>The slogan you mention -- "Capitalism? No Thanks! We'll burn your
>fucking banks!" -- never resonated with me
One problem with the multiplicity of slogans and actions is that is reflects not a respect for internal democracy but an almost infantile naivity about power and media relations. Any person doing publicity for anything knows that repetition and controlling the "line" given to the media is crucial-- if you say too much, the media gets to pick what their story is rather than repeating what your desired message really is. A good publicist is witty yet boringly repetitive.
Unfortunately, protesters think an agreed upon set of slogans-- the message -- is coercive, but such a stance does not democratize who gets to speak for the movement, it merely hands power to the media to pick and choose. And of course, they will pick the slogans that reflect the message they want to convey to their viewers, not necessarily the message the movement wants to convey. So if they have a one-minute broadcase and they want a story about violence and protest, they will find the slogans that feed that story.
The left complains about a biased media, but then we make their job easier.
-- Nathan Newman