R U Unhappy with Our Country's Direction ? READ ON

Activists unhappy with what is happening to our country.... here are several key points to consider and perhaps feel better about. I copied these from another group with which I am associated. Read the Saul Alinsky Rules for Radicals ....... this is how the opposition is operating. We need to co-opt some of their tactics. Read especially Rule #8

1. Recall the short term vs the long(er) term outlook. Right now we need short term actions. The "tool" I created for contacting Congress (attached here as a .PDF file) is one of the only levers we have right now. I have attached the tool again to this message. You should, right now, print out the pdf, sit down with your phone, and make a minimum of 20 calls today. One or two minute calls. Put columns in the margin (I will revise the form but that is not the point). Make each column an "issue" column. Public Health Care, Cap and Trade, Immigration Reform---these are three biggies right now, more to come.

You have to go through the list once for each column. Do not attempt to deliver two issue messages in one phone call. It will not work. One issue per phone call. That is (we think) the way the systems work in each office.) Check mark the person you phone in the column of the issue. Identify the issue when they answer. State your opposition and move on. Wait a day or two then go through the list again for the next column/issue. This is something you can and should do now.

2. "Break it down". A task that is overwhelming will immobilize you. It is too big to comprehend a plan to address it all. Break it down into more manageable tasks. Help us break all the tasks down. Then work hard on one or two of the tasks/areas. If we set up a plan (even among our little group) to coordinate the tasks, then each can make progress. The net is that more gets done more quickly. You can see the whole moving forward even as you accomplish your part. You feel better.

3. Read (once again) Alinsky's Rules. (** below) Understand that these rules are the playbook for the administration and democratic leaders. Do not look for logic or clarity or neatness or ethical actions. Alinsky spells it all out. I spent yesterday reading up on this. (see some below) It is unbelieveable. It is against everything you have learned. It is against your basic value structure.

You have two choices. You can reject the operating principles they are using....and lose. You can understand the principles and feel better about what you are seeing in front of your eyes. You may also be able to suggest counter strategies. I searched for terms like "counter alinksy's rules" and "counter-act alinksy's rules" and did not find neat prescriptions, probably because they do not exist. But understanding what is happening will help. Do not turn away from this stuff.

Here are some links I found yesterday. I have read most. They will increase understanding. There are no answers. Counter strategies have to be built. The local Alliance(912Project and TeaParty) groups seem to understand this and are acting accordingly. There are parts of the strategy document I passed out earlier which, if you read in detail, and then compare to your learnings from these alinsky pages, you will better appreciate that the local groups are trying to build in some counter strategies.

Best one page summary of the rules you will find: (**)

(**) http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/8925/alinsky.htm

Other articles to increase understanding.

http://www.unbossed.com/index.php?itemid=155

http://sntjohnny.com/front/a-christian-checks-out-saul-alinskys-rules-for-radicals/580.html

http://www.ryanholiday.net/archives/what_is_community_organizing.phtml

http://www.ryanholiday.net/archives/rules_for_radicals_working_wit.phtml

http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/obamas_alinsky_jujitsu.html

(Alinsky's juijitsu is an interesting and somewhat intuitive concept--applied to politics and poltical battling)

http://www.hyscience.com/archives/2008/11/localism_and_ob.php

I have made no attempt to rank or really critique these pages. We can build a list of better pages and even some summaries but that is another task.

4. Pick and choose. Because they are following the above rules, too much is happening all at once (by design). It is part of overwhelming the opposition. Read Rule 8. Therefore, knowing it is happening, you have to pick your battles and let some go by for another day. For example, foreign policy stuff is, for me, left for another day. Or maybe events will force it to the front. Maybe events will help sink obama. But for me, the short term issues on the votes right now are center front for priority.

Please add to this or post you own message (by clicking on "COMMENTS" below) in which you share your experience with trying some or all of the above.