ProtestStrategies

ThoughtStorms Wiki

This page for collecting strategies for protest, activism, social entrepreneurship, action by the EmergentDemocracy etc.

Currency Boycott

Within the past few months the dollar has already lost 26% of the maximum value it once held against the euro and a smaller amount against the pound. Our small gestures coupled with those of bigger players could continue this fall and, just as there was a virtuous circle on the way up, with the increasing US trade deficit providing foreign investors with extra funds to push the dollar and Wall Street higher and higher, there will be a similar effect on the way down. Falling stock markets and a depreciating dollar caused by some investors moving out will panic others into getting out too, thus accelerating both markets' decline.

Consequently. the more people you can persuade to join you in becoming a Gnome for Peace, the better the chance there is of weakening the dollar and the American economy by enough to prevent or limit a war. That's the real profit. Of course, if investor sentiment does really change - helped in part by your actions - virtue would not have to make do with merely being its own reward. Besides peace, it would bring something of a financial bonus too.

http://resurgence.gn.apc.org/issues/douthwaite000.htm

Moving Swarms of Voters

I suggested A short term solution might be for everyone who cares about an issue to virtually move into one place. And get their guy selected there. Hey, if the UK anti-war movement all moved to Sedgefield we could vote out you know who.

Libertarians are thinking this way too : http://www.freestateproject.org/ ExitStrategy

Tax Evasion

War Tax Resistance Made Simple : http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15593

Distributed Protest

http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2003/7/31/14152/8115

Danger

Lee Falsenstein, How to make a revolution : http://blogs.salon.com/0001323/2003/04/03.html#a5

He says : The civil rights movement was a broad-based social-change movement that made a real difference ...Where it all came apart was when mass media, with its hierarchical structure of owners and editors and media stars, became relied upon to "get the message out", to the detriment of person-to-person communication. This broke the feedback loop and inserted elements that directed things toward serving the interests of the media. We then got "The Sixties", a spectacular media presentation.

Many apparent protest strategies aim just to win the attention of the media.. It's possible that this is becoming less and less effective as

the number of protests stacks up
the media becomes more sensationalizing
the media is a NetoCracy
the media shapes the stories to its own end
politicians become more blase about media criticism