If you'd like to use your imagination...

[OneGrassRoot]

I'd love to see how you would respond to this. You don't need to respond to it in this GD thread; you can respond here, if you're inclined to respond at all. ;)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x6887

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. Circle/Slash/Anti -> GD...

Bad for your health :rofl:

[OneGrassRoot]

2. Agreed, that's why people can respond here! LOL

I'd love to see the responses of how people can envision more justice taking place in the immediate future in this hypothetical scenario.

It would open hearts of those with resources and wealth...it would open hearts in many ways if this particular "us" versus "them" situation were healed.

I realize it's far fetched, but I'm simply asking people to use their imaginations.

;)

:hug:

[Fire Walk With Me]

3. Food/Shelter/Medical come first...upwards and onwards to the empowerments of education,

self-worth, self-esteem, being and feeling useful...structures such as teams to clean up damaged areas of the cities are extremely useful and repair certain tipping points...

A good question is where are the tipping points into a positive zone; employ them when they are defined.

Edit: I've long considered that the abandoned Wal Mart buildings across the country should be retrofitted as shelter for the homeless and low-income, if at all reasonably possible. It would be the first instance of that virus-derived corporation giving something back instead of purposely destroying its hosts.

[kentauros]

4. Interesting that Kiva was mentioned,

because I've been thinking of mentioning them to you ever since hearing about them on HayHouse radio the other day :)

I'm still reading how it works, but do want to make use of it and lend some help :D

Now imagine what just one billion from only one billionaire could do! :think:

[OneGrassRoot]

5. Oh, I've been familiar with Kiva for a long time...

It's an awesome program, and they only recently -- in the past year, I believe -- introduced their program here in the States. There's been a lot of talk about how their setup isn't able to be implemented the same here in the States due to tax laws.

Tax laws, schmax laws. I have no patience for that...lol.

Since I am so enamored of microenterprise and co-ops and cottage industries, I've always been a huge fan of Kiva, and want to see similar programs really take off here in the States.

I haven't followed up with them in a while to see how it is going in this country but will add that to my to-do list.

:thumbsup:

[kentauros]

6. We do love our taxes.

Have to pay for the MIC somehow...

I'm thinking that I'll put some money into it at the start of the new year, and then make it a habit every few months or so, as I can.

It's such a great idea, perhaps even better than the likes of the World Monetary Fund and other such entities :D

[OneGrassRoot]

7. Whew....GD really loathes this kind of OP, don't they? lol

Whenever I post something about doing something constructive, or ask a question which prompts critical thinking about how to do something constructive -- or just step outside the box to imagine how we COULD do something constructive, the unrecs come pouring in.

I find that FASCINATING. ;)

I'm convinced that many, many people -- of all stripes -- want destruction. They are absolutely, 100% consumed by anger and fear and disgust and want the rest of the world to go down in flames with them rather than take a chance on choosing and creating something different, or even allowing OTHERS to do so.

You know, the whole "misery loves company" thing.

C'est la vie.

Edit to add (in case Rick or others read this...lol) that I am NOT trying to save them...those who choose anger and destruction. I post not to try to save them or anyone, but to try to find those who resonate with what I choose to work toward. Very few are at DU, that's for damn sure.

;)

[kentauros]

8. You still got plenty of good replies to your thread

so there's that :)

I was thinking last night (while unsuccessfully attempting to get my lousy modem to work) that many of the unrecs are probably coming from lurking repubs that have memberships here. Anything that asks for the moneyed to give up even a fraction of a percent of that "hard-inherited" money is evile!!! ;)

I do agree about DU being populated by many a disasterbater. Methinks, too, that most of them have not lived through any significant disaster to get a taste of what it's like. Either that, or they have, and were quite happy with being unhappy :crazy:

I say keep up the great work, and ignore the doomers and disasterbaters :thumbsup:

[OneGrassRoot]

9. OMG, "disasterbaters"!!!!!

I ADORE THAT!!!!

I should get the domain: www.disasterbaters-r-us.org

:rofl:

:thumbsup:

:hi:


Ooops, edit to add that I DID get some good replies, and I think it generated some thought in a direction we rarely tend to focus on. :)

[kentauros]

10. I can't take credit for it, though.

I first read it on Treehugger.com over a year ago, but it's likely in the public domain now, so have at it! :D

We should use that term in every thread where people post like that. Turn it into a DU meme ;)

I liked some of the replies, some things I've thought about, too. This would be the kind of thing to propose to the likes of Buffet and Gates :)

[OneGrassRoot]

11. Indeed....

I've been holding off on launching the I CHOOSE campaign because I hadn't quite put my finger on what people can sign on to DO. Certainly there are different aspects to the I CHOOSE Campaign as I see it, but I also want a pledge to be part of it, to launch it.

I'm in the midst of working on it, including a new personal responsibility pledge. Of course, we know the RW meme about personal responsibility, but this tweaks it to show that we can choose to be responsible for not only our own actions, but that personal responsibility embraces being responsible for all those we interact with in our communities, etc.

I've been gathering info on the wealthy who are, in one way or another, professing to be committed to giving back and being more responsible in the broader sense of the word.

I want this pledge (and perhaps a petition, aimed at the wealthy in a positive way), to be a conduit to engage the "us" versus "them"...the "haves" and "have nots."

Remove the fear. Connect. Strive toward balance and healing.

