We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, March 7, 2011

Standoff in Wisconsin [3:18m video]

An interview with a Wisconsin protester from Real News.


Hopefully, the thinking of this worker-protester is representative of a large section of the workers in Wisconsin. If it is, it represents a tectonic shift away from worker trust of mainstream media. Such a development would be extremely dangerous for the ruling class.
 ...I think it has to do with just all of us having come together and discussing this issue and probably talking to one another rather than listening to the mainstream media and realizing more broadly where these problems emanate--from where they emanate and what are the true solutions.