Regarding self-efficacy & political empowerment .....

[H2O Man]

There are a number of threads on DU in the past couple days that have to do with concerns about people's "power versus helplessness." These threads range from those with very strong, positive messages that encourage people to be active participants in society, to those that take a weak, defeatist approach that suggest that no matter what DUers do, they will be victims of circumstance. As a result of some of these threads, a few people have questioned others' motives, or taken offense when some DUers disagree with them.

I thought it might be fun to take a few minutes, and do a brief, informal review of the idea of "power," specifically in terms of self-empowerment. We all know that our word "power" comes from the Latin root "posse," which means the ability to do something. Our discussion should thus include the word "efficacy," which simply means the degree which something (or someone) does what it (they) intend to do -- the power to produce the desired effect.

Individuals vary in how they view and experience power and efficacy. In general, this is best understood in terms of "locus of control." That is how people view both the cause and control of events in their lives. Some people believe in their ability to deal with the events in their life; they have an internal locus of control. Others believe that the events of the life are outside of their control; this is an external locus of control.

There tend to be five areas of "control" that have been identified by social scientists. Let's look at them:

{1} Cognitive: This is the most important. It's our ability to view situations in an objective way, to identify a goal, and to outline the steps we need to reach that goal. Clearly, if one has an internal locus of control, their cognitive abilities are going to make them see different options than those people with an external locus of control.

{2} Decisional: This is an interesting one. It's the ability to make decisions, and the willingness to take responsibility for the decisions we make. Again, we can see how different people experience life differently. There is a significant difference between those who take responsibility, and those who find security in blaming others.

{3} Informational: This is the ability to find valuable information in order to make the best decisions in one's life. One great thing about this country is that there is a huge, varied amount of information available. Even before the internet, a person could go to a public library and access books and articles on almost every topic. But, again, we find that one's view about who is responsible to get that information defines significant differences between people. It can be hard work to properly research an issue, while it is easy to blame someone else for not spoon-feeding it to us.

{4} Behavioral: This is our ability to take concrete action. This one certainly is impacted by one's sense of locus of control.

{5} Retrospective: This is the ability to learn from our experiences. It sounds simply, but it's not always so. I'm reminded of the "controversy" on some DU threads about Robert Kennedy Jr's article on the stolen election in 2004. There are DUers who have taken the position that his doing this could be harmful to our party. Think about that: how could it possibly be harmful? Only if you have an external locus of control.

Most people, of course, recognize that there are forces outside of one's control in life, making it impossible to exercise full control over all situations. We can't control nature, and we are not able to control other people. But we are responsible for our own actions, including how we react and respond to those events we cannot control. This is summed up best in the serenity prayer from St. Francis which is often associated to 12 Step Programs.

In 1966, Julian Rotter devised what we know as the I-E Scale, which measures a person's sense of locus of control by their response to a series of questions. By no small coincidence, those questions include the following -- which could be taken straight from DU threads:

-- The average citizen can have influence on government decisions.

-- This world is run by a few people in power, and there is not much that the little guy can do about it.

These questions help measure the sense of self-efficacy. Those with a positive sense of their ability to accomplish goals when they take a disciplined approach will experience far less psychological stress and physiological strain in everyday life. This does not include those who have "magical thinking," which is an irrational belief system that takes an unrealistic view to those 5 forms of power. And it is almost the opposite of those who suffer from learned helplessness, which is the condition of weakness and apathy that results in some people from repeated experiences with negative results.

In political organization and social movements, the leadership -- including on the group and individual level -- comes from the sense of an internal locus of control. That's where true power lies. And there is often a sense of tension between those who advocate power and those who express helplessness and hopelessness. In part, this is because the enemies of a movement will sometimes attempt to infiltrate, and plant seeds of doubt. Yet this can usually be distinguished, for those who may be the Johnny Appleseeds of doubt are often "high energy," attending lots of meetings, making numerous suggestions, and demonstrating an energy level that rarely, if ever, corresponds with those who are either temporarily overwhelmed, or who suffer from learned helplessness.

