Friends,
I hope you all had warm holidays in the company of family and friends.
Apart from a very nice phone chat with my kids in
California, I've used the holidays as a quiet
retreat, with phones turned off. Ended up doing a
lot of thinking and writing. I even managed for
the first time to get one of my articles
published by Global Research, a forum I have a
lot of respect for :-) My thanks to Richard Cook
for encouraging me to submit the article, which
was a combination of two recent postings, edited
into article form. I was especially pleased for
the airtime on GR, as the article pulls no
punches...
* The Post-Bush Regime: A Prognosis *
original URL: http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=7693
newslog
copy: http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/?id=2969&lists=newslog
And now, this just in, the article seems to have wings:
____________________
Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2007 10:52:56 -0700
From: "GlobalCirclenet" <•••@••.•••>
To: •••@••.•••
Cc: •••@••.•••
Subject: Best analysis article of the year, 2007
The Post-Bush Regime: A Prognosis
By Richard K. Moore
Global Research, December 27, 2007
http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=7693
____________________
---
Ever since my experience in Victoria, with the
wise-democracy activists, I've found that I've
been shifting my activities in new directions.
That's ironic, really, because what the Victoria
folks are up to is exactly what I've been hoping
for and working towards; it's the very path I
anticipated in my book. Now that I can see that
dream being pursued by good people, you'd think
I'd be more energized than ever about that
continuing to promote that vision.
However, I've gained a new perspective, and I now
see a more fruitful direction for my own
initiatives, a new mission for rkm. (Of course
I'll continue to do cyberjournal and newslog,
don't worry about that.) Permit me first to
characterize the 'old mission'...
When you set out to 'empower a community' with
things like Wisdom Councils, we can view that as
'planting seeds of empowerment' that we hope will
grow, through follow-on Wisdom Councils, into an
emergence of a 'wise dialog culture', an awakened
community, a We the People consciousness. There
are two inherent drawbacks in this approach. The
first is that the community involved may not be
particularly fertile soil for the seeds.
Typically it takes a campaign of some kind to
generate any interest in the project at all.
Motivation is missing. The second drawback is
that we're talking about a gradual process, the
growing of a garden so to speak, so that the
intended benefit -- an awakened community -- is
deferred and might never be achieved.
I realized at some point that the essential thing
is to spread 'empowerment consciousness' and an
appreciation of 'wise dialog' into the culture,
and that 'empowering communities' is simply one
formula for doing that. If there are more
effective ways of doing it, then they should be
preferred. It seems to me that 'success' in the
game of 'encouraging democratic empowerment' is
measured by the rate at which you can spread
'empowerment consciousness' into the culture, by
whatever means work best for you. The more people
who are liberated and empowered -- in whatever
context -- the more hope there is for social
transformation.
So what I'm doing now is looking for situations
where some worthy organization, project, or
movement is in need of a 'dialog intervention'.
Indeed, as I've looked around, I've found that
'lack of appropriate dialog practice' is an
obstacle to the progress of most group endeavors.
My role, in my new interventionist mission, will
be to identify endeavors which can potentially
contribute to social transformation, and propose
to each an event -- perhaps a seminar retreat or
a conference -- that is custom designed to enable
them to achieve greater project and group
coherence.
'Wise dialog' processes will be at the heart of
the design of the events of course, but that
won't be the selling point. The 'value offered'
is the immediate concrete benefit to the endeavor
and the group. The motivation is presumably
there, if the event design is perceived as being
sound by those involved. And if the event
delivers on its promise, the intervention will be
appreciated, and the people involved will have
gone through the experience of reaching
breakthroughs together with the help of wise
dialog processes. The payoffs from such an
intervention is immediate: not just the benefit
to the endeavor, but the spreading of
'empowerment' and 'wise dialog' consciousness
among the event participants and the larger group
generally.
So that's the new mission, "Johnny process seed".
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Dec 2007 12:45:04 +0900
To: •••@••.•••
From: Dion Giles <>
Subject: Re: more dialog on recent themes...
http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/?id=1367
Richard, your response to Claudia on the rise of
power trippers is not only a great summary of the
way of movements and political parties, it also
applies to the United States of America itself.
The founders were well aware of the dangers and
did their damndest to forestall them, but only
vigilance itself will protect the gains -
including the gains of the American Revolution.
