[lbo-talk] Anti-Globalization and Anti-War Movements in the USA

Daniel Davies d_squared_2002 at yahoo.co.uk
Tue Feb 13 06:41:48 PST 2007


Doug wrote, in reply to Chuck:


> > the anti-globalization movement was successful because it mostly
> > relied
> > on anarchist organizational methods and practice.
>
> How was it successful? Seattle was loads of fun, one of the most
> exciting weeks of my life, but I don't see how it or its spawn
> changed much in the real world. Have capital or trade flows been
> altered? Have property relations changed? Is the working class any
> better off or more secure? Is the climate's future any brighter?

Worth remembering that Seattle was where the first TRIPS agreements were meant to be signed - and this was a really vile version of TRIPS, with the strongest possible international patent protection and no get-outs for AIDS drugs in Africa. It might have collapsed anyway if the riots hadn't happened, but nobody was betting this way. As it was, the collapse of the Seattle talks allowed Brazil and South Africa the breathing space they needed to reopen the whole issue, resulting in a much less harmful version of TRIPS being signed at a later date. The Seattle riots were kind of like the sudden swarm of bees that distracts the master villain long enough for James Bond to get free. There are certainly thousands of people alive today who would have been very dead if the Seattle protests hadn't happened.

best dd

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