The Occupy Handbook

by Janet Byrne

Analyzing the movement's deep-seated origins in questions that the country has sought too long to ignore, some of the greatest economic minds and most incisive cultural commentators - from Paul Krugman, Robin Wells, Michael Lewis, Robert Reich, Amy Goodman, Barbara Ehrenreich, Gillian Tett, Scott Turow, Bethany McLean, Brandon Adams, and Tyler Cowen to prominent labor leaders and young, cutting-edge economists and financial writers whose work is not yet widely known - capture the Occupy Wall Street phenomenon in all its ragged glory, giving readers an on-the-scene feel for the movement as it unfolds while exploring the heady growth of the protests, considering the lasting changes wrought, and recommending reform.

A guide to the occupation, The Occupy Handbook is a talked-about source for understanding why 1% of the people in America take almost a quarter of the nation's income and the long-term effects of a protest movement that even the objects of its attack can find little fault with.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Economics, History, Essays, Activism, Public Policy

560 pages, Paperback

First published April 17, 2012

Reviews

[Aryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I was reading this book that I received from Goodreads Giveaways, I came across this article written by Stephen King. Tax Me, for F@%&’s Sake! I found it very appropriate, considering the book I was reading.

This collection of essays by some 50+ economists, and other various intelligent people, on the validity of the Occupy Wall Street movement and what can be accomplished through it, really opened my eyes in a lot of ways. I agree with what OWS stands for, and I do agree with the way it's been carried out so far - it truly is only in its baby stages. I guess "opened my eyes," was the wrong phrase. I think what this book did was clear up a lot of the issues behind OWS. While I have agreed with the movement, and did camp out a couple days, the exact hows and whys of well, how and why our country is so fucked at the moment pretty much eluded me. I knew there was something wrong with the financial sector. I knew there was something wrong with the education system. I knew there was a mortgage crisis. I knew there was a vast disparity in both wealth and political belief in the country. But I'm no economist.

This book was paramount to seeing people who hold my beliefs but are much, much smarter than I am, explaining in both words I can understand and more eloquently than I could have, how and why we got here, along with a handful of suggestions for solutions. Oh, there were essay that went way the fuck over my head, using graphs and dense terminology that left me scratching my head; that's really the only reason this book got four instead of five stars. But the essays that made me think, "OH! I actually get it!" on issues that I have always wished for a better understanding of, by far outweighed those that left me lost and confused.

Align yourself with the OWS movement? Not really sure what OWS wants? Feel as though OWS isn't being carried out effectively? Simply curious? Read this book. It was long and hard to read sometimes, and certainly requires undivided attention, but it was 100% worth it.

[Mel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hate this book.

I really tried to give it a chance. But I knew going in that any book about occupy that was compiled by someone described as "an editor who has worked with Nobel Prize-winning economists, Pulitzer Prize-winning writers, and leading political figures, financial journalists, academics, and bestselling authors" was going to be a shit show. And a shit show it was.

It isn't that all the essays are crap. Some of them are quite good. The first section breaks down the financial crisis and brings in some history of previous people's movements. The second section talks about occupy itself. The third section, the part that really sealed my hatred, is about what we should do now.

What are the proposed solutions? Campaign finance reform. Corporate regulations. Environmental regulations. Progressive taxation. Elect a different congress. Smart loans...Are you still awake? The only reason I haven't passed out from boredom is that I want shake these people until their heads pop off.

Dear asshats who think everything will be solved if we just all rally around one magic, conservative/liberal bullet like ending corporate personhood. Please take your brilliant idea to someone sitting in prison for twenty years on a weed charge, with all the fabulous opportunities they have to look forward to when they get out, and tell them they need to set aside their pet issues (aka their life) and lobby for some bullshit bill. And if you wouldn't mind filming that for me.

But the contributors to this book weren’t thinking about people in prison. They weren’t thinking about anything that doesn’t affect them. And who are they? There are 66 contributors to this book. Fifteen of them are women. One of those women is just an interviewer. Eight of them are co-authors with some dude. One of those women is Asian. There is one black man who contributed an essay. Three Indians (by which I mean grew up in India) are contributors. 61 of the 66 authors are white (though eight of those people are from Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Spain, or Turkey). 52 out of 66 authors have grad degrees. At least 35 of them went to school or taught at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, MIT, Georgetown, or Oxford.

This book is the antithesis of what occupy was supposed to be about. The book oozes status, hierarchy, academic circle jerks, and conservative/liberal "solutions" that nip around the edges of the system, but have no interest in actually changing it - much less getting rid of it. This book is the worst kind of racism, sexism, and classism. It is the kind that just erases anyone outside of their tiny elite circle. It is the kind that wraps itself up in a pretty package of intellectualism.

The reason occupy has been so damn difficult is that the people involved had to confront head on all of the issues that this book ignores – often failing spectacularly. But at least there was some space for people who didn’t have the kind of pedigrees that the contributors to this book have. The reason occupy took off is precisely because it created a space for people to be heard, to negotiate directly with other people, to come up with ideas outside the usual bullshit that kept most of us at home drinking ourselves into stupors and yelling at our televisions.

