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FDR Wasn't FDR ... Until His Hand Was Forced By Civil Disobedience
Progressives are disappointed that - contrary to the hype - Obama is no FDR.
But FDR himself wasn't who we think of as FDR until he was forced by protests, strikes and other forms of civil disobedience.
As historian Howard Zinn wrote in March 2008:
In
1934, early in the Roosevelt Presidency, strikes broke out all over
the country, including a general strike in Minneapolis, a general
strike in San Francisco, hundreds of thousands on strike in the textile
mills of the South. Unemployed councils formed all over the country.
Desperate people were taking action on their own, defying the police to
put back the furniture of evicted tenants, and creating self-help
organizations with hundreds of thousands of members.
Without
a national crisis—economic destitution and rebellion—it is not likely
the Roosevelt Administration would have instituted the bold reforms
that it did.
Today, we can be sure that the Democratic Party,
unless it faces a popular upsurge, will not move off center. The two
leading Presidential candidates [i.e. Obama and McCain] have made it
clear that if elected, they will not bring an immediate end to the Iraq
War ....
They offer no radical change from the status quo.
They do not propose what the present desperation of people cries out for ....
They
do not suggest the deep cuts in the military budget or the radical
changes in the tax system that would free billions, even trillions, for
social programs to transform the way we live.
None of this
should surprise us. The Democratic Party has broken with its historic
conservatism, its pandering to the rich, its predilection for war, only
when it has encountered rebellion from below, as in the Thirties and
the Sixties. We should not expect that a victory at the ballot box in
November will even begin to budge the nation from its twin fundamental
illnesses: capitalist greed and militarism.
***
For instance, the
mortgage foreclosures that are driving millions from their homes—they
should remind us of a similar situation after the Revolutionary War,
when small farmers, many of them war veterans (like so many of our
homeless today), could not afford to pay their taxes and were
threatened with the loss of the land, their homes. They gathered by the
thousands around courthouses and refused to allow the auctions to take
place.
The evictions today of people who cannot pay their rents
should remind us of what people did in the Thirties when they
organized and put the belongings of the evicted families back in their
apartments, in defiance of the authorities.Historically,
government, whether in the hands of Republicans or Democrats,
conservatives or liberals, has failed its responsibilities, until
forced to by direct action: sit-ins and Freedom Rides for the rights of
black people, strikes and boycotts for the rights of workers, mutinies
and desertions of soldiers in order to stop a war. Voting ... is a poor substitute for democracy, which requires direct action by concerned citizens.
Similarly, Zinn said in 2008:
The
obstacles are a kind of resignation that things will go on as before.
That's always the obstacle to change. The obstacle to change is not
that people don't want change. People want change. But most of the
time, people feel impotent. However, at certain points in history, the
energy level of people, the indignation level of people rises. And at
that point it becomes possible for people to organize and to agitate and
to educate one another, and to create an atmosphere in which the
government must do something. I'm thinking of the 1930s; I'm thinking of
Franklin D. Roosevelt coming into office not really a crusader.
Roosevelt
came into office, you know, with a balance-the-budgets history. It was
not clear what he was going to do, and I don't think he was clear
about what he was going to do, except that he was going to be different
from Hoover and the Republicans. But when he came into office, he
faced a country that was on strike. He faced general strikes in San
Francisco in Minneapolis. He faced strikes of hundreds of thousands of
textile workers in the South. He faced a tenants movement and an
unemployed council movement. And he faced a country in turmoil, and he
reacted to it, he was sensitive to it, he moved. That's what we will
need.
We will need to see some of the scenes that we saw in the '30s.
Liberal Harvard Law School professor Lawrence Lessig pointed out last week that - instead of mocking the Tea party - progressives should emulate it's energy:
Many
of my friends have been puzzled that I have not been a strong critic
of the Tea Party. Indeed, quite the opposite, I stand as a critical
admirer.... I am a genuine admirer of the urge to reform that is at the
heart of the grassroots part of this, perhaps the most important
political movement in the current political context.
My
admiration for this movement grew yesterday, as at least the Patriots
flavor of the Tea Party movement announced its first fight with (at
least some) Republicans. The Tea Party Patriots have called for a GOP
moratorium on "earmarks."
***
This disagreement
has thus set up the first major fight of principle for the Tea Party.
As leaders in the Tea Party Patriots described in an email to
supporters,For two years we have told the media and
the rest of the country that we are nonpartisan and that we intend to
hold all lawmakers to a higher standard.This, they
insist, is their first chance for that stand with the new Republican
Congress. And the Tea Party Patriots have now mobilized their list to
pressure Republicans to support this first and critical reform in the
new Congress.
***
Earmarks are ... an essential element
in the corruption that is Congress today.... they have become the key to
an incredible economy of influence that effectively enables lobbyists
to auction too many policy decisions to the highest special interest
bidder. That economy won't change simply by eliminating earmarks. But
eliminating earmarks is an essential first step to starving this
Republic-destroying beast.
