Slog
News & ArtsTuesday, February 14, 2012
Occupy / 2012 Here Comes Occupy Wall Street 2.0?
Posted by Paul Constant on Tue, Feb 14, 2012 at 11:43 AM
A website called The 99% Declaration has just popped up. It begins:
BE IT RESOLVED THAT WE, THE NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in order to form a more perfect Union, by, for and of the People, shall elect and convene a NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY the week of July 4, 2012 in the City Of Philadelphia to prepare and ratify a PETITION FOR A REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES on behalf of the Ninety-Nine Percent of the People of the United States to be served upon the United States Congress, United States Supreme Court and President of the United States prior to November 6, 2012.
It's a hugely ambitious plan, announcing that the people "shall elect two Delegates, one identifying as male and one identifying as female, by direct democratic vote, from each of the existing 435 Congressional Districts, to represent the People" at this assembly.
Frankly, I'm surprised the teabaggers didn't pick up on that "petition for a redress of grievances" stuff. It's powerful Constitutional language. The site goes on to list 21 different issues that may or may not wind up in the formal petition at the end of the national general assembly, including "Elimination of the Corporate State," "Term Limits," "Debt Reduction," "Jobs for All Americans," and "Review and Reform of the Federal Reserve Banking System." Will this become the second iteration of Occupy Wall Street? And what do you think?
1
It won't work unless the assembly is neat, orderly, and in suit and tie. It sucks, but there you go.
2
"one identifying as male and one identifying as female,"
Oh goody, that'll keep the trannies happy because if there's nothing else that will unite 99% of Americans, it's confused gender identity issues.
Oh goody, that'll keep the trannies happy because if there's nothing else that will unite 99% of Americans, it's confused gender identity issues.
3
They really shouldn't have used the 99% meme. If they must use it they should have stuck to 2 or 3 issues. 21 issues! You couldn't even get 5% of Americans to agree on 21 issues.
4
The Tea Party didn't pick up on constitutional language, but they did adopt the really important bits- the silly name and the tri-corner hats. That's what our FOUNDIN' FATHERS were all about, right?
5
The "one identifying as male and one identifying as female" language totally has me thinking of the People's Front of Judea.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUBAx8jbY…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUBAx8jbY…
6
This seems like a helpful next step in Occupy's campaign to credit itself for every positive political development that may occur during the next decade.
7
Don't we already have something akin to this? Oh, yeah: voting. Show the fuck up and vote. Sheesh. This isn't Russia or Syria.
8
This national general assembly thing has actually been around for months... Someone forwarded the site to me back in October (to encourage me to run to be a representative), and I was wondering why it wasn't getting more press/publicity. I've been curious what will come out of the idea (how will they finance it, how people will be elected, whether it will actually happen, etc).
9
Why does it have to be one male and one female?
Also, there's no reason for term limits. Elected officials already have term limits... they're called "elections."
Also, there's no reason for term limits. Elected officials already have term limits... they're called "elections."
11
Here's hoping "Term Limits" gets voted off the list. Term limits are one of those things that sound like a good idea at first glance, but on closer examination turn out to be really terrible. Term limits deprofessionalize legislatures and make them LESS capable of resisting corporate influence, because knowing when a lobbyist is bullshitting you is a skill that takes practice and experience. Fill a legislature with inexperienced naifs who have no clue what they're doing, and they'll all be easily taken in and deceived by well-funded and highly experienced lobbyists.
It's true that a lot of lousy, corrupt sacks of shit manage to stay in power longer than they should, but throwing out people who are talented, dedicated and experienced for the sake of faster elimination of bad apples is not the answer. The longtime incumbents who are genuinely good at their jobs are absolutely crucial to good government and throwing them out before they can even become really good has made for worse government in every place it's been tried. Oppose term limits, because they throw the baby out with the bathwater.
It's true that a lot of lousy, corrupt sacks of shit manage to stay in power longer than they should, but throwing out people who are talented, dedicated and experienced for the sake of faster elimination of bad apples is not the answer. The longtime incumbents who are genuinely good at their jobs are absolutely crucial to good government and throwing them out before they can even become really good has made for worse government in every place it's been tried. Oppose term limits, because they throw the baby out with the bathwater.
12
@11,
I agree with you about the importance of experienced politicians, but I wouldn't be sorry if we could impose long term limits that would at least force a future Strom Thurmond to eventually have to leave office. Say, ten terms max for the House, and four terms max for the Senate.
I agree with you about the importance of experienced politicians, but I wouldn't be sorry if we could impose long term limits that would at least force a future Strom Thurmond to eventually have to leave office. Say, ten terms max for the House, and four terms max for the Senate.
13
So wait, if one of the representatives is wearing a frock but still has his twigs and berries, the dude will be called a lady? Elect Rupaul?
Good luck with your confused gender identity politics.
Good luck with your confused gender identity politics.
16
I like this a hell of a lot better than that 'Americans Elect' nonsense funded by a bunch of hedge-fund managers!
Something has to happen and it has to start somewhere. Whatever the outcome, I support their effort to try.
Something has to happen and it has to start somewhere. Whatever the outcome, I support their effort to try.
