We bring attention, locally and world-wide, to the greed, corruption, and loss of rights of Americans, and work to put WE THE PEOPLE back into the Constitution.
Intro (View PDF)
YOU ARE THE 99%
We are all the 99%. We wish to unite the 99% of our country who are struggling at the hands of the top 1%. We are a group of people of all ages, ideologies, and beliefs. Together, we are bringing the message from Wall Street to Your Street by representing our region in a peaceful, nonviolent manner which allows all voices to be heard. If you are tired of being silenced by our systems of power and greed and wish to see a change in your city and the nation as a whole, please join the movement and let your voice be heard.
OUR STRUGGLE IS AMERICA’S STRUGGLE
In order for progress to be made, solidarity is key in communities large and small. Our region has been hard-hit by the poor business practices and greed of corporations and big banks that have put the entire nation in turmoil. The median household income in the Roanoke area is 30% less than the Virginia average and 19% less than the national average. The poverty level in the Roanoke area is 39.3% greater than the Virginia average and 29.7% greater than the national average. The unemployment rate in Martinsville rose to a staggering 19.4% as of August 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Now is the time to act before things get worse for us or anyone else.
WHAT WE ARE AND WHAT WE ARE NOT
Our group is not, nor will it ever be, affiliated with any political party, politician, corporation, or special interest group. While our individual members hold beliefs across the political spectrum, we are all united for the common purpose of restoring the people’s voice in the political process and taking action locally to make positive changes that help all of us. Everyone is welcome to express his or her opinion, and decisions are made by consensus of the group as a whole. There is no one “in charge.” We do not have leaders: our General Assemblies are facilitated by members. There are several committees or “working groups” that devote time to tasks such as Direct Action, Legal, and Media affairs. Their plans are presented to the assembly as a whole and voted upon by consensus.
Seth Leonard said on November 4, 2011
I have paranoid schizophrenia, but this is all based on facts. I say that, because this is a weighty topic. Please read for yourself…
I would be grossly remiss if I failed to bring you the traditional (hereafter simply Hopi) Hopi message that the world would transform radically by the end of the Hopi/Mayan calendar, December 21, 2012. I visited the Hopi in 1998-1999 in Flagstaff, AZ. Though they never talked about their prophesy with me, I was confronted with their book at the first onset, Hotevilla by Mails/Evehema. In this book the spiritually advanced traditional Hopi prophesy WWIII on page 35 in a glyph on a 1000 year old pictograph on a rock on the reservation. For details on this please Google Hopi Prophesy Rock. See The Hopi accurately prophesied WWI and II before they occurred and boldly told the US President at that time (I think it was Taft) and were ignored. It is wise not to ignore the Hopi. Their prophesies usually come true.
The point of the book, and the point that was so clear when I was in Flagstaff, is that Western “civilization” has created a real mess of native Hopi life. The BIA, Peabody Coal and the churches have done irreparable harm to the traditional, ceremonial way of life of the traditional Hopi. Now the Hopi are the nation’s spiritual elders… when their ceremonial life is damaged, so goes the nation. They are afraid for themselves and for us.
The subtitle of Hotevilla is ‘microcosm of the world’ and what they seem to mean by that is that every community in the Global South has or will experience this kind of maltreatment from the US military-industrial complex. War, wage slavery, environmental racism (climate change, mining tailings, pesti/herbicides, factory river/air pollution, illegal dumping, etc), relocation of native people, crippling debt via the IMF/World Bank, US support of (military) dictatorships have all been felt by the Global South. This is our hallmark in the developing world. All because we can get away with it. This is all in a quest for profit. You see, profit is like a spell cast over people, because in essence, it causes slavery. With profit, you get something, for nothing. If everyone were a wage earner, we would all gain more based on skill alone. Essentially, we would all be financially equal. What the Hopi are exposing, what they are declaring in that the emperor wears no clothes, is that we can avoid WWIII through reason. We can recognize the dangers to humanity and the environment that business and the military and churches cause, and make changes for a good world, and not go through WWIII.
The Hopi allude to the interesting point that there is one thing we haven’t thought of… the Chinese. We have an odd behavior with them. We are shtuping them with wage slavery on one hand, and borrowing money we don’t plan on paying back with the other. To add fuel to the fire, the Chinese are schooled Marxists. They are very familiar with the machinations of neo-fascist capitalism. And they have an army much larger than ours. They are hacking into our military, medical and engineering secrets. Plus, oil, water and mineral resources are being scrambled for by hegemonies worldwide. Add to that the global debt crisis. On top of it all, they have some of our nuclear weapons secrets.
