This is a guide for more vertically inclined activists to work with more horizontal activism, for an active fluffy/spiky debate to become a part of communities of action. 1. Pursue an Education 2. Read Theory 3. Join an Organization 4. keep fit 5. Tone Down the Zeal 6. Left Unity Conclusion The journey of a…
Activist History: A Balanced Approach
Activist history is often marred in sectarianism. This fragmentation means that often the most contentious and least effective voices dominate the narrative, overshadowing the efforts of those who were diligently work on the ground. Addressing the Challenges To tell the story of activist history accurately and fairly, we need to work to overcome the following…
A Positive View Of Current Trends
The challenges we face today: #climatechaos, inequality, and the social impacts of #dotcons technology are a creating a very real social mess. However, there is a potential for a positive transformation if we push the power of #openweb and #4opens technology and align it with progressive and radical grassroots politics. Addressing Climate Change with Technology…
Why We Need the Open Media Network (#OMN)
The Challenge of Mainstream Media #Mainstreaming media is dominated by establishment interests that have perfected the art of propaganda. This media landscape is highly effective at brainwashing the public, making it difficult to foster a social and political change and challenge. Without altering this media ecology, progressive movements stand little chance against the overwhelming influence…
Why Mainstreaming Politics is Crap
Today’s left-wing politics, represented by figures like Biden, Stammer and Macron, has devolved into a form of centrism that tries to balance market interests with bureaucratic oversight. This blend results in policies that are neither here nor there, failing to inspire or facilitate any genuine change or challenge. The only real appeal of this kind…
The Urgent Need for Climate Action
The mess we build when public’s attention is being deliberately diverted by those in power. They want us to focus on national borders and other divisive issues, preventing us from addressing the real crisis #climatechange. This distraction tactic is designed to benefit the class who continue to profit from the destruction of our planet. As…
Strengthen grassroots alternatives to resist the spread of fascism
The entanglement of hard-right politics and #climatechaos is a catastrophe that presents a dire scenario, where each exacerbates the other in a vicious cycle of destruction. As billions of people are displaced by climate disasters, the extreme right will capitalize on their suffering to expand influence. Conversely, as the extreme right gains power, climate policies…
By embracing projects like the #OGB people have a chance to shape decisions
The current state of our political systems, particularly the electoral process, raises fundamental questions about the nature of democracy and representation. The problem is the system is designed to maintain the supremacy of the powerful, perpetuating conflicts and minimizing real democratic engagement. Elections, rather than fostering democracy, exacerbate divisions and repeatedly fail to address critical…
General elections are a travesty of democracy
The need for the #OGB (Open Governance Body) stems from a growing recognition of the limitations of traditional democratic systems, as highlighted in a recent article by The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/jun/06/general-elections-democracy-lottery-representation Progressive movements are increasingly advocating for alternatives, and the OGB represents such an initiative within the #openweb community. The guardian article argues that general elections…
Looking at the Izmir ship scrapyard
We visited the ship scrapyard, to see what they had in terms of lifeboats and boat parts. The problem was that the boats were old, worn and damaged from being removed without any care from the scraped ships. As Northam Europeans, the 3ed party sellers were asking for unrealistic prices at the same level as…
A European Future
Changing the European Union (#EU) to be more competent and progressive on social and tech issues requires concerted effort and engagement from all the stakeholders, including activists, citizens, civil society organizations (#NGO), policymakers, and Eurocrats. I outline some #fluffy strategies for driving change within the EU: Overall, changing the EU to be more competent and…
The problem with academic “thinking” in activism
The common issue with these Oxford seminars, is outlined in my notes, this is the disconnect between academic discourse and the real-world challenges faced by activists and movements. Here’s a breakdown of the key problems I have highlighted: In summary, the common issue is the disconnect between academic discourse and the lived experiences of activists…