First of all, most military actions consist of poor people fighting for the interests of the rich in guise of the spreading of an ideal democracy.
Most Latinos who escape their native countries and immigrate are hounded by the memories of government’s and bureaucratic pit bulls who use armies designed in collaboration with U.S. Government Black Ops Task Forces to oppress the will of the common folk.
They immigrate here to improve upon life, family and financial standing, face the challenges of language barriers in a country which is world renown for being generally illiterate in other world languages and cultures, only to be faced with educational stigmas which draw them closer to the idea that being a soldier in another armed force will improve their generations to come.
Meanwhile, teachers are valued by their ability to speak Spanish and teach bilingual students, yet are not praised, and are often penalized, for teaching or telling their students that armed forces recruiters let on campus should not be the primary people to seek a future with.
In a country built on the backs of immigrants, cheap/free labor and the exploitation of the sweat and blood of minorities; we have, still to this day, the design to influx immigrants based on their ability to improve the economy, comfort the native language, conform their identity, assimilate their history and die for someone else’s future.
Speaking freely and without the choice to scholarly reference or article, the government regulates the borders by basing the people entering as either being a commodity, criminal, or some other type of character, from terrorist to lazy freeloader.
While the administration chooses to separate the interests of the people from the global tycoons and strategically continue to exploit the Natural Resources of certain distinct areas surrounding their empire to improve on the control of those common folk closest to the land and those resources. They use the guise of democracy, based on privatization of property, seize land through malicious and militias means, and declare “terror” as a means to justifying their actions.
Then they expect “Us”, and I use this term to specifically define the distinction of separate interests between the administration and its followers, to vote for change, for them, and fight with tooth and nail for pork barrel battles as “republicrats” or “democans” on ballots cast in hazy elections, regulated in humid states. Who assign the media to filter our voices and faces, while we still find ways to bring the message independently?
And they wonder why today we are surrounded by an evergrowing amount of anarchists, communists, humanitarians, greenies, feminists, socialists, activists!
Why should we abide by the constitution, when you don’t! Why should we build upon the walls of your empire when it only entraps our freedoms?! Why should we respect your laws when you don’t show up in international court?! Why should we capitalize on the blood, sweat and tears of others, when you don’t let working people, craftsmen and small businesses have a place at the table! Why should we not be outwardly peaceful in protest when you ship and sell guns to countries, cover up history and secret weaponry projects to continue the slaughter of tribal and developing nations in search of neutrality?
Why should we choose from an elephant or a donkey mascot for a party when our system’s polarity excludes participation from those unless they are billionaires or have ideas about society that will make billions?!
Why should we allow old, white, rich men to put their interests first, but their first ladies are put off by a secret room of deliberators setting up the next presidential coup to make or ruin a leader?!
Where are our red buttons to press when the approval rating of our leaders shows that we don’t want what they want?!
There must be people of minority stature to stand up to the administration like Hugo Chavez; Those who will not allow the takeover of an oil industry to empower the Bush Family Legacy, who will stand up against the reformed legacy of profiteering and imperialism.
Just as with the Rio Grande, the borders that lay between the neighbors of countries old and new must cultivate a doctrine of reconciliation. The finger pointing must stop, fundamentalism must give way to moderation, the bullet and bomb must hush and listen to the voice of reason. Ancestors must not quarrel at the table with their great grandchildren’s weapons. Sibling Rivalry is common, but not to the point of irreparable death and damage. We must seek an open door from our maze of self interest, to find rectitude in a shared destiny and common future that is not based entirely on competition extremism or religious fervor.
We must find a way in our words and actions for intervention, not intrusion.
I can hear the echo of the voice of the women around my ears, she is angry, she wants me to tell other men to put away their guns, put away their political penis, to prevent the penetration of missiles, rifles, bullets, and other war machines used to puncture flesh and souls.
She wants me to tell these men, as she sings her voice, that power is not always domination, but empowerment that comes from nurturing, envelopment, warmth, life, love….that begins; like she conceives and begets us as men from her vagina, from her womb.
We as men must discontinue the cultural castration of our world’s brothers, uncles, fathers and nephews while simultaneously empowering our sisters, aunts, mothers and nieces to have control and ownership over their own bodies.

