“If you don’t vote you don’t get to complain.”
So goes the old saying. What’s left of our “democracy” – really a corporatocracy – still allows us to get measures on ballots, run for office and gives us a sense of power balance with our political leaders. If you aren’t familiar with the term “corporatocracy”, don’t feel bad. What exactly is a corporatocracy you ask? According to Wikipedia,
“A corporatocracy is a situation in which corporate bodies interact with sovereign power in an unhealthy alignment between business and political power. In a corporatocracy an elite upper-class, maintains ties between business and government, sometimes by lobbying efforts or funding political advertising campaigns, or providing bailouts when corporations are seen as too big to fail, for the purpose of controlling government and dictating policy to serve its financial interests.
A corporatocracy is viewed as anti-democratic or opposed to democracy or used to describe situations in which democracy has been manipulated negatively, sometimes resulting in a passive citizenry and subservient media.”
So, now do you feel like you live more in a corporatocracy than a democracy? Passive citizenry, subservient media? You can add subservient schools and prisons to that list as well, especially with the push for private charter schools and private prisons. Heck, that’s why Occupy Portland called for F29 – SHUT DOWN ALEC.
Here at the Portland Occupier, we share a broad range of beliefs in political action and direct action. One of the wisest things I’ve ever heard was told to me by Dr. Vandana Shiva. Shiva, a food security activist with a doctorate in quantum physics, founded Navdanya, a Grandmother’s Institute to preserve Elder knowledge and seeds in Uttrakhand, India. I had the chance to ask her if she thought it was more important to be eating local food or organic food. I had been arguing with an older friend about this and he constantly drew the line at “organic”. I was not so sure and decided to ask Dr. Shiva. She looked me in the eyes with all seriousness and said slowly, “Never think in dichotomies.” The phrase burned through my soul. Every time I’m confronted with a “which is better,” it forces me to look at all sides and recognize that truths lay in both.
So here we are with election season looming in a time of revolution. I just got my ballot in the mail and it’s due back by May 15. I’m not sure if, or how, I’ll vote. We could argue for hours about why direct action is superior to voting, or vice versa. But let’s not. Let’s instead extend respect to all. The Portland Occupier’s 2012 Vote/Revolt section provides equal voice to those who are interested in moving beyond politics and into direct action, and those who are still confident that voting does actually make a significant impact upon our destiny. We will give the basic facts on politicians and measures.
Your job is to fill in the blanks. The most important part of this section is your voice. Your thoughts and knowledge are needed. We just have one request – Please back up your claim with at least one link to a credible source. We won’t be critical of your source, that’s a judgment call. Please note if your comment is a first hand account, by putting your name and phone number on record so that others may quote you. Send in your photos and images to PortlandOccupier(at)gmail(dot)com.
And if you think politics are a waste of time and feel that direct action is the only course, please submit an essay of 500 words or less, explaining why you’d rather not participate in the US electoral process.
On that note, let the VOTE/REVOLT discussion begin!
VOTE
CANDIDATESNON-PARTISAN STATE JUDICIARY – THE JUDGES NON-PARTISAN STATE- DISTRICT ATTORNEY, Multnomah County NON-PARTISAN COUNTY – COUNTY COMMISSIONER DIST. 3 CITY OF PORTLAND MAYOR CITY OF PORTLAND COMMISSIONER, POS. 1 and 4 METRO COUNCILOR, 6th DISTRICT MEASURESThese are the nuances of how our laws are created and changed and how our government collects money. 26-125 Local Library Funding: continues local option levy at current rate. Arguments for YESArguments for NO26-126 Amends Charter tort notice provision for consistency with state law. (A tort is wrongdoing for which an action for damages can be brought. Arguments for YESArguments for NO26-127 Amends City Charter provisions regarding Mayor’s fund. Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-128 Amends Charter by deleting Unenforceable Obscenity Provisions Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-129 Amends Charter by deleting outdated, unenforceable provisions regarding vagrants and Paupers. Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-130 Amends charter by deleting outdated provisions prohibiting exhibition of persons, begging. Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-131 Amends city charter provisions regarding Council Emergency Fund Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-132 Amends charter to clarify election procedure for filling vacancies. Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-133 Amends charter by adding terms and vacancy provision for charter commission. Arguments for YESArguments for NOMeasure 26-134 Amends charter by deleting outdated exposition-recreation commission chapter. Arguments for YESArguments for NO |
REVOLTStatement by the Radical Anti-Capitalist Caucus of Occupy PortlandWith state primaries on the horizon, the Radical/Anti-Capitalist Caucus of Occupy Portland rejects the legitimacy of this year’s elections. We believe city problems are inadequately addressed by local elected officials. These problems can only be addressed by a politics of popular liberation and direct community empowerment. Regardless of who wins this year’s elections, these problems will continue to grow until the system of capitalism is destroyed. As voters consider the decisions that will be put before them in the May 15 Oregon primary, the Radical/Anti-Capitalist Caucus of Occupy Portland, ask occupants of the city of Portland, the state of Oregon and the United States to consider something of a more fundamental import. What does real democracy look like? In a world without political action committees, in a world without campaign donations or lobbyists, in a world without bureaucratic chicanery or corporate guile, what could a truly democratic society actually look like? In response to this inquiry, we find it necessary to reject the legitimacy of the upcoming city elections. The city government has proven incompetent when it comes to holding its terrorist wing, the Portland Police Bureau, accountable for its abuses. In point of fact, it is likely beyond the scope of the city government to address these issues. It is our position that a government unable to stand guard against extant threats to the lives of those it governs is an illegitimate government. Subsequently, the processes through which the official power is transferred are equally illegitimate. The solutions to our problems are not beyond our reach, and it is only through the politics of popular liberation and direct community empowerment that we will solve them. If we are to build a truly democratic Portland, we must vote with actions which promote such liberating empowerment within our communities. To this end, we affirm the following: We must liberate our work places! We must liberate our schools! We must liberate our homes and churches! We must liberate our communities from repression at the hands of those who would fight to stop us! We recognize that this fight is part of a larger fight against the socio-economic ideology of greed which is at the heart of the American political system. Until the system of capitalism is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, we must continue our collective struggle for human dignity and freedom. So long as power is relegated to people in proportion to the amount of capital they control, ourdignity and freedom will continue to be under constant attack. All power to the people, with no dinner scraps for corporations! ENTER THE COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS DISCUSSION
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***If you feel any of this information is incorrect, misleading, or lacking, please contact PortlandOccupier(at)gmail(dot)com***
