Friday May 21st brought gorgeous weather to Vancouver BC, a perfect day to smash capitalism Over 200 activists met at the Vancouver Art Gallery to protest the G8 University Summit taking place in the aforementioned city.
The crew of mostly young people in their twenties walked in mass to the Fairmont Pacific Rim, a swanky hotel with matrix themed security guards and glass wall. This is where the G8 University elites were meeting The local police showed up to protect the rich university delegates, but that didn't stop the protesters from having some fun. A Mexican style g8 shaped pi?ata was hung and one lucky young man took some spirited swings and smashed it to bits.
But the real fun didn't start until the activists caught wind that a bus full of delegates was taking off to the University of British Columbia for a fancy dinner. The group rapidly blocked the bus preventing the delegates from leaving the area. The police dispensed their violence against several women activists without hesitation. After about an hour, a gang of cops including many undercovers almost equal to the number of protesters pushed through the line, freeing the bus to deliver the G8 delegates to their hot meals. Six activists were arrested, but later released without charges. The rabble rousers declared fridays rebellion a success.
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Comments
"Actually, we're allowed to
"Actually, we're allowed to give you the finger". great!
People As Objects
Existentially, I am disappointed by the use of people as objects. I think capitalists are guilty of doing this with money, always reducing social problems to 'social costs'; however, this video is an obvious form of the same treatment only by grassroots media.
No movement I would be a part of would treat others cruelly. I know how some people think that violence is being used by the state to suppress violence toward the state, but in the above video the police office grabs a forward lunging fist of a person, intended only to finger the officer. This was a violent act, and I think it is hard to believe that the officer wasn't in his right, reacting out of self defence.
I am concerned about the direction and partisan interests of the Vancouver Media Coop. The narrative that it sold in vlogs, such as this one, promotes an obvious bias. Methods of persuasion are apparent each time the narrator discusses the wealth of university delegates in the video. The key word is 'rich'. Again, here the 'movement' seems to be treating people as objects, and this over-simplification of political issues seems to bring out the worst in people. If someone stopped you from having a diner that you paid for, that would be oppression of the most obvious form.
I think the Vancouver Media Coop needs to consider journalistic integrity and philosophy. When I first heard about this new avenue for social media I was delighted, but lately it's been a disappointment. The Liberal pro media appears more fair about local issues as of late.
Beyond existentialism
When it comes to existentialism I'm disappointed with almost everything. The Existenial Cowboy would say that capitalists are guilty of turning more than just social problems into money. I would say capitalists turn blood to money, at the risk of calling Chris Angel a capitalist.
Now Dustin, we could get into a large hullaboo about the definition of force vs. violence. Many would define the forward lunging of a fist with one finger up as force and not violence; I can personally attest to this because not one of the policemen there had any fingers up when they threw fists. But then we get into a sesquipedalian argument over definition.
Not to mention that your analogy falls apart since it in this case is person 1 stopping person 2 going to a dinner that person 1 has paid for.
I'm not surprised that you are more in favour of liberal media (though I prefere not to capitalize). I've had a couple of convos with individuals (note that word) from a few of said networks about their coverage of anti-capitalistic protest. Mainstream media is by and large hegemonic in its bias and ergo pases itself off as non-partisan; it also goes beyond just being biased to being sometimes propaganda. VMC does not call itself unbiased (any journalistic forum that does so is lying).
The key here is that VMC stands for not merely grassroots media as you've pointed out, but radical media. Also key is the fact that anyone can publish on VMC. Keeping these two factors in mind, I'd like to direct you to the following action points:
1. These debates over tactics within the movement are ongoing, I assure you. Places to have said debates include but is not limited to the VMC space, even though the space is bugged. So if you feel like popping in on generally any Wednesday at or after 6.30pm we can discuss this. Note that all existential and general philisophic discussions need to be interrupted for action now and then.
2. I am enormously interested in your own methods of coverage. You are clearly intelligent and progressive in your analysis. I have had a few disappointments with people with excellent analysis who drop the ball when it comes to actual coverage. However, being that this medium is only so as long as it is interacted with, I believe you should post onto it. I would especially be delighted to see some legwork mixed in with analysis (or fingerwork as a friend calls it) in this respect.
Terribly sorry to have disappointed. I'm hoping we can go forth on these points, and all learn something worthwhile.
Joie de vie
Not social media
The VMC is not, has never been and will never be social media, so please don't get us confused with the assortment of social media start-up showoffs about town, dearest Dustin 1234.
For the record: "If someone stopped you from having a diner that you paid for, that would be oppression of the most obvious form" is perhaps the most absurd comment I've ever read.
Obvious bias better than concealed violence any day of the week
Remember the coverage of the Olympics? Barely a peep about the thousands of people who took the streets on the Opening ceremonies because the mainstream media were corporate sponsors of the event. Only heard about protests after the heart attack, so we shouldn't foster any illussions about the alleged objectivity of the mainstream media. The coverage of the Freedom Flotilla on CBC and other mainstream sites is absolutely appalling, promoting the foreign policy agenda of the government of the day.
In the context of such an onslaught of bias, what is there to do besides covering the news from the grassroots like the VMC has been doing so passionately? What kills me is that corporate media can just dismiss rallies, protests, etc without a second thought. Paint people and their interests with the broadest brush, chuckle about it, while the viewers go back to their TV dinners and glasses of 1% milk. But if someone tries to say something controversial, based on their experience that challenges the norm, all kinds of levels and expectations are thrusted upon them for the purpose of discrediting. Check this for example: http://blogs.aljazeera.net/middle-east/2010/06/06/kidnapped-israel-forsa... In order to have any credibility, this dude has to do everything he can to appear unbiased. He isn't unbiased, no one is, but the establishment gets a monopoly on presenting itself as unbias and people rife with liberal guilt are able to ignore it just a little while longer. The objective is clear and simple: Do not let anyone know that the imagined world that we live in is not accurate. If people knew, they might have to do something to change it. And that is an absolutely terrifying concept for the minority of elites who control the world.
amen, Isaac.
amen, Isaac.