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In 1913, Henry Ford wrote the following as the directors had been reaping the rewards of profits - "The wages we pay are too small in comparison with our profits. I think we should raise our minimum pay rate".

Monday, December 20, 2010

Think, Act and Prosper Locally

I am stunned by the thoughts going through my head right now.  Is this an epiphany?  Is this guy, Chris Hedges, a prophet? (1 hour 22 minute video, yeah, get past the Michael Jackson analogy... watch it ALL - even the questions/comments)

I am at a point where I pretty much feel that there are two options.  One option is to purchase a large tract of land, build eco-friendly and self powered, self contained (monolithic dome) homes in an Intentional Community (or Co-housing) style - with a large central common home where all the cooking, dining, laundry and such would be done - and moving there, starting gardens and become a self-contained community.  The other option is to get into politics and try to make a change for the good of the Nation as a whole - or at least my home state.

Currently, I don't see a way to accumulate the fiscal stability necessary to achieve the first option with any alacrity.  Therefore, stepping into political activism is the most accessible solution. It is with that in mind that I am currently directing my thought processes.  What is the solution to the current atmosphere of our Nation's political structure?

The first step is to identify the problem.  My first response is that the two major parties have entrenched themselves into the system, preventing all others from participating, and have become so corrupted and out of touch with "We, The People" that their continued existence is the single biggest threat to our Democratic Republic.  Another, related, issue is the establishment of the Corporate control of our government - the Profit-first law-making lobby.

"The theory behind pumping this kind of liquidity into the market, is that the banks and the corporations will then, when the money runs out next year, put the liquidity into the market. Well, its very clear that they're doing what all good capitalists would do with our money, which is hanging on to it and we're screwed. That is an example of an illusion." - Chris Hedges

The solution to the above problem(s) is a mass exodus from the two-party system.  I suggested some quick and easy ways to put the two-party establishment on notice in "Where is the Outrage?"  Go now, no matter how you are going to vote, and change your party affiliation to Independent - or Reform Party or Green Party - Vote your conscience, but do not affiliate with either of the two major parties who are so entrenched.  Send the email I suggested, use congress.org to communicate with your representatives.  We need to put People before Profit again. (and I just found that book using my wording... awesome!)  So, yes, Buy Local, produce things for your local market, pay a little extra for USA made (not assembled) products from independent store owners.

Books by Chris Hedges :
Empire of Illusion
American Fascists
Death of the Liberal Class

( When he was talking about Socrates an idea he mentioned struck me - when you write something down, it freezes, it becomes a form of Orthodoxy.  Written things loose the fluidity of though and spoken word. )

And what if we don't do something?

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