Occupy Anonymous

 

        Henry David Thoreau once said that disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. He reasoned that the obedient must be slaves. He concluded that if the machine of government is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then the only course of action is to break the law. Martin Luther King Jr. agreed with this way of thinking, by saying it was a "moral responsibility" to break unjust laws. Ghandi stated civil disobedience becomes a "sacred duty" when the State becomes lawless corrupt. These three men are just a few, in a long list of people, that not only believed this way, they all demonstrated their beliefs with their actions. I believe that everyone from the greatest Greek philosophers and religious leaders, to the common man, would all agree that we have a moral obligation to disobey anything which is of an immoral nature- and that would include, and not be limited to any institution of man. The only real question, is how?...

     I would challenge you to re-read the Declaration of Independence and really ask yourself why our fore fathers wrote it. They found it necessary to not only separate themselves from their government, but to "declare" why. I believe it is of utmost importance to reason dispassionately in order to define who you are and what you stand for. When it comes to drawing lines in the sand, one must know their position on the shore. For the high tide will come in, and you better believe those lines will be washed away with force. Better to carve your foundation out of a mountain, than in the sand. You must be firm in your beliefs and resolute in your mind. The waves of time will come, and the time to decide is now. In order to live, one must decide for what they would die. This isn't a story, or a parable for entertainment or mere education. This is your life. What are you willing to live for, and what are you willing to die for? Perhaps it's time to declare your independence in life. Overcome your fears and accept your freedom. It is your inalienable right.

     I can't stress how important this is. The beginning is the most important. Make no mistake, everyday we are being tested, tried and pushed. The enemy does not take a day off. They are determined and they are very patient. Whether you want to be on the chessboard or not, you are. Just because we choose to practice willful ignorance, does not mean we are not affected. Doing nothing, is doing something. Every single choice affects the outcome of our life. In this stage of revolution, our battle is a mental one. You do not have to believe in, or resort to violence to fight. Ideological resistance and civil disobedience are the precursors to prevent and avoid violence. Our enemy needs to know we are not afraid of physical war. They need to know we will fight back. Our mental stance is important, and is in fact, more important than our physical stance in this stage of revolution. Brains beat brawn. We can overcome our adversary with the power of our minds alone. Do not mistake the power of your mind or of our minds combined.

     To illustrate my point, I will use a symbol of the Cree Indians. On one side of an oar is the picture of a lynx. On the other side is the image of a rabbit smoking a pipe. (In the movie "The Edge," the lynx is replaced by a black panther, but the actual Cree Indian parable uses the lynx, as it is the rabbit's natural enemy.) One would have to ask why the rabbit would have the presence of mind to smoke a pipe in the face of it's natural predator. The answer is simple. The rabbit is unafraid, because he knows he is smarter than his enemy. There is an incredible lesson to be had in this illustration. The moral of the story is this: One does not have to have to be as strong or fierce as it's opponent to live unafraid- one only has to be smarter. Do not allow fear to intimidate you. The greatest weapon our opponent has is our fear. In order to defeat your enemy, you have to "know" your enemy. But first you must know yourself...

     In Aristotle's "Politics," he states there is a difference in being a good citizen and a being a good person. In order for there to be "excellence" in a society, there must be "excellence" in it's citizens. In order to create positive changes in our society, we must first create positive change in ourselves. As Ghandi said, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." We cannot control every situation that comes in our lives, but we can control every reaction to every situation in our lives. Consider this: How do you defeat a bully?... You certainly don't defeat  the bully by giving the bully what they want. If you take the bait... If you give them a chance... If you taunt them... The bully gains the advantage. Don't give the bully the opportunity. The bully wins the second you lose control. Be sure the principle is the same in our situation. The moment we lose control, is the moment we give it to them. We cannot expect to have control, if we choose to give our control away.

     Every time I teach or discuss survival with someone, I stress the most important aspect of any survival situation- a positive mindset. Preparation is the key to confidence. The most important tool you possess, is your mind. You may have every modern day solution and gadget in your store, but be sure they may not always be available when you need them. Your mind goes with you everywhere and is with you at all times. Mental preparation is more important than any other form of preparation, period! You have to know and believe in yourself first, before you can make use of the other. With that in mind, let's examine some of the forms of resistance out there, to prepare our minds for what's in front of us...

