Cash rules everything around me - Wu-Tang Clan

By Roger Olds

John rolled slowly to a stop at the light. As he waited for it to change, he closed his eyes and remembered that afternoon when he destroyed an ant hill in the backyard. He recalled how he punched the air, rolled in the grass and looked up at the sky shouting ‘God! King of the Hill! Superman!’ right before his legs caught fire.

It taught him a powerful lesson, and hopefully, today his son John, Jr. and friends Keisha and Caleb will learn what he learned decades ago, the power of a community who know the real enemy and their strength against that enemy.

Caleb asked John, “Mr. Williams, how did you get this idea?”

John answered,

“When I was small, I stomped an ant hill into a flat bare patch of dead ants. Thirty seconds later, I was running into my house crying and removing my pants to find dozens of those ants onemillionth my size doing their part to stop a threat, me. There was no leader, no coordination, just action. Now, I walk around ant hills, not through them.”

“Ant pheromones!” contributed Caleb.

“Respect!” Keisha shouted, and gripped her “Black Lives Matter” sign a little tighter. They were on their way to a protest, but first they had to stop and open another account at a regional bank for John, Jr. That way his friends could watch him participate with his father in a new kind of protest for the first time.

As John and his young trio prepared to leave, the banker stood and said, “John, Jr.’s account is activated and his debit card should arrive next week. His savings will earn 1% interest, and as long as he maintains a minimum balance of $500, there will be no fees on withdrawals.” John smiled.

Junior’s paycheck would continue to go into Central National Bank, but his $9600 college savings would now be here in Acme, a regional bank.

The group was back in the car and headed downtown to the protest. John continued to explain, “My plan is simple. Move savings out of my regional bank when government is not passing laws protecting and helping Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers making minimum wage, ‘B-I-P-O-C-E’. My withdrawal of my money shouts ‘instability!’ and ‘lack of confidence in the economy!’ to nervous billionaires and business people. My picket sign tells them what I want done to restore my confidence and stability.

“I am a member of B-I-P-O-C-E, the U.S. voting majority, speaking our demands to power. Our mass marches in the streets to government office buildings are good, but long picket lines at banks........ long picket lines at banks, that’s better. I guarantee you billionaires won’t sleep well tonight!”

“Why, dad?” John Jr. looked puzzled.

“Billionaires don’t care about our social injustices. They only care about our money.”

“Are they stealing our money?!” John, Jr. looked upset now.

“No, son. Our economy allows regional banks to loan our money, our savings, to billionaires so they can make more money. It happens every day of the year as long as I have confidence in the economy and leave my money in Acme Regional Bank. If I and other protesters lose confidence in the economy and withdraw our savings, this economy becomes shaky and billionaires lose money.”

“So, my ‘confidence in the economy’ is my power. Now, all social injustice lowers my ‘confidence in the economy’. If legislation to help B-I-P-O-C-E fails, that lowers my ‘confidence in the economy’. I have the attention of people a million times richer than I who are using my money. I don’t need a leader to tell me when or where or how much cash to withdraw.

I withdraw my cash based on the billionaires’ priority to put money before the reduction of human sufferings. When they do that, I ‘bite’ hard. Not only are they hurting the people who do the essential work at their bidding, they are hurting the very hands that feed them!”

“Why cash, Mr. Williams?” Keisha asked. “We can act faster, easier, and anytime of day on the internet.”

“Marketing!” he answered with a broad smile. The protest march is like the “ant” pheromone to old Black people like me, and the cash withdrawal lines at our banks is our bite into the threat, billionaires. My Great Grandfather lived during Reconstruction and my Grandfather lived through the great depression in 1929. My Grandfather taught me to not trust banks. Grandma said money in land, not banks. I am passing it on to you. Threaten to withdraw or start to withdraw or even appear to be withdrawing your cash, and watch billionaires respect us the way I respect ants one-millionth my size.

Billionaires know that Junior’s savings are not cash dollars in the bank. Junior’s confidence is in the number $9600 in his savings account app, and his confidence that he can come to the bank on any business day and get his money in cash. That is true when hundreds ask for their cash. It might not be true when thousands ask for their cash.”

Caleb blurted out, “Cash rules everything around me, CREAM, get the money, dolla dolla bill y’all*! Wu-Tang Clan is at the bank! Https:// youtu.be/PBwAxmrE194.

