The Establishment
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 7:49 pm
In the Wood, the establishment can be perceived as a ruling network of individuals whose perceptions of, and collective actions in Lakewood are rooted in an older, by-gone era of industrial prosperity.
The Establishment Status Quo is a mindset. Those caught in its spin consciously perceive only minimal disturbances and or changes in the imagined “Mayberry†image.
It's a time warp via perception. Those operating in this mindset actually cannot see disturbances or changes in the fundamental community image of the past. It's not their fault, they really can't see it.
As conditions of and on the streets deteriorate, as neighborhoods explode with quality of life degeneracy, as tectonic demographic shifts rip through the socio-economic landscape, the Establish Status Quo will continue to deny what they cannot see... as it doesn't exist to them.
The Establishment Status Quo is a mindset not bound by "elite" affiliation so much as shared affection for a "Lakewood" that, arguably, no longer exists or is on the threshold of extinction.
The Establishment Status Quo includes a diverse group of individuals who deny degeneration and transition from many different ideologically and emotionally grounded thought processes. Again, it's not a coherent elite as much as a diverse group of individuals with a vested interest in ignoring or remaining blind to change. They manage decline, defacto.
It's also informative to consider the clear generational divide on these issues.
The young, not growing up with the spoils of a robust economy have no dillusional affinatey for one. They, like the industrial north, are under capitalized as a class, lacking the economic security of older generations. They cannot identify with the tribalism of the old guard. The problems don't seem insurmountable to them, yet the generations in power won't adequately address the issues.
This is a crisis of sorts.
When we speak about de-industrialization and economic transition in the rust belt, we all clearly acknowledge that industrial strength employment for the working class has exited the region and/or country. However, seldom do we acknowledge that the social and political systems which rested firmly on this industrial economic base, if nothing else, are mis-matched with the actual conditions on the ground. They continue to exist and replicate though are clearly on the out, yet remain in power, for the time being.
We know the jobs are gone. But most individuals are grounded in a psychology born of that by-gone industrial era. This is largely an unconscious affinity for hierarchical and/or tribal modes of collecting, organizing and executing on social, financial and spiritual capital in community.
Insofar as the Democratic machine's rise to power is a political signifier of that industrial strength employment base, a de-industrialized region still ruled by that same machine, by extension, is at least, a case of an out-dated network of political and private relationships tied to a resource/power distribution scheme which is no longer relevant, given de-capitalization.
Capitalized, the Democratic machines of the urban north supported robust civic institutions that were generally hierarchical, authoritarian, male dominated balancing the political demands of the ruling industrialist elite with that of [what was then] “the world’s largest and wealthiest middle class.â€Â
De-capitalized, the machines of the urban north have degenerated to tribal, clannish behavior, still-male dominated (perhaps to their detriment), riding the fumes of economic development where union building contracts(highways, green fields, public infrastructure) act as an insufficient replacement for the robust spoils of the aforementioned CAPITALIZED middle class and progressively taxed (out the wazoo) elite. De-capitalized, they oversee the administration of under-funded bureaucracies in shrinking, jobless economies while the federal government moves to regressive taxation structures which further under-fund the over-built bureaucracies.
The issue at hand is globalization and how our leaders and we as citizens deal with it. It will be the hand shaking the national economy for the next several generations, until the transition is complete, and a new, yet incomprehensible, less conceivable, economy is born from the shake out.
The challenge is to face the challenge. No more denying. Tribalism is a clear regression grounded in a magical scheme of denial, ala Gary Rice’s Lakewood is Great photo blog and posts.
Don’t get me wrong Gary, Lakewood is great. And I have much love for you. Though nothing is a given. All things are subject to revision, and all things will be revised in a universe of constant motion, death, transformation and rebirth.
Those who are sensitive to the quality of life degeneration need to continue standing up and acting on their perception.
So do those who deny this degeneration. Only through civic confrontation will some sort of resolve be reached. Confrontation is unavoidable at this point, ala Ed Fitzgerald’s Stunning victory in the primary, a clear indicator that safety resonates while the inaction and denial of the Establishment strikes with dissonance in the hearts and minds of voters.
