Tag Archives: Democracy

This is what democracy looks like

Posted on by

This is what Democracy looks like?

Today is a national day of action for the Occupy movement. If you can, you might consider attending a rally or spending some time at your local Occupy.

I am busy and won’t be able to make it to that part of town today. So I am engaging in Democracy the old fashioned way: Writing a letter to my representative in Congress.

I highly recommend everyone do the same.

Historically, flooding Congress with letters has been a significant way to begin initiating change.

Even if you do not know who your representative is (and you should be ashamed if that is the case), it is now easier than ever to look it up and send an email directly through the House of Representatives website: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/

I have said before and will repeat: Eventually the movement for change in this country has to go beyond the street protests. This is not to put those down: They are important and must continue for the sake of stirring up the energy necessary to move to the next step.

Organized boycotts and new ways of living will have to soon follow. Will we be able to form our own new communities to help each other support small, local businesses, produce local food, and support each other in our needs?

In terms of political change in the Capitol and on Wall Street, we will have to begin letter writing campaigns and petitions. Imagine if your representative started getting 500 letters a week (that is a mere one tenth of one percent of his constituency) demanding he write a bill reforming the student loan racket. Every week he gets letters and phone calls and perhaps demands for a meeting. He would know, come election time, that if he didn’t step up to the plate, he would be in trouble.

In my letter I am going to ask my congressman, Tim Ryan, to take action on campaign finance reform. Out of this issue all others stem: So long as the wealthiest one percent and largest corporations can pay for campaigns in both parties, we the people will always be playing a losing hand in politics. The only way to level the playing field is by getting the money out of politics.

So, by all means continue to Occupy, as I will continue to do so, but also remember the other tools of democracy in front of you: Petitions, community organizing, letters to your representatives, showing up at local council meetings, showing up at candidate forums, and voting. All of these will be important parts of the future of a more just society, which currently the Occupy movement is laying the seeds for.

-Dave Kovacs

What does democracy look like?

Posted on by

Marching with Occupy Portland was powerful and peaceful.  But I had a weird experience.  Different people chanted different things as we marched through the streets.  “What does democracy look like?” “This is what democracy looks like.”  “We are the 99%”  Signs everywhere declared different things.

Yes, they shared some themes — primarily the idea that the elites have lorded it over everyone else for too long, including infiltrating the government that was supposed to be by and for the people.

As I said in an earlier post, I have faith in democracy working for Occupy Portland.  But as I’ve written over and over in my blog (which posts no one can see any more because I’ve switched to WordPress — I’ll try to fix that) — a community that thrives must be based on a common good.   A thriving, democratic community consists of a people united in the effort to define their vision of the good of the community together, each person listening and being heard by each other person.

As I’ve watched on FB, people with Occupy Portland are beginning to realize that they need to send out a consistent message, but they are unsure yet how to define it.  That’s fine.  No one should worry now that the hard work of democracy begins.  In fact, those of us who are not down on the streets for whatever reason, should be inspired that this group of wonderful, beautiful people are in fact engaging in direct democracy.  We should be inspired to do the same things in our own lives — where we work and pray, where we live, and in our own communities.

The common good is not some dastardly attempt to impose an opinion on anyone else.  It represents the collective engagement of each member in the community defining what their end or purpose is.  Good luck, Occupy Portland!