Marketing Ideas

[LewBrown]

It seems as if the largest part of any drive to change the social order has to do with marketing. Selling the idea of not shopping to a consumer culture that has been specifically engineered to produce consumers in lieu of citizens may at first glance seem an impossible undertaking. But it isn't. We already have at our disposal the signs, symbols and events that the corporate powers have created to enthrall, enchant and encourage the public to spend their money. All we need to do is turn things on their head and use those same factors to promote peace, goodwill and mutual understanding.

I am thinking about the work that artists have done with Adbusters and Crimethinc, specifically developing ways in which corporate logos can be satirized to make a salient point. For instance the familiar Exxon logo can easily be manipulated to say Evvil. Using the icon of Santa Claus (itself the product of marketers for big business) we can have Santa point out that he doesn't make clothes in China, he doesn't shop at Wal Mart and he isn't pleased with fascism in general.

Getting the message out to the general public may seem daunting if we think about standard ad campaigns, but we aren't engaged in a standard campaign. We need to network with friends, relatives and like minded people all across the world and bring to their awareness the immense potential of this action. In so doing we should be able to spread the idea to every major city in the globe-but most especially to LA and New York. I say that because any kind of counter-demonstration at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade or the Rose Bowl would generate exactly the kind of attention that is needed to get around the media blockade and reach an audience of millions.

Any other ideas for actions in the street or advertising materials would be greatly appreciated. In addition remember that this group is public and easy to join up with so be sure to keep inviting people you know-the more folks we have in this little community the more effective we will all be. I would love to at least see some representative of all of the various 9/11, Impeachment and Peace groups here but really the economic underpinnings of the problems we all lament should be reason enough for everyone with a progressive mindset to jump in, whether they are most concerned with animal rights, poverty, crime or race issues is secondary to the fact that all of these issues have a common source.

Lew

[LewBrown]

I understand. I have worried about the possibility of widespread chaos after the crash as well. When the global economy finally succumbs to pressures that have been promoted by the international banking houses and ultra-elite, we will be faced with the devaluation of all forms of currency and an extraordinarily weakened Federal government due to a massive increase in social spending needs and a lax system of taxation.

In practical terms, when the crash comes, millions upon millions of people will be unable to remain in their homes and on the job. The ranks of the homeless and desperate will swell, crime will skyrocket and calls for increased security will be raised through the media to promote yet another trade off between freedom and security.

This is already primed to happen and there is little we can do to stop it. But we can mitigate the consequences. The boycott is a form of economic Judo-notice that I have never promoted the idea of simply crashing the system. If I did I would call for everyone to take out as much credit as they could, charge it up and default on their loans. At the same time I would call for everyone to take every red cent from the bank and turn their worthless paper money into something tangible-like gold, silver and guns. In addition I would call for direct action against mortgage brokers, loan companies and record keeping firms where titles, deeds of trust and other legal underpinnings of ownership are stored. By burning those buildings and destroying all records of ownership within their local communities people could create a massive wave of confusion and property owners would suddenly find themselves in a position to actually have to live on their land in order to preserve it.

But I am not calling for any of these kinds of actions-I am calling for a redirection of resources to main street USA. The idea is that by drawing down the money we currently (mostly without thought) give to these enormous financial machines and giving it instead to people in our own communities we strengthen our ability to withstand social and economic shock and blunt the ability of the global elite to destroy our ability to govern ourselves.

The fear we have when we consider taking a course of action that is truly revolutionary is natural. We should concern ourselves with consequences, that is in fact a major part of the problem with the actions of those who hold power today-a completely irrational disregard for long term consequences. I don't want to get too deeply into the philosphical underpinnings of this action but I would encourage everyone to consider both the negative and the positive possibilities.

On the downside we may well see a dramatic shift in our way of life as international corporations begin to fail. Those people working for those companies will lose jobs and security, the investors will lose their investments and the global markets will tumble.

On the upside we will have been busy promoting small business (which still employs the vast majority of people) and will be vigorously supporting a dynamic locally based and sustainable approach to business that will enable of local governments to step in and fill any void left by a crippled Federal system. Perhaps we will even come close to realizing Jefferson's vision of America on both economic and political levels.

Finally, because it is so easy to become absorbed in the potential for negative outcomes, I have included a link to YES! magazine on the front page. It is there for a reason, YES! covers the positive work that activists and reformers are doing all over the world. Knowing that our communities have within them these powerful agents for positive change who are ready, willing and able to step up and take on the hard work of re imagining society should give us all cause for hope.

Lew


"As long as there are survivors, there is still hope"
RD Laing
The Politics of Experience