Posts tagged Finance

GA Notes 11/13/11

on November 14, 2011

GA Notes 11-13-11

Facilitator: Keenan

Announcements

Jim ordered pizza from princess pizza for the GA

Pete Kilroy (sp?) producer of Granito (film at cucalorus) expressed interest in showing a screening of his film and the proceeds help fundraise for the local occupy group

He is allowing a member of occupy (Denny) to speak after the screening of his film this evening

8 people stayed out and slept on the sidewalk last night

Still no livestream, but getting it setup

Need power source for livestream

Conversation opened up about alternative power sources

Proposal passed to rig up a human powered bicycle or similar device to power electronics

Rest of the conversation was to take place post GA in encampment working group

Old Business

Traveling writer Zach is going from occupy to occupy assembling a book with pages written by members of local groups and taking flags from local groups to OWS.

Also taking donations to help him and his team get to Raleigh

Group didn’t secure permit for the riverfront art festival

Will be moved to jan or feb or an altenative location

Some invidiuals (food not bombs) expressed interested in helping donate food to the group, but needed a schedule on when folks were going to be around

Proposal passed to use dumpster dived food but to distinguish that when presenting foods

Also local food pantries are low on resources, idea brought up on donating/helping them

Need a way to help identity working groups and invidiuals roles

Use tape or badge with corresponding group

Need a welcome committee

New Business

chalking experience (recap of events, individuals are free to add details, notetaker was not present)

members of occupy used chalk to draw pictures and words outside of city hall

police warned group that if they continued a threat of arrest could ensue

action was taken to remove chalk from the steps of city hall, action was considered contentious by invidual members of the group

discussion during GA (line items represent thoughts of individuals during GA)

there is no way to get a permit for chalking

if you keep give space then they (police) will take it all

don’t jump too soon in getting into arrestable actions

we need to choose our battles

need more people in Wilmington/encampment before doing arrestable actions

people tend to give in too easily to power

most of the population responds to peaceful demonstration

we all need to work together and with clear communication going forward

we can’t control everyone in the camp, but need peacekeepers like other camps

we are adults and need to control our emotions

very important to have solidarity within our group

event was a good learning experience

proposal passed that deescalation would be the liaison to the police and not have decision making authority. Would relate the situation back to the GA or group and then reach consensus

City council presentation (memo on the Facebook page)

Denny drafted a letter to be read during city council on Tuesday.

After the prepared statement, other members could sign up to speak at the meeting (deadline Monday)

Proposal passed to strike language about the homeless

Do not want to denigrate or create false definitions

Finance working group is streamlining money process so items can be purchased for the group

Proposal passed to have a GA tomorrow (Monday) at 6PM downtown city hall park (where actions have been taking place since the march on Saturday)

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The Corporation as a Nation State

on November 11, 2011

Considering corporations as analogous to a nation state reveals the following properties: 

  1. The right to vote does not exist except for share holders (analogous to land owners) and even there voting power is in proportion to ownership.
  2. All power issues from a central committee.
  3. There is no balancing division of power. There is no fourth estate. There are no juries and innocence is not presumed.
  4. Failure to submit to any order may result in instant exile.
  5. There is no freedom of speech.
  6. There is no right of association. Even love between men and women is forbidden without approval.
  7. The economy is centrally planned.
  8. There is pervasive surveillance of movement and electronic communication.
  9. The society is heavily regulated, to the degree many employees are told when, where and how many times a day they can go to the toilet.
  10. There is little transparency and freedom of information is unimaginable.
  11. Internal opposition groups are blackbanned, surveilled and/or marginalized whenever and wherever possible.

While having a GDP and population comparable to Belgium, Denmark or New Zealand, most corporations have nothing like their quality of civic freedoms and protections. Internally, some mirror the most pernicious aspects of the 1960s Soviet system. This is even more striking when the regional civic laws the company operates under are weak (such as in West Papua or South Korea); there, the character of these corporate tyrannies is unobscured by their surroundings.

— Anonymous

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