John was caught at another red light, so he turned and looked at each one of them and said, “cash withdrawal makes a demand that is harder for regional banks to fulfill. It advertises your power like a bullhorn or 30-second popup ad. It is also safer for you, because the police cannot shoot rubber bullets at customers standing in a line 100 strong to enter their bank. Their time will be directed to managing the traffic jams you cause. But most importantly, each dollar has two words, ‘legal tender’, printed on its face that forces stores to accept your dollars. Stores do not have to accept your debit card as a form of payment.”

John massaged his chin like a judge giving a verdict, “if big business can support politicians and laws that benefit business with money earned from my savings, I can remove my savings based on my concerns about inequality and injustice in my community. Business cares about money; We care about social security and humanity. When legislation favors business over humanity, I can’t sleep. When I remove my cash and my ‘confidence in the economy’, they can’t sleep. We need to understand each other. They have lobbyists and We have legal protest signs in the streets. If We start lining up at our banks with our signs, they better read them, because We are not happy.”

“Has this been tried before, Mr. Williams?” Caleb asked.

“Yes, Caleb. We tried it last year, only, then it wasn’t spontaneous. A youngster was telling me about rave parties. I thought about the ants and my Grandfather then asked myself, ‘What are billionaires afraid of?’

The answer was long lines of ordinary citizens, withdrawing their money from banks. It was people lacking confidence in billionaires using their savings to make more billions. It was my Grandfather. Now, they are afraid of people’s general knowledge that their savings aren’t in the banks, but in construction materials and in each billionaire’s version of a trump tower and in company payroll checks at the end of the month and in inventories of products We have to buy at ridiculously high prices.

I along with some old college friends scheduled a rave. But, it wasn’t a party party. it was a ‘go draw yo’ money out the banks’ party in two states. In those states U.S. Senators were holding up legislation we needed for a national $15/hour minimum wage.”

John parked the car, closed his eyes and continued, “There were lines of protesters with $15/hour protest signs everywhere, quietly withdrawing their $200 and $300 from their accounts and putting them in their national bank accounts or under their mattresses. The public, bankers and billionaires only saw the long lines outside banks in West Virginia and Arizona. Before those two Senators could change their vote on the $15/ hour national minimum wage, two banks actually failed. Unfortunately, We didn’t get credit. Corruption took the credit for our two state raves of ‘no confidence’.” John laughed, shook his head and explained that it was a perfect storm. “Those states had three banks that were in trouble before We started withdrawing our money. It took the President going on national TV to correct the damage.

Listen, when the President of the United States comes on national television and says don’t worry, worry! Yes, corruption got the blame, but those Senators and their billionaire backers got the message. Walk around ant hills and Black communities. The bill for a $15/hour national minimum wage passed last December before Congress’s Christmas break. Now when a small group of BIPOCE line up with their picket signs and quietly wait outside banks, billionaires pay attention to the demands We have on our picket signs. We don’t have to do raves anymore. A small, quiet, spontaneous group in picket lines at banks on Monday after a loud march downtown on Sunday is usually enough to get our billionaires and legislators to remember, ‘if BIPOCE, Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers at minimum wage aren’t happy, ain’t nobody gonna be happy.’ There are no leaders for billionaires to threaten or to bribe or to negotiate an elitist deal. Leaders are not in control! It’s the pheromones in each protester. Since last year’s rave, it has entered into the ‘ways of knowing’ of most people among BIPOCE in Arizona and here in West Virginia that social injustice requires economic unrest to achieve genuine mutual respect between the billionaire owner and the $15/hour worker. Billionaires in Arizona and West Virginia have become more humane to all BIPOCE, because almost all of that group have a little bit of their Great Grandparents’ distrust of banks and the new BIPOCE pheromone ‘unhappy? go withdraw your money’. Bank failures and depressions got my Great Grandfather into this mess during the turn of the last century and the potential of bank failures is gonna get his Great Great Grandchildren out. No sane person intentionally kicks an ant hill.

Today, I taught Junior what my dad taught me: never put all your eggs in one basket. That is a good defensive strategy for your money. This afternoon I hope he learns something new, that two bank accounts are also a good offensive strategy to gain respect. People my age value having two bank accounts and cold cash over debit cards and cash apps.

Downtown We should see spontaneity and a new type of protest against the Senator in our state who is blocking legislation protecting Voting Rights. It’s before Congress next week and a lot of people are upset. I think you’ll like this new “ant” mentality.” We act on our own depending on our feelings on issues before Congress. We realize almost all issues affect our pocketbooks. Often 70 to 80% of the country want a particular issue resolved, but Congress can’t get it done because of money in politics.”

