Reply #117: A General Strike now???!!! First let's see if OWS can achieve and win a much more modest goal.

[Better Believe It]

Taking back and holding all the park encampments.

If that can't be accomplished soon, that would suggest that it's a bit premature to call a General Strike, especially without the backing of workers organizations that have millions of workers as members, the labor unions.

Who would call and lead the national General Strike, the local OWS groups?

When OWS finds a way to involved millions of workers in their actions and have achieved meaningful influence among working people that might be the time for a serious discussion on how such a general strike could be successfully organized.

But, we are not exactly there yet.

Unfortunately many key OWS organizers have not yet presented a clear plan of action to draw significant numbers of working class people including union members in their action. A modest sized demonstration of a few hundred thousand people in a Bay Area march against the Oakland cops would be a step forward toward building a mass movement of the 99%. I hope OWS activists are working on this with well thought out plan and organizational structure.

Think big! I don't like small and small protests and small movements usually don't accomplish much. The OWS movement needs to grow a lot and involve more and more layers of the working class population in their actions and deliberations. And as it grows it will become more difficult for the government to repress the movement using their para-military domestic police forces.

It sounds really militant and great calling for a General Strike. However, if you don't have the leadership and numbers to pull of such a strike you'll wind up with egg on your face even if it "feels good" to sound so radical. You'll look like half backed sectarians out of touch with the 99% you claim to speak for!

General Strike? Why not prove how militant we really are by calling for a revolution now or maybe next month but before the winter storms!

Wow! Now that really sounds ultra radical! How many will follow us in storming the barracades.... now?

Maybe five.

First things first. Let's see how many will respond to a broad based call to march in Oakland and restore the constitution and free assembly at the park.