3 Things That Must Happen for Us To Rise Up and Defeat the Corporatocracy

[Bill USA]

http://www.alternet.org/story/152158/3_things_that_must_happen_for_us_to_rise_up_and_defeat_the_corporatocracy?akid=7470.263688.aci6cE&rd=1&t=3

Transforming the United States into something closer to a democracy requires: 1) knowledge of how we are getting screwed; 2) pragmatic tactics, strategies, and solutions; and 3) the “energy to do battle.”

The majority of Americans oppose the corporatocracy (rule by giant corporations, the extremely wealthy elite, and corporate-collaborator government officials); however, many of us have given up hope that this tyranny can be defeated. Among those of us who continue to be politically engaged, many focus on only one of the requirements—knowledge of how we are getting screwed. And this singular focus can result in helplessness. It is the two other requirements that can empower, energize, and activate Team Democracy— a team that is currently at the bottom of the standings in the American Political League.

[Vinnie From Indy]

1. That and public financing of campaigns

Cheers!

[Vincardog]

2. public financing of campaigns +1 and the Congress passing a law that Corporations are NOT people and

the SCOTUS has no jurisdiction in the case

[Fearless]

3. I agree wholeheartedly... but it'll never happen... they are beholden to corporations.

[Vincardog]

4. WE can refuse to vote for any REPUBLICAN or DINOs

[Fearless]

5. Agreed.

[Bennyboy]

6. JOB 1!

First thing, Unless that is one we are doomed...

[jtuck004]

7. "Tubman noted, “I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew

they were slaves.”"

I can't find the source, probably borrowed from Kurt Lewin, but I ran across a parable somewhere that talked about much of adult thinking being like a static, frozen stream. Until that stream thaws, it stays in the same place. For it to head in a new direction it has to thaw and gain power from movement. Until the person opens a window into their thinking, something they alone have control over, nothing about their frozen thinking is going to change.

Many people who are trying to influence others skip the part about opening the mind. It is the hardest thing, after all.

So we blithely shove info at adults and children who are nowhere near ready to hear anything new, and when the outcome is less than what we want we don't change our behavior, just keep throwing it at them.

Some might suggest that if you just keep throwing, something may stick. But look at the results; except for the most superficial and harmful of behaviors (i.e. consumerism of cheaper goods that harm our own economy), and the discussion of banal and useless ideas that could easily drag us back a hundred years in our social and economic development, there seems to be little long-lasting good that comes from it.

A personal example: As a nation we have been trying to kill our way out of dog and cat overpopulation since the late 1800's. Killing hit a high of about 20 million in the 60's, until pet spay/neuter came along, and then dropped to about 4 to 6 million. But we have stayed at roughly that number since 1995, even though we have more clinics than we have ever had. Dramatic decreases in those numbers, and costs, are possible by reaching deeper into the community, respecting people and making it possible for them to put on their own successful effort at spay/neuter. There are years of data and stories which back up such efforts, but the old municipal animal control model is so frozen in people's minds that they can't wrap their heads around that the traditional approach may be causing them to miss the very people they need to reach. So they underwrite established efforts with increasing millions of dollars, never opening their minds to the fact that they could use a small portion of that for a far better return. We started a nonprofit that does this, based on years of results from a couple of other states. Our one successful effort (out of many tries) has so far resulted in one community creating their own event, and it caused their dog and cat population to plummet like it never had.

What we experienced is that working\eating shoulder-to-shoulder with our neighbors toward a goal opens that window, respecting them enough to hand them real responsibility in a carefully controlled setting that lets their effort be successful. They do the rest, and the output is a change in behavior on the part of the people who gain a sense of control, community, and maybe more respect for their pets.

It's hard. It takes a lot of effort and trust-building to do this, and we also learned that it's very hard to get even the minimal resources we need while working outside of the established efforts. And when we open ourselves up to resources from those who are used to doing things "for" people such as local spay/neuter clinics, municipal efforts, or even national Humane Societies, their thinking is so "frozen" in their model that they invariably ignore that first step. Their "help" often causes the effort to devolve into the same structure they are used to, with results they are used to getting.

So we struggle, but we can see the results, and that means we have to support our organizers and be patient.

I think it's the same way with politics and our relations with each other. Much thinking is frozen, and until we figure out how to eat at the same tables, and maybe take on small objectives that we can work on as neighbors we are just banging our heads on the ice. But I don't see TPTB being interested, since all they want is your vote, and the interest on whatever debt they can get you to sign up for.

Maybe progressive could pool our money, own our own assets, create our own business and ownership away from the establishment?

Or maybe we are past that point, and the downward spiral will continue. And whoever is left will rebuild from what is left.