The Hopi say that on Purification Day a ‘red army’ will cover the Earth like red ants. This is thought to mean that at a certain turning point Russia, China and their allies (perhaps Latin American) will rout the US and her allies and conquer the world, WWIII. Whether this prophesy is a deterrent to help us get our act together or if this is simply the bitter truth, I do not know. I suspect the former, knowing the Hopi, but don’t rule out the latter, knowing the Republican Party and American business. In any event, we seem to be in real trouble here. As time continues and it seems more and more obvious that we will go to war with China et al, be prepared. Don’t go to war. Negotiate. Have talks and negotiate. We are all living on one small planet, and it is time that we work together, brother with brother. Common fellowship is inevitable anyway, do it before we all perish.
I picture to myself what friends and family would say to me after the Chinese invaded, asking why I didn’t do more to cry out, since I knew. I have been very vocal about this, and I recognize that a prophesy is difficult to be sure about. However, you can look at the facts. The developing world is slave to a relative few in this country and Europe, and powerful in Asia. America is in a funny position with China. The environment is very, very tired. 1.2 billion people globally are on the edge of starvation every day. Clearly, we are at a tipping point, and we have been for some time. Perhaps China is ready to cut the strings of the puppet master.
It is an interesting thing to note that in spite of all of these facts the Mayans, cousin to the Hopi, insist that we will transition to world peace at the end of the calendar without world war. I suspect that is possible, but we have some work to do, and time is running out. It is time to stand strong for peace and justice, the world over. It should be noted that the Hopi are a holy people, they are the nation’s spiritual elders, and the last thing they want is to see WWIII. They have been protesting nuclear weapons and WWIII since WWII, and have been to the UN (the house of mica) four times to make this protest official.
It is my opinion that ‘work’ is at the heart of this problem. Here is a four point program for our future, a mustard seed of wisdom:
1. Let’s begin a program of socialism for 2.5 months of the year or 2 days per week for anyone who wants to volunteer for it (and thus benefit from it in food, housing benefits, transportation, medicine, education, etc) to keep the trains running on time. This socialist program can embrace participatory economics, anarchist wisdom, native wisdom and socialist wisdom in economics, and even free market wisdom in business. The idea is to create an efficient, livable, effective, wise and environmentally friendly global workplace for taking care of our global needs. Our socialist program needs to set the laws for energy and transportation, such as high speed rail and renewable energy. Global needs need to set the precedent before wants.
2. Gear colleges, universities and trade schools to help us unlock the real dreams of our hearts for the rest of our time, while guiding us through counselors and native elders how to be of service to humanity via our dreams, in harmony with nature. It doesn’t matter what we do, as long as we love what we do, it is a service to others, and it is in harmony with nature. Native people will have this opportunity to continue their native life unabated if they choose.
3. Let’s develop a worldly zeitgeist regarding population control. Our planet is finite, and we need to limit the number of families we allow to live here… the Earth can only take so much!
4. Understanding of the chakra system should be taught by ancient cultures and traditions such as Tibetans, Hopi, Hebrew and Hindu. The reason for this is that the chakras (through meditation, Reiki, Chi, Qi Gong, yoga, Wicca, etc) unlock the inner voice, allowing you to understand right from wrong from the spirit within. We all have chakras, they are simply the nerve bundles and glands along our spine and in the palms and soles of our feet. Opening these chakras to the Spirit can be taught to anyone. One easy beginning lesson for this is called the Tai Chi energy ball. Simply take a deep breath, relax, and gently bring your palms together to within two inches from one another. The polarity between your palms is the energy of your chakras. (please don’t open your chakras too quickly as it can cause mental and/or physical illness.. it takes a long time for your neurons to soften for the movement of energy. Take 6-12 months with a meditation teacher to open up your chakras).
One day, when all people have an understanding of their chakras, we will no longer need law. We will all know what to do, and we will live in paradise.
May all love and peace be with you.
Seth Leonard
Here is some reference material to back up my claims:
All of the Hopi information can be found in Hotevilla: Hopi Shrine of the Covenant : Microcosm of the World by Thomas E. Mails and Dan Evehema, and by Googling Hopi Prophesy Rock to match page 35, the Hopi prophesy rock. See also Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins US war on the developing world has been documented in the papers for over a hundred years. It is interesting to note that the Hopi prophesied WWI and II before they occurred, and reported this to the then President. For this, they were imprisoned. There is a book called Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions Since World War II–Updated Through 2003 by William Blum that describes constant war by the US since WWII toward the developing world.
