Will There Be "Son of Occupy"? Will its Saturn side start to show?

As the Occupy Movement's visible presence begins to fade, as we suspected it would, either by force or due to winter weather, journalists and bloggers are taking sides for and gainst the view that either OWS has been either an abject failure, or alternatively has done a worthwhile job of raising awareness and will winter "underground", revitalising come springtime 2012. (Photograph from http://www.phibetaiota.net/)

It's obvious that, if OWS's main aim was to raise awareness, they succeeded. The movement's best known signature: 99% versus 1%, in spite of its over-generalisation has caught a mass attention that was absent this time last year.

If I had to give a zodiac sign to the Occupy movement(s) it'd be Aquarius. Aquarius has 2 rulers: Uranus and Saturn. We've seen the Uranian, surprisingly unexpected side of Occupy, now I believe its Saturn side should come to the fore, at least for a while.

"The end of consciousness-raising leaves people with no place to go, and the lack of structure leaves them with no way of getting there...."

That quote comes from a feminist book Quiet Rumours: An Anarcha-Feminist Reader . The feminist movement aimed to be "structureless", using "horizontal" decision making rather than hierarchal. OWS has aimed to emulate this and to remain leaderless. With no figurehead(s) to act as targets, they feel individuals remain less vulnerable to attack. The feminist movement must have dealt with similar problems. There's a very good good piece on these very issues, written by Jo Freeman :

The Tyranny of Structurelessness

SNIPS:
(Highlighting is my own)

"Contrary to what we would like to believe, there is no such thing as a structureless group. Any group of people of whatever nature that comes together for any length of time for any purpose will inevitably structure itself in some fashion........

....... A "laissez faire" group is about as realistic as a "laissez faire" society; the idea becomes a smokescreen for the strong or the lucky to establish unquestioned hegemony over others. This hegemony can be so easily established because the idea of "structurelessness" does not prevent the formation of informal structures, only formal ones."

"The more unstructured a movement is, the less control it has over the directions in which it develops and the political actions in which it engages.... Given a certain amount of interest by the media and the appropriateness of social conditions, the ideas will still be diffused widely. But diffusion of ideas does not mean they are implemented; it only means they are talked about. Insofar as they can be applied individually they may be acted on; insofar as they require coordinated political power to be implemented, they will not be."

I've been on the side of OWS from the get-go, but lately have wondered about their insistence on remaining leaderless. Leaders are a part of our nature, human nature, and the nature of many of our fellow creatures on planet Earth. Think of a V-shaped flight of geese, a pack of wolves, the bees with their Queen - and so on.

OWS would argue that "hierarchies have been tried - look what happened. We must try something different", they'd say. Hierarchies, of one sort or another, have been part and parcel of human history and experience - forever. Like it or not, they are an embedded part of our nature. The 21st century trick will, in my opinion, be to allow for hierarchies of wealth, but to protect those at the base of the pyramid. Legislation should be put in place to ensure that the wealth of the top tier should not be allowed to subjugate those beneath. I'm using a bit of hyperbole there -subjugation was more Roman Empire style.....Hmmm - I don't know though, maybe I'm not using hyperbole after all.

One of the biggest problems (I believe it to be THE biggest) for the 99% in the USA is the now unlimited ability of the most wealthy 1%, both corporate and individual, to buy power via lobbying with "benefits" and HUGE contributions to political campaigns of those running for seats in Senate or House or as president. Not to mince words: bribery.

To make such a dent on the status quo would require a Constitutional amendment. That would involve an impossibly high level of politicical support. Politicans are bought and paid for by the very people who would lose out badly if such a dent in the status quo were to come to pass.

Catch 22!!!

If OWS would adopt, initially, a spokesperson to present a single defined aim (the one above for example), publicise it among supporters online and elsewhere, also offering a means of showing support - e.g. financial support for TV adverts or billboards. A strong, charismatic leader might eventually emerge. A figure from their own ranks, or a known public figure. (Importantly without links to the two-headed one-bodied Democrat/Republican monstrosity). Such a figure, wielding a certain amount of clout, with intention to influence other heavy-hitters, could herald the next stage of OWS or "Son of OWS".

I realise that this idea isn't in line with the ideology OWS has embraced, so far. But - when you're playing on a square-shaped sports field, it's not helpful to keep complaining that the game would be better played on a circular one. Use what skills are available to try to win the game on the field as it stands, then the ability go about shape-shifting would be yours.

For a more positive assessment of Occupy's current situation see Occupy: We Are the World, by Patrick Kingsley and Adam Gabbatt at Common Dreams.

And - one I've just seen, re our Oklahoma City contingent - good on 'em, and especially on Jay Vehige!

Arrested for Supporting Local Business: Occupying Black Friday at the Big Boxes in Oklahoma City, by Lori Spencer

Wear Light Purple to Show Support for OWS. Also UPDATE Re Sad News of Occupy OKC

The Occupy Wall Street movement has adopted a signature colour: light purple. The colour was chosen by the original New York Group with the idea that light purple is obtained when the red/blue/white colours of the USA national flag are mixed together.

It's a nice idea, and one which could also represent the UK group. I'm not sure what Occupy groups in other countries might feel about the colour choice, but irrespective of national flag colours, light purple has other connotations.

Astrologically purple/violet links to Jupiter and Sagittarius: an expansive planet and a sign well-known for endowing its natives with optimism. That can't be bad!

Purple is associated with the right side of the brain which stimulates intuition and imagination, and the color is associated with peace.

