From "metal" Posted on CommonDreams September 5th, 2008 2:10 am
Cicero: "Freedom is participation in power."
Whether you participate in or stand up to or do nothing about over-concentrated power there is a price. I think the prevailing powers in the U.S. and their ~60 million (plus?) fear-driven dupes who are programmed to cling to the false security of an increasingly heartless and massive Police/Surveillance Nanny State (which is costing us billions of wasted dollars, btw) are pushing the country to a position that makes peaceful protest and peaceful progressive change harder and harder. Just like dealing with global warming, the longer we delay the necessary organizing and reforms, the uglier it will get until it may be past redemption.
I think the rest of the global community may wait until our overextended empire reaches a certain economic crumbling point and simply take a different path: Construct a different global commonwealth where the U.S. is treated as a fading pariah--a monster of technologically soulless laissez-faire capitalism gone horribly wrong.
This coming election, I believe, is the Dems' last chance to show they can both win and practice good governance as a ruling majority. If they gain solid voting control of both Houses and the White House, then the situation is theirs to make good on or screw up. Within 3 months of an Obama win we will know.
At that point, progressives face some key challenges:
(1) The critically urgent need to rapidly assemble one unified Progressive Party out of all the many progressive organizations. This will require a national progressive leadership summit.
(2) Agreement upon 3 to 5 core platform planks with which they can simultaneously campaign and educate the public. They need to build an over-arching narrative that is adaptable to new green ideas and technologies and, by its very force of common sense and readily accessible fact, will overwhelm inferior ideologies now wrecking the country and the planet.
(3) A national progressive task force appointed by the leadership to tackle the specific task of figuring out how to (A) use non-violent tactics that compel more attention from the "mainstream media" to our ideas, and (B) gain access to mass media platforms like combined low power FM and website streams, satellite radio and other new communications technology platforms.
(4) Such a movement must have, in my opinion--as major selling point--a publicly accessible, online "green living" knowledge base featuring outstanding progressives who have gained expertise in creative ways to live an environmentally sustainable life from which most of the masses can choose some aspects to emulate. I'm talking every aspect of green living from architecture to semi-grid or off-grid energy systems, gardening (rural to urban), transportation, creative & thrifty crafts and happier, healthier, more independent and less voraciously and unquestioningly materialistic family living. And these green experts should contribute essays, videos, etc., SHOWING others the HOW TO aspects of this for free--subsidized by online donations to the Party (and ads from green companies whose products are featured) until enough of us can get elected to write legislation to create large government subsidies both for the educational and wide-scale public implementation aspects of this. You've probably seen PBS This Old House. Think "This Old Planet" with realistic start-to-finish projects for green living demonstrated by the experts--with interspersed discussions of Party platform proposals to support the broad implementation of these ideas with serious government subsidies.
(5) A unified Progressive Party should disseminate free to all its members information with bullet points and clear sources regarding the numerous studies (some well over ten years old) that resoundingly prove the economic benefits of transitioning to a green economy in terms of rebuilding the middle class. All serious progressives should thoroughly familiarize themselves with these studies and be ready to answer any Republican or Democratic back-sliders who continue to insist on the prevailing yet failing national and global fossil energy paradigm.
(6) Reform of the court system at all levels in the U.S. Appointing better judges, reforming and systematizing the divergent State methods for electing vs. appointing judges.
(7) Repeal of the 1990's Rehnquist Supreme Court decision that equates money with free speech for the purposes of political campaigns.
(8) The need for new corporate reform legislation that denies corporations the same rights as living, flesh and blood citizens and restores them to their pre-1880s legal status as legal compacts issued licenses that are subject to periodic local governmental review (now the multinationals would need State and/or national reviews as well) regarding their social conduct and their license to conduct business.
This would be a start on the domestic end of things. This is the kind of hard work and organization progressives need to already be strategizing and there is PUH-LENTY of work to do. I think a lot of people would be living much happier and more fulfilling lives being part of such a movement. This is a movement that entire families could participate in together--whereas the current dominant Parties are only truly participated in by corporate lobbyists and hack politicians.
