and the populace) is there an imbalance of power? Which has too much power? Some would say business, some would say government. Regardless, we need more grassroots organization.

Defund the top five banks. Start an alternative bank.

Too big to fail is too big.

“Paul Krugman’s blog for president.” -Sign at OWS (reported here)

In addition to other needs, Occupy Wall Street needs books.

"Civil disobedience is part and parcel of the American democratic process." - Cornel West

"It is not un-American to ask questions on behalf of the tired, poor and huddled masses. An elite may be patriotic, but the patriot cannot be elitist."

When corporations grow, they also gain power. That power can be used to imprison the free market. What then does the libertarian do?