How to live in a post democracy
So- the last post was pretty gloomy, but all is not lost. Here are five things we can do.
1 Register to vote and tell everyone you know to do the same. Our best hope is to vote and make our voices heard in the time honoured fashion. Vote in everything, even if you spoil your paper. We have to show that this is still the way.
2 Subscribe. If we want a diverse media we have to pay for it. Become a member of the Guardian or pay for the Independent online. Or buy the Mirror. And for goodness sake BUY A TV LICENCE! You may also want to consider joining a Union.
3 Support the positive. For those of us who can afford local, organic produce then lets be intentional about it. Lets be intentional about using local energy supply and seeking companies who already have a commitment to things like good food labelling and non GM (which also includes Aldi and Iceland as far as I am aware). There is a list of companies who are anti TTIP. They are primarily small companies but again, lets be intentional about using people who don’t just conform. (http://businessagainstttip.org/whos-joined). By inference, you might want to consider boycotting those companies whose practices are anti democratic.
4 Learn. Read what you can about TTIP, keep an eye on what is happening in Parliament. We need to be smart and well prepared. Learn from each other. The competition agenda has driven us apart from each other, so the old and young are led to believe that they have nothing in common and are to be feared. So go and meet some people who aren’t like you and find out what motivates them. Let us break the fear narrative.
5 Protest. Mass non violent direct action has brought about some of the most profound social change within ‘democracies’. It requires a discipline of mind and a commitment to remain non violent in the face of brutality. It also requires for the mild mannered and the respectable to get involved. Twenty middle aged people in tweed speaks much louder than a hundred young people in hoodies. And a hundred young people in hoodies protesting on behalf of the elderly, or there other speaks louder than just sticking up for our own ‘rights’. Online petitions are fine: but those things keep us in our safe bubbles and are debated in a minor committee in Parliament without making a ripple.
So- the last post was pretty gloomy, but all is not lost. Here are five things we can do.
1 Register to vote and tell everyone you know to do the same. Our best hope is to vote and make our voices heard in the time honoured fashion. Vote in everything, even if you spoil your paper. We have to show that this is still the way.
2 Subscribe. If we want a diverse media we have to pay for it. Become a member of the Guardian or pay for the Independent online. Or buy the Mirror. And for goodness sake BUY A TV LICENCE! You may also want to consider joining a Union.
3 Support the positive. For those of us who can afford local, organic produce then lets be intentional about it. Lets be intentional about using local energy supply and seeking companies who already have a commitment to things like good food labelling and non GM (which also includes Aldi and Iceland as far as I am aware). There is a list of companies who are anti TTIP. They are primarily small companies but again, lets be intentional about using people who don’t just conform. (http://businessagainstttip.org/whos-joined). By inference, you might want to consider boycotting those companies whose practices are anti democratic.
4 Learn. Read what you can about TTIP, keep an eye on what is happening in Parliament. We need to be smart and well prepared. Learn from each other. The competition agenda has driven us apart from each other, so the old and young are led to believe that they have nothing in common and are to be feared. So go and meet some people who aren’t like you and find out what motivates them. Let us break the fear narrative.
5 Protest. Mass non violent direct action has brought about some of the most profound social change within ‘democracies’. It requires a discipline of mind and a commitment to remain non violent in the face of brutality. It also requires for the mild mannered and the respectable to get involved. Twenty middle aged people in tweed speaks much louder than a hundred young people in hoodies. And a hundred young people in hoodies protesting on behalf of the elderly, or there other speaks louder than just sticking up for our own ‘rights’. Online petitions are fine: but those things keep us in our safe bubbles and are debated in a minor committee in Parliament without making a ripple.
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