CO-OPS AND
MUTUAL AID PROJECTS
Below you will find a link to a number of mutual
aid projects that were undertaken in Ithaca, New York.
I am posting them here to give an idea of the kind
of projects that a number of families in a community can undertake in order to
make life more fun, more social, more economical, more efficient, to increase
the number of services available in their communities and, most of all, to
become more INDEPENDENT of elected officials by working together.
I cannot stress how detrimental the mentality of
putting trust in politicians and government bodies to do for us that which we
can do for ourselves is.
Politicians are parasites. They act at the behest
of the rich, as is commonly known but also commonly accepted as a "fact of
life". It need not be. They, like all parasites, weaken the host
whose body they invade -in this case, the body of the citizenry. But the truth
of the matter is, people abnegate
their power and independence more than politicians arrogate
them.
Where there are politicians there is no true
democracy. There is only plutocracy. "Representative democracy" is
not democracy at all. Only direct democracy, where people meet face-to-face and
hammer out the issues that face all of us, eat out of a communal pot and whose
destinies are tied one to the other is democracy that deserves the name. We are
now living a farce – a very dangerous farce, a very dangerous self-delusion.
Of course, that abnegation is encouraged by
politicians and people are made to feel weak and helpless. How many times and
in how many ways, either directly or by implication, have you been called
"weak" and "little" by politicians and by the press? Does
the phrase "Joe Citizen" ring a bell and arouse a feeling of being
put down? Those are psychological ploys designed to make you feel dependent and
helpless. The message is ubiquitous and repetitive. But as Eleanor Roosevelt
said: "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." She
also said: "If someone betrays you once, it's their fault; if they betray
you twice, it's your fault." How many times have we been betrayed by
politicians? Whose fault is it by this time?
There is power, and safety, in numbers. That
is where co-ops and mutual aid programs come in.
People simply get together and, as a group on a
rotating basis, supply one another with their everyday needs.
Vegetarian and health food co-ops are very popular,
as I'm sure you know. People buy in bulk together, prepare the food together
and dine together - all in a communal atmosphere of fun and conviviality.
But co-ops and mutual aid projects can do so much
more than that.
A few ideas are to be found on the link below. They
were undertaken in Itaca, New York; but with a little
bit of tweaking they can be adapted to the needs of your community.
Most of all, co-ops and mutual aid programs will
accustom people to working in solidarity one for all and all for one.
Those programmes confer a
feeling of strength and mutual reliance without dependency.
They will wean the community from the unhealthy
dependence upon politicians who, of every stripe and every party, have
proven without exception that they cannot and will not improve matters.
We are responsible for one another. Only then
can we flourish. Only then can we feel secure. Only then can we become fully
adult and actualize our capacities. We become whole and
independent individuals when we act with others in solidarity. We must be whole
and strong in order to give and the giving makes us strong.
Please take a look at the programmes
outlined on the link below.
One of them is not relevant to those who
live in societies that have instituted socialized medicine. Most of the members
on this list do not enjoy socialized medicine and the idea of a group working
together to obtain insurance for all is a terrific one.
These programs should gradually supplant charities.
In this way everyone is giving and everyone receiving. Living
this way we all give and receive in dignity and in bounty.
Gradually, these programs will lead us in the
direction of comprehensive mutual sufficiency that will phase out all need
for politicians.
Doreen Ellen Bell-Dotan,
Tzfat, Israel