We are supposed to learn the lesson from
the past, many times in our history man had to join as one-will and demand
his rights, his needs from the people in power.
Thousands…millions of people have died
fighting for the rights and the share of power. Most of the times, the
masses won them. From feudal landlords, from kings, from colonizers, from
communist, from dictators…but in the last 20 years we are giving away all
what we earned and fight for.
“I have no faith in human perfectibility. I
think that human exertion will have no appreciable effect upon humanity.
Man is now only more active - not more happy - nor more wise, than he was
6000 years ago.” Edgar Allan Poe quotes.
Today we are submitted under capitalism
with a false democracy mask.
“ I think democracy is the most
revolutionary thing in the world, far more revolutionary than socialism
ideas or someone else ideas... if you have the power; you use it to meet
the needs of you and your community, and this idea of choice which
capitalism talks about all the time that everyone have to have a choice.
Choice depends on the freedom to choose, and if you shock with debt you
are not free to choose. “-You say that, it benefits the system if the
average working person is stuck with debt?” –Yes, people with debt become
hopeless, and hopeless people don’t vote. I think if the poor in Britain
or US turn out and vote it for people who represent their interests, it
will be a real democratic revolution. So, they don’t want it to happen,
they keep people hopeless and pessimistic. So, I think that there are two
ways in which people are controlled: first would be frightening people,
and secondly demoralise them. An educated, healthy and confident nation is
harder to govern, and I think there is an element in the thinking of some
people; - We don’t want people to be educated, healthy and confident
because they would get out of control. The top 1% of the world population
earn 50% of the world’s wealth, it’s incredible that people pull up
with it, but they are poor, they are demoralised, and they are
frighten. And therefore they think the safest thing to do is taking orders
and hope for the best.” (01:06:46). Tony Benn, on Michael Moore’s film,
Sicko.
The next texts are from Tony Benn’s youtube
video talks, which give us a brief journey into the origins of democracy
in the UK and the world. We can re-learn maybe the importance of the union
and the meaning of “real”
democracy.
BIG IDEAS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD:
DEMOCRACY. Youtube video talks of Tony Benn.
“Thought out the history of the world, the
rich and powerful have dominated it. Very few people had any control of
their own governments. This is the story of the attempt to change that, to
win power for the people is the great idea of Democracy, and the struggle
to make this idea really it been often beaten
bloody.
The basics of the democracy is a believe
that we all born equal, but that equality must be accepted by those in
power. If you don’t keep up the pressure for democratic control, you lose
it. Its use it or you lose it, and that is something the people find it
hard to understand; there is never a final victory for democracy, it’s
always a struggle in every generation and you have to take up the course,
time and time again.
And we also learn that those rights can be
only wont collectively, but in the way to attempts those rights many
people has been imprisoned and tortured by those who have power and will
determine to retain it.
Money gives power to those who have it, and
those who control information still dominate our thinking.
Of course military power has allowed
certain countries to dominate another. That was the basis of the old
British Empire and that’s the basis of the new American empire too. The
American empire is overwhelming, it is the most powerful empire that the
world ever known. The defence power of the pentagon is greater than the
next 10 most powerful countries of the world put together. U.S. has 745
bases around the world in 134 countries.
This is way historical perspective is so
important, for there are many myths that need to be expose. The word
democracy is a Greek word and it can be translated as: “people’s power”.
Those in power in ancient Greek realized that the best way to defuse
criticism was to incorporate the critics by encouraging discussion. And
that was exactly the early version of the town meeting…- but women and
slaves were not included in the meeting as they were seen as
inferiors.
The first real turning point came with the
famous peasant’s revolt in 1381. Reverend John Ball was a Christian
minister famous for his sermons, which articulated the argument that the
peasants were trying to put forwards. He was called “Hedgerow priest”
because he was so controversial that not bishop will give him a parish, so
he preach in the hedgerow. This is what he said: “- In the begging we were
all created equal, if God willed that there should be serfs, he would have
said so at the beginning of the world. We were formed in Christ’s likeness
and they treat us like animals. Matters cannot go on well until all things
are held in common”.
The peasant’s march on London occupied the
city, and the king promised to accept all their demands. When the peasants
left back to their homes, the king send his army and thousands were
slotted. And an example was made of John Ball, he was cut in four pieces
and putted up in sticks, and his head stuck on a pike on London Bridge.
And an example was made of John Ball.
