[lbo-talk] A Note on Demands

[Carrol Cox]

When we were mobilizing for the November Moratorium in 1969, it never 
occurred to anyone to formulate the demand, "Don't drop a Nuke on the 
Chinese in North Vietnam." We just said stop it damn it. It has since 
turned out that perhaps that Moratorium did, in Andie N's words on this 
list a few years ago, Save the World. It so shook Nixon (he was probably 
easier to shake than Obama) that he decided not to drop a nuke on those 
installations. If OWS and perhaps other kinds of protest action 
continue, the policy makers are going to be scratching their heads over 
how to calm things down. It will include heavy repression of course, but 
they will also come up with various kinds of 'reforms' intended to 
satisfy someone out there. But it's more or less pointless under current 
conditions to try to  craft specific legislation that is wanted. That's 
up to the scoundrels in D.C. We just have to make them scurry and (for 
now) hope that some of their scurrying helps some people.

Incidentally, perhaps we will learn ten years from now that OWS stopped 
an attack on Iran. Or on some other horror of which we have no knowledge 
but which is being planned. Imagine the outpouring NOW that would occur 
if the U.S. pulled some major aggressvie move arond the world.

The climate is changing. Think how to opeate in tht climate,not how to 
nag OWS into being something it isn't.

Carrol