War vets invade an urban village (in Baltimore)

[starroute]

5. This goes hand-in-hand with what some of the occupiers are starting to do

On one hand, there's a lot people can do to clean up their own neighborhoods if they believe it can make a difference.

But on the other hand, the more that people take control of their own fates and experience the self-respect that comes as a result, the more empowered they are to demand support from government for the parts they can't do themselves.

This is what community organizing is really about -- and why people like Glenn Beck are trying to demonize it. It's about getting communities to discover their own power and fight back against the forces that keep them poor, crime-ridden, and demoralized. And though that sounds simple, it's a force that could transform everything.