Cicero: "Freedom is participation in power."
Whether you participate in or stand up to or do nothing about over-concentrated power there is a price. I think the prevailing powers in the U.S. and their ~60 million (plus?) fear-driven dupes who are programmed to cling to the false security of an increasingly heartless and massive Police/Surveillance Nanny State (which is costing us billions of wasted dollars, btw) are pushing the country to a position that makes peaceful protest and peaceful progressive change harder and harder. Just like dealing with global warming, the longer we delay the necessary organizing and reforms, the uglier it will get until it may be past redemption.
I think the rest of the global community may wait until our overextended empire reaches a certain economic crumbling point and simply take a different path: Construct a different global commonwealth where the U.S. is treated as a fading pariah--a monster of technologically soulless laissez-faire capitalism gone horribly wrong.
This coming election, I believe, is the Dems' last chance to show they can both win and practice good governance as a ruling majority. If they gain solid voting control of both Houses and the White House, then the situation is theirs to make good on or screw up. Within 3 months of an Obama win we will know.
At that point, progressives face some key challenges:
(1) The critically urgent need to rapidly assemble one unified Progressive Party out of all the many progressive organizations. This will require a national progressive leadership summit.
(2) Agreement upon 3 to 5 core platform planks with which they can simultaneously campaign and educate the public. They need to build an over-arching narrative that is adaptable to new green ideas and technologies and, by its very force of common sense and readily accessible fact, will overwhelm inferior ideologies now wrecking the country and the planet.
(3) A national progressive task force appointed by the leadership to tackle the specific task of figuring out how to (A) use non-violent tactics that compel more attention from the "mainstream media" to our ideas, and (B) gain access to mass media platforms like combined low power FM and website streams, satellite radio and other new communications technology platforms.
(4) Such a movement must have, in my opinion--as major selling point--a publicly accessible, online "green living" knowledge base featuring outstanding progressives who have gained expertise in creative ways to live an environmentally sustainable life from which most of the masses can choose some aspects to emulate. I'm talking every aspect of green living from architecture to semi-grid or off-grid energy systems, gardening (rural to urban), transportation, creative & thrifty crafts and happier, healthier, more independent and less voraciously and unquestioningly materialistic family living. And these green experts should contribute essays, videos, etc., SHOWING others the HOW TO aspects of this for free--subsidized by online donations to the Party (and ads from green companies whose products are featured) until enough of us can get elected to write legislation to create large government subsidies both for the educational and wide-scale public implementation aspects of this. You've probably seen PBS This Old House. Think "This Old Planet" with realistic start-to-finish projects for green living demonstrated by the experts--with interspersed discussions of Party platform proposals to support the broad implementation of these ideas with serious government subsidies.
(5) A unified Progressive Party should disseminate free to all its members information with bullet points and clear sources regarding the numerous studies (some well over ten years old) that resoundingly prove the economic benefits of transitioning to a green economy in terms of rebuilding the middle class. All serious progressives should thoroughly familiarize themselves with these studies and be ready to answer any Republican or Democratic back-sliders who continue to insist on the prevailing yet failing national and global fossil energy paradigm.
(6) Reform of the court system at all levels in the U.S. Appointing better judges, reforming and systematizing the divergent State methods for electing vs. appointing judges.
(7) Repeal of the 1990's Rehnquist Supreme Court decision that equates money with free speech for the purposes of political campaigns.
(8) The need for new corporate reform legislation that denies corporations the same rights as living, flesh and blood citizens and restores them to their pre-1880s legal status as legal compacts issued licenses that are subject to periodic local governmental review (now the multinationals would need State and/or national reviews as well) regarding their social conduct and their license to conduct business.
This would be a start on the domestic end of things. This is the kind of hard work and organization progressives need to already be strategizing and there is PUH-LENTY of work to do. I think a lot of people would be living much happier and more fulfilling lives being part of such a movement. This is a movement that entire families could participate in together--whereas the current dominant Parties are only truly participated in by corporate lobbyists and hack politicians.
posted by jefraldo at 9:54 AM
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