Over the centuries, the English Parliament
progressively limited the power of the English monarchy which arguably
culminated in the English Civil War and the trial and execution of Charles
I in 1649. After the restoration of the monarchy under Charles II, the
supremacy of parliament was a settled principle and all future English and
later British sovereigns were restricted to the role of constitutional
monarchs with limited executive authority”.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_of_England).
Thomas Paine was a republican and said: “government cannot be the property of
any particular man of family, but of the whole community. It’s wrong to
say that God made rich and poor, he made earlier men and female and he
give them the earth for their
inheritance”.
The turning point which leads us towards
the democracy we now have, begun out of a conflict between the land owners
and the workers that had employed. The land owners own the land and they
own the cottages on the land, so if an individual farmer or labourer
causes troubles or went to complain, he was fired and evicted from his
cottages, and that was the end of the trouble. So the workers of Dorset in
1830’s realized that if they wanted to have any power at all, they will
have to get together. But on those times was an obscure law from 1797
prohibiting people from swearing illegals oaths to each other, which the
members of the Friendly Society had done. So they were taken to the court,
convicted and send to Australia as common criminals. There were enormous
protests about this, huge demonstration, 250,000 people signed a petition
for their release and 30,000 people marched down in White Hall for their
support. So, what started as a local campaign, become a mass movement for
the establishment of trade unions. The principles of ordinary people could
be only achieve their rights by organizing themselves was now
established.
Working people realized tha,t the laws
under which they were governed, were made by totally undemocratic
parliament. In 1832 only 2% of the population had the vote, and all were
rich men and they made the laws. So, after the movements for the rights of
the Trade Union, came the campaign for the vote
suffrages.
Chartists 1838 - 1848. The really
significant political change, began when people who has been excluded,
demanded the right to be represented themselves in parliament. So over 4
years in cities up and down the country they work in it and the charter
was prepare for the representation of the people. 6 million people signed
the Charter before it was submitted to the
parliament.
And so, often happens in history, the
powerful ones had to conceive some of the demands to avoid trouble. More
and more people won the vote, and working together stay united; it’s what
the charter discovered, the
crucial missing ingredient that force the wealthy to share
power.
The war tough us that, if you can plan to
win victory you can plan for peace. In 1945 people used their votes to
elect a new labour government, which was to institute serious and radical
reforms. People said; “We want a new world”. Soon there was free
education, and free social health system.
The vote and the right to represent in a
Trade Union, give people in Britain a form of control over their own life.
On that time, British Empire cover more
than 30 million square kilometres, and govern almost a quarter of the
world’s population. But the people of the colonies had no real democratic
rights themselves. The British empire, like all the empires, was motivated
by the determination of establish superior control over resources and
people. When there was the British Empire there was absolutely no
democracy in the colonies. Empires don’t bring democracy, they control
people.
The colonial people knew that they too,
will have to organize to free themselves as we are done in Britain.
Predictably as is happening now, anyone who threat superior power are
treat as if they trouble makers or even terrorist. From India to Africa,
democratic freedom movements began, and they let to revolt both peaceful
and violent, and most of the leader ended up in prison. Mohandas Gandhi
and Nelson Mandela were in prison for 7 and 27 years respectively, even if
the claim non-violence.
But the forces of organized people behind these leaders were
unstoppable, and eventually the colonizers were force to hand over
power. And they handed over to the leaders of the movements who have
been called terrorist. All this trouble makers (leaders) ended up having
tea with the queen.
1924, The inter-war years period was
something of a theoretical highpoint of Empire. (See:
http://www.britishempire.co.uk/timeline/colonies1924.htm)
People realized that it makes rational
sense for as many people as possible to be involved in decisions, and that
a tiny and elite power will only look after themselves. They believed to
be equals of their colonial master, and they have seen the power of
organized rebellion.
The impact of democracy in Britain was felt
as an achievement by the people who vote for it; the inequality between
rich and poor narrow, life expectancy went up, wages and standard of
living was increased, people had more leisure time. Therefore life was far
from perfect, there was optimism between the 60’s and the 70’s that
society was heading in the right
direction.
The pressure from the people to change
society through democracy, was never relax by electing labour governments
dedicating on representing everybody
in parliament and through protest; Britain went through 20 years of
quiet considerable social progress. And by the 1970’s it looks as if we
had a potential to carry that democratic rules even
further.
