Greets and saluts from the NYC metro area. I work not far from Zuccotti Park and will be keeping tabs on events as conditions permit/warrant.

My sense of the protesters to date is that there’s a cadre of hardcore professional protesters, and then a bunch of folks who come in on the weekends or after work to swell the numbers - significantly more this past weekend than during the first two weeks.

I don’t think most folks who are working down here give them much thought, and while Zuccotti Park is near to Wall Street, it’s still far enough away to be out-of-sight, out-of-mind. I think they’ve found their bearings some in that they’ve oriented their protests towards Broadway rather than Church - maximizing visibility.

The real action starts today though as a group of unions are expected to join in marches/protests. We’ll see if that adds gravitas and lasting power, or whether it’s a short lived boost.

But whether this actually motivates politicians to act or spurs political action to get candidates who are aligned with views of the protesters? It’s a possibility.

The lunatic fringe is present among these protesters (the anti-Semite fringe) and that’s plenty troublesome for me. It’s reason enough to keep them at arm’s length.

Thing is that there are enough problems with the way Wall Street does business and how insulated it is from actionable change that improves things for most folks that something has to be done.

But I keep reminding myself that the reason that NYC and NYS were in dire fiscal straits during 2007-2010 was because Wall Street essentially collapsed and with it the tax revenues that kept the city and state afloat. That forced the city and state to shift tax burdens to reduce the impact. Some of the tax burden fell on the same groups of people now protesting (or should be protesting) after real estate taxes or other taxes and fees were increased.

A stock tax trust fund may make some sense - a penny per stock transaction could raise significant funds, with say 50% going into a trust fund to cover future financial crises (along the lines of an FDIC/FSLIC but for brokerages and lenders to keep credit flowing). The other 50% could go towards dedicated debt reduction or to fund health care reform.

Considering that an average day sees billions of stocks transacted (4.5 billion in the S&P 500 alone), revenues could quickly build up. 45 million a day. That’s going to add up quick - and even if the costs are tacked on to the trader, it would generate 11+ billion ($45 million x 5 days a week x 52 weeks) a year with little drag.

But that would be too rational.