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Published on Sunday, June 28, 2009 by Empire Report
Norman Solomon's Message To Young Generations...
On the evening of June 25th, 2009, noted thinker, activist, local organizer and author Norman Solomon gave a presentation to the World Affairs Council of Sonoma County. Asked what his message to young generations might be, Norman gave this answer:
© 2009 Empire Report
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14 Comments so far
Show All"If we want to change things, we've got to engage and be active...that's just the way history works."
The man knows what he's talking about.
Notice, he didn't say that Obama has to engage and be active, or Nader, or Ish Kabibble, or him over there, or her over here. No, WE have to engage and be active! Notice, he also didn't say that we have to bitch and piss and moan about things. Not that there isn't reason or that we shouldn't, but WE have to engage, be active, and work for what we want.
That's just the way history works.
The man know what he's talking about.
Right on. It was an enormously effective message, delivered in an incredibly offhand manner. 'Hey, yah, you may not be into politics... but politics is into YOU. Its in the air you breathe, the water you drink,...' VERY well put.
Funny - Bush engaged and was active, and very effective in getting his goals.
But Obama doesn't have to engage or be active - bullshit. If Obama was your employee, you'd fire him. In fact, he IS your employee and guess what - he's working for the competition.
In the meanwhile, Nader has been engaging for decades without anyone asking him.
Looking forward to engaging under those circumstances.
Funny, I mentioned Obama and Nader and Ish Kabibble and you and me, and all you saw was Obama. What's more, you completely missed a very simple point.
Your loss.
But you gave Obama a pass. It is true we have to engage, but if we engage in the wrong direction, it's worse. Giving Obama a pass ensures we engage in the wrong direction.
Yes, and you're giving yourself a pass. This piece is about you, not Obama. What are YOU doing?
Not everything is about Obama, and we shouldn't fetishize him.
Love is the answer.
sacrifice is the method.
politics is a lie. the personal is the political. resist.
I liked his message a great deal because as ubrew said, it was simply, elegantly put and oh so right.
I myself feel a little stymied about effecting change because the press is useless, the people are sedated by news of Michael Jackson and that the economy is showing "green shoots" and so there is this terrible feeling of lassitude.
But honestly, the only thing we have is each other. I tend to think a great deal about what I can do to make my corner of the universe better. I buy local when I can. I try to speak out even though living in Kansas, it is a very unpopular thing to do. The doorway to change is getting enough people to think about things another way. But it is amazing to me how complicit the press is at not asking so many pertinent questions.
Yup, Norm engaged and voted for Obama. Now he wants to re-engage--perhaps to undo the damage.
Bingo.
But the Obamapologists want to re-engage without admitting fully the disaster that is Obysmal, thus indicating they will be easily re-fooled again.
The problem is Solomon will have the multi-millionaire heirs of Sonoma County, CA activate for their own personal interests, basically, in protection of their inherited privileges/advantages over world peasantry. Solomon is not addressing farm wage-slaves of the San Joaquin valley. This is the classic pseudo-left racket, stealth class warfare, perpetrated Solomon-style.
My advice to the younger generation is twofold:
1) Please vet your Presidential candidates. You just participated in your first Presidential election, and you f*cked up completely. We really ought to draft your asses.
2) Stop writing songs. We love you, but you can't write a good song to save your lives. ;)
The problem I see is that this message was broadcast on CD. Anyone who reads CD is already engaged. This message needs to get to people that don't give a shit. The question is how do we do that? We need to be a force that can no longer be ignored by the national corporate media. I have no idea how to do that. They've done so well at ignoring us up until now. And why do we even give shit about Michael Jackson? Is that really news? How do we work with people that just don't care?