Hey look…another Occupation Rant…

The biggest problem with something that matters to people, is that sooner or later it is going to have to mean something real to all of them. And while it may be easy to whip people en mass into a frenzy with just the right words and syntax, the ambition to hold them there and channel their collective rage into a single constructive or destructive force is not only bold, it is almost outright mad. But it can be done. It has been done and will, provided the right pieces fall into the right places, be done again.

A mass movement. A populist uprising against a faceless institutional oligarchy, where one’s collective dollars can suit the will or whim of a select handful of people at the expense of everyone else. One where the popular political factions of the true republic stand against those to whom they are held captive, and a system which is engineered to not only divide them, but own them entirely beneath a faux intellectual veneer of “left and right.” And yet, despite its commonalities and despite its internal divisions of ideology, it thrives in an underground network of popular dissent.

The media, being a simple tool of this corporate state, delivers nothing by skewed hyperbole, calling it wasteful, disrespectful of property, liberal communist and even racist in some circles. All deny the true and diverse nature of this thing that has begun. All dismiss it as a fad. I for one, do not.

Some time ago, before writing this, I used to be an organizer. That was the last title I held. Union organizer. Prior to that, it was political consultant or political contractor. Either way, it all meant that it was my job to persuade the general public, as much of it as I could, to come together beneath the banner I presented them with.

“Save our schools!” “Save the environment!” “End the war!” “Give us healthcare reform!!!” Etc…you get it I’m sure. I not only worked on such campaigns, but most times ran them. Most came in the forms of contracts from political action committees (PACs,) Unions or when I could find the work, commercial political contracting firms, who specialized in field campaigns and “voter outreach.”  At one point, I even literally spied on another private contractor’s operation and ran my own ops to kill it. All in all, they were sometimes grand experiences that I’d never give back and sometimes, awful wretched things I’d wished I’d never done. But one thing I know how to do is organize.

In my tour through the occupation, despite my attempts to take literary license with the tale (and all of that actually happened. I just made it sound more interesting than it was in parts…) I told the truth of my observations. Beyond merely watching how they functioned and what they thought, I sought, in part, to organize them as best as I could. To my surprise, most of the conclusions I came to on day one, they had already come to, or were in the process of doing so. Things like multi-city delegations to convey GA wills and communications, rotating volunteer committees to manage logistical and operational aspects of the occupation protests and even to a slight extent, ideological and factional delegations within camp sites.

What many fail to realize in watching the news or passing by their local Occupations, is that these are not hippy camps, festival sites for Phish heads, compounds for communist revolutionaries or the home of the black flag. These are truly broiling melting pots of what is generally regarded as fringe philosophies and ideologies. By “fringe,” I mean of course not orthodox democrat-progressive or republican-conservative…whatever those might be at time. But rather the true rooted, multi-faceted, admittedly arguable political philosophies that make up this republic. The Libertarians, believing in individual sovereignty over government rule, as well as the Socialists, who are committed to seeing a robust and healthy system of public services, serving the needs of the masses, possibly at the extent of the few. There are Anarchists, who believe it is time to tear the entire broken system down and allow an organic, natural regrowth of human order from the topsoil and there are Constitutionalists, who swear so long as we adhere to the words of the document, we as a nation will be restored to our ‘god given majesty,’ or whathaveyou.

The point is that its a pot, filled with volatile but flavorful and necessary ingredients which are bound to compete with one another, as well as the environmental toxins of established PACs, Unions and DNC affiliates trying either take over or ride the coattails of this thing. So what is an organizer to do?

Well, I listened. Intently, for days on end. Talked a great deal, can’t help but do that, its just what I do. But I listened. I listened to tales from travelers like myself, devoted activists who’ve been in the fight for decades, curious press crew, the homeless…whoever would talk to me. And so far as I can tell, the one uniting factor is the rage. But again, what is an organizer to do with such things? Perhaps, I thought, discover the core of the thing.

To which I now come to this…again. Election reform. Lobbying reform. Not the sexiest issues, but one everyone can get behind.

The truth is, THIS MOVEMENT WILL NOT LAST FOREVER. It simply won’t. It can’t. Between the internal divisions of philosophy and ideology, to the very nature of popular politics, it simply cannot last indefinitely. And when it crashes or breaks up or whatever, it will be its message and its impact on popular discussion which will matter most.

My union organizer friends often give me hell about my enthusiasm for this thing. They keep asking what is the point? Without politicians paying attention and without the media, what is the point? But the point is this; Its not what politicians discuss that they’re seeking to speak to, its what you and I discuss. Its what average working people who would never, despite our possible untapped brilliance, ever have a chance to have more than a voice in a sham election in this world the way it is.

We’re dominated by interest groups. We’ve known it for a long time. We still know it now. Why haven’t we spoken about it?

Been round the way on flag burning. Made high and holy the sanctity of marriage in our various means and definitions. We’ve argued endlessly over whether or not our broken healthcare systems are indeed broken. (Little hint…they actually are.) We’ve gone up and down and around on every issue but these. The essence of influence, the machinery of power.

When I as a billionaire super corporate person as such, bankroll an electoral campaign, I’m doing to because I’m the only one with the money to do so and I know I’ll get what I want when I do it. If one of my “competitors,” (whom incidentally I am close friends with, attend trade groups and lobbying firm sessions with and probably play golf with at least once a month to discuss “trade issues and personal business”) happens to be funding one candidate, I’ll fund the other. We’ll both know we want the same things out of him generally, unless its a contract fight…

After I elect this sell-out, my industry and company lobbyists will own him from top to bottom by the end of his second week. Beyond simply reelection cash promises, we can threaten or sweeten job levels in his district, run PAC and SUPERPAC campaigns for or against him and even happen to have the perfect positions in Government Relations for them should they decide to leave office. I mean really, if that was me, I wouldn’t have a question in my mind as to what all of those rabble in the streets of my cities were out there for. Its because I kept them from ever having their voices heard.