There are numerous studies by social scientists, and field experience from grass roots activists, that support the belief that organized people can and do "make a difference." There are examples such as what has happened in my lifetime in South Africa, that shows that people who have far more difficult circumstances than our citizens do, can effect change. That's power.

[stop the bleeding]

1. you know the human spirit so well

nominated

on edit: for South Africa - "CRY FREEDOM!!!"

[H2O Man]

2. Cry Freedom!

An interesting story .... years ago, my friend Rubin "Hurricane" Carter traveled to South Africa to box the African welterweight/middleweight champion, Joe "Ax Killer" Ngidi. He was assigned a young man to be his guide in Johannesburg. It was a student named Stephen Biko. A few years later, Biko founded the Black Consciousness movement, advocating black pride and empowerment.

Years later, D Washington would play Stephen, Rubin, and Rubin's friend Malcolm X in what many consider his three best movies.

[stop the bleeding]

3. kicking for others

I can not believe no one has commented on this.

Thanks again Patrick -

[H2O Man]

6. A favorite South African quote

comes from Arthur Schlesinger Jr's book "Robert Kennedy and his times," page 803. He wrote:

"Let no one, he said in his most eloquent passage, be discouraged by 'the belief there is nothing one man or one woman can do against the enormous array of the world's ills -- against misery and ignorance, injustice and violence .... Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.

'It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centres of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance'."

[rosesaylavee]

47. I love this quote -

I have to ask tho, is it Arthur's or RFK?

[H2O Man]

59. It is

Mr. Schlesinger quoting Robert's speech from South Africa.

[im10ashus]

11. Great thread!

K&R!

Here is some trivia for you. If anyone can answer, you can. :-)

I pass a boxing gym every day on my way to work (I work downtown Manhattan by Ground Zero) and there's always a chalkboard out front with the days trivia.

Who is the only heavyweight champion to have taught Shakespeare at Yale?

[H2O Man]

16. Good question!

I'll e-mail you the answer, so that others can guess.

[im10ashus]

26. Thanks! eom

[Autonomy]

51. None. Shakespeare didn't study at Yale :P

[im10ashus]

55. Ha!

:rofl:

[Hoping4Change]

4. Recommended. Great post.

:kick:

[meganmonkey]

5. Can I add a little twist to this?

This is a great piece, and provides much food for thought. I would like to try to ground it in our current situation, or at least my perspective/experience of it.

I have an internal locus of control (at least, I think I do). For quite awhile, I was caught up in the idea that our politicians, particularly the Democratic ones, were the people who had the power to affect change in our government (I don't mean this in relation to which party is in power right now, I mean generally speaking). So I was thinking that trying to influence our current politians to 'do the right thing' on a particular bill or nominee or whatever was the power that I had.

Unfortunately, time and time again, I was struck by major disappointment when this didn't work, and being on DU a lot I knew I was not alone - in both trying to influence them (phone calls, letters, emails, petitions) and in being disappointed when it failed (as it has dozens of times in the last several years).

In some cases, this could be blamed on partisan imbalance/Republican control, like some of the judge and cabinet nominees that a unified Democratic party could still not defeat. But in other cases, there were bills that could have been defeated, that in fact the constituents of both parties seemed to want defeated, like CAFTA, that passed with bipartisan support. If the Dems had stood together on that one, it could have failed. But it didn't. And after watching a couple of these on C-Span and seeing it all happening before my eyes, I began to understand that in some cases (and some of the BIGGEST issues, IMO) it doesn't matter to most of them what their constituents want because they don't work for us. I know many here will disagree with me on that, and I also know there are several exceptions to this in the House and a couple in the Senate, but ultimately those who guide both parties are NOT beholden to the American people, they are beholden to the industries that fund their campaigns.

When the depth of that reality hit me over the last year or two, I did feel helpless, and hopeless, and a lot like giving up.

So guess what? I did. And boy do I feel better now.

To clarify, I gave up on the politicians. All of them. I expect nothing from them, and I am no longer disappointed. In fact, I don't really pay that much attention to the ins-and-outs of the daily grind on Capitol Hill.

