Is Resistance Futile?

[davidthegnome]

Good afternoon, DU, from Northern Maine - this is my third frustrated post in the last week, which is rare for me, as for years I have mostly been a lurker. Perhaps I have become too angry or too sad to remain silent any longer.

Lately I have been spending most of my free time here, reading about what is going on in this Country - and to some extent, in the world at large. Every day it seems, there is another disaster, another reason to rage and shake our fists at the heavens. Somehow... it is finally becoming too much for me. I have always believed deeply in the value of compassion, generosity, kindness... in the end, these, I believe, are the things that truly matter. I have often been humbled by how much of this I have seen here from the wonderful folks who share this forum. I admire you all for your passionate struggle to move forward against all odds - I admire you all for your kindness, for being human beings who somehow, manage to still give a damn.

With this being said, it is with an overwhelming sense of futility that I write this afternoon post, perhaps in the hopes of inspiration, perhaps hoping that someone will give me a swift kick to inspire my motivation once more. Or perhaps, just to share my thoughts and feelings with people I like and respect - as my social life is largely nonexistent, being an introvert who lives in an isolated area.

This morning, when I woke, there were three messages on my answering machine. Even though I live with three family members (my parents and a sister) they were all for me. This could have been a good thing, right? I mean, maybe someone wanted to hang out, maybe it was a job offer, or a nice young lady who wanted to get to know me better. No, it was calls from two collection agencies and the local bank that holds my car loan... time to pay up, Mr. Gnome.

It can be frustrating, it can be overwhelmingly depressing to be working poor in rural America. But this complaint isn't so much about my own life or circumstances... it is about my feeling that the game has been rigged, that we are living not in, but "under" an America that has been sold to the wealthy elite.

Arne Duncan is on record as having said that the best thing that happened for New Orleans education - was hurricane Katrina. This is the President's head of education. What the hell, Mr. Obama?

Net neutrality has been destroyed, giving corporations and internet service providers even more power than before.

Someone who works for the NSA is probably reading this post right now, scratching his ass, and wondering if he should do something about these pesky liberals.

Drones are now being permitted to fly the skies of our great Nation, perhaps to combat crime, perhaps to gather data on citizens, perhaps because their programmers got tired of playing video games. Who knows? Anyone have a laser gun?

In another state, a ruling has recently been passed that demands that those who receive TANF - and might possibly take drugs (as indicated by answers to a questionnaire) take a drug test for the enormous wealth that is given to them... For 140 dollars a month per family, or 67 dollars a month per individual. This is done to the sounds of loud applause from many republicans and democrats, who are so very angry at what they call... "takers", or "bums", or words that I will not speak of here.

Our Military Industrial Complex is more powerful than ever, pumping out the weapons of war to solidify our control over the most important resource of the time... oil. A President who once warned us of the power of the MIC must be rolling in his grave.

The conditions of the working poor are terrible, all over this great Nation. Minimum wage and slightly above minimum wage is what the masses must live with, all while working for corporations that are eager to pay less, to destroy unions, to purchase politicians and ultimately remake this Country in their own image.

Unemployment benefits for the long term unemployed have been cut, denied, shattered by an arrogant, wealthy, ignorant bunch of pigs in Congress. More people must go hungry, more cannot afford their rent, the braces their children need, the surgery Grampa needs.



I could go on for a very long time, but will stop there, as I expect everyone gets my point. My question is... has resistance become futile? Is it possible for us to turn things around? I do not mind working hard, if there is a point. I do not mind struggling, suffering, bleeding and crying, if something is to be gained for it. Yet the harder I fight, the more I rage against the cruelties, the intolerance, the plight of the poor and working individuals and families... the worse it seems to get.

Hope is a hard thing to destroy - but what's happening here, to the people of this Country that I love, to the Nation my ancestors bled and died for... is slowly crushing my hope. How do we fight back in a way that matters? Is resistance truly futile now? Is our democracy going to die, at last, with a whimper and not a bang?