     "Occupy" is an international protest movement against social and economic inequality. It was started with the belief that large corporations and the "wealthy elite" control the world's financial system, and as a result, only those at the top of "the system" benefit. Occupy believes this undermines democracy and therefore, makes our society unstable. Characteristics of the Occupy movement include; occupation, non-violent protest, civil disobedience, picketing, demonstrations, Internet activism and general strikes with action. It's commonly used slogan is, "We are the 99%." Globally, the movement has been called "the reinvention of politics, revolution, and utopia in the 21st century."

     The first protest to gain world wide coverage was Occupy Wall Street, which began on September 17, 2011. Since it's first inception, protests have occurred not only in the United States, but in dozens of other countries, across every continent except Antarctica. At first, the movement was tolerated by authorities, but as it gained momentum, protesters were forcibly removed from their camps and/or evicted, and there were 7,700+ arrests. In the process, 400+ people were injured, and 32 deaths occurred. Due to forcible action of the authorities, multiple lawsuits have been filed, and others are being planned as well. The impact of this movement, is ongoing, and be sure that it will have a big one. It is one of the largest protest movements in our history.

     "Anonymous" is a multiple use, loosely associated, decentralized affinity group name associated with voluntary hacktivists in the virtual community. Their primary purpose/focus is anti-cyber surveillance and censorship with Internet activism, trolling and vigilantism. It represents the concept of many online and offline community users existing as an anarchic and digitized global brain. Anonymous is also considered to be a blanket name for certain Internet subcultures, and a way to describe the actions of people in an environment where their actual identities remain unknown. Images commonly associated with Anonymous are the "suit without a head," representing a leaderless organization with anonymity and "Guy Fawkes" masks, popularized in the movie "V for Vendetta," to hide their identity.

     The Anonymous Organization's slogan is, "We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us." Anonymous has been called the "Freedom Fighters" of the Internet, a "Digital Robin Hood," and "Anarchic Cyber-Guerrillas." In addition to opposing Internet censorship, they also oppose Scientology and homophobia. Anonymous has proven their abilities by shutting down the websites of the F.B.I., the U.S. Department of Justice, the Motion Picture Association of America and Broadcast Music, Inc.. They have hacked the phone lines of Scotland Yard. They have attacked Mastercard, Visa, Sony, Paypal and other big business corporations and major security companies as well. They have hacked into all sorts of media and live broadcasts, both locally and abroad, and have created problems for governments, organizations and individuals all over the globe.

     Make no mistake, Anonymous is a very powerful group and even with dozens of arrests, convictions and ongoing investigations, their impact and numbers continue to grow. They are popular and unpopular, loved and hated, and welcomed and feared by many. They are loosely associated all over the place, with big names like WikiLeaks, Encyclopedia Dramatica and a host of other forums and websites. They are a force to be reckoned with, and are not to be taken lightly. In 2012, Anonymous was named by Time Magazine as one of the most influential groups in the world.

     Anonymous and Occupy joined forces in the Occupy Wall Street protest in New York's Zucotti Park and the May Day Occupy protest outside the London Stock Exchange. Both worked to organize the protests, and Anonymous used social networking to urge protesters to "avoid disorder" in an attempt to keep the protests peaceful in the interests of a common goal. At first glance, one would think this was a notable cause. But after diving into investigate, one might have have a few questions and reservations. There is no doubt, both entities are not to be ignored. Despite collaborating their efforts together, one can not examine both groups together as one organization. Their overall goals may be similar, but their approaches and methods are very different. One exists in the open, while the other is not. They may work together, but they are not to be confused as one entity. It's been said that one side of these protests is the voice, and the other side is the muscle. At any rate, they are loosely associated, and in our observance of information, facts and data, we must pursue Truth by looking at them separately, and not as a whole.

     We can all agree that not only does this country need change, the whole world could use some change as well. How we go about creating that change is where we differ. If you listen to the people who were part of these protests, you will be find that a large majority of them present, really didn't have their facts straight and/or a strong position on what needs to happen in the interests of positive change. One doesn't necessarily have to have a complete understanding of the events that got us here, to know we need change. This is understated and quite obvious. However, I think we are seeing evidence of our country being "dumbed down" at the same time, and this needs to change. The people need more solid education which encourages them to think, rather than agenda based propaganda and fear based tactics taking advantage of ignorance.

     A large number of people went to that protest, under the pretense that Radiohead would be playing. Radiohead denied it, and it was later discovered, it was a rumor created to increase attendance. The result was a mass of misinformed people gathered together in a fashion resembling Woodstock. Not to say, these misinformed people wouldn't agree with the protest after self-educating and gaining a better understanding. Yet, their ignorance showed in interviews and documentaries, and that takes away from the cause. In my humble opinion, manipulating the minds of impressionable minds is in no way honorable or acceptable, and should not be tolerated.

