QUEBEC CRACKPOTS

[Ian Murray]

> What I have missed in the discussions both in print and in cyberspace of
> Seattle etc is accounts of the local organizing that went into creating
> the mass demonstrations. With rare exceptions, mass demonstrations
> (peaceful / aggressive / violent) are not so important in themselves as
> they are as benchmarks of the level of local activity and of the success
> of that local activity in linking itself to national and international
> issues.
============
Bingo. It's the percolations of activity that are driven by a deadline [demo on dayX]
that are of interest. What is fascinating about the last 2 years is the process,
tacit and otherwise, whereby a "target" is selected; the stochastics of agitation and
mutual education on issues of enormous importance.


>
> To put it another way -- the main 'target' of the large mass
> demonstrations are the demonstrators themselves, who are to be energized
> to raise the level of their local activity when they return home.
===========
The comedown after a big event can be tricky for many to navigate; success as a form
of vertigo..."what  do we do now?" feelings and how they are channelled into further
educating/organizing is a very tough terrain to navigate. It's in the
hiatus/interstices of confronting the institutions of injustice etc. where the real
work/learning/strategizing gets done. It's especially hard if there's no "next
deadline". That's why picking crucial events/sites where Capital congregates to
congratulate itself over it's indifference to democracy and justice are critical
processes to think through.

Ian