Forgive the depressing nature of this post. I am just... so very tired, and dreading the prospect of working another night for cruel people who are far richer than I am, for far less money than I deserve. Like many millions of others in the same situation, I've just about had all I can take.

[Lifelong Protester]

1. We are all tired, but NOT giving up

I will not give in-it may be futile, but I will not give in.


How's that, NSA person reading this?

Keep in the fight. We need to lift our voices-it is the only way to get the attention of TPTB.


General Strike.

[davidthegnome]

2. I'd love to take part in a general strike.

I just think of all of those (myself included) who can't really afford to do that. If I go on strike, my boss up here will laughingly ignore it and find some other struggling person to fill my position.

You are right though... no matter how tired I am, no matter how futile it may seem, it's worth it to keep going, to keep fighting, because there are still so many wonderful people worth fighting for. I just wish I could somehow direct my passions and my energy in a way that matters - and doesn't leave me without a car, because without it, I'm pretty much stuck way out here in the middle of no where, where I'm no damned good to anyone.

[CrispyQ]

18. The system isn't broken, the system is fixed.

You are not the only one who cannot afford to go on general strike. Everyone I know who has a job cannot afford to go on general strike. Sure, we could use our two weeks vacation to strike, but what good is two weeks? TPTB have us exactly where they want us.

I've never been an optimist, & even less so these days.

[grasswire]

3. David, everything you say is true.

And what I am about to say does not take away from the righteous nature of your words above. You know that I am in your corner, rooting for you.

I wonder if it's possible that you are deficient in vitamin D? You live very far north where (doctors say) most people are deficient in this vitamin, and that can lead to depressed feelings. A bottle of vitamin D capsules is quite inexpensive.

I don't know your situation regarding health insurance, but seeing a doctor would not be a bad thing to do, just to make sure everything's ticking properly.

What does your mom have to think about how you are feeling?

[davidthegnome]

7. Possibly.

My Father has some (vitamin D), I think, in the medicine cabinet. I haven't been taking it as I probably should. I'll take a couple this afternoon before I go to work.

No health insurance, no cash to pay for a Doctor out of pocket, I don't qualify for the local hospital's charity program because my household income is too high, my parents have pretty good jobs. You're right that seeing a Doctor would not be a bad thing to do, but, generally... I don't trust the local Doctors, which is perhaps a sign of paranoia or something, but I feel that they prescribe drugs far too quickly and focus on the symptoms of illness as opposed to treating illness. Therapy is too expensive - and psychiatry is WAY too expensive.

I have post traumatic stress disorder, which sucks, but I've managed to live with it for about fifteen years. Are my feelings at least, in part, the result of my illness? Probably. I have tried many different types of alternative therapy, standard therapy, diet and exercise programs, life-style changes, etc. Some years are better than others - and this one kind of sucks.

My mom, much as I love her, is as depressed as I am, so I try not to trouble her with these feelings. She's never been to therapy and probably never would go - she is a Catholic who relies heavily on her faith.

Is everything ticking properly? Probably not. I'm just not sure what to do about it. I do deeply appreciate your compassion.

[grasswire]

13. okay, vitamin D is not a one-time, one-day thing

A capsule a day. It takes some time to get up to proper level. That's a good step, to take one a day. Then you'll know that this isn't a D deficiency affecting you.

After that, what about Seasonal Affective Disorder? Is winter worse for you? (Aside from the problems of getting down your icy driveway with cleats!)

[davidthegnome]

9. My Father has given me the same advice.

To focus on smaller things, on my own inner circle, my family, local community, etc. Change will happen slowly, he says, and there is only so much any one person can do. You're both right. I just feel obligated to do something about the injustice, the intolerance, the overwhelming greed and cruelty I see. I should probably focus on the smaller things, it's just... I don't know, perhaps the overwhelming feeling of powerlessness in the face of so much injustice and cruelty. I want to do something about it, but perhaps there really is nothing I can do on a grander scale.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

5. Yes, resistance is futile and no it is not possible to turn things around. In order for that to not

be true, Americans would have to grow a pair and they won't because we are, as a nation of citizens, essentially cowards and suffer, en masse, Stockholm Syndrome. Half the population begs for more abuse and readily supports the abusers.

