Wednesday, October 5, 2011

It's time to occupy Houston

This comes from the organizers of Occupy Houston


On Thursday, October 6th There will be a dignified and peaceful protest in Houston similar to the one on Wall Street.

The purpose is to awaken our consciousness and the consciousness of our brothers and sisters within the corporate and political institutions that have spun out of control. Centuries of deference to an outside authority is bearing bitter fruit. Our environment, our food and our communications are growing toxic. We have become a country where the truth of compassion has given way to the delusion of competition. Many of our brothers and sisters in business and politics are caught by the blind forces of greed and they are suffering. This is causing great suffering for everyone else. We as “consumers” are also caught by these blind forces. The desire to acquire and the fear of loss create anger and hatred, suspicion and jealousy. These are the forces which feed and nurture an increasingly global economy that is destroying the earth’s capacity to nourish us.

We can save ourselves if we are willing to take a peaceful and compassionate first step. Fear is what got us into this mess, so we should remember that there is nothing in the entire cosmos which is worthy of fear. All of the bogies we torment ourselves with are products of our own perception. All bad actions are rooted in suffering and the only antidote for suffering is compassion. We cannot fight the powers of greed with force. Jesus said it. The Buddha said it. Muhammad said it. Our own life experience has shown it. We must remember this and dispel anger and hatred. Within our heart's refuge we are always free. We enslave ourselves by the notion of possession. We truly own nothing. Our bodies, family members and friends, our “property,” memories – all empirical things are subject to change. Once you think you possess something, the inevitable result is attachment, you are under a psychological yoke to whatever forces which may deprive you of your desire.

Serenity, compassion, fulfillment and cooperation are the vehicles which can lead us out of darkness. This is where we can draw the strength to protest in peace and dignity. We are young and strong and able to lend a hand in waking up our sleepy neighbors to the blind and wonton destruction of our common ancestor. At any rate, it will be a cool experience on a nice fall day and a nice opportunity to get together on something that can benefit us all. Here is a link if you would like to know more:


http://occupyhouston.org/
The protest will commence with an assembly in Market Square Park at 8:30am followed by a march to the JP Morgan Chase Tower at 9am. Following an hour-long rally, there will be a march to Hermann Square (in front of City Hall) at 10am to being the occupation.

1 comment:

chantlaca said...

COLONIALISM and the Occupy Wall Street Movement: To speak of colonialism without moving into decolonization on the ground is without purpose. The US has yet to endorse the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPRomed7WB8