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I believe we should stop trying to fix a system that is obviously broken. We're trying to compromise and cut deals with people who enjoy privelage and do not see us as equals. This is dislpayed by their covert and overt efforts to shut us up and shut us down. They don't want to hear our greivances, let alone address them in an equitable and timely fashion.
The economy and those who control the economy are defunct, and the first step in our advancement as a society is to realize this truth. Second, instead of trying to fix this economy, we should get rid of it. That's right, turn it upside down, burn it, and throw it away. This way, the only reference to this pathetic, unjust "economy" will be in the history books when we teach future generations how stupid we were.
Most people will read this and shudder. "Oh my God, destroy the economy!?" Yes, dear friends, destroy this economy. We don't need it. We feel we need it, but that feeling is based on fear. This economy is all we know, and we can't fathom the idea of living without it.
This is exactly what the powers that be what you to think. Listen brothers and sisters, if you think banks and a federal government are the sole means of support for our society then you are grossly misinformed. You fail to realize the power that we are all born with, but unfortunately yield to higher "authorities".
We can march and strike and maybe "master" will toss us a few scraps, but that takes too much time, and we still always come up short. What we need is revolution, and we need it now. I'm not talking shootouts with the cops and military, I'm talking civil disobediance on the next level. Civil disobediance that will benefit ALL people, and make everyone truly equal. I've got a plan. Please comment if you want more info.
Beautiful words
Submitted by patsyyy on
SO well said..I agree....Thank you and count of me...
Patsy
We're trying to compromise?
Submitted by Fex on
We're trying to compromise? Since when? End crony capitalism, not now, but yesterday. There's no compromise, end the cronyism. Dunno where you've been, the economy has been destroyed for a while now, no need to demand that.
"Word following word- I wrought words. Deed following deed, I wrought deeds." - The Havamal
Still Compromising - In response to Fex's comment
Submitted by SoulRebel on
When you accept anything less than the whole enchilada, you are compromising.
The Occupy Movement is a beautiful thing and I support it, but in my opinion, it's selling itself short. Economic reform - instituted by the current cesspool of greedy DOGS - does not give me a warm, fuzzy feeling. Economic CONTROL - by the People - sounds a lot better. By compromising with them, some A-hole at a bank will still hold your mortgage (if you're "lucky" enough to have one). An executive at your company (if you're "lucky" enough to have a job) will still have the power to gamble your pension or sell you out to the highest bidder. We should not accept anything less than complete control of land usage, labor management, and resource distribution. Each citizen, through their local General Assembly, should have an equal voice in the shaping of their destiny.
This moment is ours. We have the establishment on its heels and it's time to drop the hammer on them.
its not going to get you what you want
Submitted by warwick on
ladies and gentlemen. i am NOT a rich fat cat. I am NOT an OCCUPIER. And I can tell you that the way you are delivering your message devalues your words. The rest of America. The one still struggling day to day with kids and jobs (or no job) and faith and politics wishes you would do something better with your time. You have youth, and ambition and intellect and energy. You could create companies, found charities, actually HELP people. This narcissism has to end. You hurt our people by playing hero instead of doing the hard work of actually becoming one.
Right...I mean, creating
Submitted by PC on
Right...I mean, creating companies and charities has done a great job of getting rapacious financial-sector greed and the buying and selling of politicians by multinational corporations out of the economic system so far, hasn't it? Well, let's keep it up! Save the world with business as usual!
No Heroes Here - In response to Warwick's comment
Submitted by SoulRebel on
I appreciate your response, but my words do not come from heroic ambitions, this is about society as a whole. Every one of us has a huge amount of potential, but it is squandered by misguided governing. If government truly cared about our growth as humans, why is the budget for education around one-tenth of that for "defense"? Why would they spend upwards of $80,000 a year to house our 3 million penitentiary inmates, rather than spending a fraction of that to educate and provide job placement. Follow the dollar and you will see where their true interests lie.
HELP will come in the form of swift, sweeping reforms that place tangible goods and services within reach of 100% of Earth's inhabitants.
Destroy the Economy?
Submitted by Dekanawida on
The Government is already destroying the economy. I highly doubt you need a movement for that. What I would like to know is- What is your "plan" after the economy is destroyed? How will we get resources from other countries. etc? Maybe you are talking about going back into time and live in homes made of only lumber, dirt roads, riding horses etc.. Humans evolved out of that with new inventions and ideas brought forth from people like us (the 99%). All these things are luxuries in which our ancestors decided to accept for a cost of $$. To me Economy should stay but the government should change the way they handle OUR economy so we ALL receive the same necesities the 1% are overwhelmed with.
