I think that if you're an academic writing published critiques of modern
> day mass movements, the only way to be honest and scientific in your
> critique is to be involved, on a day-to-day basis, in organizing some kind
> of mass movement.
>
I think I agree with everything you say here with the possible exception of "mass." I'm not sure how you're defining your terms, but to me, some of the most valuable movements in which to participate are decidedly non-mass: little organizing nodes from which a mass movement may eventually grow, or around which another might someday coalesce. But if we fetishize "mass," we run the risk of encouraging others to run after whatever happens to be big at the moment - which isn't always (usually?) the best choice.
-- "Hige sceal þe heardra, heorte þe cenre, mod sceal þe mare, þe ure mægen lytlað."