Wage slavery in the Global South is very, very hard to prove, but it is likely prevalent. There is a good book on it called Made in China: Women Factory Workers in a Global Workplace by Ngai Pun. See also The Story of Stuff: The Impact of Overconsumption on the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health-And How We Can Make It Better by Annie Leonard See United Students Against Sweatshops: http://usas.org/
For environmental racism, see Global Witness website: http://www.globalwitness.org/ For relocation of native people, see Survival Interational: http://www.survivalinternational.org/ IMF and World Bank cause poverty: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrynBzUpyag US support of dictatorships (and many, many other oppressive issues): http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/
Here is some info on the PLA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Liberation_Army Their army is 3 million strong. The fact that the Chinese have been hacking into our professional computers has been in the news for over 10 years. http://cyberarms.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/chinese-hackers-spear-phishing-for-us-military-secrets/ and http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread350381/pg1 There is a book that illustrates China’s obtaining our nuclear secrets, Tiger Trap: America’s Secret Spy War with China by David Wise.
Peak Oil, Peak Water:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_water
Debt to China and others:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_public_debt
Gobal Poverty:
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/sep2008/pove-s02.shtml
http://www.globalissues.org
Thomas West said on December 4, 2011
You are talking about socialism and more government in the lives of the people. Unfortunately socialism does not work.
Mitch Norris said on February 6, 2012
“Welcome to 2012. The Age of Greed is Over”
That’s a line from the new song, “Occupy”, by the Norris Brothers Band, which was just released on the
Solar Powered Records label. In the first seven days since its release, the song has been played
thousands of times in 68 countries world-wide, and has already been adopted by Occupy movements
around the globe.
The Norris Brothers Band is donating all profit from the sales of this song to the Occupy movement, and
is donating the use of the song to all Occupations, world-wide, for whatever their needs may be. Money
collected from sales will go back to the closest local occupation whenever possible. The song is now
available on iTunes and Amazon, and will be available on all other major online music outlets, world-
wide, over the next few days and weeks.
Here are links to Watch the YouTube video (http://youtu.be/baZ1qnVvwkA), Listen to the song
(http://www.reverbnation.com/tunepak/song_11461740), and Download a FREE
MP3(http://www.reverbnation.com/832725?exclusive=11461740).
The band also just launched a new website called Rockupy Earth (www.RokupyEarth.com ) that is
encouraging other musicians around the world to do the same.
Music has always played a significant role in helping to unite people behind a cause, and it’s time for
music to help change the world again. The Norris Brothers Band is honored to be able to do our small
part in assisting those on the front lines of Occupations all over the world, who are helping all of us to
wake up to the truth.
Please consider this your permission to use “Occupy” for your local movement, and please post the links
above and pass them along to your members, and to anyone else who may benefit.
Keep up the good work, and stay in touch.
Mitch Norris
Patti Landovek said on February 21, 2012
I need someone to get in touch with me. I had sent a letter to Goodlatte’s office and one of his assistants wants to meet with me. Should I go and what should I say?
Rob Fulson (Web Facilitator) said on February 22, 2012
You can post your question on our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Occupyroanokeva/. Please elaborate about what they want to meet with you about.
William John Cox said on March 23, 2012
To: The General Assembly of Occupy Roanoke.
(Please forward to coordinator or facilitator)
Regarding: The ability of American voters, of every party, to control their own government.
Call to Action: It is critically important that you support a Voters’ Rights Amendment to the Constitution of the United States to transform its government into one that is responsive to those who elect it, rather than to the corporations and wealthy elite who purchase the people’s representatives.
Background: The bipartisan outrage over the Supreme Court’s decisions in Buckley and Citizens United has led to a number of proposals to reverse them through an amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The best known of these is the effort by Move to Amend, which restricts constitutional rights to natural persons only and which disallows the equation of money and free speech.
Problem: The Move to Amend proposal is a great start; however it does not go far enough. In fact, after a long and difficult amendment process, it only returns the electoral process to where it was before the court’s decisions, which wasn’t so great for the People of America.
Solution: The Voters’ Rights Amendment (USVRA) includes the Move to Amend proposal, but goes further to clearly establish that the right to cast an effective vote is an inherent right under the Constitution. In addition, it provides for a national paid voting holiday, a national hand-countable paper ballot, and a process for the people to have a more direct role in the formulation of public policy. Finally, it mandates voter registration and prohibits voter suppression.
Consequence: The USVRA will result in a transformation of the U.S. government into a more representative democracy in which the power of money and corporations will be curtailed and the power of the people will prevail.
USVRA requests: (1) a vote by your general assembly to support the USVRA; (2) encouragement of other Occupy groups to support the USVRA; (3) a link on your net pages to USVRA; and (4) encouragement of your individual members to show their personal support at the USVRA website and on the Facebook page (Voters’ Rights Amendment US).
Contact: JasonJames81@gmail.com of Occupy Long Beach for more information and to confirm your support.
See: http://www.usvra.us for more background and discussion, including a list of other Occupy supporters.