I'm sorry to have been gone for so long, though I may not have been noticed. School and the theater have simply taken up more and more of my time. But anyway, here are my impressions from the February 15th Mobilization march and protest in NYC.

I was originally going to go to one of the many feeder marches to get to the protest- this one I'm talking about with New York Youth Bloc, a citywide student activist group. But it met at 10:30, and I had to help take care of my mom (she just got back from the hospital) so I had to miss it, and could only make the major march at 49th and 1st, the UN. So I took the subway to Grand Central, but as soon as I got on Lexington there were people marching up. They weren't letting the crowds reach 1st avenue, and were directing us up- it took me til 68th st. to be able to get on to 1st ave.

But it was in no way an easy ride- at 63rd the crowd was so dense, and so vehement that there was talk of taking the barricade. I didn't want a part in that though, it seemed like it would be ineffective, so I moved on up to the crossing at 69th. There I found what I think was the Anarchist and Anti-Capitalist Bloc, and would've followed them if I wasn't waiting for friends on the corner.

The mood was not unlike that at most other protests. There was idealism, there was childish making fun of Bush, there was leftist orthodoxy- the works. There were people who thought only about the moment, the barricade takers and inflammatory guys who get the police riled up. But yeah, it was also a show of support. And I suppose that no matter how dumb many of the individual marchers were that's what's important.

I've been reading a lot lately about "the left" "the democrats" "the radicals" "the activists" "the progressives" and "the opposition" and I think that in light of all this revolutionary and liberal terminology, it's in the best interests of clarifying what we mean. So I'm thinking that soon I'll be starting a continuous series about the state of "the left" at least in the US. But I'd love to have a more global perspective, so if anyone's willing to work with me on that sort of thing, in terms of their own areas or countries, e-mail me at ozymandias87@yahoo.com. I'll probably start with a reaction to the protest and rally scene in America, continuing with the "black and white-ness" of the states, the role of radicals and far left, and the democratic party and popular "left".

For now, I'll just throw some ideas out here:

First of all, anti-war. As much as a lot of leftists would like to think, it isn't so simple as "no war on iraq". Before I get really into it, I'd like to clarify that I've been to the protests, I'm against a war (waged by the US anyway), and I am in opposition to most of the super-hawks and their puppet (people like to call him Bush.) But I must also say that it is hypocritical of the left to attack their own country to no end, because they feel its their responsibility and duty to do so, and also ignore the plights of the Iraqis at the hand of their own government. No one wants to think about what to do if not a war, because I honestly don't think that Saddam Hussein's continued posession of Iraq is still an option. He HAS abused his own people, slaughtered opposition groups and kurds, and dramatically over-stepped his bounds as a leader, albeit installed by the US. And it really weakens the case of the left when we can all unite behind the banner against Bush, and against a war, but when it comes to protests against Hussein's cruelty, we rarely lift a finger. Obviously the people in that country are incapable of doing so, and the responsibility would seem to fall to us as free liberals. This is a recurring theme throughout leftist history. We are able to remember the attempted assassinations of Castro on the part of the Kennedy administration, but we look away when considering that Castro murdered and exiled homosexuals, dissidents, and opposition groups. We see that he has cut his country off from the US, and applaud him for his survival as an isolationist. This can't continue if the left is going to remain credible.

