Forum Post: 70 percent of people realize we are on wrong path.
Posted 11 years ago on May 18, 2013, 1:19 p.m. EST by gsw
(3420)
from Woodbridge Township, NJ
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
70 percent of people realize we are on wrong path.
Only 8 percent thinks their congress person listens to constituents
And more people don't believe electoral systems are fair
What is mechanism for people to design solutions?
The government won't let the people get together to figure out a strategy, through crack down on occupy. We should reignite occupy, even if just in day hours in parks, to strategize effective plans and maintain pressure that can fix our problems.
The web doesn't seem to be a good strategy designer either. I was sure someone would design apps to unite the people in a strategies to get back the government from out of touch elites.
I don't think the web wil unite people effectively. It needs to be live people joining something with tangible plans of action.
If not in political realm, what?
Keep the dialog going at monsanto marches, plan more events, meetings....
I'd recomend doing more at parks, keeping this upbeat and positive, family oriented.
The Chris hedges debate was thought provoking. Thanks Thrasymaque for posting.
In my opinion we need to get PRIVATE banks out of financing the needs of running the nation's business. Abolish the private federal reserve bank. This is not a new concept. Lincoln financed the civil war without private bankers money. The cost of federal deficits is inflation and we pay for it. Paying interest in addition to inflation makes absolutely no sense. The result of the generosity granted to banks in the last 100 years ended up as a giant financial con job. Why do we keep doing it?
I agree.
the government borrows at interest - giving away our resources - from private bank.
we should borrow from ourselves at 0 interest.
Print what's needed to pay any real other owners of debt, then refinance at 0 percent, and we will owe ourselves but at 0 percent, rather than whatever the going rates private bank sets.
I would recommend establishing a standard by which no march or protest is organized without the accompaniment of a promoted grassroots solution to the issue being protested. There should never be a mass gathering of people for a problem without it also being a mass gathering for a solution.
Always look for solutions. Here seems a great solution.
https://movetoamend.org/calendar
Matt Miller discusses ideas of possible solutions
http://www.mattmilleronline.com/twopercent.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-hvnbam8sM&feature=youtube_gdata_player
outline here of problems and solutions: wealth inequality, trade deals, manufacturing loss, political corruption.
http://economyincrisis.org/content/category/video
Good idea. Protests should be directed at specific issues, not just raging against the machine. Also, efforts should be made to stop the violence. Breaking windows and hassling the cops is counter-productive.
Excellent concept, one I also espouse. In fact I recomend that the solution be of legal process.
I advocate ART5, because it is the ultimate legal process and the kind of problems we have will require that.
There are all kinds of solutions for all kinds of problems and most are achievable by the mere exercised will of the people. The people alone can establish a nationwide credit union and mutual insurance company without any reliance upon the political process. The people alone can pass initiatives in their cities for the public ownership of utilities, a municipal hospital, and city university without any reliance upon corporaticians (corporate politicians) to do it for them. And for laws that require the support of elected lawmakers, only the people can come together across partisan lines to establish agreed upon standards in the form of affidavits for politicians to sign to be electable.
A democracy is the rule of the people and where the people refuse to organize to rule, a segment of them (1%) shall always remain organized to rule over them.
When people come together to protest a financial institution, there should be the promotion of an alternative financial institution that people can readily support. When people come together to protest a political act, there should be the promotion of the means to counter or neutralize the political act. Nothing should be protested without the presentable immediate means to solving the issue being protested.
Agreed, the people can do these things if they can organize and unify. However, they really cannot even communicate with one another within the populations they are, to refine, organize, unify and decide where to apply their will.
People need education into the worthy activities you describe, and that, because the initiatives/issues are complex, can be difficult. After that, extended discussion to answer questions or develop alternatives is needed for people to feel as though the process is responsive to them.
If communication technology was applied to do that, rather than manipulate and exploit people, we would be able to generate that "will" you describe.
You are poignantly correct about people that refuse to organize to rule, and that the 1% is always ready to exploit the non feasence of the people in that case.
Either Occupy or especially the PIRGs or ideally a combination of both could be the catalyst for organizing and educating the people. The PIRGs are an established resource that have been here since the 70s and could be easily appealed to for support of positive issues.
Yes, that would work, but the cost of airtime in this economy might get in the way.
From what I've seen, the lower 13 channels need to be devoted to our daily living and the knowledge needed to do it well.