[polichick]

6. Yes, resistance in the usual way is futile...

Voting for the lesser of evils still puts evil in office. Been there, done that. Also, making a real difference through voting depends on having a democracy - which we no longer enjoy.

Can we protest with our purchases? To some extent, yes - but most of us are dependent on the corporations who run this country for a lot of services, including the internet which we rely on here.

Many of us come to this site for news and also to keep up with any movement that might be forming that could make a difference. imo nothing much will happen until enough people have had all they're willing to take. We're not there yet.


edit: typo

[mindwalker_i]

8. Resistance is hard, but not futile

Hello from a mostly-lurker (and this place is probably better off for it).

Resistance is hard(er) but not futile, and more than ever necessary. It seems to me that we, as a group, need to plan how to resist and how to be effective. That's more true than ever, given that the government and other powers or moneyed interests have so many tools to counteract resistance, from a very good playbook for disrupting online discussions tp psyops for many other forms of protests. However, this can't go on indefinitely. People are rapidly getting to the point where they have nothing to lose, and that's a very dangerous situation for the country and world. It would benefit everyone, even thr rich, to fix this now, somehow.

I definitely don't have all the answers, but I hope that somehow, we can put a plan in place to effect change and overcome the obsticles.

[polichick]

10. "But we only burn up with that passion when there's absolutely nothing left to lose"

Your post reminds me of this Van Morrison line.

[H2O Man]

11. Naw.

Heck, we're just getting warmed up. The real struggle hasn't started yet.

[librechik]

12. I will continue to resist til my last breath, because it's not right, and just stupid!

A real democracy of informed citizens and enlightened government WORKS! (Including here in the US, where our enemies swear government is the enemy)

However, given history, I have little hope we will break out of our INVISIBLE chains within our lifetimes or even our children's lifetimes. Circumstances of unknown shape may intervene to save us, but frankly I don't see much that ordinary people can do to change the system. We did it before for awhile (say 1948-1980) but then they were able to take all our progress away from us and make half of us hate the other half for making the progress.

It will take another bloody and ridiculous labor war to get any of that back. We aren't ready--and most of us refuse to believe it's even a problem!

The lunatics have taken over the asylum and passed a whole lotta laws against being sane and sensible.

Good luck to those of us who survive the next few decades.

(sorry, wish I could be more upbeat)

[JNelson6563]

14. As long as you live to fight another day, you haven't truly lost.

Fight on comrade! And spend less time on DU. A lot of fatalists here, could turn the sunniest of dispositions suicidal with strong enough doses.

Hang in there, you are not alone in your struggles.

Julie

[ananda]

15. You are not alone.

These past two weeks have also hit me very hard.

It's wrenching my gut to see what's happening in this country,
and how the corporatist evil is moving across the globe.

[G_j]

16. sometimes reading this again helps me,

"To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness.

What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.

And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory."

— Howard Zinn

[Shandris]

17. Yes, it is completely futile and has been for a while now. Carlin was right all along; its a big...

...club, and we ain't in it.

However, living a moral life, to me, demands no less...futility or no. Because even though it may presently be futile, each person fighting in futility tips the scale a bit closer to feasible and we have no way of knowing where the tipping point is. And once that point is reached, the rest comes -very- quickly.

So we continue on in futility until it is either no longer possible...or until the tipping point is reached. And when one of us falls, from burnout, or old age, or whatever reason, another picks up her load and keeps on moving forward. Because we have to. Because the worst hell I can imagine is to look back at the end of life and see we were OH SO CLOSE...but we just gave up a day too soon.

[CFLDem]

19. Yeah pretty much

That's why the key to happiness nowadays is low expectations.

