"OWS one of the most important developments of the decade"

[Alceste]

From Glenn Greenwald:

"What makes this activism particularly impressive is that it is designed to build an ongoing and highly effective support network. Rather than indiscriminately dumping the clothing at various encampments, FDL [firedoglake] has built a network of liasons and representatives to ensure that it goes to the places that need it most, and that it reaches those who will use it for its intended purpose: primarily, the “sleeper” protesters, largely impoverished, who form the backbone of the camps. Beyond that, FDL has expended great efforts to ensure that the goods it distributes are manufactured not in Chinese sweatshops but rather entirely by American unions — a difficult challenge in this age of disappearing American industry — which in turn ensures that the workers producing the products enjoy health insurance, living wages, and a decent standard of living: aims of the Occupy movement itself.

That last point underscores one of the most significant aspects of the Occupy movement: that it is not devoted to voicing grievances as much as it is finding a model to solve them. It’s one thing to demand middle class conditions for American workers; it’s another to help sustain them by patronizing unionized manufacturers. It’s the difference between talking and doing, and that difference has quietly fueled the Occupy movement from the start."

(emphasis added)

Disclosure: I have a brain crush on Glenn Greenwald.

[Kilgore Trout]

It's certainly an interesting notion. I suppose time will tell whether this particular movement will have any meaningful impact on society in the coming years.

[Father Heathen]

Just the fact that a sizable segment of society is not sitting at home in from of the television watching the game or celebrity gossip, or shopping at the mall chasing fleeting fads is a huge step forward. And the fact that a lot of people's political awareness and activism has finally gone beyond bumper stickers is another plus.

[Alceste]

Originally Posted by Kilgore Trout

It's certainly an interesting notion. I suppose time will tell whether this particular movement will have any meaningful impact on society in the coming years.

I think the most significant impact it is having at this moment may be on the hundreds of thousands of people who are participating in it. Rather than sitting at home whinging and moaning about how broken the system is, they are discovering they can create microcosms of a better system themselves, working together. They can feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, revitalize American manufacturing, heal the sick (within the limits of their resources), organise themselves using a consensus-based, leaderless model (pure democracy in action). They are building bridges across demographic divisions carefully cultivated over the past decades by virtually all the major players in American industry, media and politics - rejecting the increasingly hostile, brainless partisanship that has turned American politics into little more than a noisy, pointless football game. There are people of every race, every age, every political ideology, religion and economic background actually talking to each other in those camps, all day, every day, about what kind of society they want to live in, and how to make it a reality. And they are doing it in virtually every major city in America (and most major international cities), with many activists traveling from camp to camp building networks that can be called upon and counted on to contribute to any future efforts.

The most effective tools of the modern oppression of democracy have been social isolation, the marginalisation of dissenting voices and the fierce promotion of mindless consumerism. None of those tools have any power inside those camps: interesting things are afoot.

[Jayhawker Soule]

Let's see what it looks like in March.

[Alceste]

Originally Posted by Jayhawker Soule

Let's see what it looks like in March.

They are apparently considering two options: 1) tough it out all winter, and 2) declare victory, throw a massive street party on December 17th, go home for the holidays to plan a spring campaign.

I favour option 1 personally, because they are making such a difference to people afflicted by homelessness and poverty inside the camps and winter is the time when services for the homeless and hungry are most desperately needed. Option 2 smacks of this type of thing:

[dust1n]

It's like a baby step, aw!

[Kathryn]

Originally Posted by Father Heathen

Just the fact that a sizable segment of society is not sitting at home in from of the television watching the game or celebrity gossip, or shopping at the mall chasing fleeting fads is a huge step forward. And the fact that a lot of people's political awareness and activism has finally gone beyond bumper stickers is another plus.

I agree - and I'd say the same about the Tea Party movement as well. The trick for both movements will be to resist the temptation to demonize each other, and to focus their combined efforts on corruption within our financial sector, large corporations, and the government system which feeds, facilitates, encourages, and profits from such corruption.

[Father Heathen]

Originally Posted by Kathryn

I agree - and I'd say the same about the Tea Party movement as well. The trick for both movements will be to resist the temptation to demonize each other, and to focus their combined efforts on corruption within our financial sector, large corporations, and the government system which feeds, facilitates, encourages, and profits from such corruption.

The problem with that is that those who fund and lead the tea party are subservient to the very same entities that OWS protests against. They wouldn't let their project run away from them.

[Kathryn]

Originally Posted by Father Heathen

The problem with that is that those who fund and lead the tea party are subservient to the very same entities that OWS protests against. They wouldn't let their project run away from them.

I'm not talking about those who claim to lead the Tea Party. I am talking about the average independent voter who agrees with many of the issues that the Tea Party has brought to the forefront.

When the Tea Party first emerged, my husband and I attended several events. We were pleasantly surprised at the number of independents involved.

Locally, the Republican Party tried to take charge of the movement. It didn't succeed well. The protesters were simply too independent in their mindset and in their voting style. They were too well read and too informed and too skeptical of ALL incumbents and political parties.

My husband and I are not involved with the Tea Party movement anymore because of the way the movement was hijacked by the Republican party nationwide. However, we have formed political alliances with many people we met via those early Tea Party events.

Those people remain active politically and within their communities. They may not be carrying a sign anywhere, but they're out there - and there are a lot of us.

We are not your enemy.