***
We do face a common enemy.
Special-interest-government is anathema to both the true Right and the
limping Left. Progress would be to work together to end it.
Lessig is not alone.
As I've previously pointed out, progressives such as Dave Lindorff, political science professor Peter Dreier, economist Dean Baker, Daniel Ellsberg, Jonathan Capehart
and many others say that we should be emulating the protest energy of
the Tea Party, because we have to raise some hell before anything will
change.
In fact, as I've repeatedly
noted, the whole left-versus-right thing is just a distraction trick.
It's really the American people versus the giant bankers, captains of
the military-industrial complex, and handful of others who are benefiting by shafting the average American.
Remember that one of the founders of the Tea Party - Karl Denninger - has slammed
the current Tea Party (which was quickly co-opted by the mainstream
GOP) for serving the rich and the Republican party instead of fighting
against the giant banks, and is calling for non-partisan, Gandhi-style nonviolent resistance to take on the banskters.
And remember that "liberal" George Soros is paying a top aide to "conservative" Sarah Palin.
Of course, some have argued that there are more effective methods of disobedience than protests and strikes such as this or this. I will leave strategy to those who have better tactical sense than I have.
But one thing is for sure: unless we make the lives of those in power a little more uncomfortable, nothing will change.
Note
to conservatives who dislike FDR: Glass-Steagall and other regulations
against fraud wouldn't have been passed unless the public had raised
hell through protests and strikes.
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Why dump the money into marches, bus tickets, hotel rooms, hookers, chips, beer ,,, when you can:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Uop5R7E314
Don't just take your money out of the bank. Buy gold and silver with it, the in-your-hand stuff. A run on currencies will create another opportunity, namely, the value of currencies will collapse. Therefore, take your credit cards and max them out buying gold and silver, or short the bank stocks. This will double the effect. Go to the track. Keep your entry receipt, buy a nice lunch and a bottle of their best, go home and default. This works for all who have nothing left to lose.
I like it.
You should expand those ideas and do a "Guest Contribution".
Thanks ... added this to the post:
Of course, some have argued that there are more effective methods of disobedience than protests and strikes such as this or this.
But one thing is for sure: unless we make the lives of those in power a little more uncomfortable, nothing will change.
GW,
Have you seen these?
They are the 10 standing orders of open source warfare.
They come from John Robb of Global Guerillas.
You might really enjoy his work if you don't already.
http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/
Thanatos,
Invite those guys over to ZH as "Guest Contributors". I'm sure Tyler would accomodate them.
It would be nice to see some original thought instead of this type of aggregate copy and paste blog blather post we get from GW.
But now that you've given him the link, I'm sure we'll see a cut and paste masterpiece based on Global Guerillas soon.
I'd bet money on it.
I read some really interesting things about Denninger on http://www.suckerforum.info It's populated by Denninger haters, but they really investigated the fat bastard.
Douchinger isn't a founder of the fucking tea party...GTFO with that shit.
Take that nuthugging back to TF where it belongs
Idiot.
DavidC
Before you challenge GW and Karl to stretch further and do more than they already are doing, why don't you move your parked ass off your couch and try a little stretching of your own. Like maybe stretching from your couch to your leather Lazy Boy recliner. In fact, why don't you try to at least reach where GW and Karl were 2 years ago before demanding they move further.
Put Up or Shut Up works both ways.
So you set a date CogDis. What state do you live in?
And speaking of parked asses, you are among the most prolific of the keyboard commandos on ZH.
I assume you do all your typing while running in place?
I've moved my ass plenty in the poltical process including door to door.
GW, Karl and YOU need to stop calling for protests, strikes, riots etc...unless you are prepared to lead.
Karl has the $$$ and name to make this happen.
So, he does need to put up or shut up.
NOBODY would follow Douchinger, because, well...he's a DOUCHE.
He has the charisma of a leper with herpes
It's not about charisma, which is lucky for you. It's about having the cojones to take a public stand, stick your neck out and become a target.
It has to be someone with influence and credibility, not charisma. It's not a popularity contest, it's not an election and it's not a beauty contest.
It's a revolution that must be rooted in civil disobedience and non-compliance.
People are going to be harassed, jailed and most likely beaten, even killed.
The elites who have been riding us like donkeys for decades are not going to roll over and play dead for us, not while they own the police and the military.
It has to be someone with a solid grasp of the essential issues, sound judgement under pressure and the ability to think on their feet.
So, obviously, it isn't going to be you.
DC protests are so 1960's, the country needs a national worker strike, protests at the State capitol while bringing traffic to a halt and perhaps 24/7 protestors in front of the private home of banksters and fraudulent .gov officials. The only thing they seem to understand is protesting in front of their private homes, marching in DC is a waste of time and effort just as is calling/e-mailing your .gov non-representing representative.