Re: <amarc-1> telecoms & strategies

[Kole Oluwatoyin Ade-Odutola <K.O.Ade-Odutola@reading.ac.uk> (by way of Bram Dov Abramson <bram@tao.ca>)]

[original Subject: line was "concluding remarks". --bda]

Dear global villagers -- If you will not mind me addressing you all in such
a manner:

The past few weeks have been fast, furious and fantastic.  At this point I
must say one is really humbled by the way and manner ideas have flown and
are still flying.  I stopped a while to take a look at some of the mails
'great' George Lessard has sent my way, and I'm left wondering if there is
really anything new that must be said about this matter of communication
rights.  Please bear with me as I share one of the threads I followed which
led me to the website of The Black World Today at <http://www.tbwt.com>: I
was thoroughly educated by the logicality and sense of corporate History
employed by Richard Groosman.  Let me quickly pick a few of the quotes that
touch on our discussion on strategy  to 'deal' with the big corporate
players.  

He said "sovereign people do not beg of, or negotiate with subordinate
entities which we created.  Sovereign people INSTRUCT subordinate entities.
 Sovereign people DEFINE all entities we create.  And when subordinate
entity violates the terms of its creation, and undermines our ability to
govern ourselves, we are required to move in swiftly and accountably to cut
this cancer out of the body politic".

Yes,  I know a number of persons will not agree with this statements: they
may think it is too "militant" too extreme", well I shall yet go on to
establish the legal history he recounted of how corporations acquired
'personhood' and "regulatory Administrative law (which) only enables us to
question specific corporate behaviors one at a time, usually after the harm
has been done .  ..  over and over again".  Richard cited a few late 19th
century supreme court judgements of the state of Georgia, those of you
familiar with corporate cases will understand the 'ratio decidendi'(?) of
the judgement given in the case of Railroad co Vs Collins in which one of
the Judges said  ".  ..  freed, as such bodies are, from such bounds-the
grave-to the schemes of individuals they are able to add field to field and
power to power until they become entirely too strong for that society which
is made up of those whose plans are limited by single life.  ..  " Please
note the fact that these entities outlast we who support them by our
consumption.  I do not think we are helpless.  ..  

I shall not go on and on but what has dawned on me while daily reading the
views of others at this virtual conference is on what basis will our
strategy be based.  A scientist once said that the strategy of the plant to
live is found in its ability to photosynthesize.  What,  I ask of you all
-- What will be the basis of our strategy to survive these colossal
monsters we  created?  Are we like Richard said,  in his piece,  going to
design strategies "without a clear understanding of history, " in addition,
will ours like "most citizen efforts against corporations in this century .
 ..  (be) struggles against the symptoms of corporate domination which we
have waged in regulatory administrative laws arenas"?

In effect, how can we make this renewed struggle to regain that we gave to
the corporations out of our own free volition, one that will not be from a
position of weakness?  They have the global media, we have the global ears
and eyes, they have the virtual money and properties, we have the will to
bring them back to earth.  

If my contribution today has gone on as if it is only the medium of
communication that poses the problem it is because most of the contributors
have felt that way.  However, it is interesting to note the dialogue of
either or between Jan Haverkamp and Ed Sills about critical mass.  I'll
like to add another dimension to the critical factor and say for want of a
better phrase that we also need a critical maths, meaning that calculating
propensity of the human mind to overcome obstacles, how this will come
about will be by calculating a large number of people, not just this hand
full but throwing the issues into the market place of contention.   There
is one way the corporate world has gone, one is looking around for a few
"role models" in the society to identify the issues with.  Let me quickly
state that I recognize the contradiction and danger in that position, but
in the absence of"stone hits shop window" kind of demonstration to call
attention to the urgency of the situation.  The suppression of right to
communicate is at the root of most global
conflicts.  Tied to that are the imbalances we have noticed.  for the sake
of this discourse,  let us assume that the most efficient way of resource
allocation is to be found in the capitalist mode of social organization.  I
said for the purpose of this discourse, then does it not call to reason
that information the live wire of capitalism should become a Human Right if
some individuals are not going to be at an undue advantage over others.  I
think we need to think some more about our positions even if within the
conventional reactionary discourse.  we can use the language of the "master
to beat him to his own arguments" no sentiments.  

Let me quickly fast forward to the need for creating Communication rights
training programs, that will have mass appeal and strengthen the capacity
of groups to respond.  A good example can be found with the Human Rights
group, they have found a language and pivoted their training on one main
issue among others; that of "Habas corpus".  We also must find a way to pin
over training on a core issue that will make training accessible to even
the lay person.  I align myself with the point made by Luisxo Fernandez on
language Rights, as we prepare the documents we must ensure that there are
translations and unconventional means of dissemination.  The corporate
world seem to have bought over the Air waves but I can assure you that
there are yet untapped spaces to push our messages into "we have stories to
tell, not stories to sell" (CEM document), and that is why the people will
listen to us.  We can still get stand up comedians to tell our stories,
find a few "Bob Geldoffs" of this world to sing our concerns, look for
products we or NGOs create to push the messages into.  We just must make an
alternative media strategy a primary concern.  The world out there is
waiting, willing and wishing we can rescue their children, their faith and
their culture from the strangle hold of the vultures.   

I guess I must stop here before I totally lose focus, I simply hope that
some of these issues will finally make it to the real world.  Please let's
rise up and make the change, this may be a VIRTUAL conference where no one
can be held responsible for his/her utterances but I must confess I have
taken these submissions seriously and for me they have become new concerns
and a battle cry.  The views of George Gerbner and the wise persons who
came up with the Viewers declaration of Independence must find its way into
every home, we must use the critical mass of student unions across the
world as a point of contact.  NOW is the time for a rescue mission.  Ladies
and Gentlemen, I rest my case.

kole Ade-Odutola
University of Reading
UK
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
AMARC 7 Foro Virtual Forum Virtuel
http://www.amarc.org/amarc7
to unsubscribe / pour se desabonner / para abandonar :
e-mail "unsubscribe amarc-1 " to: majordomo@comunica.org