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Friday, October 14, 2011

Anger Management

Today I went downtown after class for a bit. Three weeks Denver has established its own version of the depression era Hooverville. Occupy Denver was in full swing. That is exactly what it was too, in full swing. You see in baseball almost every batter takes a swing, but its when they connect that something actually happens. I got the impression from being there and talking to the masses that it was lacking connection. The common theme was outrage, but it was rage without action. Yes it had a general direction it was directed at, the rich, but beyond that there was very little connection.

You see I am a soldier. As a soldier I know that action is only part of the equation. Plan of Action is the full statement. While there is some solidarity forming on the digital media, it is so broad and lacking focus that it is hard to believe it could gather momentum. Oddly enough though the movement as a nation wide cause seems to be gathering just that. It is a united cause of anger. People are pissed, and most of them are pissed for their own reasons. Most of those reasons are valid, but come on, we all get pissed. You need to know what to do about it, or at least listen to propositions as to how to deal with it.

I walked about the police, and the protesters alike. The police were very cordial, and many ready to share their opinion. Most of the police had no real understanding of why the protesters were out there.  I talked to state cops, and Denver cops, making sure that if I moved into the masses to talk to the protesters that I was not going to be greeted with pepper spray, and given a night of accommodation in our lovely Denver jail. They assured me that worst was over, and they just wanted to clear the tents and structures out of Veterans Park, not the protesters. They held no ill will towards the protesters, and that seem genuine. However to reiterate they had no clue as to why the protesters were even there. 

After I was assured that things were not going to get ugly I proceeded into the mass of the occupants. The crowd had thinned as their temporary shelters were being relocated, however a good amount were still holding onto to their little piece of concrete in front of the state capitol. As I mingled with the die hard's, I noted the a few things. First and foremost, those that had been in attendance for the whole three weeks seemed to have forgotten about personal hygiene. Yes I understand that living in a tent for a few weeks can take its toll on your aroma, but I think more then a few ignored these personal habits well before taking to the streets. The second thing that hit me was the age of the crowd. Most that remained where young, and that only a few older more professional people were there to lend support to the cause.

I talked to one nurse, a retired preacher, and a few veterans. They made up less then a quarter of those still in attendance. While they were a bit cleaner, and more focused, they too seemed a bit unfocused, yet ready to express their anger. The nurse was employed, and had taken the time off from work to be there, however she may not have been the most credible person to talk to. She had her right hand wrapped in an Ace Wrap, and claimed to have been injured by the Police while they moved out the structures. Yet she could not offer details as to how she was hurt, she only kept telling me about the fact she was hurt. When I asked her directly about how the injury was actually received it was greeted with the same response. "They hurt me, they did this." "How did they do that?" "They hurt me, they did this." "Did they grab you? Did they attempt to arrest you?"  "They hurt me, they did this."

The other thing I gathered from talking to the protesters was that many of them had not participated in elections since 2008. Most of them voted in the presidential race, but could not recall how or even if they voted on local issues, local government positions, or even other federal offices. Over eighty percent of those I talked to, could not name the current mayor of Denver. Not one of the people I talked to could name a single opponent to the mayor in this most recent election. When I asked questions about the actual issues they were here to protest it was greeted with as much vague statements as news offered. When I asked who they were mad at, I was given the same target at least, Wall Street. However when I talked to them about why they were upset, it was uneducated dribble.

You see its not Wall Street that took away the jobs. It is not Wall Street that foreclosed on their houses. It is not enough to hate someone for having more then you. You have to have to understand the process of how and why you are in the situation you are in. You need to understand that business did not take the jobs away, we did that. We did that by not being active in our own government. We let corporate sponsored candidates into office by not being active in our own system. We let people vote in favor of those giving them campaign donations, which you can't blame them right? Someone gets you a job you thank them. They take care of you, and you take care of them. Then we do not hold them accountable for using our vote to do so.

If I got anything from this, talking to the Occupants of Denver, the Denver PD, and the lookie loos running about, is that we made this bed. We the people stopped caring. We stopped voting. We stopped being aware of the government that represents us. We lost an understanding, and we gave into a sense of entitlement that is breaking us. Yes we have the right to be mad, but fuck people, think about why you are mad in the first place. You know we all have responsibility in this mess. We have no right to blame it on a concept. Wall Street is a concept, and its not even the right concept. The Federal Reserve is not Federally ran. The president is not elected by popular vote. Banks are in it to make money, not look out for your interest. The American dream is still out there, but it is not a right, the pursuit of it is the only right.

I am happy that so many people are ready to use their voice. I am happy that people are flexing their Constitutional rights. I am happy that people are pissed, finally. However please be willing to do more then bitch, and educate yourself. Sure you can live in a fantasy world of free this, and free that, but you are not entitled to anything other then access to things. Take responsibility for yourself and your needs. Last but definitely not least, if you are going to preach about your rights, protected by the Constitution and Bill of Rights, at least read the damn thing. Develop a plan, and do something other then take up space. Fuck Occupy anything. How about you take a swing and connect, and do something in the game. Make something happen, and engage the War on Stupid.