The Establishment Status Quo is a mindset. Those caught in its spin consciously perceive only minimal disturbances and or changes in the imagined “Mayberry†image.
It's a time warp via perception. Those operating in this mindset actually cannot see disturbances or changes in the fundamental community image of the past. It's not their fault, they really can't see it.
As conditions of and on the streets deteriorate, as neighborhoods explode with quality of life degeneracy, as tectonic demographic shifts rip through the socio-economic landscape, the Establish Status Quo will continue to deny what they cannot see... as it doesn't exist to them.
The Establishment Status Quo is a mindset not bound by "elite" affiliation so much as shared affection for a "Lakewood" that, arguably, no longer exists or is on the threshold of extinction.
The Establishment Status Quo includes a diverse group of individuals who deny degeneration and transition from many different ideologically and emotionally grounded thought processes. Again, it's not a coherent elite as much as a diverse group of individuals with a vested interest in ignoring or remaining blind to change. They manage decline, defacto.
It's also informative to consider the clear generational divide on these issues.
The young, not growing up with the spoils of a robust economy have no dillusional affinatey for one. They, like the industrial north, are under capitalized as a class, lacking the economic security of older generations. They cannot identify with the tribalism of the old guard. The problems don't seem insurmountable to them, yet the generations in power won't adequately address the issues.
This is a crisis of sorts.
When we speak about de-industrialization and economic transition in the rust belt, we all clearly acknowledge that industrial strength employment for the working class has exited the region and/or country. However, seldom do we acknowledge that the social and political systems which rested firmly on this industrial economic base, if nothing else, are mis-matched with the actual conditions on the ground. They continue to exist and replicate though are clearly on the out, yet remain in power, for the time being.
We know the jobs are gone. But most individuals are grounded in a psychology born of that by-gone industrial era. This is largely an unconscious affinity for hierarchical and/or tribal modes of collecting, organizing and executing on social, financial and spiritual capital in community.
Insofar as the Democratic machine's rise to power is a political signifier of that industrial strength employment base, a de-industrialized region still ruled by that same machine, by extension, is at least, a case of an out-dated network of political and private relationships tied to a resource/power distribution scheme which is no longer relevant, given de-capitalization.
Capitalized, the Democratic machines of the urban north supported robust civic institutions that were generally hierarchical, authoritarian, male dominated balancing the political demands of the ruling industrialist elite with that of [what was then] “the world’s largest and wealthiest middle class.â€Â
De-capitalized, the machines of the urban north have degenerated to tribal, clannish behavior, still-male dominated (perhaps to their detriment), riding the fumes of economic development where union building contracts(highways, green fields, public infrastructure) act as an insufficient replacement for the robust spoils of the aforementioned CAPITALIZED middle class and progressively taxed (out the wazoo) elite. De-capitalized, they oversee the administration of under-funded bureaucracies in shrinking, jobless economies while the federal government moves to regressive taxation structures which further under-fund the over-built bureaucracies.
The issue at hand is globalization and how our leaders and we as citizens deal with it. It will be the hand shaking the national economy for the next several generations, until the transition is complete, and a new, yet incomprehensible, less conceivable, economy is born from the shake out.
The challenge is to face the challenge. No more denying. Tribalism is a clear regression grounded in a magical scheme of denial, ala Gary Rice’s Lakewood is Great photo blog and posts.
Don’t get me wrong Gary, Lakewood is great. And I have much love for you. Though nothing is a given. All things are subject to revision, and all things will be revised in a universe of constant motion, death, transformation and rebirth.
Those who are sensitive to the quality of life degeneration need to continue standing up and acting on their perception.
So do those who deny this degeneration. Only through civic confrontation will some sort of resolve be reached. Confrontation is unavoidable at this point, ala Ed Fitzgerald’s Stunning victory in the primary, a clear indicator that safety resonates while the inaction and denial of the Establishment strikes with dissonance in the hearts and minds of voters.
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