A couple of good books: "The End of America" by
Naomi Wolf (published 2007) and a less analytical
but nevertheless sweeping description of the same
thing by Thom Hartman ("Screwed").
In a way Hartman's book is more optimistic, as he
describes how the democratic republic went into
long eclipse several times in its history but
sprang back because of the healthy aspects of the
declaration of independence and the constitution
and the emergence of wise and effective leaders
at critical times. One can't of course depend on
this happening spontaneously - Ms Wolf eloquently
describes what happens to aspiring leaders in
defence of decency.
The crux of the crisis assailing America today is
summed up in these words by Naomi Wolf:
***************
"Democracy depends on a social agreement that is so obvious
to us that it usually goes unspoken: There IS such thing as
truth. In an open society, we know facts may be hedged and
spun in the back-and-forth of debate, but truth is the
ground FROM WHICH hedging or spinning begin. Democracy
depends upon accountability; accountability requires us to
be able to tell truth from lie - and to be able to tell
truth from lies we all first must agree truth matters.
"If the ground of democracy is truth, the ground of
dictatorship is assertion. In a dictatorship, reality
belongs to whoever has the greatest power to assert."
***************
Best for 2008.
Dion Giles
Western Australia
--------
Hi Dion,
Thanks for your contribution. I'm afraid,
however, that I do not share your faith in the
original Constitutional vision, nor in Naomi
Wolf's characterization of what is required to
achieve a workable democracy.
James Madison, primary architect of the
Constitution, made it clear that he intended the
design of the new government to protect the
interests of 'those who own property', and he was
explicit about how the various provisions would
protect the wealthy from democratic uprisings
from the masses, those 'without property'. There
was no Golden Age of American democracy for us to
restore. Within a couple decades we had been
roped into an unnecessary War of 1812 and we got
the Sedition Act. Already the Bill of Rights was
under attack. The rot was in the pot from the
beginning. The Declaration of Independence was
useful in rousing the Colonial masses, but it was
never made part of the Constitution or given any
legal standing.
Naomi Wolf is reasserting the theoretical
principles behind representative government,
truth and accountability. Those sound promising,
but the fact is that's never how any of our
'democracies' have ever functioned in practice.
They've never fulfilled their promise. There are
always hidden intrigues, backroom deals,
intentional deception in campaigns and in
official announcements, politicians who are more
loyal to their wealthy backers than with their
constituencies, cover-ups of misdeeds and
failures, etc. We need to wake up to the fact
that delegating power does not work as a formula
for democracy.
my two shillings,
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Dec 2007 07:19:55 +0100
Subject: Re: more dialog on recent themes...
From: Hélène CONNOR
To: <•••@••.•••>
Dear Richard,
In your total collapse scenarii, you could have
considered a global climate collapse. A climate
disaster somewhere could bring down our
civilisation by domino effect (see the book
"To-morrow the Middle Ages" by Roberto Vacca).
Given the present perspectives it may be more
likely than military coups in OECD countries.
Cheers anyway.
Helene
-------
Hi Helene,
I could have talked about climate-change
scenarios, but that's not my focus. I think
people will adjust to climate change how best
they can and there's not much more that can be
said about it. I do think we'd be a lot better
off working on an adjustment strategy rather than
spending our time pretending we can stop climate
change with silly programs. Also I have a hunch
that the big climate-change disasters, for
natural or unnatural reasons, will be
concentrated among the poor of the world, places
like New Orleans and the third world.
best wishes,
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
From: "JAMES MACGREGOR" <>
To: <•••@••.•••>
Subject: Re: more dialog on recent themes...
Date: Fri, 21 Dec 2007 11:17:24 -0000
___________
rkm wrote:
People being what they are, very few of them will pass up the chance
to hold on to power once they have it. Almost always the choice of
the leaders will be, and has been historically, to hold onto power
first, and pursue the will of the people as a second priority. Once
that choice is made, the movement has been hijacked by the leaders,
and the fate of the intention is now in the hands of people who are
primarily concerned with maintaining their own power.
