Go on...Get out and picket

A couple of things to talk about ...

Justice_________________________________
Today was a bad day for OJ Simpson! Sentenced to a minimum of 9 years for armed robbery, but mostly for stupidity, arrogance and deceit. This guy is vile. But I must say it is refreshing to see justice wind its way through the maze of evil mastery .. and actually prevail. Yes it was the lesser of two evils, 13 years later, that it latched onto - but justice grasped and held the prior evasion of truth by the neck, and did not let it go... This is redemption, and proof that what goes around comes around.... Ah ... consequence for an illegal, unkind, violent, act.... Yes ! Finally !

Activism_________________________________
In his article entitled "Is There Truth in Obama's Advertising", Chomsky explores the apathy lurking in the profound, historical election of a "left - to - center" black man....prevailing first in a primary against a female candidate. Both running for president...and the black left guy ultimately defeating, mightily, the white right guy. His piece published in www.alternet.org points to the lasting affect of the civil rights movements of the 60's. Lauding them as being passionate enough to bring about real, long term change relative to civil liberties. In the 60's the 20 somethings were fighting for the unwavering recognition of equality among gender and race. We were fighting for the freedom of peaceful individuality and coexistence. We hated war, aggressively apposed it and loudly questioned our participation in it. It was a great time in America. We tested the limits of free speech. Our activism was focused, heart felt, correct and effective. We suffered in our attempt to bring about change. And we were successful in our endeavor.

Chomsky claims, that it was this activism that led to the victory on 11/4/2008. A long fought battle, that delivered permanent philosophical change in America. We have seen this before....in the abolition of slavery, the defeat of Hitler, the creation of the United Nations and other active and effective human rights initiatives. We are not getting it right 100% of the time, especially if you consider the brutal human rights offenses, hunger and genocide that still exist - but globally, we are philosophically aligned, with respect to human rights. In America, we have organized around the concept of equality, and although we can't force everyone to enthusiastically agree, or believe in their hearts, that a black woman is as important, and as valuable as a white man....we have made it extremely difficult from a policy perspective, to facilitate or legally carry out this level of discrimination.

Chomsky goes on to say that "Changes and progress very rarely are gifts from above. They come out of struggles from below." His point, is that without modern activism, at the street level, we will not really be able to bring about "change we can believe in" the cornerstone of Obama's advertising message. It is clear that Americans want change, what is unclear is how much we are willing to sacrifice to bring it about...permanently and philosophically. The fight in the 60's was deeply routed in emotional issues of pride and respect. The predominant demographics of the protesters, Adults 18-34, generally had no "things" to loose, less to risk...Still in this fight, failure was not an option, as we were fighting for basic human rights.

The fight in 2009 and beyond is about financial solvency. Our ability to maintain the lifestyle to which we have become accustomed...regardless of whether we are borrowing to achieve it or we actually are on the road to owning it. We are fighting to maintain the comfort - in life, for which we have worked. Is that something to rally around? Is that something for which we should passionately fight? Is that something that we will not give up...regardless of the struggle required to regain it? Chomsky urges us to aggressively demand financial stability, from below, in the ranks of the public. To fight for change to ensure our solvency. But he is not sure if this goal is as worthy as those we fought for in the raw, passionate, 60's.

It is interesting to ponder.


All demographics seem to agree that America needs to change direction. Bush has an 82% disapproval rating...he is one of the least popular presidents in history. Certainly a yawner when it comes to inspiration. But I can't help noticing that the "20" somethings in 2008 lack the passion of those of us in the 60's...Perhaps the stakes were higher then. But it feels like the demographic that wants to picket today, is 55 years old. We are the same people that burned our bra's. Relentlessly organized and attended rallies to chant for our right to be unencumbered individuals. Do we want to recreate the energy of the 60's...because it was meaningful then...thus we believe we can make it meaningful now? This is not all bad, but I hope at some point we can transfer our passion to the younger generation. They need to feel that same great sense of accomplishment we felt when women began to get respected professional positions. Black men were not spit upon...constantly, and white men could grow their hair longer while maintaining their intellect. These are gestures...but they were powerful then, and they have prevailed. What is interesting to me, is that we seem to be as passionate at 60 as we were at 20. The difference is that we have "things" to loose now. College to pay for. Mortgages to retire. Health care issues. Our life lessons have made us slightly more risk averse. Yes we will picket, but only after we have paid our bills, and checked our email. This is our reality. Less romantic, more sedate. Rather than completely loose our passion, we need to transfer it to the 20 somethings...because if we don't teach them to stand up for what they believe in, if we don't guide them to having confidence in their convictions, if we don't make them feel passionate to pursue the goal, then we have lost an important battle, with generational consequences...

It is up to us, then to get excited! Speak up. Question. Enthusiastically demand what is rightfully ours .. but ultimately we need to let the young ones move to the front of the line. They can ride this bike... It really is more their journey now, than it is ours...