"Rules For Radicals"

When it comes to the state of this once great nation and the direction we are headed, people are always asking, "What can we do?" Surely the task for change does seem overwhelming, but we have to start somewhere - strategic, organized and intelligent dissent is the best place to begin. But what exactly does that mean or look like? Finally, someone has articulated a strategy, or should I say reintroduced a method, that is tried and true. So effective, in fact, even the Republicans co-opted it.

existentialistcowboy.blogspot.com...

Society has good reason to fear the Radical. Every shaking advance of mankind toward equality and justice has come from the Radical. He hits, he hurts, he is dangerous. Conservative interests know that while Liberals are most adept at breaking their own necks with their tongues, Radicals are most adept at breaking the necks of Conservatives.
Radicals precipitate the social crisis by action - by using power. Liberals may then timidly follow along or else, as in most cases, be swept forward along the course set by Radicals, but all because of forces unloosed by Radical action. They are forced to positive action only in spite of their desires ...

So impressed was the GOP that throughout the '80s --the decade that saw the rise of Tom DeLay --GOP consultants would include (Saul) Alinsky's 'Rules for Radicals' as the cornerstone of the various GOP 'Campaign Manuals' that they put together. It was a GOP manual, in fact, that was my introduction to Alinsky. I think it's time the 'left' reclaimed Alinsky. He is, after all, one of our own. It's time the 'left' dust off his 'Rules for Radicals', reclaim them, and put them to work in service to a higher call than that of Bush self-aggrandizement, bullying, and outright theft of the world's resources.

RULE 1: "Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have."

Power is derived from 2 main sources - money and people. "Have-Nots" must build power from flesh and blood. (These are two things of which there is a plentiful supply. Government and corporations always have a difficult time appealing to people, and usually do so almost exclusively with economic arguments.)

Eleven other rules follow in the link.

A very interesting read, nice find! I hope more are reading this than they are advertising in this thread.

Bumped

Thank you. I know I read this or something very much like it before. when i was a little more "Rad."
**The value of this is in its defensive potential.** I hope.
Thanks again.

As long as liberals or progressives are merely thinking 'defensively', they will NEVER play a significant role in the future of the US. They will have conceded the governance of country to the GOP and hate filled loud mouths like Michael Savage and Rush Limbaugh, a fat assed Nazi.