Our laws are made with a closed fist, much like the gavel, as it slams on a flat version of the truth, with a rounded interpretation of what the people want for themselves. We govern ourselves as we govern others, and it is those laws that are enforced upon the weak and poor, creating prison industries, rebellions, and generations of incarcerated young men who will never become role models and leave women to fend for themselves.
It is these laws that we attempt to create on paper that do not apply in the same way over certain boundaries of class, culture and race.
They leave profiles for the false justification of an unjust war on terror, a battle with our own secularity and separation from ourselves, a separation of our god from there god, our state from their church, our church from there state. Only to recreate a new set of laws disagreed upon, because those who make them; do not follow them.
Laws that are made to create even more terror upon a people for the attempted security of an unnatural border, a border swindled by another piece of paper, a treaty, with another gavel, by a cleric in a robe, who is appointed to enforce martial law and restrict marital law.
But, I say, we need an open hand as opposed to a closed fist, we need to outstretch our discipline and include the world, and create laws that are not laws, but guidelines, fundamentals, katas, no-kamai’s, that are upheld by honor, respect and nourishing the human spirit. Our fingers must be sensitive to both the harsh weather of the world and sensitive to the grasps of the fingers of children.
We should study not Martial Law, but Martial Arts.

So, here we stand with our most important freedom, our words. As we sacrifice our time for the sense that we are accomplishing something, something beyond us, something that provides us security, and fear at the same time. Fear because it is our government that we are allowing to sacrifice the freedoms of us and other people, slowly, and steadily for a false sense of security.

As your token Chicano speaker today, I speak to you as a human being descended from two long lines of people who have endured warfare, been victims to it, and have never really been the victor’s within it.

Please sing with me,

“War, huh! good god ya’ll, what is it good for?!”

“ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!”

“SAY IT AGAIN…..”

“War, huh, good god ya’ll, what is it good for?!”

“ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!”

I really appreciate you posting this here, Alex.

Here are my comments and additions:

"And they wonder why today we are surrounded by an evergrowing amount of anarchists, communists, humanitarians, greenies, feminists, socialists, activists!"

Not your main point, I know, but also not true. These types of people you list here have been around and will continue to be around as long as humans are around. Maybe the mainstream media likes to make it seem as though these people didn't exist at one point but now do. This emotional focus on the growing numbers of radicals inflates people's egos and leaves people confused and disappointed when they find out the truth.

"We as men must discontinue the cultural castration of our world’s brothers, uncles, fathers and nephews while simultaneously empowering our sisters, aunts, mothers and nieces to have control and ownership over their own bodies."

Well written and I would like to add that women should have control and ownership over much more than their own bodies!

The rest of the speech flows well but to me, it basically suggests a general anger for those currently in power and not much mention of practical ways to overcome this and gain power. We need to learn how to have complicated debates while at the same time remaining cordial and caring for one another.

Here's a good question:

How does one remain peacefully and calmly in the same room with another who has abused, berated, and physically attacked one in order to come to a meaningful resolution on any issue?

I think most people fail to do this throughout their lives on individual levels. This suggests to me that it will be difficult to make this happen at much larger group levels. However, which comes first, the larger group level filtering down to the individual or vice versa?

When I started my organizing (or mobilizing, whatever you want to call it), I imagined groups of people coming together and agreeing on enough major points in order to work with one another. Then I saw little arguements developing between this person and that person and I thought, maybe it's something about the individuals who are interacting that makes them argue like that. But later, I began to have major problems with certain ideas and individuals involved in these groups. I saw these people lie and manipulate. I realized that I was now one of the people I had previously observed. But how? I thought that maybe it's because we don't have good facilitators. But, even with so-called 'good' facilitators, friction and conflict remained.

