The Occupy Wall Street movement is frequently criticized as ineffectual, especially when compared to the Tea Party. (Here, ineffectual refers to their ability to induce legislative or regulatory change aligned with their respective movement; it is not a normative statement.) Adherents of OWS often state that it is a consequence of their movement's organic character or that it is intentional. (I find the later argument incredulous, kind of like saying, "I lost, but I wasn't really trying that hard.") In either case, this tactic could be highly persuasive.
Ross says,
Our purpose in doing this, aside from helping some people along the way – there's certainly many, many people who are very thankful that their debts are abolished – our primary purpose was to spread information about the workings of this secondary debt market.
I suspect that spreading information about the "workings of the secondary debt market" is a very tall task. Certainly, they are getting a great deal of publicity, but I'm not convinced it will produce a lasting response. Yet, they have also purchased what I expect would be an atypically strong allegiance from almost 3,000 direct beneficiaries at about $5,000 each. They transmuted economic indebtedness for social obligation, by way of the rule of reciprocity. When you consider how vehemently, vocally, and persistently these individuals are likely to support OWS and their objectives, the influence purchased may be cheaper than traditional means (e.g. TV ads, direct mail, etc). And, it could be indirectly translated into more influence through votes.
Ross says,
I suspect that spreading information about the "workings of the secondary debt market" is a very tall task. Certainly, they are getting a great deal of publicity, but I'm not convinced it will produce a lasting response. Yet, they have also purchased what I expect would be an atypically strong allegiance from almost 3,000 direct beneficiaries at about $5,000 each. They transmuted economic indebtedness for social obligation, by way of the rule of reciprocity. When you consider how vehemently, vocally, and persistently these individuals are likely to support OWS and their objectives, the influence purchased may be cheaper than traditional means (e.g. TV ads, direct mail, etc). And, it could be indirectly translated into more influence through votes.