When I first saw a notice out of NYC about a march - I think on 18Nov11 - and the wording said "in alignment with" a union, I brought it up at an Occupy Reno GA to highlight the error in judgement. The Occupy movement nationwide can welcome everyone, but it should align with noone.
The reason is simple. To win the hearts and minds of the broad American public for a Constituitional Amendment requires support from people of all political stripes.
America has been hijacked by monied interests. And from that has flowed nearly all the negatives that have befallen its people. Since we have a Congress-for-hire, those monied interests have changed the law to suit the pursuit of profits. They have coerced favoarable court decisions. They have insured widely evident destructive activities have gone unpunished. Many things are wrong today in the nation and the world. The single most important law to return the focus of governance - of legislators - to the people would be one to cut off all funding from monied interests to politicians, whether from for-profit or non-profit organizations. To make it stick and avoid further assault, it would need to be in the form of a Constitutional Amendment. That amendment would also contain language to the effect that the rights and priviledges in the Constitution apply only to natural persons, which would overturn the Citizens United decision.
What made the Occupy movement catch on today was not smarter people (ahhh, maybe some...), it was the perfect storm of the L shaped economic downturn, the flagrant and evident responsibility of the banking industry in the global economic crisis, and the collusion of government before and after the crisis in letting big money off the hook. The iron is hot to gain 65-75% support for such an amendment today, but it won't be after the economy begins to recover.
Having seen how many of their colleagues were thrown out of office in the last election, legislators are only hoping our movement doesn't get it's act together by next summer and before the November elections.
If the movement produces a 5 (or a 25) issue platform by next summer it will fail because attention and support will be too divided. If it produces one single amendment, with which 76% of Americans already agree (corruption of Congress due to funding), we can win. It will take articulate, knowledgeable, respected members of communities across the land to sell it at Rotary Clubs, church groups, Republican and Democratic gatherings, etc., so legislators realize they have a clear choice: agree to the amendment or get voted out of office. Lesser or more devisive issues can be raised after the elections and after state legislatures pass the amendment. Until it passes, it needs the undivided support of every citizen possible.
The press and a majority of the educated and attentive public have been waiting and asking: "specifically what is it you occupiers want to do?" Now that the physical occupations have captured the mic and the public's focus, it is time to come together, formulate our platform and tell them. Steve