A Plan - In response to Dekanawida
Submitted by SoulRebel on
My words do incite visions of living in the 18th century, but you are right, we have evolved. We have had over a million years on this planet to look around, scratch our heads, and try to get this thing right. Up to now, we have been getting it wrong over and over again. We thought we had a winner when we dreamed up the United States of America, but, oops, this one is flawed also.
So how do we do it - how do we create a truly equal society? What does this society look like? How do goods and services get spread around effectively and how do we meet the needs of all people? These are all valid queries and I'm glad you're pondering them.
The trick, I believe, is in de-centralization. Too many goods and services are monopolizied and regulated by people who are out of touch and have no direct interest in spreading these things equally among the people. Communities must be empowered with the means and authority to provide resources and make decisions at a local level. After all, why should some guy in New York or D.C. have the power to make my life more uncomfortable? He doesn't even know me, let alone care about my situation. People in my community know me and have my best interests in mind. Local General Assemblies should be the means by which resources are dispersed. Through transparency, accountability, direct democracy, and consensus, we can get more accomplished at a local level than the government can at the national level.
No More Peasants
Submitted by SoulRebel on
My dear family, we are living under a modernized version of the medival feudal system. Landlords (nobility, the elite, 1%, etc) "own" the land and we, the serfs, work ourselves to the grave fattening their pockets. What have we learned in the past thousand years? I, for one, learned that a system where non-transparent, unaccountable, greedy, lying, murderous dogs have control of the very soil and buildings we inhabit, they will inevitably use these "instruments" to bleed the people dry.
The first phase of global healing, in my opinion, should be the People assuming control of the land in which we inhabit. The homes and businesses we reside in should not be subjected to market fluctuations and manipulations - they should be as permanent as the spirit in which they were erected. The timber has been cut. The workers have been paid. Why, oh why do we waste so much effort on these dwellings? The real estate market is in the epicenter of this troubled economy, which is why it should be the first to go.
The sudden loss of this major chunk of our economy will undoubtedly send ripples into all financial sectors, which is why swift restructuring of our banking system will be needed. We must boldly and clearly state that the land we live on is no longer a negotiable, financial instrument.
You might call me a dreamer (or a socialist), but imagine a world without mortgages! Local General Assemblies can decide who lives where and what types of commerce to engage in.
Take the land and buildings away from the banks and give them to the People. If you are not physically occupying a community or working at a specific location, then you should have little or no say in how those resources are used.
This is only one step (however the most crucial) in liberating ourselves from economic slavery.
A Point of Clarification
Submitted by SoulRebel on
In my original post, I proposed doing away with our economy. I know that an abrupt loss of currencies and markets would cause catastophic damage to society as we know it. However, just like a baby is weaned from its mother's milk, we too can learn to stop suckling the teat of the Federal Reserve and other curency generating machines. As we move toward Enlightenment, I feel we will start to see credit cards, cash, and coins as cumbersome, unpleasant, maybe even repulsive.
I want to issue you a challenge: dream with me. Dream of a world without mortgages. Imagine you become ill and your (free) physician refers you to the best specialist, no questions asked. Imagine waking up and going to a career you actully enjoy and having the fruits of your labor directly benefit and strengthen your community. Imagine working only 25 hours a week. Dream, if you will, of walking into a market at 3 a.m. and grabbing some milk and eggs and not even thinking about stopping at a cash register. Pretend you can hop on a plane almost anytime you want and fly to any destination. Imagine having all the newest gadgets mailed to your house, just for being in good standing with the Community. How about a fancy automobile in the driveway of your lovely home? How would you like to actually have free time to spend with your loved ones without having to sacrifice anything? Starting to sound like some far-off Utopian paradise? Now, WAKE UP. Make this dream a reality! We can have all this and more when we realize how to effectively and morally manage our talents and resources.
Local General Ass will determine where people live?
Submitted by warwick on
What the hell kind of freedom is that? Have you ever owned a home? Had a job? Raised a family? Earned anything? Keep dreaming. You will not have my home or my country. I appreciate the sentiment that the government is too big and has undue influence in our lives and business. Ask Mao's people how the revolution went. That country didnt give its people anything until Capitialism found its way in.
Why Not? - In response to Warwick
Submitted by SoulRebel on
"What...kind of freedom is that?" - It's the freedom of local communities to determine what they need and the best way to meet those needs.
"Have you ever owned a home?" - No, I haven't, and neither have you. Stop paying your mortgage for a little while and see who really owns your house. Or, maybe you're fortunate enough to have your house paid off? Stop paying your taxes, and again, we'll see who really owns your house. Let's agreee on a defintion of "ownership". If someone can take something from you and get away with it, then you never really owned it. I don't want your home - I want you to want your home. You live there, the community has accepted you, and no one should have the authority to take it away from you.