Instead, I talk to the people. Not the online activists, not even the grassroots party leaders, but the regular everyday people. The people who get referred to here as apathetic or ignorant or whatever. The people who don't vote because neither party represents them right now. The people who are too busy working three jobs to give a shit who is running for what, because almost NONE of them are running on their behalf. They aren't stupid, they are ignored. By the Dems, the Repubs, and most of the 'activists' in both parties. Sorry, but lip service doesn't count. The people I talk to don't care about gay marriage or abortion, those aren't political decisions for them. They care about health care and food and job security. And aside from election time, neither party seems to give a shit about those things (again, there are a few exceptions). Neither party makes these things a priority. Both parties passed CAFTA, and both parties passed the bankruptcy bill, and so on and so forth.

So anyway, back to the question of power. What I have been concluding lately is that our real power may not be in electoral politics, because we can't possibly have much influence on them (and I won't go into the details why, we all know what I mean - and for those who don't, we'll start with voting machines and campaign financing and go from there). The only power we can have, IMO, is the power of the people - and the people are totally turned off by the kind of activism generally advocated here and other online discussion/activism sites. Because most of what gets discussed here falls into the 2-party framework of electoral politics, and they know it is a crock.

Most of you all know it is a crock too. So why keep banging our heads against the wall?

I am not going to imply that I know the solution. I just know that what we have been doing is NOT working, and I am sick of listening to the record skip. Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. And expecting a different result...is that insanity? I think so.

The power is in the people. Our gov't was built to be broken down when it gets out of control, because the power is supposed to be in the hands of the people.

IT IS OUT OF CONTROL!!!!

So how are we going to use a broken system to fix itself? We can't. Yet people keep trying. And feeling hopeless. I say, give it up.

Give it up and get into the streets. RIGHT NOW.

I am out there 5 days a week (some weeks only 4, I do have some other things going on ;) ). It's not that hard. And while you are out there, holding your signs and doing your thing, TALK TO PEOPLE. Even the people who drive pick-ups and wear camouflage. Don't tell them how important it is that they vote for this person or email that Senator. Instead, ASK THEM WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO THEM. Don't go to them with an agenda, ask them what they want from their government. You will be surprised at what you hear.

And you will feel a thousand times better.

And much, much more powerful.

on edit: I guess what it comes down to is recognizing what you can and cannot control. And we cannot control our politicians, no matter how hard we try, unless we become a wealthy industry leader, say, and that would defeat the whole purpose, right? So by using process of elimination we get closer to determining what we can control, and we are one step closer to being effective, instead of wasting our energy on futile efforts.

(Sorry, this is pretty much a hit-and-run, as I need to get out to the Federal Bldg with my signs and my fellow protestors shortly, and I don't have internet access at home right now since I live in a tent. :) )

:patriot:

[H2O Man]

7. Thank you

for adding an interesting, important contribution to the conversation. I think that one of the most important points I get from what you have said is that we should never allow our opposition to define the "rules," or the manner areas we contest or tactics we use.

[meganmonkey]

10. Yes, that is the gist of it

We are caught up in what I think is ultimately a ineffective method that leads to complacency, and it is the most frustrating thing I have ever been a part of.

I had to step out and find a new way. I know some may be turned off by a lot of what I am saying, but it really is working for me.

On that note, I am off to protest.

Peace and Solidarity, H2O Man!!!

[Joe Fields]

46. Look, this isn't rocket science, or new age thinking...

It really is simple and boils down to this;

As long as the republicans can continue to get us dancing to their tune, they will have us right where they want us.

We need to stop worrying and jumping like bullfrogs every time the GOP tells us to jump. They talk about immigration and they tell us to jump. And we jump. They talk about gay marriage and they tell us to jump. And we jump.

Every single divisive issue that republicans put forth to the media and the people gets the republican's desired reaction.

DUers , and the rest of the Democratic party need to focus on the corruption and the incompetency of the republican ruling class, and let go of all other peripheral issues. We MUST DO THIS, if we are to have a chance at leading the country again in the critical near future. We need to be like a world class sprinter, who knows what the goal is, and is determined to reach it, and who puts their head down, doesn't look around and simply grinds it out, stride by stride.

