God,
Ferguson, Mo., 'Occupy', 'the 99%', and the Arab Spring
I
have been watching the evening news on wireless TV and on the
Internet from the alternative media (with just a measured amount of
CNN Internet; I don't waste my time or money with cable TV) with much
admiration lately as the political turmoil unfolds in Ferguson,
Missouri over the death of local teenager Michael Brown. Just like
the Arab Spring in 2011 in Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain, Yemen and Libya,
with a civil war raging in Syria and with two more threatening to
break out in Iraq and Ukraine, all the people are taking to the
streets for justice, and for their inalienable human rights and
freedoms. It stirs my heart to see all those throngs of people united
in one purpose, coming up against an overwhelming established
authority, and all without any weapons, excluding Syria. It also
bears a strong resemblance to the Occupy and “the 99%” Movements
here in America and abroad, of which I have been a part and have
self-published
two books about these movements. All of these ongoing revolutions
were accomplished without any more than minimal bloodshed (again
excluding Syria and Gaza), and were at least partly peaceful. Of
course, this is excluding all the looters and vandals in Ferguson,
Mo. and elsewhere, whose activities I will never endorse. It is
nonetheless very good that so many people were set free by rising up
against established abusive authorities and taking charge of one's
own destiny. This is how real change is brought about and this is how
(mostly) peaceful revolution is brought forth by those persons bold
enough to step up and take the freedom that is rightfully theirs.
Watching
those events unfolding on live TV caused me to compare what was
happening in Ferguson and all those other places in North Africa and
the Middle East beginning several years ago to what had happened
during the American Revolution during the formation of the original
colonies. The main difference between then and now is that modern-day
Arab and American protesters didn't have guns – and didn't need
them, as it turned out. This evokes the memory of Rev. Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr, the ultimate peaceful campaigner for civil rights.
His advocacy of non-violent social change and the civil rights legacy
that he left behind are irreplaceable. And I also believe that same
legacy is based on that of Moses, who so famously told the Pharaoh to
“let my people go”. Soon a time will be coming for the entire
world, from the most developed countries on down to the poorest, when
the shackles of debt will be forever broken, and when all the people
of the world will be freed from the scourge of usurious interest that
is charged on loans. Soon all of us will be free from a debt-based
economy as capitalism dies of old age, as we begin to move toward a
resource-based economy. But that is a separate topic for another
time.
The
same thing has since happened in America, as you all know, with the
blossoming of the Occupy and 99% Movements. This loosely organized
political federation is gradually congealing into something more,
growing into something far more substantial. The economic state of
the populations of Egypt and America are similar, with high
unemployment, rampant homelessness and crime. The inordinate
concentration of wealth, combined with its use as a weapon to pollute
and corrupt government and politics, runs rampant in both countries.
America is most certainly ripe for revolution, given the state of the
middle and working classes in this country, the lack of decent jobs,
the lack of affordable housing, and the rising cost of food and fuel.
The Occupy and 99% Movements may well be the vehicle for this 2nd
American Revolution. I also think this vehicle will be accelerated by
the fact that America is rapidly headed for third world status as a
country when it comes to the standard of living of the blue and white
collar classes, otherwise known as “we the people” in the
Preamble to the Constitution. When this is combined with the unfair,
unethical concentration of wealth throughout the world then it
becomes tantamount to an undeclared economic civil war. There can be
no doubt that we are going to have to unite together as a people to
stop this great robbery that is happening right up in our faces each
and every day so we can take back our country. The longer we wait to
do so, the more difficult it will become.
Actually,
the far-left and the far-right have more in common then they would
want to admit. Both sides are absolute in their ideology and
uncompromising in their politics. This is like a poison flowing
through the body politic of America and it will cripple our democracy
unless each of us acts as an antidote. Otherwise this kind of
childish selfishness and narrow-minded stereotyping threatens to tear
the fabric of America apart.
What
is particularly troubling in today's political environment – with
Ferguson, Missouri being just the tip of the iceberg – is the level
of anger and even outright hatred that is being displayed by all
sides. I have been trying to figure out the source of this anger and
hatred for some time now. Some of today's rabid emotionalism can be
traced to old-fashioned racism, but I think for many people it goes
much deeper than that. It would appear that this anger and
hatefulness is really a response to fear. Fear is an emotion we don't
like in ourselves and anger is a way of covering up our fears with an
emotion that makes us feel more powerful. We live in a world where
society, technology, the economy and demographics are rapidly
changing and this change is deeply threatening to many people. Such
people have not yet discovered the simple key to letting go of their
fear, which is to believe and have faith that God is in charge of
everything, combined with understanding that if we will just let go
and let God, He will cause all things to work out well, as it is
written, “All things work to the glory of God for those who love
Him”. God is always there for you, as it is written and was uttered
by Jesus himself, “Never will I leave you, and never will I forsake
you.” So He isn't going to let anything happen to you, and it would
be to the benefit of anyone reading these words to rest assured about
this and stop worrying. (For additional perspective on what Jesus
said about worrying, read Matthew chapter six.)
If
we want American democracy to survive, we need to grow up and wise
up. We need to stop projecting our fears onto our fellow citizens,
and we need to let go of our own childhood fears and insecurities
(Ferguson, Mo., are you listening?). We need to stop yelling at each
other and learn to start listening to each other. We need to replace
competition with cooperation, and we need to first learn self-respect
as an important step toward acquiring mutual respect. Only when these
things have been done can a new economic system truly be born, one
based on resourcefulness and cooperation instead of outmoded concepts
like competition and profit for the sake of financial gain. We need
to accept the reality of change and begin working together to find
productive ways of dealing with a world that is constantly changing.
Besides, the fact is that America is built upon compromise. Our great
experiment in democracy is founded upon the belief that each issue
has many sides and that the most workable solution comes from a
compromise that blends together many disparate views. Compromise is
the glue that holds America together.
Change
is inevitable. It's the way the universe is constructed. The fact
that time exists means that change must occur. Rather than fear
change, we need to make it work for our benefit. Rather than trying
to go back to the past, we need to work together to create a better
future. In so doing we emulate God, because He too only cares about
our future, not our past. If the American experiment that has been
ongoing since the 18th
century is going to grow and mature, we the people will also have to
grow and mature. We have to put our irrational fears behind us and
start working together as mature adults in order to deal successfully
with the challenges that change presents to us. Besides, change is
what keeps is on our toes. God allows change to happen to us to help
grow us into something more than we were before. It's time to stop
the name-calling and to start having rational discussions about the
issues before us. Most important of all, it's time for the police to
put all their military hardware in storage and go back to being
officers of the peace and detectives of various kinds. It's time to
turn away from those in the media on cable TV, and on talk radio, and
on the Internet who feed our fears and fuel our hatreds like pouring
gasoline on a lighted backyard grill. It's time to start respecting
each other as fellow Americans. Each of us must stand up for a
fundamental American truth – united we stand, divided we fall.
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