[Waiting For Everyman]

20. It's ok to lose, if necessary, but never forfeit the game.

Never walk off the field. TPTB want more than anything for you to believe resistance is futile, that's when they win. Don't give it to them easy, make them work harder than they ever had a clue of, to take what's yours. Always avoid giving them what they want if possible. Give them a hard time, in every way that doesn't hurt you or set you back. That, and live to fight another day.

davidthegnome, I think you're a good writer, a cool guy, and... you need to watch "Norma Rae" sometime soon.

I really think that you should keep your writings and put together a (free as much as possible) blog someday, about your viewpoint in your surroundings. You never know, it just might be something that could pull you out from behind the 8 ball someday. Use your mind, it's a good one. (Good heart too.)

[Zorra]

21. Would you participate in a general strike, boycott, and demonstration?

No offense, but a lot of folks complain, but when it comes down to doing the sacrifice and heavy lifting for change, they can't make it to the protest that day, because the dog ate their homework.

Again.

[davidthegnome]

23. That depends.

Would I be alone when I was doing it? If so, I can say with complete confidence that it would have no result, no purpose, no point. No one would care, certainly not my boss, who could easily replace me.

Would I take part in some kind of general strike, boycott, and demonstration if it was organized? Yes. If I felt that it had the potential to do some good, I would. I would do so at the risk of losing my job. I would do so at the risk of losing my car. I would do so at the risk of losing my life, should it come down to it.

I don't have much to sacrifice, but what I do have, what is mine, I would gladly surrender for my beliefs. I'm not superman, but if heavy lifting is required, sure, I'll grab one end, if someone is there to grab the other.

[Zorra]

24. Would you, then, participate in a general strike, boycott, etc for these reasons/goals?

As one people, united, we acknowledge the reality: that the future of the human race requires the cooperation of its members; that our system must protect our rights, and upon corruption of that system, it is up to the individuals to protect their own rights, and those of their neighbors; that a democratic government derives its just power from the people, but corporations do not seek consent to extract wealth from the people and the Earth; and that no true democracy is attainable when the process is determined by economic power.

"We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments. We have peaceably assembled here, as is our right, to let these facts be known.

They have taken our houses through an illegal foreclosure process, despite not having the original mortgage.
They have taken bailouts from taxpayers with impunity, and continue to give Executives exorbitant bonuses.
They have perpetuated inequality and discrimination in the workplace based on age, the color of one’s skin, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation.
They have poisoned the food supply through negligence, and undermined the farming system through monopolization.
They have profited off of the torture, confinement, and cruel treatment of countless animals, and actively hide these practices.
They have continuously sought to strip employees of the right to negotiate for better pay and safer working conditions.
They have held students hostage with tens of thousands of dollars of debt on education, which is itself a human right.
They have consistently outsourced labor and used that outsourcing as leverage to cut workers’ healthcare and pay.
They have influenced the courts to achieve the same rights as people, with none of the culpability or responsibility.
They have spent millions of dollars on legal teams that look for ways to get them out of contracts in regards to health insurance.
They have sold our privacy as a commodity.
They have used the military and police force to prevent freedom of the press. They have deliberately declined to recall faulty products endangering lives in pursuit of profit.
They determine economic policy, despite the catastrophic failures their policies have produced and continue to produce.
They have donated large sums of money to politicians, who are responsible for regulating them.
They continue to block alternate forms of energy to keep us dependent on oil.
They continue to block generic forms of medicine that could save people’s lives or provide relief in order to protect investments that have already turned a substantial profit.
They have purposely covered up oil spills, accidents, faulty bookkeeping, and inactive ingredients in pursuit of profit.
They purposefully keep people misinformed and fearful through their control of the media.
They have accepted private contracts to murder prisoners even when presented with serious doubts about their guilt.
They have perpetuated colonialism at home and abroad. They have participated in the torture and murder of innocent civilians overseas.
They continue to create weapons of mass destruction in order to receive government contracts.*

"To the people of the world,

"We, the New York City General Assembly occupying Wall Street in Liberty Square, urge you to assert your power.