I agree, Mao's vision was a nightmare for most. Mao was a murderer and a villian, whereas I believe love, transparency, and general consensus is the answer.
Personally, I believe capitalism limits human potential, but I can tolerate it in small doses. For a while, I can accept creating fair market values on things that are beyond our 'basic' needs. However, I firmly take this stance: one should not capitalize off the basic needs of human beings. Our health is not a commodity. The homes that we live in are not bargaining chips and We should never have to sell out our dreams just to squeek out a mediocre living.
My friend, capitalism does not exist to serve the needs of the People, it exists to make individuals wealthy. I would like to see this beautiful world uninhibited by budgets and borders. If you're spiritual, then you can appreciate concepts like the Kingdom of Heaven, Paradise, and Nirvana. The only thing preventing Us from establishing this - here and now - is fear and ignorance. We fear unrighteous bullies and we're ignorant of our true potential.
Thanks for the advice ("Keep dreaming"). I'll do that, and I hope you'll join me. If you can't imagine you and your community having a significant boost in authority, then you might be saying that you prefer to have mayors, governors, Congresspeople, and bankers make important decisions for you.
First, dont take my
Submitted by warwick on
First, dont take my disagreement as anger. I get what you are saying. However I don't believe in Nirvana or Heaven on earth based on the empirical evidence of our collective histories. Even in hunter gatherer societies there was dominance and competition. And capitalism does exist to make people wealthy. Anyone, from any background who is willing to step up and fight for it. Fight against the challenges of free market competition. I like localized government, but the idea that "consensus" groups will lead is not reality. Ive been to those meetings. Why do I want the masses making decisions for me? Less governance. Real regulation that works and allows for business to grow while protecting the earth is the answer. I dont want more decisionmakers in my life, I want fewer. I dont need a local group of citizens telling me what color I can paint my house or even whether its mine or not. Sure I have to pay my mortgage. But I CHOSE to have one. Yes I pay my taxes..too many of them. But how else do you propose we pay for all of those that wont or cant pay for themselves? America worked when its people wanted to create wealth for themselves and their families and communities.
I'm pro jobs. Pro gay marriage. Anti Big Government and confused and dissapointed by the Occupy movement. Maybe I should run for office. Except I'll do more good by creating jobs than consensus groups.
My tone earlier was too strong and I apologize. I think we want some of the same things. I just hate the way you all are going about it.
Direct Democracy is Still in its Infancy
Submitted by SoulRebel on
And it has much more room to grow. You're absolutely right, many of the General Assemby meetings are frustrating, but they are fair. That is the beauty of consensus and direct democracy. Everyone has a voice, which is something that our current political system lacks.
This concept fails when individuals insert their own character flaws into the mix. All institutions - economies, religion, technology - have the potential for vast amounts of good, but this system that we live in does not allow our best qualities to manifest. Immoral financial practices have severely hindered our grown as a People. "Free markets", under unrighteous leadership, have caused hunger, homelessness, suicide, wars, abortion, murder, and many other forms of misery.
Here's a simple philosophy that I believe can enhance our growth: If the People can produce a resource, then the People shall have access to it. The truth is, We do not have access to all the benefits of society and we suffer psychologically and emotionally because of it. At our core, we are compassionate and righteous, which is why systematic injustice severely cripples us. This is part of the reason we can't govern ourselves - We're carrying around too much baggage from living under widespread corruption.
Well, no. Direct democracy
Submitted by PC on
Well, no. Direct democracy is not "in its infancy" and neither is the consensus-based decision-making process. It's been in practice for decades and, barring some fantastic genius innovation, is extremely unlikely to develop into something significantly less time-consuming in the foreseeable future. It's arguably worth the tedium and frustration when it's used as a tool for steering political movements and determining broad policies for small groups, but as a way to make decisiins about anything nearly as complex and vital as housing for individuals it's a nonstarter.
Dear PC,
Submitted by SoulRebel on
Thanks for the clarification. Direct democracy has been around for a while, but it is still largely ineffective, which is why I refer to it as infantile. I don't see how you think it can be effective for steering something as vast as a political movement, but can't see how it can meet the needs of communities. The General Assembly in Los Angeles, through group consensus, is still active and is pretty effective at managing its localized concerns. If more resources were available and with more practice, the OLA GA would be a strong example of how dierct democracy can benefit the People.
This current system of representative democracy is clearly flawed, due to the marriage of money and politics. Direct democracy will work when we are properly educated, control the land we inhabit, control the means of production, expand renewable energy, establish a stronger sense of community, and become less self-centered. Direct democracy, transparency, accountability, consensus, and most of all, a heightened sense of humanity and compassion are the tools which will rejuvenate our crumbling society.
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