And thus do we come back to the voices. So many different voices, with so much to say. And they’ll all scream it at the top of their lungs at these Occupations. We need to “End the Fed,” “Redistribute Wealth!” or any manner thereof in between while ending wars, global warming, taxes and the ban on pot. This mishmash of ideas which if brought in any measure to considerable power respectively, would simply piss off the opposition.

If MY ideas were carried out in full I’m sure that they would be wholly effective in making a perfect world. However enough people would disagree with me to such a point that it would never be possible anyway. Instead, my arguments must carry weight and win over those who might oppose out of reflex. And that is the true nature of this fight.

This is not a struggle to see a particular vision brought to power. It is no more communist than it is “free market.” It votes no more for Dennis Kucinich than it does Ron Paul. It is multi-factional and without specific ideology. What it represents is the fury of an entire subset of popular ideas and the general desires for security and stability of those who are not politically or socially science oriented, manifested in a collectivist, communal series of autonomous mass demonstrations.

The culmination of a population no longer satisfied to eat the bullshit lines of those who have sway and power. The fight is to level the playing field. To establish a new environment where new/old ideas can be argued freely, without interests from the corporate, PAC , interest or labor sectors buying out the debate. Elimination of private financing in American elections is the first step. The second is simply reforming the procedures of lobbying public officials to become an immediately available part of public record. For if we eliminate the incentives to play their bullshit ballgame, there will be less to worry about for everyone should they approach an elected representative with a particular grievance.

For just as it is important to observe and record law enforcement in this fight, it is equally important to hold our elected representation and executive officials to the same standard in terms of how they carry out their duties.

For more information on where YOUR elected representatives get their campaign cash, visit http://www.maplight.org and be sure look over their records. Short of that, get back out into those parks, tents, streets…make this worth the effort and show me that my professional orthodoxies don’t mean a thing in the world we’re looking to create.

Of species, nation and tribe…

Tonight, while driving home, a radio news show came on the air discussing how the Chinese were sending parts into space for construction of their own space station. With the booming economy and nationalist pride on the line, China is now looking to develop and expand its space program, hoping to surpass the US and Europe. Plans were mentioned for the moon and Mars with an exuberance and (possibly just the appearance of) a groundswell of public support.

My first reaction, mirrored my third reaction, but conflicted with my second and forth.

At first, I thought “how wonderful! Human beings returning to active space exploration on a national level! This could take us into the stars!” It was a great feeling. Thinking that I was alive in an era where I may be seeing the continuation of the very beginning of our spacefaring age, where we took offworld travel and exploration seriously and spread the wonder of our impossible existence elsewhere. A pleasant dramatization of theory perhaps, but pleasant all the same.

However as I listened and heard the foreign, unusual name to the rocket carrying the parts, heard the words “leading” and “determined” applied to a nation other than my beloved(?) America, and listened as a foreigner spoke with honest joy at the achievements of his nation, while mine remained a once(?) great society in honest decline. I thought of ancient empires at the heights of their glory and then on them now, selling themselves as tourist destinations, passively observing events in the world now greater than their control.

But then again, I thought of how simply ignorant it is to think on the accomplishments of one’s species in a hostile and impossible universe such as this, in terms of the nations and cultures which push them forward. Should it be Chinese, Americans, Indians, Russians or (should the world of the future look entirely different than I imagine) Mexicans who bring us off this world and into the stars, where I personally think we’ll one day belong, than so be it! Besides, the formality and individual humility of Chinese culture very well could make a better interstellar ambassador than some brawny American with a high-and-tight offering beef jerky and classic rock records.

However again, I came back to a nagging personal sensation of loss. I was raised with “greatest nation on Earth” repeated to me ad-nauseum, and for a long time, I really believed it. I had always imagined that should a nation exist to carry the world into the glorious science-fiction future I’d imagined, it would be my home country. My America. And now, it seemed that this was not the case. For such great and massive advances in the past, for such power and progress, our empire days are over. Our days of being the cock of the walk are though and its time to let this new global multi polar paradigm take shape. Sad, but a sign of progress nonetheless.

Human is human is human. Language and culture and nation are meaningless in the dark and cold of space. Life has no reasonable place in this universe, save for the places that are perfect and particular and those we create ourselves. Nationalism is a dying tradition in the long run and so should it be the Chinese, who I’ve been somewhat indoctrinated to fear as a tribal adversary with a different culture and competitive goals, who bring us as a species into the future than so be it. The “west” did not invent sailing, but it explored and “discovered” the entire world as it tells itself. It did invent space travel and now the next successor of things in the world adopts the practice to be the next bold leader on the global stage.

We will retain our cultural value and even our innovation and brilliance. Our productivity and contributions to the world have only begun. But our time as an imperial powerhouse, leading the way is coming to a close. It is sensible to feel odd about such things as this in my eyes. To have one’s home and one’s kind surpassed after such a run of dominance, but looking at things in the bigger picture, I welcome progress and achievement no matter where it comes from as each giant step draws the world together just a little more than it was before. And taking steps forward is more important than one’s tribal pride.