Because, people, if we do not learn from past mistakes, we are doomed to repeat them. Not very profound, but oh so true.

[Gregorian]

13. Yes.

This has been my evolution also. One that is empowering. They're building the jails, they're locking us up for smoking a joint, they're letting the loggers vandalize the forests. They, they, they. And then we all got together. The media. The people. The people. Hey, that's US. We have the power.

I'm glad I embarrassed myself by sticking around this place long enough to learn these things.

[Me.]

28. Thank God You Embarrassed Yourself By Sticking Around

I always enjoy/am interested in your posts.

*shadow government*

[corkhead]

20. This could be its own thread. Excellent , I hadn't thought about it but

"Don't go to them with an agenda, ask them what they want from their government."

is the perfect icebreaker with those we don't agree with. We all do have more in common with each other than not.

[meganmonkey]

39. Thanks

Thanks to all of you for your supportive words. I was a little nervous about posting that and running off.

Maybe I will post it as its own thread. And then run off ;)

[wildeyed]

21. Just a thought on the 2-party system.

I think it is killing America, too, and I'm a Democrat.

I have been thinking that the way to a system that better represents the people might start with Same Day Registration. States that use that system have higher voter participation, and a history of occasionally electing third-party candidates. Then progress to that ranked voting system, Instant Runoff Voting, I think it is called, where you pick a first second and third choice on your ballot. My sis lives in Australia where the have IRV, and there seems to be much more cooperation between the parties, and many more choices for the voters. Course voting is mandatory in AU, so that probably helps, too ;)

Anyway, those are some solutions I have been thinking about.

[femrap]

23. Great post and it reminded me of my

journey. After the '04 Election, I was absolutely sickened by how the Democrats seemed to look for a scapegoat...someone to blame their loss on. Pro-choice women seemed to be handy and fingers were pointed our way. Never mind that the Dems had removed the ERA from their Platform earlier. Then last summer during the Johnny Bob Taliban SCOTUS approval process, I noticed that not only were the Power Players against me, but that most of the liberals on the left-wing blogs were as well. I heard things like: 'Save your fight. We can't win this one. Keep your powder dry.'

It was truly a slap in the face that woke me up. I felt completely betrayed. Women were just 'votes'....and every four years, the Dems came around, gave us some lip service, and we were obligated to vote for them. After all, who else was there?

(I do thank John Kerry for his late yet sincere fight against I-lie-too (alito).)

I had worked very hard in '04 with Women's Voices, Women Vote (WVWV). Over 22 million unmarried women didn't vote in '00....we needed to get to these women and tell them our Dem story. This would energize them and they would be eager to register and vote for Kerry.

While working with WVWV, I met women who told me that the Dems didn't care about them. Of course, I would challenge this.

But I now believe that the Dems don't care about women....not really. We're treated as some kind of 'special interest' group....and here we are over half the population. (Just look what the Dem governor of Louisiana, a woman, just did....I guess she is after the 'rapist's vote.')

This was a great lesson that I learned. I know who my buddies are and who will support me and my passions. My energies and money are placed with them....no longer given blindly to a party that wishes I would just be a good girl. I so miss Bella Abzug and Shirley Chisolm...those women kicked ass!

So...yeah...It's We the People! Let's hold those who are elected accountable.

[titoresque]

33. You are AWESOME!

This is a great post and really deserves it's own thread!
You said exactly what I have been feeling for so long......but without all the fuck this and fuck that LOL! :)
Thanks for the post! I will actually look at protesting a lot differently now too, you brought a new refreshing angle to my thoughts on that, and my burn out.
Thanks again!
Peace.

[Donailin]

34. You nailed it

you have just expressed exactly what I feel. I see clearly after four years of outrage fatigue that these politicians are not influenced by anything I do, that we do, let alone any poll that says 70 percent of the country disapproves.