Lots involved with this and I haven't clarified the verbiage, but that's the direction I'm going, if that makes any sense at all. ;)

[kentauros]

12. Yes, you're making sense, so stop it!

:P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUjjFETMTxE


A pledge or mission statement take a lot of work, and often require the voices of many working together (a committee if you will) in order to get something that really stands out.

Maybe set up a Skype conference call to hash it out :)

[OneGrassRoot]

13. Nice!

Love that video! :)

Yes, as soon as I get the basic framework and some of the scattered pieces together more in my own mind, I'm going to invite others to join in to craft it further.

Ya wanna be part of helping to craft it? ;)

[kentauros]

14. Sure!

:)

I don't know how well my Mission Statement-speech is these days (organizations/foundations all seem to have a particular style of almost corporate-speak, possibly to get corporate dollars) but have seen enough of them over the years that I'm sure we can all work something out. However, it would be nice to make a statement that people actually want to read ;)

Let me know when you're ready to get going on that. I'm mostly available anytime

[OneGrassRoot]

15. Thanks. Much to the chagrin of most...

I am really rebelling against the way things SHOULD or have always been done. Actually, I've always been that way.

If I can't do things outside the box -- if that feels right (rather than doing it strictly TO rebel) -- I'm not inclined to do it, to be honest.

So, like you, I'm not focused on whether or not it adheres to typical foundation/organization "speak"; I'm interested in making a point and conveying that as clearly as possible, to engage as many people as possible.

People get upset that I don't set up the Wishadoo! structure as a typical non-profit and do other typical things so I can seek grants and such, but I am just not led to do that. Not right now, at least, though I stay open and remain flexible as I go through this process.

To me, it makes no sense to try to create something completely different while limiting oneself by trying to adhere to old rules.

I want to step wayyyyyyy outside the box and am trying to find those who will step outside with me.

So many talk about hating the systems but it takes a leap of faith (or something) to actually move beyond those systems in our daily lives. I think me being an entrepreneur and self-employed for the last 20 years has helped me in this regard. I've never had a cushion or safety net, so I'm more inclined to take chances.

You know...the whole "the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again yet expecting different results" theory.

;)

I'll keep you and anyone else who may have an interest posted.

Thanks much. :hug:

[kentauros]

16. You're welcome!

:D

I know I've seen other organizations that don't talk like a non-profit, so it's not like it hasn't been done before. Those that get upset will just have to learn to get along with the rule-breakers or be left behind the innovators :P

I feel your self-employment experience will be the most help in getting all of this going, so keep the faith in that. I don't have such experience (or so very little) so don't have much to contribute in that area. I do have the growing intention to volunteer more, thanks in part to listening to HH Radio more often. Denise Linn was just talking about how volunteering helps more than just those to whom you reach out. I used to volunteer with a community garden program in Houston. I'd like to get back into that, too :)

I'll get to your PM during my lunch, in another hour...

[Fire Walk With Me]

17. I wonder at what point in the increasing feedback/co-creation energy

they'll begin to understand that something is going on, and that they may no longer wish for such results. And what it would take to bring empetus to truly no longer wanting such results.

Edit: "Monsters...from the ID!"

[OneGrassRoot]

18. Just now seeing this...

Yes, I wonder as well.

I have a hard time believing most of the people are truly hopeless about life; if they were truly hopeless, would they even be interacting in these discussions?

They SAY they feel there's no hope, but I wonder...

And, it's as though they feel that if they admit that they DO have hope (not even necessarily in politicians, but in anything), it would be some sort of weakness at this point, as though they don't see the reality of the situation if they have an ounce of hope.

I think we can see things for what they are AND have hope that it can change...so long as we do the changing.

It feels more like a temper tantrum and, as I say repeatedly, I completely understand that. There is so much to feel anger and despair about. Maybe participating at DU (and similar sites) is just a way to vent and is cathartic for people? I don't know. Unfortunately, it tends to snowball and has a very depressing effect, from what I can see.

:shrug:

:hug:

[bigmonkey]

19. I think some of those folks actually think that catastrophe is necessary for change.

I don't think they've thought it through, of course. In a way, it's a kind of idealism - as if they're saying that they refuse to think positively unless everyone is thinking positively, which will happen once everything has gotten really bad. They're envisioning an ideal state, and those are really hard to achieve in this world with so many different kinds of people (perhaps 12 main types, or some such?). Yet, they seem to hold out a belief that if things just get bad enough, then everything will turn out well. Strange.

As I've shared, I think all you need to have is for things to get uncertain enough for people consider workable alternatives that they'd otherwise ignore as long as things stayed relatively predictable and familiar. The work we need to do now is to work up those alternatives to practicability, so they can be real choices when the time comes. I think that time might be soon.

[OneGrassRoot]

20. My friend, mmonk, is doing a much better job than I have in gathering the troops....

and offering a practical alternate way of creating employment opportunities.

As I've written ad nauseum, I've been VERY interested for decades, and have been actively immersed over the last year, in researching co-op structures: worker co-ops, member-owned co-ops, marketing co-ops, professional co-ops. All types of structures that we here in the US are way behind in implementing, having bowed down in submission to the mega corporations.

He's another self-employed entrepreneurial type, and just recently started thinking about the co-op model. I've posted about it before (and even kept an ongoing thread for a long time in the small business forum here about co-ops), but people are responding to him.

Yay!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=16560&mesg_id=16560