Economic opportunity?-DRAFT

The American economy is built on a system of risk and reward. Many people take risks (gambles, really, I will explore this more later) with their money (ie: in the stock market) and most of those risks do not pay off.

Corporations take these risks too.

The greater the risk taken, the greater the promise of reward and the greater the potential downfall if not successful. This is one of the ways in which the economic system of capitalism as we have created it unfairly favors those who already have money to continue to make more money and create the division of wealth.

By bailing out corporations we are essentially saying that if you take great risk, if you either make a mistake or circumstances outside of your control conspire to keep you from succeeding, at some point you are so integral to the system of our society that you should not have to fail. This a) establishes and institutionalizes the superior role of these companies and b) alters the roles of those companies within the theoretically capitalist system. Capitalism and the following theories of capitalist economics should be reevaluated in light of this institutionalized, government-issued superiority.

Instead, I propose an alternative solution: revolution. If we want drastic changes in our social structure, a well-timed economic coup is essential. And the only way to shift money (and thus power) from the hands of those whose grasp is maintained by the self-perpetuating control of the government and legal system is to take advantage of this brief downfall of those in power. We must resist economic bailouts for giant corporations, including companies such as GM. Yes, the economy will be bad without the bailouts, yes people will suffer, and the poor and people of color and women and immigrants will suffer the worst, but I say that we will suffer as much or more (certainly for longer) with the bailout as without it. To put up with enhanced short-term suffering to throw down those economic giants means the opportunity for new organization, new companies to emerge. Regardless of my sentiments about capitalism, it is an embedded system. At least we can begin by using it to our advantage. At the same time, those new and rising companies must be in the hands of the oppressed; the poor, the people of color, the women, and other oppressed groups that I do not take the time to identify here. And some should be working to help that economic power get into the hands of those oppressed groups.

But this is not a solution, only a step. Once this power transfer has happened it is only one step towards altering the institutionalized power structures that maintain oppressive systems in the United States. But a useful one.

To occupy you while I'm busy

An intriguing story.

Street Pulse BBQ at Willy Street Co-op

Street Pulse is a Homeless Cooperative Newspaper - And Willy Street Co-op has kindly offered to help Street Pulse raise some needed funds.

Plate of food = $5
- Organic Beef and Vegetarian Burgers
- Potato Salad
- Sprecher Root Beer

*** TELL YOUR FRIENDS, FORWARD THIS INVITE!!!

Plus:
Say, "We're all a little someone genuine" to a Street Pulse volunteer and receive a free gift!

Event Info Host: Willy Street Co-op and Street Pulse
Type: Party - Barbecue
Time and Place Date: Saturday, August 9, 2008
Time: 11:30am - 2:30pm
Location: Willy Street Co-op
Street: 221 Williamson St.
City/Town: Madison, WI

A brief introduction to gender issues, in my understanding.
According to the American Heritage Dictionary:

Sex: (Noun)
1. The property or quality by which organisms are classified as female or male on the basis of their reproductive organs and functions.
2. Either of the two divisions, designated female and male, of this classification.

Gender:

Well, before I start posting the dictionary definition of gender, I'd ask my (limited to nonexistent?) readership to consider what makes up gender. Outside of biology, what makes us men and women? What makes you a man or a woman? The clothes you wear? The way you look? The things you like, your friends, your relationships with other people?

Speaking of, I'd like to recommend an article. Normally I have mixed feeling on the NYT, but I don't totally mind the take this article has on the gender/body bending Thomas Beatie story. There is, of course, a lot left out, but it definitely encourages examining our current standard definitions of gender.

You are not alone

When I was younger I used to have what I now refer to as a "Frodo complex." Too much classical fantasy and sci-fi reading combined with my desire to do good in the world and led me to believe that I needed to change the world...single-handedly. And the more one becomes educated with respect to oppression (and, in my opinion, with what needs to be changed about the world), the more one realizes that it's far too great a task for individual undertaking.

This realization was, needless to say, a little disappointing. But the fact is that it's not too grand a task to undertake, it's merely too grand to take on alone.

One goal of this website is to spread activist and anti-oppression information. Social change cannot be accomplished single-handedly. Only through creating a network of anti-oppression activism can we truly hope to achieve a more just society. Grass-roots activism, artistic criticism, academic inquiry, interpersonal interactions, and socially-conscious political decisions are all vital for generating change. Today, to address the last of those activisms that I mentioned, I'm going to get political.

Farheen Hakeem is a Green Party Candidate for the Minnesota State Legislature, and an incredible activist in the Minneapolis area and beyond.

I encourage anyone with the time or resources to donate to her campaign to do so. More information can be found on her website. Please check it out and encourage anyone you know in District 61B to vote for her.


There, that wasn't so bad.

There is no American meritocracy

Anti-oppression training, Day One:

Meritocracy (according to the American Heritage Dictionary): 1. A system in which advancement is based on individual ability or achievement. 2. a. A group of leaders or officeholders selected on the basis of individual ability of achievement. b. Leadership by such a group

The concept of meritocracy is appealing, and is, in my opinion, something for which we should strive: a system in which one's success is based on one's own actions. To insist, however, that a meritocracy exists in this country is not only deluded, but harmful. If we refuse to recognize the impact of race, gender, class, etc. on success and failure, we are ignoring the realities of individual situations in favor of some ideal that we would prefer.

Now for your activism of the day:

Homelessness is a problem in Madison and around the world. And it is a problem compounded by the effects of racism. In order to create a more just society, we need to work to eliminate disparities between white people and people of color, including disparities in wealth.

Want to learn more about homelessness here in our community? Get the facts, straight from people who work with the homeless and from the homeless themselves. The Dane County Coalition to Fight Homelessness and End Poverty will be hosting a Community Forum on Homelessness on Thursday, June 5th at First United Methodist Church (203 Wisconsin Ave.). The event will be from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. and light snacks will be provided. If you'd like to learn more about the extent of homelessness in our community, the challenges faced by families who are homeless and discuss what is and can be done to decrease homelessness, please try to attend. We'd appreciate it if you could register so we know how many materials to print and food to bring, please call Madison-area Urban Ministry, 256-0906 to register, or email Linda@emum.org. The event is free and open to the public. A more detailed agenda is as follows:

Presentations:
History of Homelessness in Dane County - Ralph Middlecamp, St. Vincent de Paul
Affordable Housing and Single Men - Steve Schooler, Porchlight Inc.
Homeless Families - Rachel Krinsky, Interfaith Hospitality Network
Plan to End Homelessness (written by the Homeless Services Consortium, a group of about 40 groups that work with the homeless) - Gayle Ihlenfeld, YWCA
Proposal for Services to Address Brittingham Park Issues - Operation Welcome Home

Panel Discussion:
Lynn Green, Dane County Human Services
Joel Plant, Mayor's Office
Captain Mary Schauf, Madison Police Department
Pat Mooney, formerly of Madison School District
Nichelle Nichols, Community Action Coalition
Dean Loumos, Housing Initiatives
Joe Lindstrom, Homeless Services Consortium Legislative Committee

In addition to groups listed above, the event is also sponsored by: Tenant Advocacy Group, Affordable Housing Action Alliance, Tenant Resource Center, Communities United

Information on this event stolen almost entirely from Brenda Konkel:
This side of town . . .: Community Forum on Homelessness

Welcome

Content coming soon.