Mission merchants were divided Wednesday over whether Oakland’s general strike protesting the economic environment makes sense.
“They’re making a mistake over there,” said Ferris Oran, an employee at Pagertown on Mission Street. A strike, he said, is bad for the economy. “We can’t close even for one hour.”
Tony Montero from TravelNet Vacations, at 2515 Mission St., agreed. “Why close? I think it’s a waste of time,” he said. People just have nothing better to do, he said.
Others, like Chris Saoud, an employee at Valencia Whole Foods, liked the idea of a strike. “If the local businesses around here were doing it, I’d support it,” he said. “It’s a great cause; it’s beautiful.”
But even Saoud acknowledged, “No one’s going to pay our bills.”
One of his customers, a friendly woman in a bright pink sweater who works as a private chef for a Missionite down the street, said she would be upset if stores closed.
Saoud pointed and nodded as if to say, see, they want us open.
She acknowledged that it would be a small inconvenience to have to drive to another part of the city, but still, she said, “I’d be upset.”
John Ng of Vimy Electronics, 2250 Mission St., said he would consider striking if the economy were better and his livelihood didn’t depend so heavily on each day’s income. This year, he said, he would close the store if protests were happening on Mission Street, but only to protect it from vandalism.
No one seemed to think the general strike would make a big difference for the 99 percent. “I don’t know,” Saoud said. “These days nobody seems to listen.”
The fact that no one is listening is why Ramon Gonzales of Angie’s Jewelry said a strike makes sense. From his vantage point behind the counter, he sees desperation. “People sell their gold because they’re losing their home. People are selling everything.”
It would be good to close the whole Mission for one day, he said. “That way the government knows it’s not alright with [the people],” he said referring to the economic disparity.
Other merchants sympathized with Oakland’s message but disagreed with the tactics. “I get the whole deal; I get the frustration,” said Carlos Corujo at Freewheel Bike Shop on Valencia. But instead of a general strike, he suggested a “no bank card day,” to protest the banking industry’s power.
John Wolfe, an employee of Dog Eared Books, thinks striking in San Francisco sounds “fine and dandy,” but he’s not sure how practical it is.
Certainly, it’s a noble idea, he said, but “You don’t want to be first or last.” He’d love to participate though, if enough other Mission merchants were doing it, too.
It is obviously a total waste of time especially since it accomplishes absolutely nothing. It is a pointless waste of time that punishes only the locals (i.e. those living near the squalid encampments, the local business owners whose businesses get shut down by the protests, etc.)
A national boycott against large banks would make a lot more sense but less fun for the immature adolescent anarchists….