The last thing we need is a bunch of essays compiled by some woman who creams her pants every time she meets a white dude with a PhD from an Ivy League school.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

With 56 pieces by 67 authors, almost anyone is going to find chapters that are insightful and inspiring and others that are academic bloviating or pie in the sky fantasy. The book is divided into 3 broad sections-- How We Got Here, Where We Are Now and Solutions. It's probably best as a book to poke through. Most of the chapters are 5 to 8 pages long and stand alone so it's a good one to put it on the back of your toilet and see what influence it has on you and your friends. If you don't get around to reading the whole book, be sure to read these chapters: Unions Build the Middle Class, Where is the Demand for Redistribution? and Medicare for All.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the 'Occupy Handbook' to be a very comprehensive and enlightening read. The number, diversity and quality of the authors was incredible. The short chapters kept it interesting, though most wrote in a manner that even a mental midget like myself could understand. I greatly appreciated editor Byrne's approach of not looking at just the Occupy protestors and what they've accomplished, but also spending equal time on the the build up to the economic crisis and where the organization should go. It was refreshing to find more than just a few articles that didn't just glorify the group(s), but provided feasible goals that could convince many more non-anarchist Americans to utilize their first Amendment rights on.

[Mallory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even for someone as economically-illiterate as me, this is a good book to read. With contributions from a wide range of authors, from Nobel-prize winning economists to knowledgeable reporters, from Paul Volcker to Matt Taibbi, in all sorts of styles. Some of the articles are dense enough to be plucked out of an economics textbook, while others are filled with reporting, opinions, and concise analysis. There's humor, outrage, concrete policy solutions, and so much you might not have known in this book. Pick up a copy of this book, and let it occupy your bookshelf.

[Nicole Schwenkbeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think my favorite part of this book were the suggested solutions made by many of the contributors. A financial transactions tax, principle reductions for homeowners who are underwater, and serious reforms to our student loan programs are just a few ideas that would put real focus on rebuilding our middle class and making our economy more equitable for all.

[David Melbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not only does this book have much in that helps define the OWS movement, but it is also full of ideas and solutions by a host of people on how we can fix our failing systems. Very informative and useful.

[Ailith Twinning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, at least 20% of these essay were good, but I don't recommend bothering. Read the other reviews for what people thought really, I'm just not invested in this one.

[Sophie Wang · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to inequality but a flawed one. Could have been greatly improved with a wider variety of contributions.

[Greg Talbot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Consider that even with Twitter, Facebook, petitions to white House and just about any new form of digital communication, the protest heard most loudly from the financial crisis came from the collective at Zuccotti Park in New York.

“The Occupy Handbook” is an enlivened, spirited book from some of the leading educators and cultural theorists who write about the milieu and financial consequences of the crash. Contributers include: Paul Krugman, Michael Lewis, Robert Schiller, Jeffrey Sachs, Robert Reich, Matt Taibbi and Tom Verlaine, Robert Buckley and many others.

Arranged into time-related sections – how we got here, where we are now, solutions; the breadth and range of issues this book covers is reflective of the competing ideas of the OWS movement. The central criticism of the movement was it’s nebulous demands and non-defined platform. As expressed here, the cause of the financial crisis may be understood (unregulated debt that fueled the boom then bust housing market and consequencial economic fallout), but the concerns all are related to the failed global capitalist model: unprecendented wealth inequality, the recall of New Deal measures, exorbitant healthcare costs, inflated prices for higher education, big money in elections and absent criminal proceedings for bank executives for the crisis.

Disparate voices and ideas remind us of some of the problematic trends and universal truths. Human beings are more than beef on sticks. Business is an aspect of life, not it’s totality. There are very real solutions: including progressive taxation, re-instating the Dodd-Frank Bill to separate investment and commercial banking, publically finance elections and universal healthcare.

OWS may have been the impetus, and it’s message and appeal have far outlived the encampments on Wall Street. History suggests these movements waves, and when a fire starts to burn in the conscious of the American public, turn change may happen yet.

[Davina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of various essays, and so, the quality varies greatly. Some of the articles are quite good. Others can use some help. One argument which really bothered me was this: this author argued that there was a redistribution of wealth from young to old. His proof was that the average 65 year old head of household has greater wealth than a 35 year old head of household, and that this gap has grown over the last 30 years. What he failed to deal with was some simple items. Biggest wealth item in the middle class is typically a home, and at age 65 with retirement looming, it's more likely to be paid off and so have more equity than a 35 year old. Also, when you include real estate holdings, the value of a 30 year old home has gone up a great deal. Whether I see that as being the fault of the AARP is a stretch. And, the gap may have grown for 2 reasons, with the first being a huge rise in the value of homes over the last 30 years, and the switch from defined benefit pensions to define contribution plans like 401k, IRA, etc. The latter are included in wealth stats and the other not, since you can't borrow from your pension nor pass it on, other than survivor benefits. And, while I appreciated the explanation of the anarchist viewpoints for my own education, to treat these utopian dreams as legitimate forms of national organization seems to demean the serious character of the book. OWS still exists in one sense, and, in others, has passed as the police cracked down on all the encampments. It is worthy to ask what the movement has accomplished and look for it's follow ons. Various authors did speculate in their essays on what's next. It would be interesting to study OWS and look for those impacts using these prognostications as a starting point. Interesting, but do be careful, as not all viewpoints are as well grounded.

