So this occupy deal is for real, eh? - Democratic Underground

Tobin S.

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Sat Oct-22-11 11:34 PM
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So this occupy deal is for real, eh?

Hi y'all. :hi:

I'm a long time DUer. I've been here since March of 2003. I signed up just before the beginning of the war in Iraq. I used to go by the handle Droopy back then because that's just the way I felt- powerless, impotent, depressed. I saw the disaster that was looming and couldn't do a damn thing about it. Lots of people were trying their hardest to avert that disaster, but we were a wounded nation and the force of those who wanted blood in retaliation would not be denied. Couple that with leadership that was willing and ready, actually just looking for an excuse to let the bombs fly, and off we went down the road to one of the biggest blunders in our nation's history.

I knew what was going to happen. I knew that everyone in the Bush administration was lying to us and stoking the flames of war, playing that 9/11 card every chance they got. It didn't take a genius. I was a 30 year old trucker, you know, not exactly a Ph.D. It was just plain to see and I don't understand how everyone else didn't see it and stop the madness that we were descending into. But we didn't and we might never recover.

For those of you who don't recognize me, I haven't posted an OP in GD in what seems like several years. I'm more of a lounge and groups kind of guy now days. But I've been reading you guys here and there and a lot more here lately. I see a lot of hope here now and enthusiasm for OWS. Is this new movement for real? God, I hope so! I'll admit that I've been pessimistic. After seeing millions of people take to the streets worldwide to protest against the Iraq war only to be denied, it didn't seem to me that any kind of civil unrest beyond the most extreme could stop the powers that be from doing as they pleased.

Now? Hmmmm. I've been sensing hope, not only in many of you but also within myself. I find myself wanting to do something, anything that might help the cause, and I feel like my effort might actually be productive and not akin to throwing a tomato against a stone wall. I see the possibility that things might change for the better, the vastly better, in my country and in my lifetime. Hell, maybe within a very short period of time. This is something that I've desired since I was old enough to be politically conscious. I've actually known since I was a child that the world could be a vastly better place if we could set aside our greed. That's pretty simple, but that's the central concept, right?

Will it happen? I don't know, but I'm going to do what I can. Man, I work 55 hours a week and I've got bills to pay. I live in a small town in the middle of the country. I'm not going to be able to make it to many protests, but I'm going to find a way to contribute to this cause and do what I can to further it. This feels like the real deal to me and I feel like I owe a debt to those out there who are on the streets and making their voices be heard. I think solidarity is the right word. Yes, solidarity.