“The group supporting our Senator against this bill are business executives across the river in Ohio,” John Jr. volunteered.

“Right,” replied Caleb, “and business owners sleep well as long as I am happy with my savings in the bank collecting that 1% interest year after year. We sleep well too, because it is insured.”

John had a serious look as he locked the car. “Our money is insured, but business owners have millions in uninsured deposits in the same regional banks that provide the lifeblood to their companies to make more profits. Some of those profits are being used to try to stop our Voting Rights bill. The action of money creating more money takes place in regional banks.”

Caleb gathered the protest signs and distributed each to the group as they joined the people chanting and marching the few blocks to the Capitol.

There were thousands of people surrounding the building. Caleb found a spot, and they joined the crowd shouting the slogans printed on their signs. Everyone was waving to all cars as they passed.

After an hour of speeches and 30 minutes of protest chants, an elderly woman to John’s left and a group of retired soldiers to Keisha’s right shouted, “it’s time to go to the banks!”, “to the banks!”. The crowd slowly started chanting “remember the fight for minimum wage”. The crowd dispersed. Each went their separate way. John took his group north back to the car and the closest branch of Acme Regional Bank.

As they approached, they saw a dozen people then two dozen standing quietly in line with picket signs. A guard was just outside the door of the bank admitting people as each group exited. Unlike the Capitol grounds, there was almost no noise. People silently waited in single file. While John and his trio waited, a reporter came up to him and asked, “why are you standing in line?”

He responded, “we need the Voting Rights legislation passed. Until it does, I have little confidence in our economy.”

The reporter scratched his head and asked, “what does Voting Rights have to do with the economy?”

Mr. Williams looked at him eye-to-eye and said, “We need the Voting Rights bill passed. Until it does, I have little ‘confidence in our economy’.”

“Do you have anything else to say?”

“No comment.” The line inched forward. The reporter went to a woman, and asked the same questions. She said, “No Voting Rights. No confidence.” to every question. An old protester in overalls and a t-shirt explained to the reporter, “police brutality makes me lose confidence in the system. Let me take my money out and put it under my mattress where I can use it and the bankers and billionaires can’t.”

The door of the bank opened. Three picketers with their signs quietly walked out and across the street to Central National Bank and got in line. The Williams group inched forward. Soon it was John, jr and his father’s turn to enter the bank. Caleb and Keisha remained outside and held the signs. The two went in and withdrew part of their savings. When they came out, all four walked across the street to get in line at Central National Bank.

The same reporter saw them in the Central National Bank line, and asked, “why are you over here?”

John Jr. replied this time, “We need voting rights legislation. Until We have it, We have little confidence in the economy”. John Jr. smiled. He wanted to say more, but he resisted and quietly and proudly held his sign.

This time it was Keisha who volunteered in a soft voice, “CREAM get the money, dolla dolla bill y’all.*” She then saluted the reporter. “Credit that quote to the Wu-Tang Clan in your article.”

Finally, it was time to enter Central National Bank. The two went in, but this time they didn’t withdraw money. They deposited the money they had just received and went back out to join Caleb and Keisha.

They hurried around the block to the Acme Regional Bank line which was wrapped around the corner, and they waited in line a second time. John, Jr. and his father repeated the process through Acme and back to Central National Bank. The reporter asked, “you back?”

John looked serious and replied, “my confidence fell as I saw the lines grow. We need Voting Rights legislation now.” They got into their car to go. The lines continued to grow. On the way home, they saw other banks with groups of people quietly holding their signs.

Keisha volunteered.

“That was Rad! Will you do it again tomorrow, Mr. Williams?”

“Yes,” John replied, “We’ll do it for the next three days, and then, We’ll march with the crowds on the weekend for two final days, but no bank visits. We’ll wait to see what happens with our Senator on Monday.”

“Is that the way you normally do it?” Keisha continued.

“Yes. First, I make my usual protest sign and go downtown and picket in support of the legislation. If We have the votes, that’s all I do. If there are undecided or problem legislators, I take my picket sign to Acme before it opens at 10:00 and withdraw $1000.

I walk down the block and deposit $1000 in Central Bank.

Second, I quietly chant a slogan in line outside the bank if there are only a few protesters.

I repeat my chant and continue to transfer $1000 for four days before the vote or until we have the votes necessary to pass it.”

“What if the bill fails?” Caleb, the devil’s advocate, smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

“I chant ‘my confidence in big business is gone’. The bill was defeated,” John smiled. Then I take my phone and wire all but $500 of my Acme savings to my Central Bank and go home.