Adopting a signature colour means that people unable to take part in the occupation camps could still show solidarity with the Occupiers, as well as indicating to others that the movement's support is more widespread than might have otherwise been imagined, and ought to be taken seriously.

Roughly-made armbands, torn from a piece of cotton in the appropriate shade, were one suggestion. Scarf, tie or tee-top would be easily obtainable alternatives, possibly already to be found in our closets.

See also OWS PURPLE


UPDATE Re Occupy OKC (See last Saturday's post)

Referring back to my post for 29 October and our visit to Occupy OKC, I've read some very sad news. A young man was found dead in his tent at the Occupation site in Kerr Park on Monday.

The police were called, they suspect the death was from natural causes but the matter is being futher investigated. Articles online, and comment from those who knew the young man indicate that he suffered from asthma. The colder weather in The City of late might have brought on an extreme attack, I guess.

Something startled me even more than the sad news, when I saw a video featuring the young man who has died. He had joined the camp as a homeless person, around a week before his death, and had become known among the Occupiers as "Street Poet". He had spoken at a Vigil for First Responders in The City on the evening before his death (see video). I recognised the young man as the one who had spoken to us and posed for a photograph on our vist last week.

RIP. His story, available HERE is a sad one.





I wasn't certain at first, but from the description in the linked piece (regarding his missing front teeth) and from the top he wears in both video and photograph, I'm pretty sure the young man we met was Street Poet. RIP.

What sickened me, to my stomach, when reading around, were some of the comments on various sites reporting the incident - comments from inhuman creatures. I use the word inhuman advisedly. Really and truly, if there are people who think and react that way about the death of a fellow-human, then there is, and never will be any chance for the human race. None at all, and we do not deserve a chance.

OCCUPY OKLAHOMA CITY (no astrology today)

We spent a couple of days in Oklahoma City, 90 miles north of our hometown, this week. Timing, as it happened, was a bit off - or rather a lot off!

During Wednesday night, after we'd arrived, the temperature dropped around 20 degrees, it started to rain and storm - heavy constant rain - and it didn't stop until well into Thursday afternoon, even then starting again after a brief respite. It remained bitterly cold - unusually so for OKC in October.


I wanted to donate something to the Occupy Oklahoma City group and had, stashed in the closet, an unworn warm padded coat I'd brought from England and never had need of in south-western Oklahoma. I decided it would be useful for someone camping out or protest marching during the coming cold weather, if not in OKC, then it could be passed on to more Northern cousins; I felt certain there'd be some co-ordinating activity going on.

First problem on Thursday, early afternoon, was finding a place to park the car reasonably near to Kerr Park in the heart of the city, where the Occupiers are camped. We spied the encampment from the road, saw a guy with a tripod and camera heading that way, but no other warm bodies were to be seen. It took around 20 minutes to find a place to park, and another ten to walk back to the encampment. Fortunately we'd hit a space between heavy showers. The guy with the tripod had gone on his way by the time we arrived, and two young guys were boiling some water, they generously offered us coffee, which we declined having only recently drunk some. I handed the coat, covered in a big plastic bag, to one of the guys with an explanation. He was obviously unused to hearing English-type-English, for he looked completely blankly at me as though I were speaking Swahili. The other young guy stepped in, took the bag from me with profuse thanks and put it in one of the tents, which appeared to hold supplies.







We chatted for a short time about how wet and cold it had been during the night and all morning. They agreed it had not been fun. Nobody else showed up, other Occupiers were either inside the twenty or so tents, or had repaired to warmer, drier places. A young woman passed by and was asked "Are you joining us today?" She shook her head, "Not today, sorry!".

My husband took a few shots of the tents, and any signs not obliterated by the rain. Young guy number two posed in the opening of the supply/donation tent, raised his arm in the clenched fist salute, so I joined him. There was little time left on our parking meter so we had to rush off, and as we walked back it began to rain - again.



So, due to such awkward circumstances our visit wasn't a resounding success. It was very bad timing and bad luck that after months and months of heat and drought in the region, the one time we needed a bit of dry weather it decided to pour down with very cold rain!

A young journalist, Zac Smith, whose timing had been better than ours, visited Kerr Park earlier in the week. He posted a report online SEE HERE.
Snips ~~~

Occupy Oklahoma City, the largest Occupy Wall Street solidarity group in the state, has staged an around-the-clock occupation for the past 15 days in Kerr Park.

About 40 demonstrators are occupying Kerr Park on a continuous basis, sleeping in portable tents. Their numbers are supplemented to varying degrees during the day.
Since the commencement of the occupation, protesters have staged marches through the streets surrounding Kerr Park at least twice a day or more. Local media coverage of these activities has been shallow and police surveillance casual to nonexistent.

In the words of union organizer Nicholas Klein, “First they ignore you. Then they ridicule you. And then they attack you and want to burn you. And then they build monuments to you.”

While the New York occupation currently exists somewhere between the second and third phases of this process, Occupy Oklahoma City is stuck firmly in the first.
Despite this, the mood among protesters is buoyant. Given Oklahoma’s enormous political conservatism, simply gathering to acknowledge there is a fundamental problem with the American economic and political system is a great stride forward...........Though conversation and debate at Kerr Park is generally congenial and relaxed, some protesters seem increasingly conscious of the existence of conflicting political philosophies within the movement.

Thus far, Occupy Wall Street has sought to be entirely inclusive, often treating fundamental political disagreements as superficial and irrelevant..............

“It’s actually beautiful that you can have two people from opposite ends of the spectrum agreeing on something, but we’re agreeing on what’s bad; we’re not necessarily agreeing on how to fix it.”