Khadaffi is dead. There, got the "big news" item of the day out of the way. Now, let's get down to fixing this country. After all, his being dead means nothing to what we are really facing here. It's a blip of a distraction that will last for another day or so, then *poof*, it'll fade out of the cycle. We've much bigger fish to fry here at home.
As we discussed last time, the OWS movement is not interested in either party. They see the current group of politicians as people who cannot be trusted, and with good reason. Yes, a lot of the anger is rightly put upon Wall Street and the bankers. They did, as we know, almost destroy the world's economy. They are keeping it on the brink of total collapse,somehow, but most of us think that it's time they move away from the ledge.
They don't know how, apparently, and that's the problem. Their greed and avarice are now fueled by fear, the fear of losing what they have. And fear as a motivator can be a very bad thing indeed. And fear of loss is a pretty bad one. It can literally make you stupid. I know, I've experienced it. Most of us have. It's never pretty.
According to recent polls, 57% of the country favor the OWS movement. Extrapolate that into 57% of the electorate having a general and palpable distrust for the government and it supports a rather radical, but done before, concept. As I said last post, it's time to shake up the establishment and there's really only one way to do that.
It's time for a new third party, which I'm calling Independent (I know, not very original, but it is true). The actual name may vary, and there will certainly be changes to the platform as it develops. And I also am aware that there is no way to field a presidential candidate, and I don't care about that. As I said a couple of posts back, Obama has shown clearly that it doesn't matter a whole lot who's in the Oval Office, the power is in the Congress and the state houses. And they have been bought.
Michael Moore (I know a rather polarizing fellow) was on Olbermann (I know, another one) tonight and what he said supports my idea. Anyone who ran a campaign who refused to take any corporate money would likely get elected, regardless of what was spent to beat him. And I think he's right. (It was actually going to be part of this post even if he hadn't said it, but since he did and I heard it, I figured I should give him the credit). To put that much distance between you and the crooks can only be a bonus. But, believe it or not, neither Moore nor Olbermann went far enough.
It has to go a lot deeper than that. What the party needs to do is to take the issues that the OWS folks are concerned about and run a campaign based on those ideas. I'm not suggesting co-opting OWS, but it is going to have to become political, so why not start it's own party? If a bunch of crazy old white people with funny hats and angry signs can do it, why can't we?
No funny hats required. Or wanted.
It's also a lot safer. Look, the longer the demonstrations go on, the more people involved, the more likely that it turns ugly. The incidences so far have been relatively minor (here) and that's great. But we are not new to civil disobedience. Yes, it's been a long time but we have video as a teacher to remind us how not to repeat our mistakes. Which does not guarantee that we won't. As I said last night, demonstrating is great, but the only thing it accomplishes is a shift in the conversation. We have to become part of the process.
We just don't have to do it their way. The number right now is 57%. I think it's a number that is going to continue growing. If we build a platform that encompasses all of the issues, with real common sense solutions, you don't need money to win. They can spend every dime they have and they won't beat us. We already have the majority!
If we want things to change, we have to change them. Barney Frank correctly pointed out that we have to vote. What he failed to note was that we don't have to vote for them. We can put up our own candidates in state and congressional races. Instead of giving money to the status quo, we support, as much as we can, the candidates who favor the real kind of change we believe in. We might not win them all, but we can win some if not most.
Tomorrow's post will be a starting point for our platform. I invite all of you to participate and send in suggestions. Pick the issue of the most interest and what you would do to solve it. Invite your friends and families to participate. I'm serious, here. I really think this is the right time for the right reasons. This is not a left/right deal. This is an open forum for ideas, and all are welcome. Link to the blog on Facebook.
The system is broken, and the only way to fix it is with a new set of tools. I'm counting on you, Hamsters. I know you have opinions. And I know that you can see the button on the page that says, "Follow". Go ahead, push that button now if you haven't already. I thank you.
Keep the Wheel Greased, Hamsters.
HP
No comments:
Post a Comment