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Monday, October 25, 2004

All Of That Corporate Greed

The Corporation by Joel Balkan has opened my understanding about this insitution a helluva lot- I remain convinced that the corporation is now the dominant institution, replacing the government, andthe church before it in the control insitutions have over people. now there really does seem a division "the trousers of time": the future of corporate rule (Think Blade Runner), or a future of Communalism (Thom Hartmann). Maybe then you wouldn't feel so alone, trapped in a web of consumer goods like you were in The Matrix or something. The air tastes stale, it's never enough for what you need.

Doesn't it sound like a dream? a place to call home, the people around you trust and love you and each other, because you have to for the survival of the group. no dependence on any higher insitution, only dependent on the earth and each other. No aloneness, like an empty bucket which goods are poured into to fill the gaping void. Where corporations leave the masses, and the minority - all alone. yours and mine. I will be happy if mine is more than yours.

fuck that. dance in the rain, to hide the tears streaking down your face. swim away.
posted by Keegan at 9:54 am ... 0 comments

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Friday, October 15, 2004

Freedom Has It's Price

I thought that free University was a great idea (hey, save me my HECS debt), but then my brother put this to me - If Uni was free, then the lower classes would be subsidising the rich.
It happened in the 70's under Whitlam. What i Don't like about this is that it doesn't give many opportunities for the lower classes to educate, gain higher skills and improve their standing in society - which is what the HECS increase is doing, making university too expensive for the majority of the population.

One suggestion we came up with was to make TAFE - Technical Colleges - free, rather than the upfront costs that put them out of reach for welfare recipients. but this still creates an educational class division. Means-Tested scholarships for underprivileged students could help reduce the disparity, but it wouldn't be enough for my tastes. Well, I have to cop the 25% cost increase now, and IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT.
posted by Keegan at 2:33 pm ... 0 comments

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Tuesday, October 12, 2004

Just A Thought...

My lecturer asked me today what I thought the next Social Movement would be, and the first thing that burst from my lips was 'Communalism' - the rise of co-ops, the end of individualism (to the extent that any movement dies), and real focus on community.

Why would I suggest this? well, aside from the rantings of Hartmann, I feel communalism would be a natural reaction to the increasing casualisation of the workforce. okay, hear me out. 50 years ago, at the dawn of individualism, a job was seen as for life - the security that it provided enabled stability independent of the community around you- Man is in his House, and All's Right With The World.

Now consider what happens without Job Security - the suggestion that my generation (post-X) will have six careers over their lifetime. Gaps in employment, coupled with the destruction of the socialist state by economic rationalisation leaves people dependent on those around them during the rough times.

Now in this context communalism makes the best choice - you can't depend on the state, and you can't depend on your employer, and without either as a source of income, you can either turn to the community or be turned out on the streets. So what are you going to choose?

A co-op would bring the security that neither the state nor the private sector are willing to provide - dependent on the people around you the same way they are dependent on you. wouldn't it be nice...

or we could go to the corporate state...
posted by Keegan at 1:51 pm ... 0 comments

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