I'd add strategic capacity, planning, dedication, imagination, hope, agency, etc. of the protagonists of the struggles. This is the "civic intelligence" that is often lost (imo) when social struggles are described without giving due credit to the people who are struggling towards the change. (This often happens when words such as opportunity, technology, resource mobilization, etc. are used to depict activism.) It can suggest false determinism and misleading trivialization.
I like the way that Seamus Heaney puts it (The Cure at Troy): "History says, Don't hope on this side of the grave. But then, once in a lifetime the longed for tidal wave of justice can rise up, and hope and history rhyme." -- Doug On Jul 22, 2012, at 11:48 PM, Shava Nerad wrote: > On Mon, Jul 23, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Prashant Singh <[email protected]> wrote: > is he being too simplistic ? was there more to the revolution than just Food > Price ? Would like to know your thoughts . you can see the whole debat online > at http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2012/07/17/transcript-schmidt-thiel/ > > Really, to give a simplistic response, three words: > > Motive > Means > Opportunity > > Food price is a motive. > The internet tools were a means. > The desperation produced was made into an opportunity by those who wanted to > wedge activism out of a passive public for a very long time. > > As I said, simplistic. But it's not too much of a stretch to think of a > revolution as a crime -- certainly the status quo looks at it that way. And > it would be criminal to look at such things with any less complexity, ad > reductio, so to speak. ;) > > But really, people who want to say, "Not this, only that" regarding historic, > human, social events have almost always checked their brains at the door -- > or worse, have assumed that the audience have checked theirs, and so an > agenda can be pushed. Danger, either way. > > yrs, > -- > > Shava Nerad > [email protected] > > _______________________________________________ > liberationtech mailing list > [email protected] > > Should you need to change your subscription options, please go to: > > https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech > > If you would like to receive a daily digest, click "yes" (once you click > above) next to "would you like to receive list mail batched in a daily > digest?" > > You will need the user name and password you receive from the list moderator > in monthly reminders. You may ask for a reminder here: > https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech > > Should you need immediate assistance, please contact the list moderator. > > Please don't forget to follow us on http://twitter.com/#!/Liberationtech Douglas Schuler [email protected] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ What Kind of an Activist Are YOU? Play Activist Mirror and find out! http://apps.facebook.com/activist-mirror/ Public Sphere Project http://www.publicsphereproject.org/ Liberating Voices! A Pattern Language for Communication Revolution (project) http://www.publicsphereproject.org/patterns/ Liberating Voices! A Pattern Language for Communication Revolution (book) http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=11601
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