The wave of protests in the region continues to grow in strength and scope. Just look at a map and it's obvious that an idea is a powerful thing.* Arabs across the Middle East and North Africa have had that idea reinforced by the successful ousting of governments in Tunisia and Egypt; things very recently thought to be impossible. Yemenis, Bahrainis and now even Syrians are wielding the power their very existence endows them with-- the power of numbers. Only time will tell how far the wave will spread; how powerful it will become. The model that the countries in the Middle East have created is compelling. They've shown that people can come together, forget about sectarian, political, and religious divisions and focus on the issues that unite them: unemployment, rising prices, ending corruption, being sick and tired. The model itself is powerful. It makes you wonder who outside the Arab world will take notice and be inspired; who will start to take to the street; which countries' governments will be forced to feel the pressure of their populations. I think most people are looking at countries dominated by authoritarian regimes, but the model doesn't restrict itself to dictatorships. The power of mass protest can be wielded anywhere, and what I'm really wondering is if and when, in the face of such trying economic times, Americans will start to take notice.
We have a history of mass protests-- labor riots, anti-war movements, the struggle for civil rights-- but it's something we don't really do anymore. The attack on the collective bargaining rights of public sector workers in the Mid-West and many other states has offered an opportunity for people to come out and be heard, and the public's reaction has been noteworthy. It's effectiveness is yet to be seen though, and after all, a hundred thousand isn't a million. So what would it take to get people coming out in the millions, demanding that their voices be heard? What would it take to unite Americans so seemingly divided by so many issues accentuated and exasperated by the so-called "news" media? What would it take to change the way things are done in America? Aren't the elements short of authoritarianism that were and are present in the Arab states experiencing mass demonstrations present in the U.S. right now: unemployment, rising prices, a widening of the gap between the rich and poor, cronyism, slashing public services, a disappearing middle class? Shouldn't Americans be sick and tired?
So why are so few coming out against policies that are sure to pass the burden of an economic recession caused by the unregulated, irresponsible behavior of financial institutions --who have since been bailed out with tax payers' dollars-- on to America's poor and middle class? Why are so few outraged that city and state budgets that pay for things like education, transportation, libraries, garbage collection, and healthcare are being gorged in a year that saw record earnings for huge corporations and the number of billionaires continue to increase? To me at least, it seems like there are two major, mutually reinforcing factors: a lack of reliable information, and partisanship.
People aren't informed of the impact of policy-makers decisions on their lives, and they're not aware of what feeds into those decisions. It's not as though economic policy is simple to understand. Nor are the secretive processes of lobbying and campaign finance that feed so much into what our elected officials decide to do once in office. So a big problem becomes with what and where do people come out to voice their discontent . So much is done that effectively confuses the issues and thereby the public at large who might, if properly informed, be incensed enough to participate in protests and demonstrations. This is as much a product of the capacity of ordinary Americans to understand complex issues as it is their willingness, but nevertheless, where and from whom could willing people get reliable, non-partisan information is still yet to become obvious.
People also take at face-value the words of the politicians and news media that supposedly represent them. Americans are so effectively divided by things that have no bearing on their lives as individuals and are so convinced which side they're on that the idea that they actually have more in common with people on the other side of partisan lines in the face of of such trying economic times fails to reach them. Buzzwords like 'terrorism', 'socialism', 'patriotism', and 'fascism' are thrown around like Molotov cocktails inciting people and stoking the flame of 'us vs. them'. Meanwhile we're made to believe that the place to fight these battles is at the ballot box where the leaders on either side represent the will of their constituents. If anything was needed to dispel this notion it has so far been the presidency of Barrack Obama, who has failed to live up to the expectations of change that his supporters fervently projected onto his, in hindsight, actually quite limited campaign promises. What we can learn from this failure is that either the current system is so entrenched in the political process that the hands of those who might champion the rights of the many over those of the few are effectively tied, or that those people just simply don't exist in government.
We as a population have a responsibility to hold our elected officials accountable. We as Americans have the additional responsibility to the rest of the world of keeping in check a government whose decisions have such far-reaching and dramatic implications. It doesn't seem to me that these responsibilities are possible to uphold at the ballot box. Seemingly then, the only method left is in the streets. It's my hope that poor, disaffected and unrepresented Americans on both sides of the partisan divide will look upon what's happening in the Arab world with envy and will find inspiration in it. Obama has shown that he's amenable to the demands of the populations of countries in the region-- even if not all of them. So maybe he'd be more likely than most to implement policies that people demanded if the chains that bind him could be shaken loose by popular will. There still remains the question of what people should demand. Simply being upset isn't enough to get things done. It's easy for people under authoritarian regimes to cohesively demand something: an end to authoritarianism. But until there can be some unity in that regard in this country and with the population in general in the midst of complex issues, it's my fear that any popular will, even when voiced on election day, won't have any positive effect on the lives of so many troubled Americans. So maybe it's time we implement a different model.
People also take at face-value the words of the politicians and news media that supposedly represent them. Americans are so effectively divided by things that have no bearing on their lives as individuals and are so convinced which side they're on that the idea that they actually have more in common with people on the other side of partisan lines in the face of of such trying economic times fails to reach them. Buzzwords like 'terrorism', 'socialism', 'patriotism', and 'fascism' are thrown around like Molotov cocktails inciting people and stoking the flame of 'us vs. them'. Meanwhile we're made to believe that the place to fight these battles is at the ballot box where the leaders on either side represent the will of their constituents. If anything was needed to dispel this notion it has so far been the presidency of Barrack Obama, who has failed to live up to the expectations of change that his supporters fervently projected onto his, in hindsight, actually quite limited campaign promises. What we can learn from this failure is that either the current system is so entrenched in the political process that the hands of those who might champion the rights of the many over those of the few are effectively tied, or that those people just simply don't exist in government.
We as a population have a responsibility to hold our elected officials accountable. We as Americans have the additional responsibility to the rest of the world of keeping in check a government whose decisions have such far-reaching and dramatic implications. It doesn't seem to me that these responsibilities are possible to uphold at the ballot box. Seemingly then, the only method left is in the streets. It's my hope that poor, disaffected and unrepresented Americans on both sides of the partisan divide will look upon what's happening in the Arab world with envy and will find inspiration in it. Obama has shown that he's amenable to the demands of the populations of countries in the region-- even if not all of them. So maybe he'd be more likely than most to implement policies that people demanded if the chains that bind him could be shaken loose by popular will. There still remains the question of what people should demand. Simply being upset isn't enough to get things done. It's easy for people under authoritarian regimes to cohesively demand something: an end to authoritarianism. But until there can be some unity in that regard in this country and with the population in general in the midst of complex issues, it's my fear that any popular will, even when voiced on election day, won't have any positive effect on the lives of so many troubled Americans. So maybe it's time we implement a different model.
* a comprehensive interactive map of the uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa
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