You are correct. Stay focused on the people around you

[stop the bleeding]

35. Yep

you are dead on, you have given me a fresher way to look at this situation and future ones as the arise.

Thank you

Peace.

[LWolf]

48. Great points, MeganMonkey!

The idea that an activist for change can go to people and ask them what change they'd like to see, open a discussion to find common ground, and work from that place is one of the most powerful I've seen on DU, ever.

Taking a pre-decided agenda or candidate to people sets us up for the polarity we are currently experiencing, imo.



When you don't need to argue, debate, and WIN, but listen, question, and integrate, the energy for change is there.

[Me.]

8. Needed This

Glad I found this thread. The South African example is a pertinent one. Would you say we have a case of some not putting their action where their mouth is?

*shadow government*

[Gregorian]

9. Making a logical separation from what we learned from our parents.

I think that those who have been protected and sheltered and in a sense stifled by their parents, tend to turn out blaming others. Republicans might be a generalization one might make, even if that's pretty darned general. It's just something that wafted into my consciousness as I read your post.

I have learned to be less positive as time goes on. I started out life as someone who could do anything. But reality has shown me, in what you phrased "repeated experiences with negative results", that much of what seemed doable, now appears difficult or impossible.

Having said that, I find your post extremely valuable. This is a subject I have spent untold amounts of time pondering. Or at least being under the influence of.

Nelson Mandela is always my fall-back. Long duration and darkest of scenarios. And through that, he found results.

I don't think there is any denying that we are up against great evil. And the fruits of our labors are SLOW. We watch as time passes, and anyone with a sense of reality tends to suffer the loss of patience and optimism.

Coming from a family that was overprotective, I have only begun to exercise some of what you mention in your post. At fifty, I am only beginning. I would dearly love to have more of an external locus of control. We are all on different plateaus. This is why the forums are so important. Even though we may have to slog through negative personalities and pessimistic visions, we are also able to harvest the high traits that each one has.

[wildeyed]

12. Sometimes, just doing the next right thing is good enough.

I don't even worry about the effect of my actions. I try to be smart, and put my effort where it matters, but in the end, it is the doing that is important.

Someday, when my kids ask me, "Mommy, what did you and Daddy do during that horrible time in the early 2000's?" I want to be able to say that I did something, said something and that they can be proud of what our family stood for. Either that or the bad men will come get me and they will kinda forget who I was, but I try not to think about that too much. :crazy:

It is funny that you reference the serenity prayer. I have spent large amounts of time meditating on that one. The concept is easy to grasp, but not so easy to live. I am also trying to find a way to live my commitment to the causes I support without so much anger. The anger fuels my energy, but I think is making me bitter and cynical, too. A friend of mine keeps taking about forgiveness, but I guess that is beyond me right now.

[dalloway]

14. H20 Man, one of your best posts ever (and that says a lot)

I have printed it and will put it over my desk for when I am feeling overwhelmed by the enormity of it all, so that I can push a little more and try a little harder to change what I can.

[kpete]

15. H20 Man you are an inspiration!

As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world - that is the myth of the atomic age - as in being able to remake ourselves. Gandhi

I often think "humility" is key.
Not as it concerns how others feel about us, but how we feel about ourselves...

If I remember to stay humble and small, I can work on remaking MYSELF...

I do not need to Remake the world!

[Schema Thing]

17. To simply K this, would be an insult. Therefore, K and R.

[Patsy Stone]

18. Wonderful and thought-provoking

Any extreme is unhealthy. The best we can hope for, at minimum, is to strike a workable balance, make things better where we can for ourselves and for those we love, and follow the Golden Rule.

Thanks, H2O Man. One other thing I've learned at DU: Some of the naysayers are just professional naysayers. :)

19. Overall, I think this locus of control fits with a kind of

aggressive way of being in the world. A way that men are expected and taught to behave early on. In my experience, many women have this locus, though they are often very marked in their need to achieve something. And then there is a question of trying to change society, or to go to the heights within society. I think both Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King chose their wives based on their beauty and intelligence and ability to fit into their lives. They did not choose activist wives, although Winnie did become an activist and so did Coretta later on. This is probably getting off the topic.