We want another world, and such a world is possible:

1. The economy must be put to the service of people's welfare, and to support and serve the environment, not private profit. We want a system where labour is appreciated by its social utility, not its financial or commercial profit. Therefore, we demand:

2. To achieve these objectives, we believe that the economy should be run democratically at all levels, from local to global. People must get democratic control over financial institutions, transnational corporations and their lobbies. To this end, we demand:

3. We believe that political systems must be fully democratic. We therefore demand full democratisation of international institutions, and the elimination of the veto power of a few governments. We want a political system which really represent the variety and diversity of our societies:
(MORE AT LINK)

“If not now, when? If not you, who?”

― Hillel the Elder

I'm not trying to get on your case here, what I'm trying to point out is that I see a whole of rhetoric and complaining here and elsewhere, but no action or willingness to take action when a genuine opportunity for change arises. Solidarity, focus, and sacrifice is necessary among enough like minded people to achieve the critical mass necessary to achieve justice, equality, democracy, freedom and peace.

It takes a village to raise a child.

[davidthegnome]

25. Yes.

It looks like the link you used is from May of 2012 - and since that time, things seem to have gotten even worse. Yes, I would participate for those reasons and goals. Do you have more details? Is there something happening now, or something planned, to which I can lend my support?

I'm ready to take action, but I can't tell if you're questioning my courage, trying to recruit me for a cause, or suggesting I start my own movement...?

[Zorra]

26. Occupy still exists. I'm pointing out that when we were pleading with people to help us

take action to bring about freedom, we threw a party, and many said they'd like to come, but that their darn dog had eaten their homework, so they couldn't make it.

Yes, I am absolutely trying to recruit you, for when Occupy goes into direct action mode again. To prepare yourself to engage in direct action peaceful resistance when the opportunity arises again, and help us to make it so that resistance is not futile.

Resistance will always be futile when nobody resists. And trust me, things will only continue to get worse until enough of us take a continuous, active, united stand against the 1%.

I'm not questioning your courage, I'm pointing out that there was an opportunity for possible massive change, and many who were complaining about their situation then, and who are complaining about their situation now, did not rise to action; they did not take advantage of the opportunity to make their life better when the opportunity arose.

[davidthegnome]

28. Then consider me a recruit.

Two years ago I had nothing (which is even less than I have now). Two years ago I was a working poor dishwasher who had a nervous break down and ended up spending time in the hospital - for which I still owe a debt of a few thousand dollars, as I had no insurance then, and have no insurance now.

Understand that I can't contribute to the cause financially more than a few bucks a week, but if you want my help, my presence, anything that is mine to offer, then I will gladly offer it to the occupy movement. I WANT to do something, if there is any way you can use me, well, let me know what it is. I can travel a little, I can write reasonably well, I'm fairly young and in reasonably good condition.

Feel free to private message me if you have any more information about upcoming events, the current status of the movement, or anything I can do to help.

Two years ago I couldn't do anything - but I can now. I'm ready, willing, and eager.

[Zorra]

29. I never even had a doubt, because of what you've written.

[Starry Messenger]

22. No, resistance isn't futile.

Don't make yourself feel guilty about feeling tired and depressed though. From your posts, I get a sense that your mental and emotional reserves have been tapped very low. ((hug))

Your writing is a form of resistance.

[2naSalit]

27. I think

that a general strike is where we are headed. Many say that people can't afford to go that route... how can we NOT afford to do so? They have taken pretty much everything from us so what is left to lose? If it's a strike against the beast, we'd better get off our asses, our heads out of our ipads and ipads out of our heads and get with the fight or we will lose long before we realize it. And a strike can just take place in the form of refusing to do anything that is dictated to us. You cannot force a body to work if it won't budge. It can be beaten to death but it cannot be forced without willful acceptance by the subject, even if coerced the subject agrees to do the bidding even if not wanting. Willing and wanting are two different things.