Posted 13 years ago on Sept. 12, 2011, 10:58 p.m. EST by chris
Contemporary society is commodified society, where the economic transaction has become the dominant way of relating to the culture and artifacts of human civilization, over and above all other means of understanding, with any exceptions being considered merely a temporary holdout as the market swiftly works on ways to monetize those few things which stubbornly remain untouched. Perhaps the most pernicious aspect of this current setup is that it has long ago co-opted the very means of survival within itself, making our existence not an inherent right endowed to us by the simple fact of our humanity but a matter of how much we're all worth -- the mere act of being alive has a price tag. Some pay it easily. Others pay for it with their submission. Others still can't pay it at all. Regardless, though, like cars, TVs and barrels of oil, our lives are commodities to be bought and sold on the open market amid the culture of ruthlessness and desperation that has arisen to accommodate it. This is the natural consequence of a society built around entities whose purpose it is to always, always minimize costs and maximize profits. It is the philosophy of growth for the sake of growth, the same ideology that drives a cancer cell. An economy in a steady state is not healthy. It needs to expand, constantly, perpetually.
Of course, nothing can expand forever. The second law of thermodynamics tell us this much at least. But that doesn't mean the market won't try. It's not enough that a soft drink becomes the dominant soda, it must become the dominant beverage, period. It's not enough that people build some things out of a certain material, it must be the only thing anyone ever builds anything out of, ever. It's not enough to make pills for the ailments from which people already seek relief, pills must be made for problems that people didn't even know existed until a commercial told them to ask their doctors about it. We all know this course is not sustainable, but there will be great damage done before this point is reached.
The people coming to Wall Street on September 17 come for a variety of reasons, but what unites them all is the opposition to the principle that has come to dominate not only our economic lives but our entire lives: profit over and above all else. Those that do not embrace this principle: prepare to be out-competed. They will lose the race to the bottom and the vulture will swoop down to feast. It is indicative of a deep spiritual sickness that has gripped civilization, a sickness that drives the vast deprivation, oppression and despoliation that has come to cover the world.
The world does not have to be this way. A society of ruthlessness and isolation can be confronted and replaced with a society of cooperation and community. Cynics will tell us this world is not possible. That the forces arrayed against us have won and will always win and, perhaps, should always win. But they are not gods. They are human beings, just like us. They are a product of a society that rewards the behavior that has led us to where we are today. They can be confronted. What's more, they can be reached. They just need to see us. See beyond the price tags we carry.
And if they are gods? Then we shall be Prometheus. And we shall laugh as we are lashed to the stone to await the eagle.
Posted 13 years ago on Sept. 8, 2011, 9:41 p.m. EST by OccupyWallSt
US Day of Rage, a group participating in the September 17th occupation of wall street, has just released a tactical plan and "HowTo" for holding a legal and nonviolent demonstration in New York City. Their plan clarifies many legal concerns that have been raised and offers a viable strategy for holding a prolonged occupation. This information can be found on their website:
Posted 13 years ago on Sept. 8, 2011, 9:24 p.m. EST by OccupyWallSt
We've just received our first five photo submissions for the We Are the 99 Percent project. Thank you very much to everyone who submitted a photo and we hope to see more soon!
Posted 13 years ago on Sept. 8, 2011, 12:30 p.m. EST by OccupyWallSt
On Thursday, Sept. 1st, a small group of demonstrators were met with police intimidation while performing a peaceful and legal occupation of a public sidewalk on Wall Street for a single night. Nine were arrested for disorderly conduct and later released without charge. One demonstrator was held for 24 hours because he was unable to provide proof of residency.
This demonstration was intended to serve as a one night test run for the September 17th occupation using the "legal encampment" strategy. According to a federal court ruling in 2000, the use of "public sleeping as a means of symbolic expression" is allowed on public sidewalks in New York City. (METROPOLITAN COUNCIL, INC., Plaintiff, -against- HOWARD SAFIR, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department, et al., June 12, 2000 [99 F. Supp. 2d 438; 2000 U.S. Dist.]). The demonstrators of Bloombergville also employed this tactic for an occupation that lasted a few weeks.
Despite fully obeying the law, demonstrators were still met with police harassment and intimidation. This event serves to remind us that we're living in a police state with absolutely no respect for the right of the people to peacefully assemble and exercise their constitutional free speech. But we will not be scared away or deterred. This abuse of authority by the NYPD only serves to strengthen our resolve and reinforce our belief that corruption and injustice in America must be fought.
Hey you jammers, dreamers, patriots and revolutionaries out there,
Our occupation of Wall Street is less than two weeks away … do we have it together?
The perpetrators of the massive financial fraud have been allowed to slip quietly from the scene and continue business as usual. Our elected representatives in Washington have become so tightly intertwined with the financiers and bankers that public accountability has all but vanished.
OCCUPYWALLSTREET is all about breaking up that cosy relationship between money and politics and bringing the perpetrators of the financial crash of 2008 to justice.
On September 17, 20,000 of us will descend on Wall Street, the iconic financial center of America, set up a peaceful encampment, hold a people's assembly to decide what our one demand will be, and carry out an agenda of full-spectrum, absolutely nonviolent civil disobedience the likes of which the country has not seen since the freedom marches of the 1960s.
From our encampment we will launch daily smart mob forays all over lower Manhattan … peaceful, creative happenings in front of Goldman Sachs; the SEC; the Federal Reserve; the New York Stock Exchange … and maybe even, if we can figure out where they're being held, at the sites of Obama's private $38,500 per person fundraising events happening somewhere in Manhattan on Sept. 19 and 20.
Our strategy will be that of the master strategist Sun Tzu: "appear at points which the enemy must hasten to defend; march swiftly to places where you are not expected."
With a bit of luck, and if fate is on our side, we may be able to turn all of lower Manhattan into a site of passionate democratic contestation – an American Tahrir Square.
We will do all this with peace in our hearts. Our unshakable commitment to nonviolence will give us the spiritual strength we need to inspire the nation and to ultimately triumph in the weeks and maybe months of struggle that will unfold after September 17.
PS. Last week Anonymous endorsed #OCCUPYWALLSTREET with a video that attracted over 70,000 views. The Department of Homeland Security has warned the nation's bankers to be prepared. Corporate owned media is taking notice. Yesterday, a columnist for MarketWatch.com posted a rousing portrait of what may now unfold:
"Listen closely. This is not another internecine political squabble. These revolutionaries are pushing America back to its roots. You sense they're drafting a new Declaration of Independence, driven by the same powerful motivations as the 57 original signers who wrote: 'Whenever any form of government becomes destructive … it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government.' Back in 1776 King George III was the destructive force far away. Today greed is the corruptor, from within."
S17 occupations of financial districts are also being planned in Milan, Madrid, Valencia, London, Lisbon, Athens, San Francisco and hopefully many other cities still to be announced. S17 could well be the catalyst that ushers in a new global economic order.
