> It was an interesting, fascinating project: how to develop a civic
> infrastructure through which to raise consciousness about profound
> issues. My experience in the project was that, even people who appear
> to be extremely apathetic, politically, really groove on the
> opportunity to discuss these abstract, difficult ideas. They actually
> enjoy reading difficult material -- things that some here would
> denounce as too complicated and sophisticated and full of jargon for
> the ordinary person. No. Butchers, welfare mome, drummers, preacher's
> wives, and chamber of commerce types liked being given difficult,
> challenging reading and difficult, challenging questions like, "what
> is the meaning of work?"
>
> A lot of people would think this was an abstract question for academic
> wankers. But, no, in a town were work couldn't be taken-for-granted,
> the meaning of work in all its abstract glory was important to people.
> They understood what it was like to have absolutely no work, have no
> benefits, have no nothing except the generosity of friends and family
> and, finally. But still, a profound sense of loss with no future, no
> hope, no desire, no nothing.
Wouldn't it be great if that kind of project were a much more frequent occurrence? I guess it takes a group of people becoming unemployed, so they have plenty of time for it, and without apparent prospects of getting re-employed soon, so they feel the urgency of doing it. If things go on for a while the way they are going now, both conditions will probably be satisfied in increasing measure. Adult education for victims of capitalism may be a growth business!
At any rate, I think the way to go for people who work with their brains is, increasingly, self-employment. If all you need to do your work is an inexpensive computer and an ISP, who needs a capitalist to furnish the means of production? At least it works for me (of course, in the field of translation, people have been working for themselves before computers -- perhaps going back to clay tablets and cuneiform sticks). Problem is, you also need to know how to run a small business, so you do need some capitalist savvy (that's where I'm rather handicapped). Also, self-employeds need to work together in associations for marketing, mentoring, etc., which encourages horizontal organizing over selling your labor power to giant corps.
(BTW, I'm not saying, of course, that this is the path to the Revo, or even close. I think we need a new slogan: "The revolution will not be computerized, or blogged, or mediated by Internet packets.")
Jon Johanning // jjohanning at igc.org __________________________ Politics, as a practice, whatever its professions, has always been the systematic organization of hatreds. (Henry Adams, "The Education of Henry Adams")