General Discussion

patrice

(47,992 posts)

55. New friends & associates??? I know lots of people who are busy making their own difference.

Thu Apr 11, 2013, 11:29 PM

Apr 2013

Some people should consider not being so top-down authoritarian in their assumptions, i.e. if it's not happening up there where "authority" is, it doesn't matter - suggests a slave mentality.

..................

If I/we can't end Corporate Personhood tomorrow and change campaign finance to make it public financing tomorrow and redistrict all of the gerrymandered districts tomorrow and insure our votes with paper ballots, marked by hand and counted in public tomorrow, I can accept my role as a slave and do what a slave does in REACTION to "authority", constructive or destructive, but ALWAYS defined by "authority" nonetheless, or I can do something else, something different, something that "authority" does not define for me positively or negatively, something that I freely choose and that is a concrete step in a direction useful to my own goals, with other people, people different from myself, but also who share certain things that have not been discovered yet.

If ALL of it is ALWAYS ALL about "them", those up there who "have power" over you, it will ALWAYS and FOREVER be about them, NOT you. You can choose to live your life by making it exclusively about them/"authority", or you can choose to live your life by taking your life away from their ownership and making it about you.

No, you are not all powerful, but you do have choices if you honestly want them. If you don't want those choices, have at them/"authority" and accept the consequences of that. Either way, whoever runs your life is, to a significant extent, up to you.

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I give up, we lost..... [View all] Bennyboy Apr 2013 OP

There won't be any meaningful change until after the empire collapses... villager Apr 2013 #1

but no one seems to want to do anything Bennyboy Apr 2013 #3

Part of the genius of the system is giving people just enough calories, and entertainment... villager Apr 2013 #10

They flat-out ignored millions of people in the streets trying to stop the invasion of Iraq. Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #11

Bingo! Marches won't change anything. A mass work stoppage might. But how to organize that? valerief Apr 2013 #30

That's one hell of an extended metaphor, bravo! Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #37

It might be better to stop buying klyon Apr 2013 #49

Agree.They just didn't cover/report/show/photograph the millions who protested the invasion of Iraq October Apr 2013 #42

Yes. I was there, along with about 500,000 others, and the media and pols acted like Nay Apr 2013 #44

We were in LA and those were far and away the biggest masses of people I've ever seen there. Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #56

The marches on Washington do squat tblue Apr 2013 #33

I flew from LA to Wash DC for the OWS demonstration at Freedom Plaza xtraxritical Apr 2013 #45

Willful Noncompliance Until Disclosure. DeSwiss Apr 2013 #31

American's know all about all that fire power and prisons. Most Americans xtraxritical Apr 2013 #48

Oh yes, let's lie down and die. randome Apr 2013 #2

Well said. We need a "The Sky is Falling" Forum. FSogol Apr 2013 #4

They need a "sky is falling" board...nt SidDithers Apr 2013 #27

Truth is, I've been saying that same thing for a little while now.....n/t AverageJoe90 Apr 2013 #57

Party on.... Bennyboy Apr 2013 #12

If you want to give up like the OP, no one is standing in your way. randome Apr 2013 #22

He is the OP sharp_stick Apr 2013 #26

Agreed. Hey, remember just a few days ago ALL media was talking about how the filibuster was gonna calimary Apr 2013 #28

Howard Dean was right! randome Apr 2013 #34

Well said, some things are getting better. It's a tough uphill battle, but in many areas things are RKP5637 Apr 2013 #13

When you say 'we' to whom to you refer, other than yourself? Bluenorthwest Apr 2013 #18

I mean 'we' no more than anyone else on DU who uses the word. randome Apr 2013 #20

Thank you. Maraya1969 Apr 2013 #21

Yes of course, we are the peanut zeeland Apr 2013 #29

Cheerleading is not needed. randome Apr 2013 #35

My reps don't even bother zeeland Apr 2013 #38

Yes, they (and you) are entitled to that. randome Apr 2013 #43

Expressing strong frustration at what is going on is not being defeatist. It is being aware. And hum robinlynne Apr 2013 #52

Oh, Jesus. Do you even think this will come to a vote? gateley Apr 2013 #5

Part of the problem is...people voted for Republicans in Congress. Honeycombe8 Apr 2013 #6

No, they didn't and that's another huge issue that is ignored. Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #14

But they were able to do that because the voters voted for local & state Repubs, to begin with. Honeycombe8 Apr 2013 #19

"The whole thing is sick." I think that's kind of the point of the OP. The whole thing is corrupted Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #25

'this means we need to vote for even MORE Democrats!!111" boilerbabe Apr 2013 #7

Definition of insanity. 840high Apr 2013 #39

I don't deserve this. I have voted Democrat every election in my life. Autumn Apr 2013 #8

Do that, and Chained-CPI will seem like Eldorado, or the good old days. Hoyt Apr 2013 #54

bwahahhhahahaaa spanone Apr 2013 #9

In an unrelated story, the planet Earth was vaporized for an interglactic freeway. freshwest Apr 2013 #16

News at 11? Holy shit. sheshe2 Apr 2013 #46

LOL! The great beyond. I see your angel wings, too. Thanks for taking the time... freshwest Apr 2013 #50

Yawn. More tiresome prattle from comfortable defeatists tabasco Apr 2013 #15

Yes, gearing up for another victory for the progressive agenda just like 2010. freshwest Apr 2013 #17

I have no reason to roll over, I plan to fight. sheshe2 Apr 2013 #23

Big whoop. Destroying 80 years of Democratic Party policies, destroying public education, duffyduff Apr 2013 #60

I' ve been a pacifist all my life but this time I'm going to fight till I die . olddots Apr 2013 #24

Well I will hope and work for the best but prepare for the worst. Obviously we Raine Apr 2013 #32

The U.S. is investing in the prison economy RainDog Apr 2013 #36

I agree with the sentiment but I don't give up. HiPointDem Apr 2013 #40

Not stopping the corporate takeover of government and not enacting strict campaign finance laws Arugula Latte Apr 2013 #41

Not protesting? What do you think the Occupy movement was? caseymoz Apr 2013 #47

Well there is one consolation....Someday we'll all be dead and none of it will matter Armstead Apr 2013 #51

Quick ...everyone move to Canada ...because they have all the answers. n/t L0oniX Apr 2013 #53

... SidDithers Apr 2013 #58

New friends & associates??? I know lots of people who are busy making their own difference. patrice Apr 2013 #55

It's a government by and for gangsters duffyduff Apr 2013 #59

We didn't lose. We weren't allowed into the game. n/t Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #61