For the last two months, I have been watching the Occupy Wall Street movement pretty intently. I haven't made it to an occupation yet, but I know some people who have. So between some friend and organizations I follow on Facebook and Twitter, I've been getting a daily dose of news without having to leave the comfort of my home.
At times, I have been glued to the live stream. Yesterday, they were arresting people. Non-violent, peaceful resistance person after person. Not sure what law they were breaking, but they were in violation of something, I'm sure. As people chanted, "Stop and Frisk has got to go! We say no to the new Jim Crow!" person after person was flex cuffed by police, in a seemingly polite and orderly fashion, as an Occupy Wall Street film crew interviewed each person being arrested. Some had plenty to say. Some had nothing to say.
It was mesmerizing. Intoxicating. Entertaining.
I don't know what to make of the whole movement. The movement has been criticized for not having clear demands, for being in violation of laws and for just being dirty (and possibly lazy). Of being a bunch of anarchists and radicals.
One think I am sure of: Occupy Wall Street has started a conversation. A very important conversation about political inequality and corruption of corporate America. This conversation has been a long time in the making and I am glad that it is finally getting the attention it deserves. (And yes, I believe in personal responsibility for the poor as well as the rich.)
Today, I discovered the movement has produced a "New Common Sense," doctrine. I haven't read through the entire thing. I think it takes its name from Thomas Paine's Common Sense and it reads similar to the beginning of the Declaration of Independence.
Here's the beginning:
Common Sense from the "99%"
Introduction and Preamble
"When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for the Citizens of a Nation to petition their own Government for a redress of grievances, the People have a duty to exercise their rights under the First Amendment collectively if they so choose. To this end, We the People hereby assert our right to peacefully assemble and petition our Government for redress when we feel that this is our best, and perhaps only remaining option to seek remedies.
"We affirm that any lasting and workable solution must reach beyond mere politics, that political issues do not matter at a time when our collective voice has been nearly silenced. We believe that the current political climate has caused a paralysis of our Government. We find that our individual opinions mean little when we are no longer being properly represented. In fact, we believe that the Balance of Power between the Branches of our Government has been corrupted to the point where it can answer only to members of an affluent and politically active upper class. The impending result of this imbalance is that government of the People, by the People, for the People has almost perished from Our Nation. We believe that government has been influenced by an external source that has conspired to control it to the point of stalemate. We believe that this was forced upon us by “special interests”, corporations, lobbyists, the banking and the financial sector including Wall Street and the Federal Reserve, who together have used unrestrained financial leverage leading to the corruption of many politicians, regardless of their political party, resulting in great damage to the People and to this Nation.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all are created equal regardless of their financial status. — That we free Citizens of the United States are without exception endowed under a Federal Constitution granting us certain unalienable Rights. — That among these Rights are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure and protect these rights, our forefathers drafted this Constitution, ratified by the then several States and agreed to by the People. — That this Constitution defines and protects us all with a system of Checks and Balances by which the powers and responsibilities of government would be divided amongst the Federal, the States and the People. — That this original Social Contract in which those powers were granted has been repeatedly violated by the Federal government. — That we no longer are represented by our Government. — That we no longer have a voice in our Government. — That the limits of power of the Federal Government have been deliberately and repeatedly breached. — That our Government has become destructive towards the vast majority of the same People that they are supposed to protect. — That outside influences have gained unreasonable power and influence within our Government. — That the Fair Election system is being systematically dismantled and no longer allows for a full, on paper, verification and accounting of actual balloting. — That We the People have the Fundamental Right and Patriotic Duty under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights to peacefully assemble and to demand that the Government cease and desist from or correct any of these violations. — That the Government cede back to the States and to the People all such Powers that they have unconstitutionally seized, regaining such Powers from the States via Constitutional Amendment if they are to have them at all. — That our Government must Right these encroachments on the People by realigning itself to the Constitution. — That vague interpretations of the Constitution should be clarified through civil discourse leading to a series of new Amendments and with full participation by the several States."
The full text can be found here: http://anoncentral.tumblr.com/post/12409353866/for-the-99-the-new-common-sense-must-distribute. I admit I haven't read the whole thing, so for all I know it posts ludicrous anarchist, antidisestablismentarianism demands (The big word used is one I was taught as a child was the longest word in the dictionary, and I think I am actually using it appropriately, but as always, I could be wrong....)
As I said, I don't know what to make of the whole thing, but I appreciate that the conversation has been started, and I admire the sacrifice people have made to bring the conversation to the forefront. I hope the conversation continues to productive change.
What do you think of Occupy Wall Street and The New Common Sense?
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