17
@12: My impression is that most congress-people get better with experience and age.
Think about it - most of our current congressional dysfunction is the work of freshman. And the Strom Thurmond of 2002 was certainly preferable to the Strom Thurmond of 1954, and no worse than Lindsey Graham, who replaced him.
Think about it - most of our current congressional dysfunction is the work of freshman. And the Strom Thurmond of 2002 was certainly preferable to the Strom Thurmond of 1954, and no worse than Lindsey Graham, who replaced him.
22
@20 nope, they have to license them with me. Unless they want to skip the five blade Tungsten version and just use rusty hardened iron blades.
Remember, demand the Fashion Forward Guillotine.
Snicker snee.
Remember, demand the Fashion Forward Guillotine.
Snicker snee.
24
they are taking a page from the playbooks of other, mostly central and south american countries. right now, since the coup in Honduras a couple years ago, these sort of national peoples assemblies have been strong and rampant. this is a good step and the architecture is designed well.
27
The one identify as male... blah blah blah and as female bit is sure to give themselves only fringe appeal. It's a weird little detail that's going to put people off.
Not only that, the language would have been stronger if they'd merely said "a man and a woman." Although, for that matter, why is the gender of the delegates even relevant?
As someone who'd only be more than happy to see a socialist revolution within this country, I'm starting to lose support for the OWS movement. All of these details, they indicate an utterly naive and sophomoric worldview.
Not only that, the language would have been stronger if they'd merely said "a man and a woman." Although, for that matter, why is the gender of the delegates even relevant?
As someone who'd only be more than happy to see a socialist revolution within this country, I'm starting to lose support for the OWS movement. All of these details, they indicate an utterly naive and sophomoric worldview.
28
This is way better than shenanigans of late. At least it shows people a respectful side. And it's non-violent. They need to stay away from violence.
29
Paul, hate to tell you, but these guys have been around since October and have generally pissed off various Occupy groups ever since. They were soundly rejected by both NYC and Occupy Philly and seem to have little traction in the general movement. If you're interested see this statement from Occupy Philadelphia as to why they chose not to support this group or the so-called national GA to be held in Philly this year: http://occupyphillymedia.org/content/99-…
31
I'm alarmed by some of their focal points. Here's some that suggest they've already been infiltrated or coopted:
1) Term Limits. Without some kind of extraordinary campaign finance reform, implementing term limits virtually guarantees the "sale" of offices to the highest bidder. No matter how much or how hard elected officials work for their constituents, or how much good will they get for supporting "the little guy," they get turned out on the street whether or not people prefer them over some corporate-funded hack.
2) Nuking the Federal Reserve. This is an awful idea which has come to the fore through a campaign of misinformation and contagious ignorance. Without the Fed, there is no stability in monetary policy, no way to control inflation and no way to support the economy in bad times. Things would be infinitely fuck worse right now without the Fed. They're not the cause of the Great Recession, but a mechanism that's fighting it. It's like threatening to abolish the fire department because buildings catch fire from time to time. Without the Fed, there wouldn't be any money to circulate in the real economy. Rich people would have it all in vaults. (cf. England ca. 1200.)
3) Debt reduction. Yet again, this is something that favors the rich, not the 99% of us. Unlike other debt, National Debt never has to be repaid. It just dwindles in significance as the economy grows. As long as tax receipts grow at the same rate as the Debt, we're cool. Trying to pay it off serves no purpose other than to put the country deeper into recession. Deficit reduction, on the other hand, is a good thing. This is achieved by raising taxes on the well-to-do, what we used to call a graduated tax, or progressive taxation.
The three points above are the wet dream of every oligarch and plutocrat. They would royally fuck over the 99%. I don't understand why they're even in the laundry list of issues, nor do I trust whoever is putting this "convention" together.
More...
1) Term Limits. Without some kind of extraordinary campaign finance reform, implementing term limits virtually guarantees the "sale" of offices to the highest bidder. No matter how much or how hard elected officials work for their constituents, or how much good will they get for supporting "the little guy," they get turned out on the street whether or not people prefer them over some corporate-funded hack.
2) Nuking the Federal Reserve. This is an awful idea which has come to the fore through a campaign of misinformation and contagious ignorance. Without the Fed, there is no stability in monetary policy, no way to control inflation and no way to support the economy in bad times. Things would be infinitely fuck worse right now without the Fed. They're not the cause of the Great Recession, but a mechanism that's fighting it. It's like threatening to abolish the fire department because buildings catch fire from time to time. Without the Fed, there wouldn't be any money to circulate in the real economy. Rich people would have it all in vaults. (cf. England ca. 1200.)
3) Debt reduction. Yet again, this is something that favors the rich, not the 99% of us. Unlike other debt, National Debt never has to be repaid. It just dwindles in significance as the economy grows. As long as tax receipts grow at the same rate as the Debt, we're cool. Trying to pay it off serves no purpose other than to put the country deeper into recession. Deficit reduction, on the other hand, is a good thing. This is achieved by raising taxes on the well-to-do, what we used to call a graduated tax, or progressive taxation.