___________
Richard, in his book, Gorbals Boy at Oxford,
Ralph Glasser discusses "The whole sad,
unscrupulous story of politics" in a very
similar vein to you: "To be in politics you had
to join the power game and become as cynical and
opportunist, and as ruthless, as the others. It
was a Mephistophelian trap. Principle, where you
started from, soon lost its force because,
without power, it was futile. You told yourself
that principle could be postponed, played down,
to get power. In the manoeuvres and compromises
along the way, principle imperceptibly became
secondary, malleable to fit the game, even at
times dispensable - until calculations about
power, about getting it and holding it, excluded
all else."
best wishes,
jim
------
Hi Jim, great quote, thanks - rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2007 08:02:37 -0800
From: ernie yacub
To: •••@••.•••, •••@••.•••
Subject: Re: What to expect from the next US Administration
http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/?id=1368
have you read naomi klein's "shock doctrine"?
she traces the development of disaster capitalism
from the first 9/11 to new orleans and iraq in
meticulous detail - one of the most illuminating
books i have ever read.
here are a couple of interviews that dig a bit deeper...
<http://www.naomiklein.org/video-audio/naomi-alcove-mark-molaro>
<http://www.naomiklein.org/files/audio/Naomi_Brian_Lehrer_9.18.07.mp3>
________
rkm wrote:
"Our challenge as a sentient species, and our response if we
seek to do anything about the growth-thru-genocide agenda,
is to begin to empower ourselves, us ordinary people,
without reference to the useless political process. How to
pursue our empowerment must be the aim of our
investigations, and pursuing that empowerment must be the
point of our activism."
________
one place to start is by creating and using our
own recirculating currencies - free, open and
scalable - <http://openmoney.editme.com>
good luck to all,
ernie yacub
<http://lets.net>
--------------
Hi Ernie,
Yes, Naomi Klein lays it all out very well. She's
one of those people who have kept on the front
lines, breaking new ground in the struggle
against global capitalism, digging deeper,
getting more radical, and keeping her voice 'out
there'.
Open money schemes are very good things. Marc
Bambois and I were just talking about this, and
the obstacles to promoting the idea. I've also
worked with Michael Linton, and listened to his
wild-eyed schemes to 'capture the Bay Area' with
Lets. And then there are successes, such as
Berkshares. My own belief is that the open-money
movement would do well to link into
community-empowerment and localization movements,
and concentrate its efforts there.
It is at the grassroots level that people power
has the most hope of being unleashed, and open
money systems can help empower an emerging
community. Such local scenarios are 'fertile
ground' for your message, and successful local
implementations become testimonials to your
evangelizing efforts generally.
my thoughts,
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2007 10:54:42 EST
To: •••@••.•••
From: ffrankmax
Subject: Re: What to expect from the next US Administration
_Naomi Wolf: Fascist America, in 10 easy steps | Special reports | Guardian
Unlimited_ (http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2064157,00.html)
---------
Hi Frank,
Those Naomi's they just keep popping up. Thanks, a good article.
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2007 04:17:32 +1100
From: Robin Mutoid <>
To: •••@••.•••
Subject: What to expect from the next US
Administration.. but that depends upon WHO they
are!
Hi Richard,
Happy New Year to you too! Thanks for this
'appraisal'.. not really the right word but you
know what I mean!
I don't as such have any romantic ideas about the
next US administration, but I am becoming more
and more convinced that 'something' remarkable is
in fact occurring deep under the radar of the
mainstream thought/media processes. Dr. Ron
Paul's campaign is beginning to look like an
uncomfortable, brewing threat to the Elite
Controllers and their puppet-installation
program! Gore may just as well go piss on an
Iceberg!
I have always sensed that the day WOULD come when
We the People finally get our way. Mix this with
the purported increase in vibratory rate of all
matter in this part of the Universe and it begins
to look possible for an unprecedented 'sweep' of
consciousness to rapidly manifest and parade
publicly at the chance to elect someone who is
NOT part of 'the plan', at the US elections in
Nov. next year (or before if the Bush/Cheyne
impeachment momentum gathers enough pace!).
---<snip---
------------
Hi Robin,
Sorry to omit some of the details about Ron
Paul's campaign, but I think the real issue is
whether it is realistic to expect that a genuine
populist President would ever be allowed to
assume the powers of office. The way the media
ignores him is simply the first line of defense
of those who hold power. Behind those lines stand
Diebold machines, corrupt precinct processes,
manipulation of party conventions, and there are
more methods and tricks as well, leading up to
'untimely' death by 'natural causes'.
