THE “OCCUPY MOVEMENT” AND “JUSTICE”
When I was a student in Bologna University, every two or three months the word would be passed from student to student: “Gli studenti sono in sciopero.†(The students are on strike.)
We would all sigh. Every two or three months the students were on strike.
They were not medical students or engineering students. We had to study day and night. They were students from Arts and Letters: Philosophy, Literature, Politics or Languages.
These students went to bars and cafes at night, drank wine, smoked and discussed the problems of mankind.
Periodically, they had enough with the behavior of the Government or the University or Rich People and they went “in sciopero†(on strike.) They carried banners, they talked to anyone who would listen and they had a tendency to scream. While they were doing this, they did not study.
One day, like a curious cat, I stopped by a street corner where a group of strikers were waving banners and shouting at the cars that went by.
“What are you striking about,†I asked in Italian. “You don’t know?†“No, I don’t know.†“Well, I will tell you…†And then this Italian student began a long enumeration of the wrongs committed by the City of Bologna and the rulers of the University.
When he finished, he uttered some classical words… “Non e Giusto!†(It is not Just!)
After, I had heard his brave argument, I had to agree… “Si! Non e Giusto!â€
Somehow the two of us had met on a common ground. The ground of Justice. All humans seem to recognize Justice and Injustice without training, education or lessons from other people.
We instinctively know what is Just and what is Unjust.
It is as instinctive as knowing that one plus one equals two and that one plus one does not equal three. If one plus one equals two, then it is Just. If one plus one equals three, then it is Unjust. If we listen to a melody, and one note follows the other and it sounds pretty, then it is Just. If we listen to another melody, and the second note does not sound pretty, then it is Unjust.
Our minds are made like this. We are creatures of logic and perfect balance. In certain areas, we instinctively know what is right and what is wrong. No training is necessary.
COMMUNICATION
Almost all animals communicate. Communication is necessary for survival. “Here is food.†“There is water.†“There is a predator!†“There is an enemy.â€
It is also necessary for procreation. The term “Love†is found in every language, and if we watch other animals, especially birds, we know that this term exists in their languages.
More prosaically, we use communication to determine where we are in life, what our imminent future might bring, what our distant future might bring and what are the dangers that surround us.
As we discuss our surroundings, we see that we are not all equal. Some are richer and some are poorer than others. Some are more educated and some less educated. Some are dangerous and some helpful.
But, we notice that we all subscribe to the same group of rules. No matter who we are on this planet, we all subscribe to the fact that being Just is Good and being Unjust is Bad.
When we see Injustice, we become angry. When we see Justice we are happy.
And, we universally have a desire to communicate those feelings to those around us. Communication is the key factor. We are compelled by our nature to communicate. But, communication, almost always, results in action. We may run or we may fight, but when we hear something new, we are compelled to take action.
NEW MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
In the last twenty years, a new means of communication erupted onto society across the world. It was the Cell Phone. People could suddenly walk and talk, with anyone, anywhere!
It became an obsession. The need to communicate became fulfilled. But then the aristocrats of technology fed the human race more manna from heaven: Facebook and Twitter. The means of communicating multiplied by the millions as Bloggers joined the cacophonic array of people telling the world what they saw.
People were soon massing in groups with similar values, chirping to each other like flocks of birds.
THE INEVITABLE
Humans had always had a love for Justice and a hatred for Injustice. Now they could tell their friends and fellow believers, in their country and around the world. “Hey! We don’t like this, and we should do something!â€
THE ARAB SPRING
The Arabs of North Africa had been slaves to dictators, supported by Western Countries and Oil Cartels, for the last half century. It was the most Unjust social situation in the world. The Arabs of this region were essentially slaves to the oil companies. As they communicated to each other with their cell phones, they became braver and braver. Soon they were challenging their dictators and the armies of those dictators. They won, but some are still fighting.
Source: http://dougbelshaw.com/blog/2011/08/17/we-need-to-open-our-eyes-to-systemic-injustice/
With the Arab spring as a back ground, students and workers of the West saw the immense inequity of their own situation.
There was vast unemployment everywhere. People were losing their homes everywhere. Living standards started falling everywhere. No more movies and big dinners. It was chicken wings and DVD’s. A University education was becoming worthless.
On the other hand, they saw their governments passing unheard of quantities of moneys to their banks. Banks that should have been bankrupted were suddenly richer than they ever were. The bankers smiled and gave themselves bonuses!
Non e Giusto! (It is not Just!) Everyone knew it. The students and workers communicated with each other, got up their courage and marched downtown.
Today, we see them everywhere across the world. The fat bankers are a little frightened, but they know they have the governments and police behind them.
“This can’t last long,†they tell each other. But, it can last long. The students and workers are supporting each other. They are determined to have justice. It may take a year or two…
But, hey, what is life all about? To be a slave?
Popularity: 1% [?]
Regarding “the occupiers”: I don’t know what they want. Judging by the way they dress and act, half of them are not only unemployed, but unemployable. A modern Woodstock, with lots of confused, intoxicated individuals (losers). If they were successful, they would work on Wall Street or have their own business. I am also against the bailouts, but that’s not Wall Street’s fault. They should protest in front of the White House or in Capitol Hill.