     Despite large numbers of ignorant protesters, many big names, were present as well. There were also many there who had a much better understanding of the concept of peaceful protesting and knew exactly why they were there. Many were well educated and expressed their opinions and solutions quite eloquently, in a civilized demonstration of the "non-aggression principle." Yet, the media tended to focus and highlight other aspects of the protest instead. In the uninvolved eyes of the public, this turned out to be another failed attempt at Revolution in America. It was the right idea, with the wrong execution. In a period of "ideological resistance," education is extremely important, and it's up to us to spread the word. People need to understand what their protesting against, be firm and confident in what they believe and stand for, and they need to have their act together when presenting alternatives and solutions to our current state of affairs.

     I wonder if Martin Luther King Jr., Plato, Henry David Thoreau and other greats from our past were alive, what would they say about the actions of Occupy and Anonymous? I can't speak for the dead, yet I deduce from their writings and their notable examples, that they would most definitely never hide, and they most definitely would never resort to the tactics of intentionally deceiving impressionable minds to support their causes. These icons believed in freedom of speech and freedom of religion. They believed in the "non-aggression" principle, and stood firm in their beliefs and demonstrated those beliefs with their actions. They fought the law, within the means of the law, and peacefully accepted the consequences of disobeying the law. They certainly were respectful of other's beliefs and without doubt, demonstrated the change they wished to see in the world.

     I would have to say that I agree, those we oppose, need to be aware of the capabilities and potential of the people. They need to see we are willing to take the time, make the sacrifices and join together in peaceful protests. They need to see the strength of our unity, our communication and our determination. In addition, I also believe that governments should govern the people, for the people, by the people and with the governed's consent. I believe that governments should respect their people, and in return, people should respect their governments.  If the people oppose big business corporations, they need to do their research, stop funding them and protest peacefully against them. We can't be against something we continue to support. People tend to forget the power of their purchases and the butterfly effect of their spending.

     Any reciprocating relationship must be founded in trust, and trust is a two-way street. Unfortunately, the people have lost the elements of trust and faith in our government and in our financial system. This is a deadly combination. In order to reach a peaceful future, we need to walk a path of peace to lay a better foundation for that future. Repeating our sins will only yield more of the same. The results of us "taking the bait" from those we oppose, "taunting the powers that be," or "giving away our control to the Bully," are catastrophic and counterproductive. If we support this type of behavior, we should expect more of the same and much, much worse to follow.

     Tiz' true our rights have been systematically taken away. Our government and financial system are far cries from what our fore fathers intended.  There is no question. There is no doubt.  We are all being attacked, repeatedly, from different angles, on a daily basis. But, to whom do we attribute the reasons and blame for these atrocities which plague our lives?... Anyone and anything but the one's truly responsible.  We, as a collective group,  are responsible for the state of our affairs which exist today. This is our responsibility. It is our duty, to seek and create change in the "status-quo," if that is, in fact, what we truly desire. In our hope and desire for a brighter future, we must cultivate that future together. We possess the tools and capabilities necessary to produce a more positive future. A different future, far from the one to which we are currently heading.

     Until we can all come to terms with the faults and idiosyncrasies associated with our human nature, we are all doomed to repeat the same mistakes of history, and we will arrive in our future, that we have determined, by repeating those very same mistakes. We must not just speak of change, we must be the change, and the time to change is now. The time to act is now. It is not enough for only a few to hold on to this belief. For we are all links on the same chain, and the strength of our chain lies in the weakest link. Our world is supported by the strength of our connection, and our very lives hang in the balance. If only one link breaks, we will all have failed, and we will no longer serve the purpose for which we were intended. Better to strengthen the chain, than weaken it. Separate we are weak. United we are strong.

      You may disagree, but be sure, our ways of thinking and acting out those thoughts, are what got us here today. The present is the sum of all of our past thoughts and actions. Our future will be the sum of all our present thoughts and actions. Common sense dictates that, in order to create a different outcome, our thoughts and actions have to change. We are all part of the same equation, and no matter how small the factor, every factor determines the balance of the equation. In an effort to balance the scales, we can't keep adding more negativity to the negative side.  What we resist persists. It is time to redirect the nature and focus of our deposits.  Of this, I am most positive.

Sources:
"Civil Disobedience" -Henry David Thoreau
"Apology" -Plato
The Declaration of Independence
www.goodreads.com
www.wikipedia.com
Facebook-Anonymous
"Occupy Unmasked" Documentary

Too many Youtube videos to even begin listing