[Susan Steed · Rating 2 out of 5]

Broadsnark's review of this nails one of the key issues of the book:

"But the contributors to this book weren’t thinking about people in prison. They weren’t thinking about anything that doesn’t affect them. And who are they? There are 66 contributors to this book. Fifteen of them are women. One of those women is just an interviewer. Eight of them are co-authors with some dude. One of those women is Asian. There is one black man who contributed an essay. Three Indians (by which I mean grew up in India) are contributors. 61 of the 66 authors are white (though eight of those people are from Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Spain, or Turkey). 52 out of 66 authors have grad degrees. At least 35 of them went to school or taught at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, MIT, Georgetown, or Oxford.

This book is the antithesis of what occupy was supposed to be about. The book oozes status, hierarchy, academic circle jerks, and conservative/liberal "solutions" that nip around the edges of the system, but have no interest in actually changing it - much less getting rid of it. This book is the worst kind of racism, sexism, and classism. It is the kind that just erases anyone outside of their tiny elite circle. It is the kind that wraps itself up in a pretty package of intellectualism."

I totally agree with this analysis.

And there are some good essays in it. The contributions from David Graeber, Michael Lewis and Michael Hudson I particularly liked. But the solutions in no way fit with the problems identified. You have someone like Graeber talking about the violence of capitalism, and then some academics clearly just tweaking a essay they have written elsewhere for this book.

[Widhyanto Muttaqien · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compilation about the roots of social movement in America and the searching for the prosperity, equality, and sustainability for future generation. Is about how to re-structuring 'our' politic, economic, and the mass (media) and dump any kind of junkies business (monkey biz, corruption and ignorance of others - the poor). Pro poor not just subsidize the poor, but to enforcing law with equality- and give them a chance with intervention of the government who's respect themselves, be confidence to re- create The State

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Free copy received from a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

This book tackles the economic questions of our day from many different perspectives. It has a huge range of authors, the chapters are really short so it's easy to just flip through and read a couple at a time. I agree with some authors more than others, but the topics were intriguing.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to say thank you for my giveaway.

This was a very interesting book to read. With short chapters it kept you interested in what was happening in the book. Covers a lot of familiar stuff that is familiar to those that already know about economic inequality. It has a wide breadth of authors that may add some insights on how to solve some of our problems.

[Melinda · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got this book for free from Goodreads first reads more than a year ago. I really tried to finish, but I just couldn't. I was hoping to gain some insight about the Occupy Movement, but instead I got several essays that talked around it. Some gave background, some gave opinions, but none of them worked together to tell me the whole story.

[Kent Winward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The roster of writers is a veritable who's who of progressive thinkers on the economy. The book is well balanced and doesn't proffer a simple solution to a complex set of problems.

Mostly it inspired me to be more politically vocal and focus on the issues that really impact people in their day to day lives.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very fascinating, easy to understand for someone who doesn't have any background in economics, and a great read overall for anyone wanting to know why Occupy Wall Street came about, what they wanted, and what worldwide events led up to it, as well as suggestions by many experts to fix what's wrong with the country.

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simply put, this is just an incredibly diverse collection that connects a lot of shorter pieces together around the Occupy Movement. Labor leaders, economists, journalists, radicals, and a whole range give great articles to contribute to the discussion. There is nothing incredibly groundbreaking here, but a broad collection of brief contributions. Everyone will find a little gem.

[Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book to better understand the OWS movement, with contributions from a wide array of authors and experts. It took me awhile to read but it opened my eyes to how we need change in this country.

First-Reads Giveaway

[Daeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of essays analyzes the Occupy Wall Street movement. Although some of the essays were dry, overall I found the book to be highly informative in terms of both placing the movement in historical context and understanding the issues discussed.

[Brendan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really only wanted to read this so I could find out how those hand signals work that everyone keeps going on about but they don't actually explain the hand signals so I say twinkly fingers to this thing.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

a pretty good overview of what caused this economic funk we're in, where we're at now, and how to bring about real change to our broken system

[Joe]

Covers a lot of familiar stuff that is familiar to those that already know about economic inequality but it has a wide breadth of authors that may add some insights.

[Djflippy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty thorough overview of the movement, diverse opinions from a number of activists from all walks of life, thoughtfully collected in one volume.

[Ginger Heskett]

I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/14342409

[Anthony Faber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good collection of essays by some heavy hitters. Long, but worth reading.