With preparatory amendment for ART5, critical education for voting and activism can be delivered by concerned citizens. The PIRGs won' be able to do that.
Try articlev.org
There are some threads by Christopher Brown there about preparation, including the draft revision of the 1st Amrndment
Excellent comment. In the true spirit of OWS. Rarely do we see any ideas that offer viable solutions such as this!
Too much WHINE, WHINE, WHINE on here. What are we.... a f*cking VINEYARD? !!!
I think the March Against Monsanto is going to be a huge reviving influence.
Organizers need to make sure they have email lists ready and waiting from the start for those who would like to participate in further actions. Whenever there is a huge gathering like this, the worst case is that afterwards everyone just goes home and no one can communicate after.
Good plan. Free Speeches.
How about if everyone prepared a little speech, we could take turns exercising our free speeches, over many days, weekends, how about in front of libraries, joyful speeches.
The people's filibuster
String along and connect many posts and comments, Newspaper editorials, and articles, and have public read alouds, free speeches.
Also flyers on windshields may advertise.
Random free speeches, maybe in front of banks too, corporate quarters, and in front of bad politicians storefronts.
Become like public preachers.
A soapbox on every corner!! Or perhaps just a day, kind of a flash mob thing, where there are 20 people per city giving speeches at noon, etc. Either in front of say every Chase Bank, or just right out at the intersections where people can hear them (be prepared to hear a lot of "Get a Job")
The possibilities and creative options are endless, the hardest part is finding the people to do it with.
Which is why huge events like MaM are so crucial to maximizing.
I have a job. My other job, my public civic involvement and sacrifice, duty to be an informed, involved citizen.
It's a job as important as a paid lobbyist, Or politician, or wall streeters, who makes money but produces nothing. We are providing an information service, which is free speech, our civic duty.
How about in malls on days with bad weather.
Most important perhaps is a forum with sincere people, free of cognitive infiltration (which includes no real solution ever), that is broken down state by state for action, but national for principle and concept.
Each state forum could have a city thread which enables finding people to act with. It might actually be appropriate to use http://articlev.org for that and it is set up state by state.
How could that be so? Our present leader says we are on the right path to prosperity, job creation and wealth distritution - he continually preaches it and was voted into office for that reason.
So I ask again, how could 70% of the people say we are on the wrong path?
Think maybe that 70% are the ones who voted for him and now realize they screwed up because he didn't deliver?
Well, it's too late - they are going to have to deal with the consequences of their actions. Tough shit for them.
The 2 party, divisive way of examining issues is obsolete.
We need a more nuanced approach, and parties should be banned. Didn't framers warn against parties.
Let the representatives be representative of the people, not party and private interests. As it is, they spend all time being money-seeking.
http://maristpoll.marist.edu/tag/congressional-approval-ratings/
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_did_the_framers_fear_political_parties#page1
All these patriotic special interest groups and individuals who have donated money in past, should instead pay all their money into an public election fund, where citizens are alloted the ability to determine who gets it....each person would get "50 political bucks" and can give to candidates they want to hear more from.
I'd Love To Change The World.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7-8sCLWwLk&feature=youtube_gdata_player
We need some more anthems for ows
Tell that to the Twinkle Team, the Obamapologists here to co-opt OWS into a front for the Democrats.
OWS is against established politics, that begs corporate owners.
OWS is against all Obama's shortsighted moves, such as not breaking up too big to fail, not utilizing bully pulpit to shame Right-wing-corp-orats, and not bringing about real change when we were ready for change.
Now, middle class wealth has largely trickled up to banks and the 1 percent, whose parties can't be reasoned with.
Walmart Sales are down. Karma may win. 90 percent dislike Congress.
One of these days we may clean house!
Meanwhile, March against Monsanto May 25 everywhere.!
PS--bring kids & grand-kids!
I guess we must compromise, and utilize the existing political structures, until we invent something better, or make it to the promised land.
Real Democracy USA
anyone know these guys http://www.progressivemajority.org/about-us
-use Affidavits, get involved, hold your nose and maybe run to keep the pols on their toes.
What's a twinkle team?
What kind of pologist are you?
What about libe(R)tarains around here, and their co-option efforts?
Or didn't you notice them, because you are like them.
There is no twinkle team. There is a pat you on the head team.
I think every one should just pat you on your little right wing shill head.