Recently Rated:
Stats
When worlds collide: Occupy and the 99 percent
"Occupy a job"was the terse direct tweet sent to me after I had blogged about my day at Occupy Cardiff . At first, I was furious as I have been in continuous employment since 1965, but once I calmed down I realised this just reflected the fact that the tweeter was making assumptions, but in reality knew nothing about me. And that summarises the problem with the Occupy movement, almost nobody knows much about it or really understands it.
The mantra ' we are the 99 percent ' has resonated with ordinary people throughout the western world. People in western nations are confused and angry as they see their standards of living reduced because of the economic crisis of the last three years. Their anger is directed against a tiny number of people and organisations of wealth and power who continue to increase their prosperity and their influence, whilst ordinary people see the deep reduction in their living standards. However, ordinary people perceive no outlet to express that depth of feeling and so the emergence of the Occupy movement has at last provided them a vehicle to carry their anger and frustration with the 1 percent.
Ironically, the ethos of the Occupy movement is actually quite difficult to get alongside. They state general principles of anger and rejection of the conduct of the bankers who caused economic ruin for many people, the huge multinational companies that pay little or no tax and politicians whose priorities include areas like substantial military spending whilst bringing in austerity measures which have hurt people at the most vulnerable end of society the most. However, they are radical because they don't produce a simple manifesto with a list of demands which ordinary people would find easy to understand and to engage with. As was noted in The Guardian :
To critics of Occupy Wall Street, one of its most glaring weakness is the lack of specific demands. To many supporters, that ambiguity is one of the main foundations of the movement's success.Two goals documents, The Liberty Square Blueprint and The 99 Percent Declaration that have emerged from Occupy Wall Street illustrate the diversity of ideologies of participants. The reason is simply that each expression of the Occupy movement is autonomous, and unlike most of society's structures, is not a hierarchical entity but it represents a group of co-equal individuals, drawn together and united by their shared participation with the 99 percent of society that feels disempowered, disenfranchised and unable to influence the inexorable greedy progress of the 1 percent.
My good friend Steve commented on Facebook,
"If the 'Occupy' movement really does represent the '99 percent' ... it should be no problem for them to accomplish whatever changes they are seeking at the next election opportunity."A great idea Steve, but unfortunately the disparate nature of the movement would never be able to stand on a common platform. I attended the planning meeting for Occupy Bangor group, some of whom made me feel decidedly right-wing! The group contained supporters of the Labour Party, Plaid Cymru, the Greens, anarchists, ordinary Bangor University students and people with no declared political affiliation. I know of church ministers, magistrates and other middle-class people who would not be seen as natural participants, joining the occupation at St Pauls .
Despite the setbacks in Cardiff , in Portland, Oregon and in New York where the police broke up the occupations, there is still a hunger for protest and more and more expressions of the Occupy movement are appearing all over the world. However, this movement will only succeed if it is embraced by a huge proportion of the public at large, something that wont happen until people can find a point to engage. However, the movement has already succeeded by providing a useful platform for others to build upon. Despite St Paul's Cathedral's reluctance to endorse the Occupy movement and Ed Milliband's over-long silence about the issue, St Pauls and Milliband finally found some integrity and made positive statements of support.
My anxiety is that this movement has built-in the seeds of its own destruction by having no appointed leaders, spokespersons or manifesto to communicate their important message. Here in Wales 100 years ago we had our own movement, a religious revival in 1904 which impacted the nation hugely, transforming many lives. In 1904 nobody would have imagined that the movement would have all but run out of steam within two years. I would urge those involved with the Occupy movement which includes me as one of the 99 percent -- to learn the lessons of history and ensure that its aspirations are clearly understood, embraced and fought-for by the remainder of the 99 percent.
Here is the url:- http://americymru.net/forum/topics/occupy-this-forum
Great post...but can you do me a favor? Repost in the new 'Occupy this Forum'? Trying to get the ball rolling on the new split feed thing
FOX NEWS INSIDER: Stuff Is Just Made Up
btw this post is certainly living up to its title. Worlds are colliding right here on AmeriCymru it seems. Great for the stats
You wouldn't have seen me at Occupy Portland. Mainly because I wasn't there
I am too old, busy, complacent ( substitute relevant excuse ) to be bothered with protesting. BUT , working downtown as I do I got the opportunity to talk to a dozen or more of the protestors on their way in and out of the library. It must be a completely different movement here to the one you describe in St Louis but I will reserve judgement on that since I have no first hand knowledge.Suffice it to say I didn't speak to anyone who described themselves as an anarchist.
The people I spoke to were angry , they were angry because they were homeless, unemployed or in some cases, entering the workforce with degrees that they felt were worthless. At one of the local protests associated with the Occupy movement ( attended by students and faculty of Portland State University ) a student burned his University Diploma. This caused a furore in the local press and much online comment. Basically his action was symbolic of a general sense of despair occasioned by the perception that the 'system' operates solely in the interests of banks and bankers and offers little or no opportunity for advancement by ordinary people. Whether this perception is accurate I wouldn't like to say BUT I have a certain sneaking respect for people who are willing to protest in order to make a point, particularly if they are prepared to put themselves in harms way in order to do so. It would be 'business as usual' today for the Gaddafi regime in Libya if people were not prepared to do that.
I spoke to some cops and downtown security guys also. One of the latter pointed out that pretty soon Portland cops will be part of the 1% with all the overtime payments they are getting. So I guess the protests are benefiting at least one section of the community.
As for the camps, they are gone. They were little more than a temporary manifestation of a popular sense of outrage. Sure they attracted a quota of drug takers, undesirables and petty criminal elements.What popular movement in history has failed to do that? Concentrating on these people is a convenient way for the media ( note that I dont say 'news' media since I hardly think that Fox qualifies for that title ) to avoid the underlying causes of popular discontent. However, whilst camps may come and go the seething resentment that I encountered in all my talks with the protestors will not. Something is happening here and we dont know what it is....yet.
btw Are these guys in St Louis anarchists or advocates of further welfare state provision? It seems to me that they'd have to be one or the other.
Fellas, fellas. Quoting anything from Fox News is like quoting from the Daily Mail. Please don't do it. I would have to call in an exorcist to my computer!
Hi Swansea.....Is there or was there an Occupy St Louis and if so did you visit it? Or is everything in the preceding comment second hand? Fox News perhaps?
Errrmm...yes. Few drinks last night. Pressures of work etc...everything back to normal now.
Had a few drinks tonight, eh, Ceri?
Sorry mate ( see previous post )..I just think its superbly funny...anyhoo...I'm going to bed...about time too
Hi paul
I'm an auld atheist/pantheist. Thought you might enjoy my favorite hymn:- btw here is a fun track, sorry if it offends