Forum Post: 99% Spring Event
Posted 12 years ago on April 10, 2012, 8:07 a.m. EST by DCInsider
(54)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
All I feel obligated to post about this amazing event, because nowhere have I seen on the sight any reference to it and definitely it should be on the front news page. I mean come on people this I'd a great idea we are letting slip by. Any way, this April 9-15 there is going to be the 99% Spring, which feature education, teach-ins and more. You can details here: http://the99spring.com/
Here us what the SEIU says about about it: http://www.seiu.org/2012/04/the-99-spring-is-coming.php
MoveOn link: http://moveon.org/event/events/index.html?action_id=268&rc=99HP
Thanks and spread the word!
For everyone's information The "99% Spring" has nothing to do with Occupy Wall Street and is just another front group for the corporatist Democratic Party:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/04/05/counter-insurgency-as-insurgency/
MoveOn.org/SEIU has tried to co-opt OWS, and mislead people by using the sames slogans and symbols that we do, several times before:
http://www.salon.com/2011/11/19/heres_what_attempted_co_option_of_ows_looks_like/
When are these people going to realize that our attention spans aren't as short as the Teabaggers, and that we aren't going to be hijacked by the Democratic Party like the Teabaggers were hijacked by the Republicans?
The Obama administration (and their henchman like Van Jones and fake sell-out "Unions" like the SEIU) represent everything that OWS stands against:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2008/06/05/analysis-shares-obama-idUKNOA53525520080605
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2009-01-27-lobbyist_N.htm
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2010/12/09/ex-white-house-budget-director-joins-citigroup/
http://articles.latimes.com/2008/mar/21/nation/na-wallstdems21
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/19/business/19gensler.html?ref=politics
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/10/nation/la-na-obama-jobs-council-20111010
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/03/AR2009040303732.html?hpid=topnews
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/22/business/schneiderman-is-said-to-face-pressure-to-back-bank-deal.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/business/19dimon.html?pagewanted=all
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aKGZkktzkAlA
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545908/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/t/obama-selects-bernanke-second-fed-term/#.Tw0j0PntlnA
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0908/13631.html
http://dailybail.com/home/where-are-the-wall-street-prosecutions-gretchen-morgenson-ag.html
So what do you propose as a better solution? Another poster said in a different forum that the the Unions love the OWS are you saying that is not true?
I am getting tired of people who keep making the 99%/OWS movement a wedge issue. It seems you are interested more in keeping everything separate rather than working together.
<<<<So what do you propose as a better solution? Another poster said in a different forum that the the Unions love the OWS are you saying that is not true? >>>
And I support the unions. What I don't support is the SEIU, which is a fake sell-out union controlled by 1%ers who care more about the interests of their corporate masters than the workers.
<<<<I am getting tired of people who keep making the 99%/OWS movement a wedge issue. It seems you are interested more in keeping everything separate rather than working together.>>>>
I getting tired of people trying to obscure corporate lobbyist's thinly veiled attempts to capitalize on the movement. We all need to unite and work together to expose them and stop their efforts to destroy our movement like they destroyed the Tea Party and turned into in a crazy crypto-fascist wing of the republican party.
I'm not sure if it's that sinister (although I suppose it could be). I think the 99% Spring idea takes the view that some people may not be comfortable with OWS (for whatever reason), so maybe they just want to provide a home for those people.
It is a "top down" (garden variety, left of center) movement. We do have many things in common with these guys, but I don't see any major focus on participatory democracy (and giving citizens more control over the political process), which in my view is more important than anything else (because everything else would just be temporary, as it won't produce substantive and systemic "bottom up" change). We don't only need something like a Sanders Amendment (to get money out of politics), we probably need term limits, and above all, our Constitution should grant citizens, as a civil right, the ability to recall elected officials (at both the state and federal level).
There are many way for the 99% to fight against the inequality from the 1%, and I'll support those methods that people choose to use regardless of whether they are from Occupy or not.
Occupy, the 99% Declaration, and parts of this all have the same goal in mind, so lets refrain from the infighting and work together rather than pushing each other apart.
"Infighting" implies that we are "in" the same movement. We aren't. MoveOn.org the SEIU etc. are not fighting the 1%---they are supporting them. They are trying to subvert our movement and and destroy us.
You better believe I'm going to fight them (and any other Wall St. lobbyist group that tries to falsely fly the banner of the 99%.)
I read most of the links you posted and only counterpunch really addresses what you are claiming. And it doesn't say that the 99% is trying to co-opt the OWS movement. And to be honest that has been done ages ago. Case in point an active OWS Occupy DC person (Sara Shaw) is a former political campaign consultant from Crossroads Campaign Consulting http://www.google.com/app/contacts?unauth=1#:v=pc&g=7517033970414209258
She is super active in Occupy DC and quoted by the Washington Post numerous times. Since someone pointed out her ties with the democratic party and her "former" employer she was had their site take down she was a staffer there. But does that mean that Occupy DC should throw her out? Because she had/has strong ties to the Democratic Party?