In the period of the 1980’s there was a
major counter-revolution against democracy; president Regan in U.S. and
Thatcher in UK. I think they realized that if it wasn’t something down to
change it, democracy would succeed, and they decided that we are not
having it. There was in the British temp, in my opinion, to dismantle some
democratic achieves which we build up for ourselves: publicly own
industries which should be run for the good of the entire country were
privatized or in some cases sold out, the power of local government and of
the trade union was constantly and delivered undermine, and even the
greatest triumph of people’s power the wealth state began to be pull back,
and the national health service was indecently put down by underfunding,
and the pensions links to earning were
abolish.
But of course, it was not only in England
where things were changing…if you take a broader perspective, there was a
massive technological and economical-industrial change taking place across
the world. And as created an industrial grew worldwide, the whole shares
of institutions came to the set up designed to serve their interest….what
is known for: Globalization.
So it’s been a long long battle to get
where we are today. But of course getting to vote only provides a share of
the political power…but it’s not amplified control of economic power. And
as we look at the world today, with the economy of the hands of rich and
powerful people, you realize that there is a great deal more to
begin.
When they say globalization, it’s a funny
word because; a capital can move to where the wages are lower and they
call that “free trade”, but if people in poor countries want to came and
live in our country where the wages are high, no! They get down by
immigration control.
The world Bank, international trade
organization, European commission, WTO…none of this are elected and jet
they have rowing power now to dictate to the governments that are elected,
and for them privatization profits are the main objectives regardless of
the social cost.
Increasingly any government feels under
massive pressure to do what international capital
wants.
It’s true to say that the power is moving
back from people to the few elite ones; there are 500 dollar billionaires
who have wealth equal to the income of half of the world’s
population.
All over globalization is justified in
terms of economical advance. It’s actually widener the gap between the
poor and the rich worldwide and even in Britain.
And these ideas are of course close
associated with the very powerful new-conservatives in United States, as
their empire builds up.
And of course the big multinational
corporations have found their way of developing their political power by
funding the political parties, buying them and expecting a payoff for
genuine wins, so there is less and less choice for the
electors.
If we allow business into an international
scale to dominate, we surrender all rights to those with money, which
would be a throwback to the dark ages.
They are some long overdue constitution
changes we should make in Britain: - I think we should elect our head
stake. The real problem is all the power is at the crown, so called Crown
prerogatives are run by the prime minister, and doesn’t have to consult
parliament at all; and these power includes the right to go to war, to
sign critics, make appointment…just like the medieval king.
If there is one lesson to be learnt from
the past, it is: all real progress comes from below. And that’s mean we
have to organize. It was of course through self-organization that the
parliament itself was force to grant the vote to everyone and then accept
the welfare state.
I think we have to fight again for the
rights of working people who organize themselves in trade unions, not just
nationally but internationally.
I think it can be done, because this
generation understand better than any previous generation what’s going on.
Internet helps to understand what’s happening and helps to organize. And
these big great global movements which are building up, are based on the
idea which you will never have peace if we don’t have; social justice,
respect human right, work internationally and build democracy. So this
generations it’s got to take on itself responsibility for carrying the
campaign for democracy, from the national to the international
scale.
This is a phenomenon that, people in the
govern will have to think about, because if those in power think that they
can forever disregards those they govern, they will make a big
mistake.
No one in power really wants democracy, because democracy will challenge their power structures and
their authority. So anyone who comes out with a democratic idea is
dismissed as unrepresentative, or a trouble maker, or an extremist, or
something…and in this way the full flow of a public debate about
alternatives is been extinguish.
We are the first generation in the whole of human history,
which have the money and the technology to resolve the world’s problems,
and we are pouring it to nuclear weapons and wars…with a
fraction of the budget expenses on the Iraq war could transform the
prospect for Africa, as an example.
It’s an old progressive say: We are many, they are few. But if you
want it, you have to do it yourself, no worth waiting for some new
leader to gallop into a saddle in a white horse and telling you to vote
for him so he will solve your problems…that’s not a solution, you have to
do it by yourself.
Human race are like survivors in a lifeboat
with one loaf of bread, they are only three ways of distribute it: one
selling it, so the richest cover it up. Two fight for it, so the strong
get it all, three you share it…that is the choice we have to make, and
that can only really be done in a democratic world. That’s way democracy
is worth working for. (Youtube video talks of Tony
Benn).