The three points above are the wet dream of every oligarch and plutocrat. They would royally fuck over the 99%. I don't understand why they're even in the laundry list of issues, nor do I trust whoever is putting this "convention" together.
32
@23 well, those are the gentleman farmers ... or hobby farmer millionaires.
Don't cry for them, Argentina. The truth is they never left the 18th Century.
Don't cry for them, Argentina. The truth is they never left the 18th Century.
33
Term limits = "Stop me before I vote again!"
I think what people really want is a chance to vote for candidates who aren't pre-selected, financed, and subsequently bribed or intimidated by the super-rich. When we have publicly, equally funded election campaigns, have adopted stringent conflict-of-interest rules for public officials, and have deconglomeratized, deconcentrated, and diversified the media, we'll start to get candidates like that ... and we won't want arbitrary term limits to prevent us from re-electing them if they're still doing a good job.
I think what people really want is a chance to vote for candidates who aren't pre-selected, financed, and subsequently bribed or intimidated by the super-rich. When we have publicly, equally funded election campaigns, have adopted stringent conflict-of-interest rules for public officials, and have deconglomeratized, deconcentrated, and diversified the media, we'll start to get candidates like that ... and we won't want arbitrary term limits to prevent us from re-electing them if they're still doing a good job.
34
@29
Thanks for the link; it makes your comment by far the most useful one here.
I must say, I find it hilarious that a demands list thrashed out by a few Occupy participants at Bard College is being shopped around as the basis for a national constitutional convention of sorts. It's straight out of a freakin' New Yorker cartoon.
Credit where credit is due, though: the whole goofy setup is a nice attempt at an end-run around the fierce opposition within OWS to having demands. The "no demands" demand is a core philosophical tenet for many participants, and for almost all of the committed radical core. I thought we'd at least reached a point where everyone paying attention understood that the lack of demands to date is not just a matter of implementation detail and a bit of elbow grease.
Thanks for the link; it makes your comment by far the most useful one here.
I must say, I find it hilarious that a demands list thrashed out by a few Occupy participants at Bard College is being shopped around as the basis for a national constitutional convention of sorts. It's straight out of a freakin' New Yorker cartoon.
Credit where credit is due, though: the whole goofy setup is a nice attempt at an end-run around the fierce opposition within OWS to having demands. The "no demands" demand is a core philosophical tenet for many participants, and for almost all of the committed radical core. I thought we'd at least reached a point where everyone paying attention understood that the lack of demands to date is not just a matter of implementation detail and a bit of elbow grease.
35
Brilliant, so the whole OWS movement have degenerated into a circular firing squad arguing whether trannies rights are being protected.
You know, 99.99% of the 99% aren't too concerned about hysterical trannies when they don't have a job.
You know, 99.99% of the 99% aren't too concerned about hysterical trannies when they don't have a job.
36
@36
Those who read anonymous comments did see yours the first three times, there's no need to keep reposting.
It sounds like in this particular case, the trans people still haven't been mollified, since there's no way to serve as a delegate without identifying as either "male" or "female", and there are of course people out there who don't do that.
As an aside, I have decided that I will refuse to let others impose the category "cisgendered" on me; it's terribly judgmental, and I certainly wouldn't choose to use that word when describing myself.
Those who read anonymous comments did see yours the first three times, there's no need to keep reposting.
It sounds like in this particular case, the trans people still haven't been mollified, since there's no way to serve as a delegate without identifying as either "male" or "female", and there are of course people out there who don't do that.
As an aside, I have decided that I will refuse to let others impose the category "cisgendered" on me; it's terribly judgmental, and I certainly wouldn't choose to use that word when describing myself.
37
"there are of course people out there who don't do that"
Which is why Occupy is little more than the usual fringe groups we've seem for years wrapped up in their never ending reductionist game of identity politics that are totally irrelevant to the lives of most Americans (and by Americans I also mean citizens....me, bad).
Which is why Occupy is little more than the usual fringe groups we've seem for years wrapped up in their never ending reductionist game of identity politics that are totally irrelevant to the lives of most Americans (and by Americans I also mean citizens....me, bad).
38
funny how establishment centrists like yourself can't be anti-walmart because forcing the breeders to "buy local" and support farmers markets would essentially be a huge tax on the poorest of the poor.
Advertisement
Most Commented on Slog
-
It's Spring! Who's Ready for Street Harassment? by Cienna Madrid
-
SL Letter of the Day: Insane Demands by Dan Savage
-
SL Letters of the Day: Just Say No to DSGs by Dan Savage
-
SL Letter of the Day: Gonna Boil My Laptop After Answering This One by Dan Savage
-
Bigot Florist Files Countersuit by Dominic Holden
-
New Gun Enthusiast... by Dan Savage
-
America Doesn't Care About Black People by Charles Mudede
-
"Bus service shouldn't be optional—it should be a right." by Cienna Madrid
-
US Military Grants Itself the Power to Police American Streets and "Quell" "Civil Disturbances" by Brendan Kiley
-
Fucking NBA Rejects Kings Move to Seattle by Goldy
Stranger Personals
The Stranger
RSSSeattle Art & Performance Quarterly
A complete guide to Seattle's current art, film, dance, and theater season.
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (39) RSS