We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

The Other Civil War: Capitalism's Uncivil Peace

Click here to access article by Dr. Zakk Flash from InfoShop News.

There are so many insightful gems in this article.

I take exception to only one of his statements: "The way that capitalism measures progress is a sham." It's only a sham for the well-being of the 99 Percent--and, of course, that is what he meant. On the other hand, GDP is extremely useful to capitalists as a measure of their accumulation of wealth extracted from workers and the environment.

I found the details that he reported about this upcoming event in Chicago quite disturbing:
The elites that own the governments behind the world’s largest economies are gathering with NATO in Chicago on May 19-20, 2012 to discuss global political and economic policy.
Specifically, I am referring to the police-state type policies being promoted by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to stifle dissent and protest of this meeting. Rahm Emanuel, the former White House Chief of Staff in the Obama administration, is one of those US political operatives who serves Israeli interests. 

Although he has always denied having Israeli citizenship, he has very strong ties to Israel where he was born. See this and this. For example, during the Gulf War in 1991 he supposedly volunteered with the Israeli Defense Forces to defend against an anticipated Iraqi attack. People wonder why he didn't volunteer in support of US forces.  

The police-state policies he is promoting for the Chicago meeting reminds me a lot of the methods used by Israel against Palestinians to control and stifle their dissent. 
Under the rule of former White House Chief of Staff and current Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, police powers are being extended, along with public surveillance without oversight, restrictions on public activity, amplified sound, morning gatherings, and parades.