April 18, 2012

Cars suck now.

I bet a considerable chunk of the price of purchasing a new vehicle covers all kinds of bells and whistles and mandatory safety features. Not getting all of this crap is not an option anymore, nor is repairing your own vehicle. I'd love to go out and buy a new vehicle without an alarm system, without air bags everywhere, without stickers everywhere telling me how to properly seat my nonexistent child, without back-up cameras, without on-star and without a black box tracking me. I don't need a killer stereo, heated seats, power windows/mirrors and for gods sake I want a goddamn cigarette lighter and ashtray not a power-point and jumbo sized cup holders.

April 15, 2012

without a realistic definition of whats at stake and what constitutes victory

the notion of a 'winning' will be limited to lip-services paid and at best incremental improvements. As long as the majority of the 99% share the same values of what constitutes wealth as defined by the 1%, then deposing the current 1% is mainly an act of retribution and likely futile. The belief that wealth can be quantified by money and fed only through constant growth is the root of the problem. Fighting for a bigger piece of the pie is understandable, but no-one is willing to admit that the pie itself is carcinogenic. Instead of growth, the new reality must be entirely about Equality (social, legal, medical) through Sustainability (environmental, intellectual, spiritual), or else we're all going down. Its bigger than individuals, parties, or nations.

April 3, 2012

The NDP and Green party's official policy positions

call for a re-balancing of debt created currency with government created currency, but neither party talks about it. Its too controversial and misunderstood among by the vast majority of people who think government issued money = hyper inflation and Wiemar republic era wheel barrows of cash. This thinking is exactly what mainstream economists, and globalists want everyone to think. In reality a resource rich country like Canada, could ween itself off of bank debt comfortably over a span of 10-15 years, without a drastic default, and maintain a strong banking position if there was the political will to do so, and if the public was better educated. Whether its a forgotten policy point by the NDP, or a secret agenda (a good secret agenda for a change), who knows. Gradually distributing government created currency through infrastructure projects and necessary government spending should be a national security and sovereignty issue of greater importance, and Canadians should learn that national control of the money supply is exactly how Canada prospered up until the mid 1970s.

March 21, 2012

Beautiful post(s).

I agree with your sentiments, but I too can only speak for myself with absolute certainty. I'd wager though, that 189 members of this group probably have your back, and the balance of the 626 rec's, referenced above, aren't too far behind. However, I'm sure you are aware that some will Never be on board. Some will view it as too risky. Some are happy with the status quo, or least not deeply concerned, maybe some are complacent. Some are complicit.

I discovered and passively read DU since the early 2000's, because of my disbelief, distrust and extreme aversion to modern conservatism as a front for authoritarianism, license for corruption and exploitation. Last August, I began to read about an idea of pitching tents on Wall street, and thought, "what a great idea", "this is years past due", "what if this took off". I finally joined DU last September, and started posting because I believe that the potential for Occupy to succeed lies largely with Democrats, who are the heirs of the legacy of progressives like FDR, LBJ, MLK, and RFK. But invoking their names without embracing their values is disingenuous and dishonorable, and sadly some flaunt this pedigree all the while rationalizing their complicity with the status quo.

It may not be a smooth ride around here in the coming months. But change comes from within, and the persistent industry of small drops of water eventually form the tidal wave of progress.

"Few will have the greatness to bend history; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation ... It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is thus shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance." -RFK

March 20, 2012

I deeply respect the sense of duty and moral conviction

that Ray Lewis demonstrated last fall during OWS, drawing sharp contrast to the NYPD thugs. I sincerely hope he stays safe, and receives all the publicity he wants. A guy like this is dangerous to the status quo because he's a bridge between Occupy and a large segment of the "I don't get it" crowd.

March 7, 2012

I'm so sad to read this.

The loss of Kucinich is a loss for idealists and dreamers. So what.....? Well, there is government,.... and then there is leadership. Kucinich was a leader, not a defender of the status quo, but an inspiration to what a county and people should aspire to.

January 3, 2012

Senator, General Romeo Dalliare gets it!

I have always felt a deep sympathy and respect for General Dalliare. I was pleasantly surprised to read his awesome take on OWS, the Arab spring and the power of a plugged-in generation to create change in Canada too.

"Dallaire says Occupy is a “magnificent” movement that finally calls out the one per cent for taking advantage of the other 99. “It's been since the ‘60s that we've waited for something like this,” he says, adding “the greed side of capitalism irks me significantly.”"

A really good quick read at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/12/28/romeo-dallaire-arab-spring-occupy-wall-street_n_1172570.html?ref=canada-politics

January 1, 2012

Looks like Occupy in NYC is getting f'd over again

Watching the live stream, and it looks like the police stopped everybody, and then arrested them for standing around. Camera guy and national lawyers guild observer turfed to the sidelines.

December 14, 2011

Do you feel that our current (Canadian) parties represent you?

Just thought I'd start a really wide ranging discussion topic, to kind of see where everyone is at in this group. I'll go first.
I'm extremely left of centre, but that said I'm not necessarily anti-capitalism, I just strongly believe in a social contract that allows people to gain wealth but also raises the standards of living that create an environment for creating wealth. Exploitation of labour, and natural resources is not honorable, sustainable or equitable.

I think the Conservative party is solely bent on selling Canada by the pound to the highest (typically International) bidders. They use wedge issues, fear mongering (omnibus crime bill) and increasing militarism (Lybia, F-35's etc) to confuse and divide the populace. Now with their majority position, I expect complete opacity from them, and a chilling effect on free speech and civil liberties. They are truly the party of small penises.

The Liberals are what the Conservatives used to be. All of the parties (just like in the USA) have shifted right. I think Liberal voters like the idea of fiscal conservatism but are generally easy-going people on social issues. The mean spirited Conservatives scare them a little. However the Lib voters haven't been too concerned about the wholesale liquidation of our national assets. Although Mulroney started Free Trade, the Libs picked up where he left off, and continued the sell off, and loss of manufacturing jobs.

I have always supported the NDP, (except the odd strategic vote to prevent a conservative). Sadly I think their recent success was largely due to Layton's charisma, and the implosion of the Bloc, and the Federal Libs. I think they too have moved to the centre and lack bold ideas. I am afraid that (like the Libs) they can be prone to over-legislating us into a nanny state, (Photo radar in Ontario for example).

I think the only notable mention about the Green party is their environmental idealism, and their concept of re-integrating government issued money (as opposed to bank-created debt) back into the economy. I think technically the the NDP held this view also, but suspiciously never talk about it.

So thats my 2 cents. I guess for now I'm 'stuck' being an NDP supporter, and will never support the Libs or Cons, because they don't share my values (not even remotely). Hope to hear from some others in this group: Canada is a Big and Diverse country, so I'm sure there must be a lot of opinions!

February 19, 2012

excellent point

It has always struck me as a bit skewed, that YOU have to work hard, and YOU have to Pay your own way for a higher education, that may or may not get you hired someplace, where THEY benefit from your sacrifice. That has always been the case to some degree, but its gotten worse, as we were told in the early nineties, that no-one should expect a life-long job anymore, but rather be constantly upgrading our skills and education (at our own expense, or peril), so as to be useful, for some new master. Business don't want to invest in training anymore, they just want to open the box, take you out and wind you up. And if you disagree, well then you must be lacking in rugged individualism, and therefore some lazy entitlement seeking parasite.