Forum Post: You do NOT want to miss this article - possibly the best one on the Global Revolt underway.
Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 1, 2011, 8:46 p.m. EST by TIOUAISE
(2526)
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The article is by William I. Robinson, of the University of California at Santa Barbara.
Here are the last two paragraphs :
"The global revolt underway has shifted the whole political landscape and the terms of the discourse. Global elites are confused, reactive, and sinking into the quagmire of their own making. It is noteworthy that those struggling around the world have been shown a strong sense of solidarity and are in communications across whole continents. Just as the Egyptian uprising inspired the US Occupy movement, the latter has been an inspiration for a new round of mass struggle in Egypt. What remains is to extend transnational coordination and move towards transnationally-coordinated programmes. On the other hand, the "empire of global capital" is definitely not a "paper tiger". As global elites regroup and assess the new conjuncture and the threat of mass global revolution, they will - and have already begun to - organise coordinated mass repression, new wars and interventions, and mechanisms and projects of co-optation in their efforts to restore hegemony.
In my view, the only viable solution to the crisis of global capitalism is a massive redistribution of wealth and power downward towards the poor majority of humanity along the lines of a 21st-century democratic socialism in which humanity is no longer at war with itself and with nature."
William I. Robinson is a Professor of Sociology, Global Studies, and Latin American Studies, University of California at Santa Barbara. His latest book is Latin America and Global Capitalism.
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2011/11/20111130121556567265.html
Not to argue, but I find the first two paragraphs to be more succinct.
"As the crisis of global capitalism spirals out of control, the powers that be in the global system appear to be adrift and unable to proposal viable solutions. From the slaughter of dozens of young protesters by the army in Egypt to the brutal repression of the Occupy movement in the United States, and the water cannons brandished by the militarised police in Chile against students and workers, states and ruling classes are unable are to hold back the tide of worldwide popular rebellion and must resort to ever more generalised repression.
Simply put, the immense structural inequalities of the global political economy can no longer be contained through consensual mechanisms of social control. The ruling classes have lost legitimacy; we are witnessing a breakdown of ruling-class hegemony on a world scale."
It's a superb analysis, isn't it? The best one I've ever read on the Global Rebellion.
I particularly like the end because of the viable solution it proposes: "a massive redistribution of wealth and power downward towards the poor majority of humanity".
It reminds me of a big poster at a Paris march that read "Seul le partage peut sauver le monde". (= ONLY SHARING CAN SAVE THE WORLD.)
The excerpt you cited "massive redistribution of wealth" is sure to inspire the wrath of the 1% and their deluded fanboys. I think a more pertinent extract from the article would be:
"The Great Depression of the 1930s was resolved through the turn to variants of social democracy in both the North and the South - welfare, populist, or developmentalist capitalism that involved redistribution, the creation of public sectors, and state regulation of the market."
These are clearly things we have lost, to our detriment.
The concept of "massive redistribution of wealth" is sure to inspire the wrath of the 1% indeed, but they obviously need to change their thinking...
And some of them already are, for instance Canada's former Prime minister, billionaire businessman Paul Martin, who just recently came out in support of OWS and "wealth redistribution"!
http://occupywallst.org/forum/highly-unexpected-support-for-ows-from-canadas-for/
Great article.
Filthy Marxism. And global revolt? Parts of the US. Egypt.Libya, Tunisia,Italy,and Greece. Oh, and Spain. This is a global revolt?
In Greece and England, it's essentially tone deaf government employees pissed off the borrowed money ride is finished. In Egypt, is nut-job muslims that want religious tyranny instead of secular tyranny.
In the U.S., it's some disaffected 20-somethings without much of an idea of why they're camping in the first place.
As much as the OP of this thread dislikes myself for doing so, there are many people like myself that are 30, 40, and 50 somethings that are employed and have our own version of support that while not under the OWS banner, help proliferate and support many of the same ideology and themes presented by OWS. We owe OWS for the power of the movement but are not dependent on OWS for the continuation of it. In other words, the movement has spread and is self sustaining. The movement can no longer be discredited as being comprised solely of the 20 somethings the dissenters cling to for empowering their own argument against it.
I visited Occupy London. It was essentially a 20-something vagrant camp. OWS claims to represent 99% of the people. If so, the campers are indeed an odd set of "delegates".
One guy was especially funny. His tent had writing on it from his last camping protest. It was some environment thing from 2010.
