[Sosfbay-discuss] Jeff Gibbs: Why I Am Not Going to the Protest

[Andrea Dorey]

It's "old politics" and "business as usual" if it's two-party politics.

Forget trying to find people to dump tea in the harbor.  Just see if  
you can find people who will pledge to vote third party and not back  
down as we in the GP did in both of the last two elections.  (The old  
boys and the wise guys are still snickering over that coup.)

Andrea

On Sep 2, 2007, at 9:52 AM, alexcathy at aol.com wrote:

> Dear Friends,
>
> I do not necessarily agree with all the far-out stuff posted on  
> Alex Cockburn's web site, www.counterpunch.com, and I do not  
> necessarily agree with everything
> that Jeff Gibbs says in this essay. But I sho' nuff do understand  
> how he feels when he says: "I am tired of protests." Already my e- 
> mail inbox is filling up with a new round of announcements from  
> International A.N.S.W.E.R. gushing about "all out' for a fresh  
> round of protests this fall.
>
> Please!
>
>
> Posted on CounterPunch, August 31, 2007
> Why I am Not Going to the Protest
> by Jeff Gibbs
> I am not going to the protest. I am tired of protests: they don't  
> stop wars. Not protests that are mostly about sign waving and  
> hooking up with friends and strangers and feeling the solidarity  
> and then going back to work or school on Monday. They say the  
> definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again  
> expecting a different result.
>
> Sure it FEELS rebellious, these government-permitted, media- 
> ignored, totally predictable rituals-but come on, going to an anti- 
> war protest hasn't been rebellious since Abbie Hoffman coughed up a  
> fur ball at one in 1968. And in the context of the war on our civil  
> liberties envisioned by Clinton/Reno and executed by your nemesis  
> George W. Bush, they are very, very happy to have you protest and  
> take your name and number. Or force you into a field, or a waiting  
> pen to be locked away until they decide to let you out.
>
> Personally I am tired of marching alongside people wearing masks  
> and carrying signs about stupid Bush when we and everyone we know  
> put together have not been smart enough to stop him. And the Bush  
> bashing only makes the whole parade, err, protest look juvenile to  
> the rest of the world.
>
> Here is what I propose: let's stop messing around. No more anti- 
> war. Let's stop the war. No more protest, unless it is part of some  
> huge thing that doesn't involve business as usual the next day. How  
> do you stop the war? Shut 'er down. No more business as usual. . .
>
> One of the reasons why I joined the Green Party was because going  
> Green represented a public declaration of my refusal to participate  
> in "business as usual," that is, lobbying, begging, and pleading  
> with corporate Democrats to give us fifteen minutes of their  
> precious time. I think part of the reason why the GP has not taken  
> off as much as we migth have expected is that a lot of Greens still  
> think of the GP as another "protest" group instead of a political  
> party and a surprising number of Greens still have a sentimental  
> soft spot for their friendly local neighborhood Democratic Party  
> Hack. I see this a lot in inner-city neighborhoods when it's the  
> friendly local neighborhood Democratic Party Hack of Color.
>
> I say: No More of Old Politics and the Old Business as Usual!
>
> In the cities; in the suburbs; in the little towns; in the rural  
> counties; in the 'Blue' states; and in the 'Red' states.
>
> My rant has also been posted at: http://www.greencommons.org/node/776
>
>
> Email and AIM finally together. You've gotta check out free AOL Mail!
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