I am still developing a sense of this locus. I know it is there, needing to be developed more.

[Acryliccalico]

22. Wonderful / Excellent ............. n/t

[LoZoccolo]

24. I would posit that Internet dwellers do not have an internal locus and...

...often are not really activists, generally. This is just the impression I get of the tone of most of the posts and the fact that I put out several calls for people to post what they're doing to get involved and they're sparsely responded to. It would be great if everyone who logged on to DU today went and did something real for 2006 but I'm not pinning my hopes on it. There are a lot of people out there working though. The interesting thing is that there is very little crossover between people I see at events and people on DU.

27. I think many people on DU are activists

Many people who are not activists do not even bother to keep up with what is happening in Washington.

[NJCher]

36. different ways

I go to a lot of protests and I think the biggest factor in bringing in new people is Air America. Almost everytime I go to a rally, demonstration or whatever, I talk to people who found out about it or were motivated by something they heard on AA.

On the other hand, I know a number of DU-ers who do not go to protests, rallies or demonstrations. But they are right on the front of the battle-- by telling others about DU. I know many of them have brought in numerous new members. DU being the thought catalyst that it is, I think it is undeniable that this is a substantial activist achievement.

Re the threads you create asking people what they are doing, there have been times I've declined to answer, even though I'm doing something. Can't exactly say why I don't answer, but I'd guess I'm not the only one. I think it would be unfair to make a conclusion based on answers to that kind of inquiry.




Cher

[Snaggletooth]

44. Given what El Presidente Nosy Rosy has been up to...

only a fool would post specific details regarding their protest activities on the Internet. We still have a right not to implicate ourselves...or do we? ;)

Snaggletooth the Crone

[LoZoccolo]

58. I'm not really talking about protests.

I'm talking about work beyond expressing yourself or blowing off steam.

[zippy890]

25. Empowerment - the candle flickers but still gives light

For some reason your post brought to mind a passage from Kahlil Gibran's
The Prophet:


"That which seems most feeble and bewildered in you
is the strongest and most determined.

Is it not your breath that has erected and hardened the structure of your bones?
And is it not a dream which none of you remember having dreamt,
that building your city and fashioned all there is in it?
Could you but see the tides of that breath you would cease to see all else,
And if you could hear the whispering of the dream you would hear no other sound.

But you do not see, nor do you hear, and it is well.
The veil that clouds your eyes shall be lifted by the hands that wove it,
And the clay that fills your ears shall be pierced by those fingers that kneaded it.
And you shall see
And you shall hear.
Yet you shall not deplore having known blindness, nor regret having been deaf.
For in that day you shall know the hidden purposes in all things,
And you shall bless darkness as you would bless light."




To you H2O Man, and others here who write so inspirationally,
you help keep the candle of hope burning.

[Joe Chi Minh]

29. A pedantic point, Patrick, but I don't believe St Francis is credited

with the authorship of the Serenity Prayer. Below, is a website I found on Google on the subject of that prayer and its apparently uncertain authorship. (I had thought it was a prayer of St Ignatius). I think it mentions the 12 Step Programs):

http://www.aahistory.com/prayer.html

[im10ashus]

30. Re #1: I've not heard the term "locus of control" in a LONG time.

I hate the little "tests" to determine the inner/external locus of control. I always felt that there are both internal and external influences. Some of which we can govern, others not so much. I guess that's why I always scored in the middle. :crazy:

[ultraist]

31. K&R

Never underestimate the ability of a small group of people to change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
- Margaret Mead

[Duncan Grant]

38. That's one of my favorite quotes.

Mead's quote is the first thing I thought of after reading the OP. Thanks for posting it. :thumbsup:

[bleever]

32. A superb post, which touches on something I was thinking about earlier

today, listening to Air America in the car: the efforts to spread and enforce learned helplessness among Democrats. Some talking points espoused by "Democrats" and "friendly" Republicans include:


*Democrats don't stand for anything.

*Democrats put up boring candidates.

*Democrats can't get a message out.

