On Mar 19, 2007, at 12:18 PM, Michael Perelman wrote:
I wonder how much grassroots political action has been diverted by intellectual masturbation about grand strategies.
Close to none, I'd guess. Grassroots activists in the U.S. scorn "intellectual masturbation," and often with the contemptuous dismissal embodied by your own choice of words. Most grassroots activists that I've known plunge into some struggle or other, without much reflection on how it fits into a larger picture - habit encouraged by foundation program officers, who like very narrow, targeted action, because it's compatible with the kinds of "metrics" they love, because it's more compatible with charity rather than self- organization, and because it doesn't threaten the Pig System. Doug