You want to be heard, vote all the assholes that aren't listening to you out of office. If the new guys aren't listening, vote them out. Offer solutions to those you vote for, for the problems you have. If you hand somebody a bag of shit and say "fix this", don't get pissed when they fix it in a way you don't like. You have just as much responsibility for your life, and should have more then them. Get your head out of the sand, be angry, but also be ready to manage that anger. A five year old can be pissed, but an adult can be pissed and thinks of ways to be get happy. 

9 comments:

  1. Fuck, yeah! I was worried about your perspective based on your comments of the image I used on FB (I haven't seen if you have commented back to me), but you got the right idea and a step up from me being as you can actually be there. Your assessment is spot on based on the Occupy Wall Street website- absolutely no focus, just anger. Adbusters provides the only real focus and it definitely is a manipulation toward communism. Thanks for taking to the time to visit and share your thoughts! I wish I could have been there with you.

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  2. I'm going to have to think about this one, but I'm pretty sure I'm pissed at that nurse...

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  3. Thanks Jesse for a nice outlook on this. The fact of the whole matter is: People can get as pissed as they want and occupy whatever they want. Unless, as you said, they EDUCATE themselves, nothing will change. Puppet politics is NOT the way of the present, nor is it the way we need to be headed. I find it ironic that many there don't actually know WHY they are their, except to be there.

    We need an EDUCATED populace in order to pull ourselves out of this mess we are in. "We the People" have caused this social disorder because:
    We fail to hold the State accountable to the instrusive actions of the Federal Government.
    WE FAIL to hold the Federal Government accountable to the Constitution (Yes I have read it - more than once) and bill of rights.
    WE, fail to stand up for our rights
    WE, fail to stand up to the government when they tell us we cant do that but we know we can.
    WE FAIL, and therefore, the government OF the poepl, BY the people and FOR the people, will fail too.

    Tid bit -
    Most States, cities and Towns across America are broke. However, they are ALL waiting to get GRANT money from the Federal Government to fix their problems. WTF -- REALLY--- What problems are ever fixed by robbing Petere to pay Paul? If the Federal Government is BORROWING money to give out Grant money to states, isn't that just putting a bigger strain on the working class to pay more taxes to make up that difference so that the Feds can make the tax payer's state a better place to live by giving them grant money they dont have.. I dont get it.... it is EASY to unberstand....

    You are very correct. One must know what he is pissed about and know WHY that situation has happened. My wife and I understood that 5 years ago, that is why we are where we are and have what we have. It is also why we are getting what we are getting, so that we can have what we want when we need it.
    Mike

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  4. Here are some focus points that a real opposition needs:
    1. Definite leadership. I get the idea, but they are approaching it through collectivism and that just does not work. You need a strong, unified, coherent voice with solutions.
    2. Focus on ending the federal reserve, or at least an audit of that private institution.
    a. write your congressman in both the senate and house, write your mayor, talk to your local officials, talk to your neighbors
    b. request a meeting with said officials and educate them as to why this must stop
    c. do some research and follow the money. Figure out ways to file court cases against these politicians and bureaucratic agents for treason!
    3. Demand that Glass-Steagall be enforced once again.
    4. Demand that all derivative debts and federal debts be cleared. We DON'T OWN THAT DEBT!
    5. Demand that the shareholders and owners of the Federal Reserve, once audited, be brought to justice and tried for theft, collusion, and treason
    6. Demand your congressmen return to using their power of the purse and having direct accountability for economic policy decision making
    7. Repeal the super congress
    8. Demand transparency in our military budget

    ok? This is a short list, its a start, but these are definite necessities to be addressed! Without tackling these issues we cannot hope to save the Republic!

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  5. The Republic is GONE,, we NEED to get it back!
    Mike

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  6. Purrrrfectly said. Finally a reasonable voice.

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  7. Free at Last! Thank God Almighty, the thoughts are free at Last!

    You've hit it, my brother. Perfectly done. Superbly said.

    Thank you.

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  8. Very interesting. Though I believe it's typical for people to be uninvolved and then complain later. Being free doesn't mean being free of the effort it takes to be educated on the issues or being active in voting etc.

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  9. I believe in proactive change. I believe in freedom of expression, of ideas, of politics, of marriage, of... Get the idea? However, I don't believe in whiny ass attention getters promoting drama and otherwise smearing a genuine cause. Don't even get me started on the fake police brutality bullshit. So... FUCK THAT NURSE! (Hey, I figured out whether or not I was pissed)

    No, not everyone standing out there can tell you why it's a good idea, why they should be there, why it started in the first place. No, not all of the demands the Occupy movement has made are correct... Shit some of them don't make a damn lick of sense. What amazes me about it, is that people woke up and said, "This is wrong, I should do something about it." and then did something. That *enough* people thought that and then followed through that thought the news noticed, and other people noticed. There are people, maybe not the best educated, *DOING* something. That's enough to make me happy. Maybe enough to see some change. Definitely enough that the movers and shakers noticed and THAT is an amazing thing.

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