View Single Post
Old 05-02-2012, 03:23 PM   #92
Despanan
 
Despanan's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Sugar Hill
Posts: 3,887
Quote:
Originally Posted by Versus View Post
No. You posted examples of the good things that occupy is trying to accomplish. You posted examples of how you believe occupy is diverse. But you have not posted anything that addresses the specific issues, or them in general. What has occupy done in response to the craziness at the million hoodie march? Or the Denny Cheng march? How have has occupy responded to the claim that they are a white middle class movement? By dismissing it as mainstream media narrative? How does that explain independent bloggers that nobody has heard of with similar experiences? What about specific individuals?
Occupy's GA has not released refutations for these individual claims, I suspect largely because to do so would only draw more attention to the unfortunate behavior of a few occupiers. Individual occupier have responded however:

http://www.salon.com/2012/03/27/did_..._hoodie_march/

http://infrontandcenter.wordpress.co...nue-to-matter/

Quote:
I never said that. I think I made two posts? One was an honest question with an open mind (still is, by the by), and the other was a criticism of dismissing what I felt was a legitimate claim.
My bad, I may have read some of what I was picking up from Saya into your posts.

However, I'm not dismissing your claim, I'm simply pointing out that your claim does not exist in a vacuum. You really only have a fraction of the story, and that seems to be what's guiding your entire understanding of the movement.

Quote:
But to be honest, I'm really distrustful. You can blame that on propaganda if you want to, but I think everybody knows that I don't pay attention to the news.
That's the horrifying thing about it: You don't have to pay attention to the news, in order to be effected by it. Humans are extrememly suggestible, and VERY vulnerable to a narrative. We are naturally pattern-seeking creatures. All someone needs to do is to hear a vague buzzing about an issue to already begin to concoct a story in their heads and make judgments about it.

Perfect example: When I went to the Trayvonn Martin March, my girlfriend stayed home and watched the livestream. At one point she was in the bathroom and heard what she though was that a protestor had been hit by a cop on a moped. She immediately texted me, to make sure I was safe. I did not see the text, so she tweeted the livestreamer and asked "It wasn't @[Despanan] Was it?" A minute or two later I texted her back and said I was fine. She Tweeted again "Sorry I was worried that @[Despanan] was hit by a moped. He's fine though"

Immediately someone tweeted "@[Despanan] was hit by an NYPD Moped, But he's fine!"

I still have people asking me how I survived getting hit by that moped.

When we hear a story, we automatically look for evidence to confirm it, we repeat it, we twist our perception of events in order TO confirm it. We adjust our own behavior to match it.

That's why I'm so concerned about narrative - I'm a playwright, I know how stories work, and I know exactly what the media is doing with this particular story.

Quote:
Also, I'm glad your girlfriend doesn't have cancer, too.
Thanks.
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by KontanKarite
I promote radical change through my actions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ben Lahnger
I have chugged more than ten epic boners.
Despanan is offline   Reply With Quote