…CAPITALISM NOWDAYS, DICTADURE OF THE
WORLD.
“Capitalism is an economic system that
became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism.
There is no consensus on the
precise definition, nor on how the term
should be used as a historical category. There is general agreement that
elements of capitalism include private ownership of the means of
production, creation of goods or
services for profit or income, the accumulation of capital,
competitive markets, voluntary exchange and wage labour. The designation
is applied to a variety of historical cases, varying in time, geography,
politics and culture.
Economists, political economists and historians have taken
different perspectives on the analysis of capitalism. Economists usually emphasize the
degree that government does not have control over markets (laissez
faire), and on property rights. Most political economists emphasize
private property, power relations, wage labour, class and emphasize
capitalism as a unique historical formation. Capitalism is generally
viewed as encouraging economic growth. The extent to which different
markets are free, as well as the rules defining private property, is a
matter of politics and policy, and many states have what are termed mixed
economies”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism
…Origins of capitalism: talks from the
video “The Corporation”, Mark Achbar, Canada
2003.
(V 10/23. 00:24).- “We can really
began to take a look at the emerging of the modern age, with the
inclusions movements of the European commons in the 14th’s, 15th’s and
16th’s centuries. Medieval life was a collectively lived life. There was a
collective responsibility: people belonged to the land, the land did not
belong to people. And in this European world, people farmed the land in a
collective way because they saw it as a common, it belonged to God. And
then there were a minister by the church, the aristocracy and the local
manners, as stewards of God’s creation. Beginning with Tudor England, we
began to see a phenomenon emerges, and that is the enclosure of the great
commons by parliamentary aids in England, and then in Europe. First we
began to take the great land masses of the world which commons and shares
lands, and we reduced those to private property. Then we went off for the
Oceans, the great oceanic commons, and we created laws and regulations.
There we allow countries to clear a certain amount of water outside the
coastal limits for exploitation. In this century we off to the air, and we
divided it in air-corridors, they can be bought and sold for commercial
traffic for airplanes.” Jeremy Rifkin. President, Foundation on Economic
Trends.
(V 10/23. 01:50).- With deregulations, privatization, and free trade…what were
are seen is, yet another enclosure, or if you like, private taking of the commons.
One of the things I find interesting in our debates is this concept of who
creates wealth; that wealth is only created when its own privately. What
will you call clean water, fresh air, safe environment…are they not
affordable wealth? And why is it only become wealth when some entity puts
a fence around It, and declares it a private property?. Well, you know? That’s not wealth creation, that is
wealth usurpation. Eleaine Bernard. Exclusive director, Trade Union,
Hardward.
(V10/23.03:44).- Privatization doesn’t means you take a public institution and
give it some nice person…it’s means you take a public institution and give
it in a carnivore tourney.
Public institutions have many side benefits: for one thing they
maybe run a loss, they are not for
profit, they purposely run a loss because of the side benefits. Ie. If
a public steel industry run in a loss, it’s providing cheap steel to
others, which is a good thing. Public institutions can maintain employment
in periods of recession, which increases demand, which helps get out the
recession. Private company can’t do that, and in recession they throughout
the red forces, so you make money. Noam
Chomsky.
(V 10/23. 04:35).- “There are those who intend that, one day everything will be
owned by somebody. We are not just talking about goods here, we are
talking about human rights, human services, essential services for life:
education, public health, social assistant, pensions, housing…we also
talking about the survival of the planet, the areas that we believe must
be maintained in the common control or we will collective die: our water
and air, the rivers and mountains, deserts and rainforests, oceans and ice
poles…”. Maude Barlow. Chairperson, council of
Canadians.
(V 21/23. 00:15).- Corporations has gone global, and by going global, the
governments has lost some control over corporations, regardless if the
corporation can be trusted or cannot be trusted, the governments today
have not much control any more, not like 50 or 60 years ago. And that is a
mayor change, so governments have become powerless compare to where they
were before”. Sam Gibara. Chairman, former CEO.
Goodyear.
(V 21/23. 00:40).- Capitalism today command the towering heights, and has
displace politics and politicians as the new mandatories, arranging all
the custom of our system.
Capitalism and its principal players and CEOs are the high priests
of our society”. Ira Jackson. Director. Center for Business and
government. Kennedy school, Harvard.
