Those who make peaceful revolution
impossible make violent revolution inevitable.
John F.
Kennedy
*****
Today’s world is a tumult of change: Political, social, religious, economic,
business, climate, education – literally everything, everywhere. Indeed, there
is nothing that does not or cannot change. When change does not occur in a
system, it breaks down and revolution occurs.
Resistance to Change
Politics and self-interest dictate how people feel about
change. Individuals or groups may take active steps to protect their positions.
Resistance can take many forms; it is dynamic and it adjusts depending on the
specific situation. (1)
Three types of resistance emerge and operate simultaneously:
emotional, political, and rational. Most people are relatively optimistic when
learning about impending change. They may, at an emotional level, actually
become intrigued or even excited about it. Political resistance arises from
self-interest. Rational resistance arises as people look for facts, relevant
comparisons, and logical justification. These types of resistance occur with
all types of change.
Change can occur quickly or slowly – evolutionary or revolutionary. Evolutionary changes occur very slowly as
people understand the change and the approach is built collaboratively. In
business, management decides on whether the change will be brought about – with
employee buy-in, or by forced change. (2)
Political Change
In the political arena, change comes from politicians advocating
positions that they promise to support. They may not be able to deliver what
they promise. The USA has only 2 political parties, and the parties’ platforms set forth the changes that
will be supported. Any politician who does not back the primary party platforms
(albeit with variations) must decide whether the difference justifies running for
office as an Independent, thereby losing (or rejecting) political-party
control.
Whilst most people have a preference for evolutionary
change, it is not always appropriate. Politics in a democracy woos support from
the electorate. But a large segment of the population may not be satisfied with
the choices. This motivates them to support politicians on the fringes, or even
radical candidates. When the dissatisfied segment becomes large enough, it may
force the party-platform to change, or form a splinter group. (3)
American Politics
Today many people are utterly disenchanted by politics.
They don’t vote because it seems like a tacit act of compliance and there is
nothing to vote for. They regard politicians as frauds and liars. Today I
watched an angry person on TV proclaim very forcefully that politicians are all
liars. To many, the current political system is nothing more than a means for
furthering the benefits of economic elites. These are the seeds of
revolution.
Only 26% of Americans today believe that the two major
parties adequately represent Americans. Calls for bipartisanship are utterly
useless when both parties cannot, or will not, address serious and
legitimate grievances that are common throughout America. As it exists today,
the American system is entirely incompatible with the democratic ideals upon
which it was ostensibly founded. A political revolution seems to be the only solution
to the countless problems plaguing America today. The strong political
resistance against “politics as usual”
is proof that a revolution has already begun. (4)
Presidential
contenders
There are lots of Republicans who support Donald Trump’s
ideas, which makes him a force to be reckoned with. Other politicians require financial support for their campaigns; Trump is self-financed. Others follow party platforms; Trump does not. In spite of suggestions that Trump’s followers are blue collar (inferences of
low-intelligence) the trend continues. As I write this, the poll numbers of the
top-3 Republican contenders combined do not equal Trump’s support. How long
will Trump last?
The Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton seems
to have hard-core support within the Democrat electorate, much higher than for
Bernie Sanders. But she is considered an establishment candidate and still
looks weak going into a general election, barely tying against Donald Trump and
others in head-to-head match-ups. Also, her lead is far lower than the edge
Democrats usually enjoy among female voters. That’s the real challenge for Hillary
Clinton’s campaign.
Bernie Sanders labels
himself a Democratic Socialist Capitalist. He speaks of political revolution,
asking Americans to believe that electoral politics might actually deliver
actual change. He knows that really won’t happen unless people who are
frustrated and disengaged and disenchanted see him as a candidate who is
distinctly different from the rest. So he ramps up his
rhetoric and offers more of a sense of who he is, pointing out that his disagreements
are not merely with Republicans but also with too-cautious Democrats. He
is positioning himself as a candidate with long-term commitment to progressive
ideals, and willingness to act to “govern based on principle not poll numbers.”
(5)
Impasse
Since the early days, the
country has suffered from perpetual polarization: Republican versus Democrat;
the North versus the South; Left versus Right; Liberal versus Conservative. The
hostility seems to go on and on.
The record of the current two-party Congress is abysmal –
very little really gets done. The US seems to be approaching a turning point. It
seems evident that no one is satisfied and citizens are very publicly speaking
out about change. Everyone recognizes that the status quo cannot continue
indefinitely.
Key question: Can
change occur through today’s political system? Will it be stimulated by outside
events? Or will it change from within? (6)
Revolutionary Change
In social and political science, Revolution is a major,
sudden, and typically violent alteration in government. The term is
used by analogy in such expressions as the Industrial Revolution, where it
refers to a radical and profound change in economic relationships and
technological conditions. (7)
Today the United States political system has been corrupted
by the Supreme Court decisions like Citizens
United, giving unions and corporations the ability to spend unlimited
amounts on political advertising, putting Congress under the thumb of its
wealthiest citizens.
