Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Manuel Monereo, Political Analyst/Lawyer, Investigator in the Center of Social and Political Studies.
Pasive Society
I think that Society is truly stymied.
A situation that is as a great blow.
That is, society... when I speak of society I'm speaking of middle classes, part of workers with a stable job, of leading classes
they've lived a wonderful time, a dream, they've been dreaming awake a wonderful world
Something like: "now we are like they are". This is a people with a huge inferiority complex towards Europe
people have always felt participants both in dictatorship and misery,
this is a country that has conquered and has held an empire but that has never had a decent meal until 1960
all those familiar demons have concentrated in times of economic growth,
13 years of economic growth, where all appeared to be possible
but also a type of economic growth that's unsupportive, individualist, consumerist, productivist. All that world, suddenly fell
and as I often say, the biggest wasn't the real estate bubble,
but the mental, the cultural. So we can say we're living a double shock
The Shock Doctrine has doubled.
On one side it's having to wake one day in the middle of a nightmare which leaves us breathless,
and on the other the Shock Doctrine that governments are applying.
That is the terror doctrine, so fright will not let us live or think.
although I think we are already recovering, People are starting to overcome the dream-like state,
this blockade and are starting to think that there must be other solutions.
I think we are at that transition right now.
Populism
I think that Populism is a media construction,
Eurocentric, that mainly tries to put down the revolutionary experience in Latin America.
That is, media has built up a context as well as a text
where, anyone, any political experience not fitting the molds set by power is described as populist.
At times as rightwing populist, others as leftwing populist
but, fundamentally, those labelled as populists are leftwing populists.
which as some authors have described is no more than a form of insult.
Why? Because the democratic-popular experiences or popular-democratic in Latin America,
fundamentally are experiences of social liberation.
That is, here we fire polititians who are against their people
and those who defend their people are labelled as populists
that is the main difference.
Here governments conspire against their people, they carry out anti-popular policies
and those who defend popular policies are called populists,
that is they are denigrated, they're given a whiff of autoritarism
which at some moment it becomes an all out campaign simply because they are against the neoliberal model
and simply because they defend their people's dignity.
Populism was a Latin American experience that lasted almost 30 years, today there is another experience
which only by proximity can be called populist, but what is usually called populism is no other than an ideological construction to denigrate the people and their struggle for their dignity.
but what is usually called populism is no other than an ideological construction
to denigrate the people and their struggle for their dignity.
We request a change, not a big switch
I think that what has happened is much more than a big switch.
I think we are facing a civilization setback.
It's important, you know? The other day a newspaper wrote about the thousands of people
who will die when their "benefits" of the law of dependency are withdrawn
this is something that we must give thought to.
Avoidable deaths, which do not happen due to existence of rights and social benefits,
and suddenly, those avoidable deaths result in physical death
because social rights are withdrawn.
We are facing policies which promote homicide, death.
That is very serious, right?
The gist of it is that, what we are being told is that so the system survives,
so bankers can make a living, there is a need of human blood.
And that is what we have. And this is what makes me think it's not a switch,
it's a civilization setback, backwards to a culture which we could call a Master's economy
the political economy of power of the usual, who are seeking a social model based on inequality and new forms of servitude
to be literal, the Master arrives and you remove your hat.
That's the type of society those that govern us are heartsick for and which can be observed in the marvellous model in Valencia
of such Master's policies and economic policies.
What's needed for Society to react?
I think society is reacting, we are in a transition proccess.
I think the 15-M over which we are always discussing its nature
has started off a cycle which is now commencing.
Which is the cycle of resistance, the cycle of opposition
but the cycle of alternative as well
and I think society is leaving this enormous trauma they've lived
and as it normally happens, those who have nothing to lose, are leading this struggles
but, social policies are increasingly making us recal that poem by Bertold Brecht
"They came to get the comunists, you did nothing; they came to get the socialists, you did nothing;
after they came after the christian democrats, again you did nothing
then they came after the workers, themiddle classes,
the public workers, you did nothing
and now they come to get everyone, they're changing our lives
so a few, a minority hold all the power.
Governments conspire against the population, against citizens,
governments generate misery and death to citizens
and meanwhile a minority, richer requires blood and sacrifice to continue becoming enriched
Society cannot work in this way.
Are there alternatives?
There is a way of looking at alternatives which I think is naive,
and it's this blurted question: "do you have any alternatives" as if saying:
"hey you man, solve our problems overnight"
In History it does not work like that.
There are alternatives when a social majority a certain policy.
If tomorrow a social majority, as I hope it will happen shortly,
takes over streets and plazas
and tells their government, "you're not representing us, get out"
which is what will happen in this country, you'll see how the alternative arises
What I mean is, the alternative is a historic process of struggles,
proposals and social persuasion which at a set time generates a critical mass
which posibilitates the alternative.
To put it in another way, what was the democratic alternative in Spain in 1970?
It was social struggles, social complexes creating alliances
and the conclussion that franquism was lifeless and couldn't stretch anymore.
The need of an alternative to Franquism.
In the end an alternative came up, which I won't judge if it was better or worse.
an alternative came up
In 1931 during Local Elections where the Monarchic Regime was in crises,
a Republican alternative surged and Monarchy did not prevail over 24 hours
and the Republic came.
I think that the alternative in the sence we are referring to are not alternatives contained in an Electoral Program.
the alternative is the belief of the people, the persuasion of citizens,
socially expressed an organized manner, regecting a political regime
and opt for an exit to another political regime
And at that precise time the alternative will appear but, to be able to have that alternative,
smaller alternatives are needed, daily efforts, social struggles, campaigning
advertising, having discussions and, this is what is happening at present
but what happens is, as I said before, we are coming out of the dream that became a nightmare.
And due to this, the last manouvre being staged by those in power
is the cycle of sin, guilt and atonement.
The remaining cycle left to the government is saying
we all sinned and that's why the crises reaches all, we are all guilty,
we lived above our possibilities.
So once a sin is commited, what is left is being conscious of it, feeling guilty
and then Atonement.
And what will be the Atonement? Well, policies that are thinning us down to make us happier in future...
We have to pay for our sins.
A Society United for Change
I not only believe that together we can, but that WE ARE GOING TO DO IT.
That is, people are going to find out daily,
I think that as from September to March next year
there'll be a cycle which will be fundamental of struggles and confrontations where we'll see:
a) policies presently applied are not only a ruin to human beings
not only going will they end up with rights and will condemn majorities to misery,
unemployment and marginalization in this country
but they will be ineffective in overcoming the crisis, they will ruin people,
the country, its economy, they're going to put everything in the course of death.
Against this, people will become conscious that once the cycle of sin, guilt and atonement is over,
what they will do is condemn us to a permanent hell
and people will not remain in a permanent hell and people will reject the devil and will fight for truth and goodness.
And to fight for truth and goodness, you know what we have to do?
Firstly remove those who are ruling
and exercise the citizens' right to something that is quite simple: We are the Power
Collaborate with AttacTv to produce contents. Make a donation at www.attac.tv