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CounterPunch
October
26, 2002
The Grassroots
of Hope
Ushering the Rusted Shield of Democracy
by JOSH FRANK
Democracy has historically linked us to the essential
tools needed for survival within diverse cultures and societies.
An active citizenry in the United States is meant to protect
us from government control and corporate excess. But those that
speak up have been labeled as "fringe" and "naive."
Our ideas poisoned with the rationale that our worldviews are
skewed by airy hopes and empty realities.
Dissent no longer is viewed as a necessary
action in the world of like-minded capitalists. Our corporations
influence on education, on the food we eat, the private water
we will all one day drink, the dirty air we now breath, and the
health care we don't have; you'd think would wake dreamy Americans.
But our corporate culture muddles these essential debates. News
pundits rattle over minor differences. Children wash their brains
in re-runs of Southpark and video games of war. Grown boys ejaculate
over touchdowns and slam-dunks. And the rest simply don't have
the time or the energy, they are too busy fighting for their
next meal.
Lack of voters in the United States comes
less from uninterest than from the perception that one cannot
make a difference. It is perceived that our politicians are so
a-like that a vote can't break the strangle hold monotony. It
is more a lack of candidates with differences, than an ignorant
populous, or what Chomsky would refer to as "the bewildered
herd." But see, that is where we all come in.
Our concerns over the direction of the
world can't be intrinsic qualities. Rather they must be branding
tattoos that label us as humans with purpose, with ambitions
for the betterment of life on earth. With pre-emptive war, toothless
lawgivers, and corporate greed; democracy is left in the hands
of the people. We are those people, the people with the power
to make change. If you've ever felt alone in your thinking, you
are not. Dissenting voices exist, and we aren't anti-American,
or unpatriotic either. In fact we are the epitome of democratic
virtue.
As anarchistic and feminist Emma Goldman
once wrote, "the most unpardonable sin in society is independence
of thought. That this should be so terribly apparent in a country
whose symbol is democracy, is very significant of the tremendous
power of the majority." Our only protection from the majority
now may be our rusted shield of democracy. But it is the only
hope we have if we want future inhabitants of earth to enjoy
the many qualities life still possesses. We must start at home;
talk to our children, our parents, our colleagues and friends.
We are the grass roots of hope, the only hope that still may
be ushered.
Josh Frank lives in Portland,
Oregon. He can be reached at: frank_joshua@hotmail.com
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October 14,
2002
Harry Browne
Ireland:
No to War; No to Nice
Don Atapattu
The Tragedy of Alan Dershowitz
Linda Heard
So You
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Bob Feldman
Flashback: Inspecting Nuclear Israel
Adam Engel
The Anger
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Anthony Gancarski
The
Washington Post and the Wal-Mart Way
Philip Farruggio
Sleepers
Harold Gould
Islamic
West Asia and US Foreign Policy:
A Tale of Strategic Self-Delusion
Dan Brook
An Open Letter to Barbara Lee
October 12
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Alexander
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Vindication
Through Violence:
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Robert Jensen
The American
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More Freedom, Less Democracy
Ben Tripp
Congratulations! It's a War!
Susan Davis
Proverbial
Wisdom:
Red!
David Krieger
A Bleak Day for America
Anis Shivani
George W. in Therapy
Ken Paff
Where Do Hoffa's Tactics Belong in a Mob-Free Teamsters?
Carol Norris
The Politics of Fear
Elaine Cassel
The Lynne Stewart Case:
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Musa AlShaer
Scenes
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Anthony Gancarski
Concerned Citizen: a serialized
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Alam
I Will Fight Your Enemies
October 11,
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Jeffrey St.
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Montana
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Steve Kelly's Wild Ride for Congress
Ralph Nader
Whirlwind
Wheelchair Intl.
Anthony Gancarski
Stayin'
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Romi Mahajan
What
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Uri Avnery
Israel:
the Jewish Demographic State?
Francis Boyle
Bush's
Banana Republic
Lee Sustar
Taft-Hartley,
Bush and the Dock Workers
Katherine
van Wormer
Dry Drunk
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Jerre Skog
The Blessings
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The Greatest Deception of All Time
October 10,
2002
Elson E. Boles
Iraq and
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Senator Russ Feingold
"Confused Justifications and
Vague Proposals": Why I Oppose Bush's War Resolution
William A.
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What Bush
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Jorge Mariscal
Chicanos
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