(V 21/23. 07:18).- Social responsibility is not a deep shift, because it’s a
voluntary “Tactic” , a tactic, a reaction to a certain market demand at
this point. As the corporation reads the market differently, it can go
back. One day you see Bambi, next day you see Gozilla”. Elaine Bernard.
Exclusive director, Trade Union, Hardward.
(V 22/23. 02:50).- So what we need to do, is to look at the very roots of the
legal form that created this beast. We need to think, who can hold them
accountable?. Elaine Bernard. Exclusive director, Trade Union,
Hardward.
(V 22/23. 03:02).- They are not granite stone, they can be dismantle. In fact,
most states have laws which require that they been dismantle. Noam
chomky.
(V 23/23. 00:55).- We can change the
government, that’s the only way we are going to re-design what capitalism
can do.
(V 23/23. 01:05).- 15 corporations would like to control the conditions of our
lives. Millions of people are saying not only, we don’t need you, but we
can do it better. We are going to
create systems that nourish the earth and nourish the human beings.
These are the main states of large numbers of communities across the
world. That’s were the future lies. Vandana Shiva. Navdanya Research
foundation for science, Technology and
Ecology.
(V 23/23. 02:16).- The TV channels that play my documentaries and yours (the
corporations), they think while the audience is watching this, they won’t
do anything. Because they (the media and politics) have done such a good
job dominating ours minds and dominating us down. They are convinced that
people are not going to leave their couches and do something political.
I’m convinced of the opposite, I’m convinced that few people are going to
leave this movie-theatre, get out to the couch, and go and do something,
anything! To get this world back
in our hands. Michael Moore.
Democracy is not possible when large
corporations held so much wealth and power. Corporations are not formed
through a democratic process, so
we the people, should be deciding what they can and can’t do with our
lives and our planet.
If we start to get involved in the
society’s decisions and demand our rights, instead to get wasted in the
pubs and watch brainwash TV, our countries will be control be the people,
not by the corporations.
POWER FOR THE PEOPLE, some
quotes…
John Lennon
words,
(00:20).- “I think our society is run by insane people for insane
objectives. If anybody can put down on paper what our government, and the
American government and the Russian government... what they are actually
trying to do, how... what
they think they are doing... I will be really pleased to know what they
think they are doing. I think they are all insane. I’m liable to be pull
away as insane for expressing that.
(01:35).- So, we are thinking give peace a chance. We are not thinking
in terms of 10 years, we are thinking forever. Everybody is talking about
now, “- I want peace now” we can
get peace now if we want it now, all we have to do is awaken the power in
the people. People are not aware, beside they are not educated to realize
they have power. They put the politicians in power, they vote for the
local meth, but the people do it. The system is so geared that everybody
believes that the father will fix everything, the father being the
government. The government will fix everything, it’s all government fault,
sake this to the government... but
we are all the government, people are the government, the people have the
power”. John Lennon Famous Words Of Wisdom UK Government are Insane
Maniacs. Youtube.
Another’s great people
thoughts…
“A well-instructed people alone can be
permanently a free people”. James Madison
quotes.
“Any people anywhere, being inclined and
having the power, have the right to rise up, and shake off the existing
government, and form a new one that suits them better. This is a most
valuable - a most sacred right - a right, which we hope and believe, is to
liberate the world”. Abraham Lincoln
quotes.
“A nation that is afraid to let its
people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is
afraid of its people”. John F. Kennedy
quotes.
“If there is one lesson to be learnt from the past, it is: all
real progress comes from below. And that’s mean we have to organize…and
unite”. Tony Benn.
One of the main intentions for the creation of
this movement, is to realize the importance of the union, to be aware of
the power of the people.
Now is time to join together, all these
thousands of organizations, all these millions of people who somehow help
others. All these people who are tired of injustice, and have realized
that we are in the final countdown to destroy the planet earth ... It is
time to unite in one voice, a force capable of changing the current
situation, governed by "capitalist "and" billionaire " people,
unscrupulous, heartless, mentally ill without humanity...
unite!
It's time to take the step in human
evolution, the passage of "conscience." The animal who discovered the
power of fire, agriculture, symbolic language, social organization,
technological proficiency, the power of capitalism.... This animal is
ready now for the next step, the development of
consciousness.
Perhaps we should have taken this step 40
years ago with the implantation of democracy, but this was taken by
politics leaders with power of the mass, and what they wanted after all
that was, the power the mass ... our power. POWER FOR THE PEOPLE
...