Second, the protest scene. I, as an anarcho-socialist am all for minor uprisings in the form of protests, strikes, rallies, and displays of support for issues we find important. I would have gone to the Washington protest on the 27th I think, if I didn't have prior obligations. Day after tomorrow I plan on going to a walk-out to Union Square, and then Washington Square. But it is degrading and foolish to the movement when leftists of all shapes and sizes appear, flaunting their banners. At the WEF protests I saw anti-fur posters. At the anti-war rally in central park I saw anti-fur posters. At the UFT walk-out I saw anti-fur posters. Of these three, one event could indirectly apply to anti-fur and animal rights. The other two (UFT and anti-war) are simply ridiculous places for anti-fur posters. To make my point clear, it is degrading to the movement when we bring our biggest banners to every event with minor press coverage. To simply flaunt our issue whenever and wherever we can in order to get attention is immature, tactless, and not a strategic move. And it doesn't end with anti-fur. "Save the whales" "End racial profiling" "Remember Mumia" and "The Revolution is Come" have been seen at each of the events. Now, like many leftists, I consider, and believe many of the messages mentioned, especially the part about the revolution. But any movement or revolution isn't going to work if it doesn't interest or impress the masses, and with the immaturity shown at most events, it's doubtful that the extreme left will attract many new followers. This is a key flaw to the protest scene. Also detracting from the protest scene is the fact that few people know why they are there. People at the UFT walk-out (about teacher wages) were telling me they were there to get more money for textbooks, to support the continuation of no uniforms, and a slew of other educational concepts. When people don't understand the issues, two things are clear: 1) Not enough people care enough about an issue to even understand why they're attending an event. and 2) The intentions of the people present are in doubt supporting number one. I am positive that a number of people at the walk-out were there to miss school, and am as positive that a lot of people go to protests to be rebellious and show off. This too is incredibly degrading and also helps the cases of the Agenst Provocateurs (agents working on behalf of the government to spark rash movements, start unrest as an excuse for police action, etc.) Overall, this severely degrades the movement at its core, in getting mainstream support through the media.

Well, I've rambled on a bit, and I intend to elaborate on each point in my series of articles, so if any of this interests you at all, stay tuned, and if you want to help, or pitch ideas, simply mail me at ozymandias87@yahoo.com.

I've been out for a pretty long time, but now that I got out of CPL, I have some free time, so I'm going to make a concerted effort to be somewhat involved again.

Yesterday I lobbied with the directors of the play I'm in to let me miss one rehearsal (technically a pretty important one) in order to go to the protest at DC tomorrow, but they wouldn't let me go, or switch with a member of another cast because of scheduling complications. At least I got to go to the one on the 6th in central park (I'll probably post some kind of article on 'the left' after the environment topic issue- with pictures my friend took of the peace rally.) But still, this one is supposed to be really big, and the bigger they get, the more ludicrous and opportunistic 'the left' becomes, so it should have provided some good material. Oh well I suppose.

I have spent the last couple of days chcking out socialist and anarchist organizations, but it's tough finding one I can agree with. The closest one was the ISO, but they're too Marxist. This is all somewhat hypocritical based on the previous paragraph, but I guess part of being 'leftist' is bearing some kind of animosity to other 'leftist' sects. For now, I'll just continue my anarchistic reading and studying...

I am considering, seriously, for the first time in... the first time, quitting CPL/CE. I'll elaborate further later, but I have a rehearsal.

My birthday, the 13th, was decent. Woulda been nice if my friends showed up when they said they would, but I understand about extended volleyball practices and such.

I haven't posted in a while, or participated in TIG that much this summer, and I am dissappointed, and wish I had done more. But, at least I've been able to do a bunch of work for CPL. In twenty minutes, I should be doing a story with some South African kids on the AIDS epidemic, especially in light of the Johannesburg conferences, despite the lack of direct relevance.

As well, yesterday me and Charles did a piece on the African famine, the in-opportune timing of the unveiling of the McAfrica (a special African burger sold in Oslo) and the feasting at the Johannesburg conferences- ironic that the main topic in question is poverty and the relations with sustainable development...

I should be going back to school in a week exactly. I'm excited, because though I've been busy this summer, less of it has been with friends than with CPL working, so I'm kind of interested in getting to see everyone again. As well, I switched schools, and I hated my old school, so this year should hopefully be a lot better. It's supposed to be a liberal arts school, based on writing, debate, and forum- rather than lecture, churning out automaton minds, math and sciences... And besides, when I graduate I get an associate degree, so it should give me more time to pursue my anarchist/ pre-college activities.