Most urgent among these critical issues are:
- Money in elections
(legalized corruption)
- $17 + trillion dollar and fast
growing national debt
- Vast inequality of wealth,
increasing poverty
- Endless war by the
American Empire
- Structural classism in the
justice system
- Climate change: In the
next century, will this planet remain habitable.
These serious problems cannot be handled without a mass
resistance movement. It seems to many political analysts, observers and
futurists, that another American Revolution is possible, and even likely. (8)
American Revolution
America is already a deliverer of much internal and external
violence – from invasions internationally to income inequality and growing
discontent at home. In recent years, civil unrest has becoming increasingly
noticeable. From the Occupy Movement to the Ferguson and Chicago unrest,
Americans across the country are stepping up and speaking out about dissatisfaction
with government. (9)
The primary
causes of a possible second American Revolution are not external but internal.
They arise from the recognition that under the present corrupt system any
independent person is inherently unelectable. The only choices seem to be
apathy, or revolutionary change. The choice is between acquiescing to the
demands of a corrupt political establishment, or surrendering to the forces of rebellion
and upheaval. (10)
So, if there is indeed a next American revolution, when and
how will it develop? Will it be similar to the founding Revolution with a long
drawn out psychological war before action occurs? What impact will it have on
the country and the world? When, where and how will lines be drawn? (11)
The Pitchforks are
coming
Bernie Sanders’ platform, "For 40 years, the American
middle class has been disappearing. Millions of people are working longer hours
for lower wages. During that period, there has been is a massive transfer of
trillions of dollars from the middle class to the top 0.1% of America. Today,
you have 99% of all new income today going to the top 1%."
In a 2014 TED speech, Nick Hanauer, a Seattle-based entrepreneur
and a self-proclaimed plutocrat said, " The problem isn't that we have
inequality. Some inequality is intrinsic to any high-functioning capitalist
economy. The problem is that inequality is at historically high levels and
getting worse every day. Our country is rapidly becoming less a capitalist
society and more a feudal society."
Nick Hanauer warns his fellow “filthy-rich”: “You’re
living in a dream world. If we don’t do something to fix the glaring
inequities in this economy, the pitchforks are going to come for us. No society
can sustain this kind of rising inequality.” (12)
Financial Collapse
In 1971, the US unilaterally canceled the direct
convertibility of the US dollar to gold. Since then, a system of national fiat
monies has been used globally, with freely floating exchange rates between the
major currencies. This allows the US and other major countries simply to issue
as much currency as needed, which increases the national debt.
The history of fiat money has been one of failure. Over the
centuries, every fiat currency has ended in devaluation and eventual collapse,
of not only the currency, but of the economy that housed the fiat currency as
well. (13)
The view of many futurists and economists is that the eventual
collapse of the US $ is inevitable, taking with it most of the bloated fiat
currencies in the developed world. This will be the key event that triggers
political and economic collapse to bring about the next American Revolution.
Conclusion
Today,
Democracy is not functioning in America – just the illusion of it. The American
public has gotten indulgent in many ways, but more and more people are starting
to recognize that it's time to act. Some of the greatest guides to the new
American Revolution are the people who articulated the first one. They
understood the concept that enough is enough.
When will the American people reach the breaking point and
take action? Many economists and futurists predict that the system is like a
runaway train, which is going to crash. Unless something is done, it seems just
a matter of when. (14)
From my own standpoint, I’m voting for the Bernie Sanders
revolution.
Let’s Engage
Please share our discussion by responding to these questions
directly via the blog. If you prefer, send me an email and I’ll insert your
comments.
- Are you a Democrat,
Republican or Independent?
- Do you vote regularly? If
you don’t vote, why not?
- Who will you vote for in
the next Presidential election?
- What are your reasons to
support the candidate of your choice?
- Obama promised “Change you can Believe In”. Did
Change happen?
- Will you believe the next
President’s promises?
- Will you continue to
accept the current political situation?
- What do you think YOU can
do about it?
- Please add your own
comments.
References
- Overcoming Resistance to
Organizational Change: http://goo.gl/Mkwb23
- Revolutionary vs.
evolutionary organizational change: http://goo.gl/7aA67f
- Change: evolution or
revolution? http://goo.gl/sBjYP6
- Jim Pinto – Political
Corruption in America: http://goo.gl/ahtDaQ
- Bernie
Sanders Is Serious About ‘Political Revolution’: http://goo.gl/JMkXk2
- Russell Brand on
revolution: http://goo.gl/n9gS7Y
- Standing on
the Edge of Next American Revolution: http://goo.gl/6nPBIc
- Is Another American
Revolution Needed? http://goo.gl/xf7wa0
- Is Another American
Revolution Inevitable? http://goo.gl/WOiCUH
- A New American Revolution!
When Will It Start? http://goo.gl/5cBjTK
- American Revolution 2.0: http://goo.gl/Vh7nWs
- TED speech – The
pitchforks are coming: https://goo.gl/uFuzUg
- Fiat Currency: Using the
Past to See into the Future: http://goo.gl/Bs7LIr
- Jim Pinto – Corruption of
Capitalism: http://goo.gl/tTSwKe
Jim Pinto
Carlsbad, CA. USA
13 December 2015