And then I realized that groups will never come together in complete harmony and if they do, they will not be effective. So, we need a way to communicate with one another that doesn't presuppose our agreement or our comfort with one another, but prioritizes the discussion and decisions being made instead.

So, I attempted to get into majority voting and more formal group dynamics. But, this is now proving to be too difficult to keep track of and too difficult to maintain, thereby slowing down an already slow process.

Ultimately, Alex is right. It's about who has the power and who does not. My biggest complaint about groups that I've been involved in is that I often had too much power. Not only did I have too much power, but those closest to me also had a great deal of power within the group. And none of us really wanted this power, not consciously, but we had ideas that were important to us and holding this power temporarily was a succesful means for getting these ideas into the discussion.

Then, once we lost power or when the power was taken from us, our ideas were no longer welcome. Another group of power holders rose to the top and their ideas hit our consciousness for a moment. We experienced what it's like to not have a voice, to be forced to follow or give up and to be taxed (in our case, held to obligations we didn't agree to and berated for not living up to them) without representation.

All the while, old white men in powerful positions in corporations and government were exploiting, dominating, and oppressing us in new, more sophisticated and more subtle ways.

Maybe letting go of the ideas that we think are so important and the thoughts that we feel will change the world is the way to go. Number one: letting go of the idea that I am important and helpful. And then I got a job. A real job where I had to shower and shave, where I had to hide my political leanings because my employer agressively fired organizers and agitators. I let go of my ideas for a moment so that I might make some money for my family and meet more people who might be experiencing the oppression and exploitation that I experience. This is where I am now.

I can definitely use some help finding that middle ground, that revolutionary space between extremist 'drop out' and conformist automaton. Any practical words of wisdom from anyone? I suppose I'm open to suggestions in a way that I haven't been for a long time.

Thanks for reading.

I have recently reduced some problems to:

Businesses need to combine the ideas of:

"Do the right thing"

with

"The customer is always right"

If you must work, work for those who try to do the "right thing".

The right thing is not always the most profitable one.

In my (habitual) line of work, the owners who come before me mainly seem to be trying to do whatever it takes to accomplish the customer's goals.
At the same time, they are trying to do that as cheaply as possible and as quickly as possible.

It seems like that strategy is a big part of the problem.

It doesn't take into account earnest questioning of the motives of the customer.

It doesn't take into account the repercussions that may come from the motives of the customer.

Personally, I have left many, many jobs.
Almost always, out of disgust for what the job seemed to be.

I am now trying to focus on the moment and trust that by limiting my actions to ones that I can hope will have the best effect on myself, my family and others; either "the best" job will become known or the best new company I define will be born.

With much respect to the workers.

To the poster of the previous comment, all I can say is Wow!!!, and thank you for your insights about both inter-individual and inter-group interactions, especially when power, however slight and illusory, is involved.

The final question you asked is also a provocative and necessary one to ask for anyone seeking to make changes, whether liberal reformist or revolutionary.

Can only give you my take here, which is that I think that it's indeed possible to continue organising, mobilising and the like for change while holding down a regular job-it just takes more time, effort and energy, and, most of all, organisation of time, energy and resources on the individual's part, to do so.

After all, there are other factors involved in your life now, besides the movement, particularly if you have a family, which means that, in addition to spending time at work and in organising activities, you have a spouse, significant other and/or children with whom precious time and energy must be spent as well.

Please remember that these things are just as important, especially for the spouse and kiddeens, as any economic and political activities in which you're engaged. Kids are kids only once in their lives, and, if you're not there for them often enough, you'll miss that very special time of their lives, and that's something you'll never be able to get back, period.