If she tries to use her position to hijack OWS for the democrats then we should disassociate with her. Are you suggesting she has done this?
No. She hasn't in my opinion, but as a strong voice in Occupy DC by default isn't get past employment a a campaign consultant 6 months ago make her someone who is trying to hijack the OWS movement? Couldn't she be someone who is behind the scenes influencing the movement? Maybe encouraging people to vote gor Obama?
Here are her tweets, you tell me what you think?
http://twitter.com/sara_jeans
I've never heard of her and I don't know anything about her.
I'm friends with the main organizers of the "oct6 2011" organization that later merged with Occupy DC. They are all pretty committed to not being hijacked by the democratic party. I don't think it is going to be a problem down there.
I agree. It doesn't have to be OWS-based to be effective. That would be a very narrow view. And that myopic view by some members is what is hurting (note I said hurt not killing) the movement. Groups like moveon.org and others at least bring awareness and give the majority (note I didn't say 99%) an ability to do something positive.
Well, I'm not pushing apart, but I am critiquing their lack of focus on participatory democracy. The reason I prefer OWS is I can't stand "top down" systems. The idea of "just go along with the program" goes against my nature. First, it's intellectual dishonesty (which I find offensive), but secondly, if a movement can't "thrive" through criticism, then it isn't worth a shit anyway (and it's just more of the same old crap).
Speaking for myself, I will not be a sheep, I do not require a leader, I don't want a leader, and I don't want to lead anyone.
Sure, I feel like the 99% Spring movement has much in common with some things I hope for (and best of luck to them), but I prefer the occupy movement (I mean, why should I settle for a movement that only goes "half way")?
Maybe my concern and question I would pose to you is: what has OWS done successfully lately? How has OWS changed things? Don't say raise awareness because I would argue the 99% has done that too, and moveon.org etc. Don't say it allows open, transparent discussions because I have seen the rampant censorship here on this site and at GAs. Want to kill a discussion quick at a GA, have a temperature check before the speaker can fully convey their statements/opinions.
Then I would ask why is the OWS > 99%?
Well, the expectation that any movement can change what took decades to accumulate, in a matter of six months, is I think unrealistic. Moreover, I'm not saying that GA's are perfect (there's room for improvement in everything, always). And arguably, in the "short attention span" world we live in, there may be wisdom in summarizing our grievances in 3, 4, or maybe 5 key points. That wouldn't imply diverting attention away from all the other issues we care about, since we could have a few general points that serve as an umbrella for most of our grievances.
Nevertheless, the "participatory" model is a great ideal, and I think it serves as a good guiding principle (provided we don't become too dogmatic about the mechanics of how it should work).
That said .... I have nothing inherently against the 99% Spring idea. I think it's good that we have different movements, which work in different ways, who are fighting for many of the same things. It's probably even true that 99% Spring does, at least implicitly, support some aspects of direct democracy. For instance, I'm quite sure they would oppose efforts to strip voters of the right to hold a recall election (e.g. it is after all garden variety liberal groups, labor unions, etc., who have been pushing to recall Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker).
"Well, I'm not pushing apart,"
By all means do. These people are our political enemies. It's very similar to Mitt Romney saying he "Worries about the 99%".
Their purpose is to neutralize OWS and divert energy into getting Wall St. puppets into office.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/04/05/counter-insurgency-as-insurgency/
I'm not making that assumption. For one, I don't see how our event dates are in conflict. I'm not sure what they're telling people in these training sessions, but I doubt they're disparaging OWS (but I could be wrong). So there would be a possibility that this could strengthen OWS (if more people become involved, who weren't involved previously, it brings more people to the general fight, and if OWS articulates what distinguishes it from other similar movements, I think it's possible that some of those new people, will prefer the OWS message).
Nonetheless, I also see your point (and so I'm not making any premature assumptions either way).
I can see how some people would prefer the more convention (hierarchical organizational structure) route (particular older people, people with families who aren't willing to be more confrontational, etc.). Nevertheless, I also see negatives. For instance, some labor unions (particularly the bigger ones) aren't really democratic at all. They have the pretense of a democratic structure, but they're very hierarchical, their leaders are typically in the 1%, etc. (and it's these traditional left of center organizations who are gravitating towards the 99% Spring movement).
http://www.may12.net/
The 99% Spring event? Sounds like another brilliant idea! We have all seen how well this OWS movement has worked out.
Please , please keep demonstrating. And please do what the SEIU tells you to do. We all need more "education" and "teach-ins".
Thanks for the post, DCInsider!
Happy to spread the message, heard about the event and was surprised to no see any mention of it on the site. So I thought I would share.
Please demonstrate. Please!
The more mayhem you morons cause the more votes the Republican party gains.