I'm not necessarily a movie buff, but there are a number of films that stick with me for one reason or another. One of these is Soylent Green, a futuristic film set in the future when overpopulation is rampant and food is hard to come by. Others of this genre are films like Bladerunner, Rollerball, Logan's Run, and so on. Probably cheesy by today's standards, but for me these films offered a glimpse into what things might be like if we all just keep rolling along as-is.
One thing that I see in these films now, that I didn't necessarily see when I watched them, was that there was really only two classes of people: A small number of the "haves" on top, and the swarming masses of "have-nots" that fill the cities. There is probably a theoretical middle-class in there somewhere, although against those settings it was probably more of a "better off than others" kind of thing because the "haves" all seem to live in towers or behind high walls. (In fact, that's something I'm trying to keep an eye on these days: As the middle class effectively goes away, the resentment and hatred of those on top increases, and with that I think so will the need--real or perceived--for those on top to protect themselves. Therefore, I believe private security, more so than just basic rent-a-cops, will be a growth industry for decades to come.)
The whole Occupy movement bothers me for a number of reasons, and it's things like "I don't want to work, just give me free stuff" that cause me to feel that way. I'd say that "gathering of frustration" is a more likely name, since there doesn't seem to be a short list of specific things that, if changed or at least addressed, would allow everyone to go home. Such as, a real jobs plan. A realistic way for people to find work and sustain themselves as they look for better opportunity. However, that seems like folly, at least for now, in that according to what we see in the images and hear in the video clips, these guys are stuck on "gimme" with presumably some notion that all of this, somehow, is going to boil over in their favor.
Occupy LA struck me today because of what the city is offering up to the occupiers. You may have seen it in the news; the city wants them off the property, so they're offering both a 10,000 square foot facility and a somewhat vague "free farmland so people can grow their own food" (I'm paraphrasing) and I'm stunned by both. The office space is near city hall, and how is this going to work? Judging by what we see in the streets and in the parks, I'm going to go ahead and guess that the Occupy Office is not exactly going to have an office manager and a dress code. Instead, I'd look for an ocean of tents and campsites, well beyond what the building codes had in mind for a space of that size. (Seriously, after a month, would you want to clean the restroom?) Somehow, I'm imagining "Soylent Green: The Early Days" with this very office serving as ground zero. There will be no literal Soylent Green, but what do you want to bet that truckloads of emergency rations start showing up as a regular part of this circus?
The farmland thing is equally interesting. A tax-free free-for-all, dominated by squatter's rights and ultimately run by those that remember the fundamentals of our species (read: top dog.) A victory garden alone isn't going to do it for anyone. People need stuff, but I wouldn't look to these Obamaville's to be the Renascence of humble industries like blacksmithing, leatherwork, tinsmithing, and other throwback skills that actually make some sense and would, combined with the farming, provide some basis of village life. Teachers and doctors trade their skills for goods and services provided by others. You know, a community.
But, I digress into a conservative cesspool where people are actually interested in working to their potential and embracing common sense. This free farmland things is band aid at best, trying to give the occupiers a place to go so they don't crap on the lawn of city hall. So they get bussed out to farmland. Guess what? Who pays for the porta-johns? Where do they send the tax bill? Look what a few days of Woodstock did to that farm in New York. And this is different...how? "Tradespeople" are more likely to be drug dealers (based on what we've seen so far) and given the rapes, murders, and so on in public parks and squares, my guess would be that, at best, law enforcement and medical teams would go as far as the perimeter and then stop.
So, city of Los Angeles, I would encourage you to look ahead to see what these two footholds are actually going to cost you. They might sleep on your lawn at night, but office space and farm land isn't going to keep them away during the day. They do not want to work, but they do expect to be fed, housed, and otherwise paid for, and their patience wears thin. Good luck with that.
Dave
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