What Now? The Tübingen Progressive Americans after Aguayo...
Now that Agustin is out of the brig and possibly even heading home soon, we will soon be considering what our next project will be. There are certainly enough issues. Charles Yee will be honing our minds for economic issues this weekend. The environment is all over the press. The war in Iraq rages on. Ideas for themes are easy to generate, plans to attack them are a bit harder to formulate, but certainly myriad.
I would like to encourage everyone to keep keep a list of what you think we could take on next. Whenever you get an idea, jot it down. Make your ideas as concrete as possible. Then, at our next meeting - perhaps some time in May - we can compare notes. The way I see it, there are two basic project types or options:
Type A: making a concrete difference in a small, personal or local issue
Type B: adding our small voice to a larger national or global project
The Aguayo thing was "type A" project. He is nationally and even internationally relevant, but our contribution was about helping him help himself. In an indirect way we may have had a larger-scale effect by freeing his resources in the coming months to do some speaking, (giving him money, some moral support, peace of mind, etc.). We also generated some local or regional awareness.
Doing the dishes this morning I heard a really good interview (the April 22nd show at http://www.will.uiuc.edu/am/mediamatters/default.htm)
about getting a grass-roots movement going within the Democratic party to win elections while at the same time actually being "progressive," playing to the Democratic base. If we were to get involved in something like that, it would be an example of what I would call a type B project. Getting on board an already-existing campaign for media reform, for impeachment, for the prevention of global warming, for living wages, for universal health care, gay marriage, etc., would also be type B.
Which approach is more "rational" in terms of global, long-term effect could be debated at length. I think type A projects will always be more fun and satisfying, however. They certainly give those involved a sense of empowerment.
I would like to encourage everyone to keep keep a list of what you think we could take on next. Whenever you get an idea, jot it down. Make your ideas as concrete as possible. Then, at our next meeting - perhaps some time in May - we can compare notes. The way I see it, there are two basic project types or options:
Type A: making a concrete difference in a small, personal or local issue
Type B: adding our small voice to a larger national or global project
The Aguayo thing was "type A" project. He is nationally and even internationally relevant, but our contribution was about helping him help himself. In an indirect way we may have had a larger-scale effect by freeing his resources in the coming months to do some speaking, (giving him money, some moral support, peace of mind, etc.). We also generated some local or regional awareness.
Doing the dishes this morning I heard a really good interview (the April 22nd show at http://www.will.uiuc.edu/am/mediamatters/default.htm)
about getting a grass-roots movement going within the Democratic party to win elections while at the same time actually being "progressive," playing to the Democratic base. If we were to get involved in something like that, it would be an example of what I would call a type B project. Getting on board an already-existing campaign for media reform, for impeachment, for the prevention of global warming, for living wages, for universal health care, gay marriage, etc., would also be type B.
Which approach is more "rational" in terms of global, long-term effect could be debated at length. I think type A projects will always be more fun and satisfying, however. They certainly give those involved a sense of empowerment.
mhatlie - 23. Apr, 11:20