Forum Post: If your counterpart only understand the language of money then there is no better time to "talk"....

It is no coincidence that occupy camps are evicted the week before Thanksgiving when the frantic shopping season starts. People are supposed to vent their frustration, fear & anxiety by going to the mall and consuming - as they have been conditioned by the system so well in the last few decades rather than opting to make use of the most powerful of democratic means, public protests. It sure would not have been a pretty picture having people laden with shopping bags and frantically looking for the best sales walking by encampments of citizens protesting an out of balance wealth distribution and unfair financial system.

So one has to use the language your counterpart understand - and yes, it is the language of the "$" sign.

I would like to suggest is a week-long consumption boycott in which people would only buy the very necessary items like groceries but would refrain from any other purchase.

This would counter the concept Corporate America and Wall Street has of our society which sees people only as faceless (and powerless) consumers without any stake in creating a just and fair society. Polls show that 50-60% of the population is sympathetic to the "99%"/"Occupy..." movement but would probably not necessarily join a protest march or general strike.

The consumption boycott is also one that does only require an adjustment in spending habits which is an easy thing to do and I assume a lot of people would be more than willing to join. This consumption boycott would also not require any elaborate infrastructure or organization since it can be implemented at the individual level with rapidly multiplying effects. The only organizational structure would be to effectively announce the consumption boycott, rally support and publish reminders during the week-long boycott.

Such a peaceful, yet very effective consumption boycott or "Black Friday" boycott would be very difficult to ignore by the mainstream media and also show real consumer power to Wall Street and the banks.

If they see people only as consumers let's use our consumer power smartly and effectively!