Wed Jan 18, 2012 at 11:03:49 AM CST
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Dear Occupy Wall Street
As many others, I have personally been captivated to some extent by the moxie shown by the members of the Occupy Wall Street Movement. To say it was a long time coming is an understatement. I don't dare to substitute my judgment for theirs, but I would like to offer them the following pearls of wisdom .
Define yourself before others do. The society we live in now moves extremely fast. I have seen good things and good people destroyed by a narrative conceived and constructed by oppositional forces. Some people argue that it matter not what people call you, because the only thing that matters is what you answer to. That's not true. Ask anyone with a bad nickname and they will tell you how destructive that is. Ask President Obama about Healthcare. An idea that Americans agreed with was destroyed because it was defined by others seeking to prevent it from happening. Define yourself, speak to your goals, aspirations and objectives. If you don't someone will speak for you and your movement will suffer. If you're motivated enough to stand and protest outside on a daily basis, you should at least speak to why you're there and what you want to see happen. You've already started the work, finish it.
Don't disrespect all elders. I'm having an out of body experience as I type these words because as I recall the younger me, I was quite disrespectful. There is truly something to be said for the arrogance of youth: it's arrogant, self-defeating and aggrandizing. The world didn't start with you and it won't end with you. As disgusted as you may be with earlier generations for their part in causing the problem you're presently demonstrating against, realize that there are many who worked pretty hard to provide you to comfort from which you sip your latte and protest. I can recall the enthusiasm I had as a member of my alma mater's student newspaper. I was so enthusiastic, that when we believed we were censored, we retaliated and were fully prepared and expected to be expelled. (Sorry mom). Fortunately, my 21 year old righteous indignation did not mask my intellectual potential and I continued to matriculate and eventually graduate. It is short sighted for you to not take ANY advice from people older than you. Everyone is not afforded the opportunity to get old. There is a blessing associated with grey hair that I am just coming to appreciate. Everyone that has aged has not obtained wisdom. You may discern the difference by examining the logic upon which their ideas are constructed. You will miss the gift of that wisdom by rejecting ideas and suggestions out of hand simply because they came from the 1970s or earlier. The idea that you refuse to allow someone like Congressman John Lewis the opportunity to speak when he endured much pain during a time when protest was more than a facebook meetup activity, it was a life-shortening, ultimate expression of faith is beyond disrespectful. But you can still come back from that abyss.
Everyone that asks a question isn't an enemy. Sometime people ask questions because they truly want to understand. Their desire to understand flows from a desire to support where you're coming from or in this case where you're going. Many times questions come because of a failure to define yourself adequately. That said, even after you define yourself, some people may question why you are engaging in a course of action. They aren't questioning your personhood or your right to express your ideas. So rather than be combative or spill some of that righteous indignation all over the place, take the questions for what they are: an opportunity to win supporters and influence people.
Get involved in the game. You can decry politics all you want, but politics is and will always be how we decide who gets what, when and where. If you don't like the way the game is being played, you must change the rules, but you do that by being involved. Any movement in this society, for all the flowery rhetoric is assessed by how many of its goals and objectives were accomplished. (See define yourself) That means political activism AND vigilance. Those who are your opposition are not going away after one skirmish. If you seek lasting change you must be willing to work for it on a daily basis. This idea that you can accomplish anything by staying out of politics and elections is akin to the hens deciding to hire the fox as a guard against danger. If politics weren't so important, why is your opposition campaigning so hard to stop you?
It is now 2012. There are Congressional elections as well as a Presidential Election. Elections matter. The question is whether #OWS will discover that and decide to matter themselves or whether they will be just another internet/twitter-made fad.
Cognito Ergo Sum Invictus!
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