Forum Post: The Cooperative Party
Posted 12 years ago on June 10, 2012, 1:56 p.m. EST by LeoYo
(5909)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
Okay, since I've already suggested this to a couple people, I'm going to just throw this one out there for anyone to run with if they should so choose.
The Cooperative Party.
Simply put, the Cooperative Party would focus on the expansion of worker-owned cooperatives, credit unions, and public banks at the state and local levels while also supporting the American Prosperity Initiatives http://occupywallst.org/forum/free-democracy-amendment/ for restraining detrimental corporate influences upon local economies. A focus of efforts could be made in the 24 ballot initiative states where legislation can be passed by the people without reliance upon unreliable politicians. In such states, state banks could be established that could collectively form a Union Reserve Bank to eventually displace the privately owned Federal Reserve Bank.
That's it. Ignore it, change it, or run with it just the way it is. It's now out there.
When money drives almost all activity on the planet, it's essential that we understand it. Yet simple questions often get overlooked - questions like : Where does money come from ? Who creates it ? Who decides how it gets used ? And what does that mean for the millions of ordinary people who suffer when money and finance breaks down ?
People should have an opportunity to bank with ethical (and perhaps publicly owned) banks. The best ethical practices should be present in the 'market' and should be promoted, incentivised and rewarded so we the people, The 99% - can make informed choices & perhaps only 'Publicly Owned / Co-operative Banks' can offer this, which is exactly why The Infernal Banksters will fight this idea with tooth & claw !!!
Further, some other points on the matter of the benefits of 'Publicly Owned / Co-operative Banks' :
1) Real Democratic Accountability & Oversight over behaviour such as led to The 2008 Financial Crisis ;
2) Prevention of a culture of short-termism, 'moral-hazard', 'perverse incentives' & of 'regulatory capture' ;
3) Profits to be ploughed back into "Society" rather than to 'private shareholders' (Foreign or otherwise) ;
4) Driving out 'bad banking practice & rewarding greed' and favour/instil 'ethical' practices and behaviour ;
5) Rewarding savers, NOT fleecing them with tiny rates of return and thus driving them towards 'sharks' ;
6) More fair, rational, longer-term & much more socially responsible outlook & 'real investment lending' ;
7) The urgent reintroduction of 'Glass Steagal' and a 'Financial Transaction / Tobin Tax' - internationally ;
8) Reigning in dubious practices (cf. "Innovative Financial Products" - CDOs, CDS's, 'Mortgage Backed Securities', et al & outright fraudulent behaviour - 'Bernie Madoff-Jon Corzine-MF Global' ad nauseum) ;
9) Re-instilling Public Confidence by Accepting / Realising that Banking & Financial Services can NOT just be left to 'Selfish Short-Term Profit Motives' and Banking to be seen as a 'Strategic Public Utility' ;
10) Have you ever heard of The State Owned "Bank Of North Dakota"? IF NOT then why not d'you think? Please see : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_North_Dakota and http://banknd.nd.gov/ etc. .. ... ~~*
There is some degree of overlap in my points and almost guaranteed that one could argue the toss, so from a purely US perspective - I append something more substantial to read, reflect and ruminate upon :
'The Co-operative Ethos' is extremely important for the changed paradigms which we need Globally.
...~*~...
.fiat lux.
Not a terrible idea, but still a top down idea (and top down attempts at imposing solutions make it easier for the establishment to suppress and ultimately control). Big banks will get out of our neighborhoods when we stop using big banks (and it's just that simple). If everyone closed their accounts with big banks, put their money in a credit union, and stopped taking loans and credit cards from big banks, we bite into the problem significantly. If we began to innovate, and find alternative sources of capital (like crowd funding) to do things like open cooperative enterprises, and those enterprises refused to work with big banks, then I think we could solve the problem. In the mean time, sure, political reform may provide us with some semblance of temporary relief, but ultimately it's not a solution (it does nothing to address the underlying flaws in our social structure).
I will have to dig up some information showing that the big banks are only reliant upon big business for staying in business. The masses of individual customers are merely the icing on the cake. These banks are also the repositories for local and state public funds. Plus, so long as the banks of the Federal Reserve are considered to be too big to fail, they will automatically get bailed out unless an alternative exists to immediately take their place. These banks permeate society at all levels and will have to be dealt with at all levels.
I do agree, and it is an acute situation that needs to be dealt with (although neither political party seems willing to address this issue in a serious way). But, if we had a participatory democracy (just to point out the obvious), this problem wouldn't exist.
Well, a Cooperative Party that focuses upon engaging the public in passing initiatives would be a step in that direction. Cooperative doesn't just have to refer to worker-owned cooperatives but can also refer to social cooperation on the political level.
These are good ideas worth exploring.
In order to aid and abet any considerations, cogitations and ruminations - I append :
http://www.ica.coop/al-ica/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperative
http://www.co-operative.coop/corporate/widermovement/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_cooperative_movement
http://trustcurrency.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/cooperative-movement-in-century-21.html .
The last link is a particularly interesting article from a US perspective by a UK blogger.
fiat lux ...
Having taken a quick look at your last link I thought you might like my opinion post.
Society fails when the people are removed from the process.
http://occupywallst.org/forum/society-fails-when-the-people-are-removed-from-the/
You thought right in more than one sense. I liked and recommend your thread. Thanx.
pax, amor et lux ...
Thank you.
Great links. Thanks.
So, you go to sites that support your agenda. you wont got to http://www.thereligonofpeace.com/ because you're a coward, because the truth about islam is somehting you refuse to face.
Those are good, interesting sites to me. A site that calls itself one thing, but whose mission is quite another does not interest me.
you have no idea about the site since you wont visit it to read it for yourself. COWARD.
I did look at it. I just didn't read past the headlines. I got the gist. Thanks.
wouldnt read past the headlines?than you remain purposely ignorant.
one chooses what they read
by saying he/she wouldnt read past the headines, the person is lying. it's along site with many references. there are no "headlines"
sadly
I've been campaigning for clear thread titles for a long time
There are NO headlines, so you're lying.
Yes there were. There were snippets describing the content, I'd call them headlines.
now there are "snippets" of headline. there are no headlines and you're still lying.
LOL!
you arent the only one laughing at your stupidity. ows loves that you're a willing pawn, to be discarded after your usefulness is over.
The idiots in this country only vote for the two corporate parties.
Unless you are willing to sell out to get some tv exposure, expect no one to vote for you.
No one needs to vote for a Cooperative Party candidate. It would certainly be great when it happens but the strength of the party would lie in the support of initiatives that could be passed by the general voting public. This can be done at the state level in 24 states and at the local level throughout the country.
If it is meaningful change, then the two parties will not allow it on the ballot. The only ones that can get it on there are you, and you must register as a minor party first, which is usually very rigid and requires the huge leap of faith that requires (sarcasm) people to sign on to something new.
RON PAUL 2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK5X4dYl7Bw&feature=related