So unfortunately, although I am happy to see a
populist attracting so much popular support, I
cannot foresee a scenario in which he comes to
power. What might be of lasting benefit, emerging
out of the Paul campaign, would be if the
supporters organized themselves into an ongoing
activist group, with the objective of promoting
Ron-Paul-like agendas.
ciao,
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2007 13:59:45 -0800 (PST)
From: Leo Klausmann <>
Subject: Re: What to expect from the next US Administration
To: •••@••.•••
Richard,
I just have a minute, wanted to ask why you
didn't mention how the role and reach of China,
combined with a resurgent and nationalist Russia
will play into this. The West's confrontation
with them is what the game plan is all about, and
it has to be done one way or another.
------------
Hi Leo
I bring China and Russia into the expanded Global
Research article, URL above. Good comment.
rkm
--------------------------------------------------------
From: "Jeff Keiffer" <>
To: <•••@••.•••>
Subject: Re: What to expect from the next US Administration
Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2007 10:05:20 -0500
Hi Richard,
Always good to read your posts; informative as always.
While there is much to be concerned with in the
US I have also noticed a small but growing
people's movement to make changes for the better
here in the US. I have been a member to several
organizations with a green agenda and while the
federal government continues to do the bidding of
the big polluting corporations that only care
about their bottom lines; many people have
organized to make themselves and their local
communities greener. Local governments have begun
offering incentives to people to buy hybrids,
solar panels, more energy efficient appliances,
etc. I have also seen a green movement in the
auto industry where smaller car companies are
flaunting the powers that be and making fully
electric cars (see Tesla or Aptera). I believe
this movement will only grow because many
Americans are concerned and waking up to the fact
that we do need to ween ourselves off foreign oil
and I have begun to notice that many Americans
are beginning to turn to the Internet for their
information. There is also a strong populist
movement supporting candidates running for
president like Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul and
while the mainstream media either makes fun of
them or ignores them completely they are getting
their word out and people are taking notice.
There is always the fear of another 9/11 attack
and Bush declaring himself dictator and that
leave me to wonder how many Americans would be
willing to stand up and fight their own
government. I believe many would stand up and
fight and there are even states that would
declare their independence from the US (Vermont,
possibly California) and that would eventually
lead to another civil war (though in my mind it
would be a revolutionary war to free ourselves
from another King George).
There are signs of change but I can only hope
that it continues and that Americans continue to
awaken to what is really going on in their
country.
Peace,
Jeff
--------
Hi Jeff,
I think the dictatorship danger has passed. The
neocons have been reined in. Welcome to the new
show.
I am encouraged by what you say about local
community initiatives. That is an indicator of
awakened community consciousness. However,
smaller cars, solar panels, and more efficient
appliances are not going to do anything of
consequence to help with the energy picture, the
carbon picture, or the climate change picture.
Those kind of things simply encourage us to
continue with business as usual in our
unsustainable societies, postponing our eventual
reckoning.
This awakened community consciousness needs to be
informed by an understanding that our
infrastructures and exchange patterns need to
change if we are to move toward sustainability,
and unsustainability is the root cause of
symptoms like climate change and peak oil.
Among the initiatives that I have seen, emerging
out of communities that want to do something
about sustainability, the ones that seem most
promising to me are the ones oriented around
'local consumption for local production', or 'buy
local'. To the extent localities can move toward
local self-sufficiency in this way, they are
reducing the need for long-distance transport,
and they are keeping the benefit of their
exchanges in the community, instead of letting it
be drained off in the profits of chain operators.
If an agricultural area can team up with an urban
area, for example, both can be better off. The
agricultural area can cater to the needs of the
urban area, and it will know it has a reliable
market for its products at a fair price. The
urban area knows it's getting quality fresh food,
and is somewhat insulated from fluctuations in
food market prices. We've got the seeds of local
self sufficiency and sustainability. We've got
the beginning of changes at the level of
infrastructure. As Ernie would point out, a local
currency is also helpful in these kind of
scenarios. Financial independence is a powerful
tool in community development.
best wishes,
rkm
--
--------------------------------------------------------
Posting archives: http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/
Escaping the Matrix website: http://escapingthematrix.org/
cyberjournal website: http://cyberjournal.org
How We the People can change the world:
http://governourselves.blogspot.com/
Community Democracy Framework:
http://cyberjournal.org/DemocracyFramework.html
Film treatment: A Compelling Necessity
http://rkmcdocs.blogspot.com/2007/08/film-treatment-compelling-necessity.html
Moderator: •••@••.••• (comments welcome)
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