*Democrats are doomed by the likes of Nancy Pelosi and Hillary Clinton, who are miles outside the mainstream.

*Democrats are afraid to take a real stand.


All of these are cited as reasons that Democrats "lost" the last two presidential "elections". These bits of advice are intended to sow doubt, to enforce the notion of an external locus of control. It's not only about blaming the victim; it's about getting the victim to blame her or himself. Once you get people wondering why they're "losers", you've already beaten them.

Howard Dean's refusal to play this game is one the key elements of his effectiveness, and why the right seeks to vilify him and turn him into a caricature.

[rosesaylavee]

37. I have seen many of those threads this week ...

and I very much needed to read this today.

You are the brightest light here on DU - I am very grateful that you choose to post here and I have ready access to your writing and your thoughtful and thought-provoking insights.

Blessings on your head, H2O Man!

[H2O Man]

40. Thank you.

I appreciate that.

[Duncan Grant]

41. There are examples within the GLBT community which are applicable, too.

This is among the best posts I've read at DU in recent weeks. It reminds me of an old civil rights tradition of "each one, teach one" -- the knowledge itself is powerful and transformative. Thanks for offering a little mentoring, H2O Man. :thumbsup:

I wanted to add a quick comment about the internal locus of control; not only as someone who is politically active but also, as someone who has been living an "out" gay life for over 20 years.

Consider for a moment, the tremendous power of "coming out". In my experience it's been among the most empowering expressions of an internal locus of control. It not only transformed me, but also my family, friends, co-workers and other GLBT people, too. Truly, it is a political act.

Combine the impact of my coming out with millions of others and it's easy to see the cumulative effect of profound cultural change. It might also be worthwhile to remember how gay people and their allies responded to the AIDS crises. In the face of so much hopelessness, grief and despair -- communities of people organized themselves into a multi-faceted response. Talk about efficacy! Those five areas of control mentioned above were integral to our efforts.

Not to belabor the point but "come out" - do what you can. One never knows how powerful the impact may be on other's lives.

[H2O Man]

42. Good points.

I agree.

[TacticalPeek]

43. .

http://www.fannielouhamer.info/sncc_mfdp.html

[upi402]

45. 2 forms of bi-polar power interest me

economic system of power; unions v. monied elites

consenting to be governed societal power; the masses v. government with means of force

i'm a populist, and i've always somehow known that we are dirt unless we lock arms.

[durrrty libby]

49. K & R for later n/t

[Autonomy]

50. Perhaps the most interesting

OP I've seen yet on DU. I am studying social power, both as group and individual phenomena. For groups I tend to use in-group vs. out-group designations for cultural perspective, but I've been lacking coherent categories for individuals. My abstract focuses more on "efficacy" (to use your word; I call it "health" or "normality") as a function of power. Would you be so kind as to tell me who the specific social scientists are who created those 5 forms?

Interesting you mentioned learned helplessness; that is how many psychologists are currently defining depression.

One minor correction: the Serenity Prayer was written by Reinhold Niebuhr, not St. Francis. The St. Francis Prayer (aka the 11th Step Prayer) is the one that goes "Lord, make me a channel of thy peace; that where there is hatred, I may bring love..."

[H2O Man]

52. Some sources

that you might find of interest regarding the 5 forms:

J R Averill's 1973 "Personal control over aversive stimuli and its relationship to stress"; Psychological Bulletin 80; pgs 286-303.

S. Cohen, G.W. Evans, D. Stokols & D.S. Krantz's 1986 "Behavior, health and environmental stress"; New York; Plenum.

S.M. Miller's 1979 "Controllability and human stress: Method, evidence theory"; Behavior Research and Therapy, 17; pgs 287-304.

S.C. Thompson's 1981 "Will it hurt less if I control it? A complex answerto a simple question"; Psychological Bulletin, 90; pgs 85-100.

[Autonomy]

61. Thanks!

That's more than I had hoped for! :)

[atommom]

53. Fantastic thread. Very thought-provoking.

I agree with meganmonkey that we need to shift our approach.