Finally, after three or four months, I quietly move the money back to Acme or another regional bank if Acme has failed. I file for insurance replacement of Acme’s saving, if necessary, and place the savings in a new regional bank. Then I prepare for the next micro fight against big business and its need to always make more money.

When you are talking with your friends”, John said very slowly, “remember to tell them billionaires have money. That’s power. But BIPOCE has money and provide the confidence in billionaires’ use of our money to make more money. That’s power too.”

John listened to the conversation of the young adults in his driveway. Keisha, Caleb and Junior were starting to understand that billionaires brought money into politics. So BIPOCE must take money out of the economy by making their savings in regional banks unavailable if billionaires and politicians will not solve social injustices and will not provide basic human rights. Billionaires can use their own money to invest and make more money instead of BIPOCE savings. BIPOCE power is centered in the regional banks where the economy functions and billionaires are born.

John started chanting Wu-Tang and went into the house. He left praying that these conversations today would be repeated a thousand times more by the end of Spring. He hoped they would spread to all countries where billionaires rule. He could see it, a future when “Respect on Earth; good will toward BIPOCE” can be accomplished with a sustainable profit for business.

“That was a good day.” Keisha said again. “i’m going to open my accounts before the next vote for the George Floyd act in July.”

Caleb added, “i’m going to ask dad to put my college savings in a regional bank. This guy is going to put his money where his mouth is. ‘No Justice, No Peace.’ ‘No Justice, No Money!’ “

“Awesome,” John Jr. sighed, “JAH speaks through ants!? Just like ants, I can command respect from enemies a million times my size if I know my strength against their weakness.”

“And I have to be satisfied with equality and justice in a nation before I put my confidence in its economy,” Keisha chimed in. Caleb turned to John Jr., “here’s to ants and the individual, spontaneous action of the many!”

John, jr sighed again and announced, “imagine that! Ants teaching Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers making minimum wage how to command Respect. And it’s“ “ACTION!” they all shouted with one voice.

*Wu-Tang Clan official youtube video.

Purple Lanes: Minnesota highway signs to honor Prince

By Steve Karnowski Associated Press

The late pop superstar Prince will have a highway named after him in his home state, following a vote by Minnesota lawmakers Thursday.

The Senate vote was 55-5 to rename the highway that runs past Prince’s Paisley Park museum and studios. Among those watching was his oldest sister, Sharon Nelson. The bill passed the House unanimously last month on the seventh anniversary of Prince’s death, and now goes to Gov. Tim Walz, who is expected to sign.

Purple signs will soon go up along a seven-mile stretch of State Highway 5 in the Minneapolis suburbs of Chanhassen and Eden Prairie — designating it the Prince

Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway. Prince’s friends and fans are footing the bill, said the lead sponsor, Republican Sen. Julia Coleman, of Waconia.

“Prince was a true genius, a visionary artist who pushed the boundaries of music and cultures in ways that will never be forgotten,” Coleman told her fellow senators. “His influence can be heard in the work of countless musicians who came after him, and his legacy continues to inspire new generations of artists to this day.”

Paisley Park, where Prince lived and recorded, now draws visitors from around the world.

Paisley Park is also where Prince died on April 21, 2016, of an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 57. The 65,000-square-foot complex in Chanhassen is now a museum run by his estate as well as an event venue and recoding studio.

Sharon Nelson told reporters her brother’s music will live forever, and that his spirit “sneaks up on me sometimes.” And she urged fans to take the tour and see his 3,000 shoes on display.

The idea to name the highway after Prince came three years ago from Mark Webster, a longtime friend of the star who works security at Paisley Park. He was among the fans who gathered at the Minnesota Capitol to celebrate the vote. He said they’ll find a date that works for fans soon for the signs to go up.

Prince’s birthday was June 7, but he didn’t celebrate birthdays because he was a Jehovah’s Witness. The singer, songwriter, arranger and instrumentalist broke through in the late 1970s and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. He created hits including “Little Red Corvette,” “Let’s Go Crazy” and “When Doves Cry,” and sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

Several years ago, Prince’s 1984 “Purple Rain” was added by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry. After a six-year legal battle that consumed tens of millions of dollars, the Internal Revenue Service and the estate administrator put the value of his estate at $156.4 million. Since Prince died without a will, his six surviving siblings at the time of his death were designated as his heirs. The three youngest eventually sold most of their interests to the music company Primary Wave.