As for your situation with your employer, well, and some people would probably give me Bloody Hell for sayin' this, but, on your job, unless the situation calls for your speakin' up, it probably is best to keep your mouth shut on political issues, especially during water-cooler discussions and the like, because, especially if there's someone on the job who doesn't like you, feels threatened by you and your job performance, etc, and who sees an opportunity to get in REAL good with the boss, while gettin' even with you by gettin' you fired, it is a very good way to get fired before you're ready to leave that workin' environment on your own.

If it seems that there might be one, two or more people who are inclined to your way of thinkin' where you work, it might be best to sound them out about where they stand, outside of the work-place over whatever their, and your, favourite beverage might happen to be.

Even then, observe 'em carefully, and see if they really mean what they say or not.

Sneaky???? Reckon so, but, please remember that in a work environment like the one you described above, a bit of caution and observation of people is necessary if you want to continue working where you are.

Above all else, please try and keep a sense of humour about your environment, the people 'round you, and most especially, yourself, as humour will help you weather the bad times, and will keep you from going so deep into anger, self-pity, what have you, that you might do something foolish you'll later regret.

It seems to me that a sense of perspective about oneself that neither self-denigrates, nor pumps one's ego up 'til you can't get your head out-of-doors is perhaps the best approach for any progressive, reformist or revolutionary, to take.

Please remember that you are a human being, as full of faults and foibles as the next, but of virtues and strengths as well, and that you will be right on some issues, be a mixed-bag on others, and sometimes down-right wrong on others, and that's fine, as that's part of being human.

It also gives you, and others, the necessary space to be human, in the fullest sense of the word, and to sometimes mess up, as human beings do.

Only Gods and the Dead don't mess up, and it seems to me that neither one of those does much of anythin' at all, do they????

If there are any Gods or Corpses out there readin' this, speak up if you disagree;). If you do, I'll be a Monkey's Uncle and then some.

One of the hardest facts that you, I, and anyone else who's done any form of Left activism is that not everyone's going to agree on every issue, and not everyone's going to personally get along with each other.

It's sad, and sometimes a real bitch, but, that's also part of being human, too.

Not everyone in every group gets along, or agrees with each other in each and every single issue, and that applies to the Political Centre and Right, just as much as it does the Left.

Hell, one can be part of an apolitical group of hobbyists(you pick the hobby), and still run into that phenomenon.

Whenever possible, try and work with the people and groups with whom you get along best, or can at least function with best, and keep your dealings with those individuals and groups with whom you've problems to the most limited of dealings, if not at all.

There are individuals here on the local Left, with whom I've had fallings-out in the past.

To some of these individuals, I've recently apologised for falling out with 'em, while there are a few with whom, for the time being, I will never apologise to, nor even attempt to.

Petty and inconsistent of me???? Yeah, well, maybe it is.

On the other hand, and this is an important point that am about to make here, I think, whom I like, dis-like and choose to associate with, or not, is my perogative, just as it is anyone and everyone else's.

Now, there will be probably be times somewhere down the road, where, in the course of a given struggle, I might have to deal, in however limited a fashion, with those people I don't like.

I can only hope that I can maintain control over myself enough to remember that it's the struggle at hand that matters most, and to keep my dealings with them during that struggle cordial and civilised enough to help bring it to a successful conclusion.

It doesn't mean that am gonna share beers and war stories with 'em afterwards, kiss 'em on the mouth, or have a tearful reunion with 'em in which all is forgiven.

It just means me not lettin' my animosties towards 'em get in the way of what has to be done to get the job done right.

Sorry for the un-wanted advice, particularly as you were lookin' to get it from Siras, rather than me, but, I also hope that some of this will strike you as being sound enough to try and carry out.

If none of this is, then please ignore it, 'cos that's your right to accept or reject advice as you see fit, as it is everyone's, rightly, wrongly, or in-between.

Good Luck to you with everything goin' on in your life, and, if you think it wise, Keep The Faith.