I stopped at Finsbury Square and chatted a bit. They had two strange signs. One was anti-cuts and pro-welfare state. The other was Kennedy-like with an "ask not message". I asked if they saw a contradiction. Of course, they didn't.
A socialist at St. Paul's was pitching a mass strike. I asked him who the strike would be against. He said, David Cameron. I asked if it wasn't really just a strike of govt workers against those that don't happen to work for govt. He disagreed. I laughed.
I admit, as with any movement of notoriety, OWS has fringe elements. This is why I am a supporter of the movement but remain neutral with regard to OWS. Instead I have opted for creating my own brand that supports the proliferation of ideas built on a platform designed in a way to keep fringe elements out and promote those who can articulate their views in an environment not dragged down by trolls and useful idiots.
Calling it a movement is grossly premature and aspirational at best. Heh, maybe it changes, but that's its state today.
I think the fact that this movement has become part of political speak sooner than even the civil right movement had, lends credibility.
Not really. It's a media and internet age and very different times. A cat dies in California and the whole country knows now too.
Even things like petitions can now generate 10s or 100s of thousands on the internet almost overnight. Fifteen years ago, that was a huge number because they were gather door-to-door or outside a supermarket.
None of these petitions have made any ground and the politicians back then could see the protests in black and white on TV and in front of their offices. The only edge the web has given is to our own communications.
But OWS protesters only make mocking and ignoring the "movement" that much easier. Some people were really wondering when it started, but then see the usual suspect serial protesters and socialists and see the trash and hear the creepy talking in unison cult-speak and move on. That's where we're at today... a giant fizzle of nothing.
And what about the General Strike in London, with 2 million people participating??? All "filthy Marxists", I'm sure... LMAO
Anyway, "MVSN", I have no time to waste with the likes of you, a long-outed T R O L L.
Government employees striking their neighbors that don't happen to work for government and other wards of the state upset that the borrowed money fun train of socialism finally hit the wall.
You didn't answer the question S T U P I D ! And the article is Marxist filth written by a rich person that knows what he endorses will never happen. But he know red garbage like you get suckered in every time.
Typically limited vocabulary of the T R O L L : "filtthy", "stupid", "garbage"... (I hear that some parrots actually have a more extensive vocabulary than most of the trolls on this forum.)
That's how you write when you are incapable of T H I N K I N G...
To understand WHAT MAKES A TROLL TICK - AND have a chuckle while you're at it - go to:
http://occupywallst.org/forum/how-trolls-think-trollosophy-exposed/
Can't respond to the original question can you? No surprise.
I did : "And what about the General Strike in London, with 2 million people participating???" And what about France? And what about Chile? And what about China, which is seeing more and more civil unrest? The whole world is rebelling, my friend, and is not waiting for your permission either!
READ, EDUCATE yourself, do a little actual RESEARCH before commenting. Try it... you might like it and end up with a more fulfilling job than TROLLING.
Good god you are a brain washed idiot! And what are those few additional countries doing now? And believe me china's commie government would clamp down if they thought they had to. IT AIN'T THE WHOLE WORLD YOU RETARD ! He'll, in this country hardly anyone is even paying attention to OWS anymore. And I'm not your Friend. I am your enemy. Go back to your bongos bitch.
MSVN compared to TIOUAISE you are a low grade moron. and that's a great post tiouaise, keep up the great work training web page http://tinyurl.com/7rvpv43
Yes. You are right. Glad you agree with the OP. Let's me(and others) know just where you stand.
In this exchange, "MVSN" has used the typically limited vocabulary of the T R O L L : "filtthy", "stupid", "garbage", "idiot", "retard", "bitch"... That's how you write when you are incapable of T H I N K I N G...
I hear that some gifted parrots actually have a more extensive vocabulary than most of the trolls on this forum.... See the documentary "When Animals Talk", with Jane Goodall.
To understand WHAT MAKES A TROLL TICK - AND have a chuckle while you're at it - go to:
http://occupywallst.org/forum/how-trolls-think-trollosophy-exposed/
Oh yeah. I'm the stupid one. Go back to mom's basement.
I'm an orphan. May I use yours? LMAO
The perpetrators do have a contingency plan if the proles get uppity. They will crash the economy and set us at each-other's throats while they sell us the means to defend ourselves against our hungry neighbors.
Another likely ploy will be to promote global socialism, which is the same wolf in different sheepskin.