[nmliberal]

54. I will allow no one, not another Democrat, certainly not the media

I refuse to give and quit showing up for the fight.

Decisions do get made by those who show up, at least sometimes.

Here in New Mexico,many of us fought the DRE voting machines, even when fellow Dems (all the way up to the Secretary of State and Election Bureau Director) were saying there was no problem. New Mexico now has a law on the books requiring auditable voter verified ballots and local Dems who watched us fight this fight are energized, knowing they too can effect a change.

I am a proud Democrat.

[dalaigh lllama]

56. the serenity prayer

for those not familiar with it:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
The courage to change the things I can;
And the wisdom to know the difference.

This is a functional tool that has gotten me thru many a dark moment in my life.

For those who despair that most DUers aren't doing enough to effect change: There are some here who organize and/or go to protests; some who can write editorials or LTTE; some who write their congresspeople or sign petitions. These are the obvious activists. There are others who talk to their relatives or co-workers or neighbors, or even the guy in line at the deli. They, too, are effecting a change in the groundswell of public opinion. There are others who may just come here on a daily basis -- the lurkers -- who personally evince the change they wish to see. Everyone here, great and small, is a catalyst for change; everyone here is a "tiny ripple of hope."

This bears repeating:

It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centres of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.

Thank you H2O man. Your posts are always an inspiration and a great reminder to never give up hope. Once more into the fray...

[rosesaylavee]

62. Great addition to this thread...

which is now one of my most favorite threads ever...
Your post reminded me of this:

"A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Margaret Mead

[PATRICK]

57. The relocation to the individual

as the refuge of the few who can in turn liberate the many highlights the brutal physical problem of the World.

Weapons, thugs and warlords. Or in civilized countries, police, army and CIC.

Money structures and set goals, debts and expectations.

Social conformity. Even modest non-conformity if done just a bit strangely can cost an individual dearly. The tolerated or the rules of the game "non-conformity" can be an absorbed ritual as the move to break out of the mold reaches that certain limit where brute force or social destruction is brought to bear. Look how every detail of daily life is determined on an "or else" basis.

The pyramids over or containing the circles. As we support our goals and lives through rich and small circles we move under levels of greater and ever more oppressive force. Yet neither the paper money, nor the cultural skins or possiessions, nor the individual people have any concrete force or superiority not given to them by social convention. "Conventional" wisodom can thus become a dunamental absurdity of valueless arbitrary codes and a juggernaut of blind tradition.

The ability to escape this civilization is shrinking. Many people have phsically opted out by running off and changing identity or country. That concrete safety valve is shrinking and of the remaining options, resentful surrender, violence, crime, dark alliances and social reform, their scattered numbers and divisions and powerlessness mirror the oppressive disease without always affecting it.

Stepping outside reflectively and culturally a dedicated Buddhist would see immediately as fraught with still tainted illusions. Reacting to an evil or not affirms its power unless it is overcome with truth and compassion. Lies and self deceit cocoons itself and then its social context so that truth is made to appear destructive of the small universe of lies. Good then becomes a threat, an evil to a warped society. When truth dies a lie based society dies with it, but the stakes today are too high to be complacent about the justification of an "eventually" that may see humanity destroyed globally.

Montaigne's isolated tower of refuge during the madness of wars of religion symbolized the beachhead of the Enlightenment nonetheless, even as it seemed the frittering emblem of self-contained despair. It was all he had. Our times, believe it or not, have not yet descended to that point of savagery and knowledge and awareness is still a dawn not yet aborted. So an individual who steps aside from the massive delusion and march to obliteration must step physically right back in again and act. Such are our times, such is the demand of a mind not asleep or driven. The basic people talked about in the article are those truth in action driven or those who have surrendered to an outside dominated by failure to act and lies. The former know others and serve others from one focus, the others know nothing about anyone including themselves except the lies that shout absolute comfort through rage.

[pat_k]

60. Herding cats

http://january6th.org/files/herding_cats.html

[myrna minx]

63. Thank you H20 Man.

:applause: A little kick for the Monday morning crowd. :kick: