Rule #5: Defend the Moral High Ground with Nonviolence. This one’s obvious, but not always easy. To be successful, your class war should be as violent as the Cola Wars.
We have a political system that prides itself on its democratic values. Perhaps the most recognizable is majority rule. If an overwhelming majority is amassed behind an idea, our system must respond or its legitimacy will be questioned (to put it mildly). However, a movement cannot grow and deploy such a majority using or condoning violence. If you are going to have some kind of class war you must use only nonviolent means to awaken and activate the majority and then give the system its chance to respond.
Beyond violence, a peaceful and productive class war should reject forms of destructive and/or disrespectful behavior that do more harm than good (although they may feel good) to the movement. Some recent examples are posters of Obama as Hitler, defecating on police cars, flag burning, and glitter bombs. These are behaviors that deter others from wanting to work with you. I know, I know … those are almost always the acts of isolated idiots or even agents provocateurs, but some form of leadership should denounce and discourage it ahead of time.
For those who think the “Crazy Rich” would only respond to violence, here’s some consolation. The “Crazy Rich” seeing the mobilization with their own eyes, will likely perceive it as a mob that is one spark away from storming their castles, attacking their families, and eating their pets. A nonviolent crowd is intimidating to those few who oppose it. Look at what happened last year at UC Davis.
After a news conference concerning the infamous pepper spraying incident, university chancellor Linda Katehi left the building and walked three blocks to her car while being flanked by hundreds of silent protesters. Here’s the video:
That’s pretty tense. She looks like she’s walking The Green Mile. Others have pointed out how much it reminded them of the last scene of Hitchcock’s The Birds. Ominous.
I anticipate seeing some very interesting methods of protest and resistance. Currently, the promise of the American Dream is being broken for the most educated generation in our history. That is a lot of overeducated, underemployed minds that will be quite motivated and creative. Keep in mind, the law is always slow to respond to societal and technological change. You can find and exploit these loopholes. (Much like how the financial industry has done by creating make-believe products that turned our economy into a casino — all legal).
So Rule #5 is Defend the Moral High Ground with Nonviolence. Be creative and get your popcorn ready, America!
Feb 152012

