Issue Survey Results as of 180 Answers

     

I have begun my analysis of the data that I collected during my survey. I have 180 responses which have given me a rough estimate of the values of the collective group. I divided the answers into three catagories: low, Middle, and high. The low category (score of 0-3) is composed of the people who would not support the proposal in any way, and would likely be difficult to persuade otherwise. The middle category (score of 4-6) is composed of the people who are on the fence and could possible be swayed to the one side or the other. The high category (score of 7+) is composed of the people who will support the proposal no matter what.

The ratio is not a percentage of support but rather a ratio of high support data point to low support data points. To use the Glass-Steagall results as an example: You read it at a support of 75% where the actual results show support of 75:1 (for every 75 positive votes, I received one negative vote; there were 2 either very low or block votes compared to 150 very high or high votes).

Using a fairly large margin of error, any issue with a positive:negative ratio of more than 10 would probably be easy to pass in a GA. A ten to one ratio would mean that there would be over 90% support for the issue, even taking into account the block potential and the margin of error in my study, I posit that it would likely pass once we are actually talking demands.

Keep in mind, the middle level of support is composed of those without strong opinions and thus open to convincing either way. This middle category will make up their minds on the issues as we vote on the issues and thus the deciding factor in some of these issues will be convincing those people on the fence or ignorant of an issue.

By finding the ratio between those who would support a proposal and those who wouldn't, I can estimate the general levels of support that a proposal to the GA would receive. Any issue that has a high ratio would likely be passed without much debate or blocking. For example: a ratio of 3 or above means that at least 75% (enough to overcome a block) of people would be at least OK with a proposal if not happy about it passing.

IMPORTANT NOTE: There were numerous write in questions, mostly involving rights of free speech and minority protection. I have not ignored these, and will release an analysis of the write in values soon.

Survey Results as of 180 answers
	Low	middle/Abstain	high
Question	Score 0-3	Score 4-6	Score 7-10	Ratio - High tier:Low tier
Election and Interest Reform
Revoking Corporate Personhood	7	23	150	21.42857143
Election Reform	10	25	145	14.5
Political interest reform	16	39	125	7.8125
Regulator "Revolving Door" Elimination	4	40	136	34
Political "Revolving Door" Elimination	5	39	136	27.2
Systemic Political Reform	55	50	75	1.363636364
Social Safety Net		180		#DIV/0!
Social Security #1	13	57	110	8.461538462
Social Security #2	10	31	139	13.9
Medicare	10	52	118	11.8
Medicaid	13	55	112	8.615384615
Taxes		180		#DIV/0!
Progressive Tax Reform	9	18	153	17
Regressive Tax Reform	96	59	25	0.260416667
Capital Gains Tax Reform	6	23	151	25.16666667
Personal Tax Loopholes	3	22	155	51.66666667
Corporate Tax Loopholes and Subsidies	4	19	157	39.25
Bank Reform		180		#DIV/0!
Bank Reform #1	4	32	144	36
Glass-Steagall	2	28	150	75
Speculation Reform	5	55	120	24
Fed Reform	8	41	131	16.375
Fed Removal	72	66	42	0.583333333
Debt		180		#DIV/0!
Student Debt	9	39	132	14.66666667
Personal Debt	15	68	97	6.466666667
Mortgage Debt	6	53	121	20.16666667
Worker's Rights		180		#DIV/0!
Unionization	7	45	128	18.28571429
Right To Work Legislation	95	59	26	0.273684211
Minimum Wage #1	11	47	122	11.09090909
Minimum Wage #2	136	39	5	0.036764706
Safety Regulations	3	41	136	45.33333333
War and International Aid		180		#DIV/0!
Iraq #1	5	32	143	28.6
Iraq #2	136	40	4	0.029411765
Afghanistan #1	7	35	138	19.71428571
Afghanistan #2	128	40	12	0.09375
International Relations #1	110	61	9	0.081818182
International Relations #2	15	49	116	7.733333333
United Nations	13	41	126	9.692307692
Trade		180		#DIV/0!
International Trade	63	71	46	0.73015873
NAFTA	75	77	28	0.373333333
Free Trade and Currency Manipulation	17	89	74	4.352941176
Tariffs	16	47	117	7.3125
Privatization and Health Policy		180		#DIV/0!
Health Policy	8	22	150	18.75
Affordable Care Act #1	139	36	5	0.035971223
Affordable Care Act #2	28	55	97	3.464285714
Privatization #1	21	36	123	5.857142857
Privatization #2	137	28	15	0.109489051
Privatized Prisons	131	41	8	0.061068702
Law and Immigration		180		#DIV/0!
Marijuana	5	45	130	26
Prison V. Rehabilitation	4	33	143	35.75
Immigration #1	10	42	128	12.8
Immigration #2	128	44	8	0.0625
Immigration #3	129	37	14	0.108527132
Immigration #4	91	75	14	0.153846154
Environmental		180		#DIV/0!
Environmental Regulations #1	1	30	149	149
Environmental Regulations #2	158	22	0	0
Clean Energy	4	24	152	38
Coal Energy	122	46	12	0.098360656
Oil	129	40	11	0.085271318
Issue	Ratio
Environmental Regulations #1	149	100% Approval
Glass-Steagall	75
Personal Tax Loopholes	51.66667
Safety Regulations	45.33333
Corporate Tax Loopholes and Subsidies	39.25
Clean Energy	38
Bank Reform #1	36
Prison V. Rehabilitation	35.75
Regulator "Revolving Door" Elimination	34
Iraq #1	28.6
Political "Revolving Door" Elimination	27.2
Marijuana	26
Capital Gains Tax Reform	25.16667
Speculation Reform	24
Revoking Corporate Personhood	21.42857
Mortgage Debt	20.16667
Afghanistan #1	19.71429
Health Policy	18.75
Unionization	18.28571
Progressive Tax Reform	17
Fed Reform	16.375
Student Debt	14.66667
Election Reform	14.5
Social Security #2	13.9
Immigration #1	12.8
Medicare	11.8
Minimum Wage #1	11.09091
United Nations	9.692308
Medicaid	8.615385
Social Security #1	8.461538
Political interest reform	7.8125
International Relations #2	7.733333
Tariffs	7.3125
Personal Debt	6.466667
Privatization #1	5.857143
Free Trade and Currency Manipulation	4.352941
Affordable Care Act #2	3.464286
Systemic Political Reform	1.363636
International Trade	0.730159
Fed Removal	0.583333
NAFTA	0.373333
Right To Work Legislation	0.273684
Regressive Tax Reform	0.260417
Immigration #4	0.153846
Privatization #2	0.109489
Immigration #3	0.108527
Coal Energy	0.098361
Afghanistan #2	0.09375
Oil	0.085271
International Relations #1	0.081818
Immigration #2	0.0625
Privatized Prisons	0.061069
Minimum Wage #2	0.036765
Affordable Care Act #1	0.035971
Iraq #2	0.029412
Environmental Regulations #2	0	No Approval

Occupy Boston; disorganized or simply complicated?

When you hear about the Occupy Protests that have sprung up across many cities in the USA, you hear one common complaint: "They are disorganized and have no idea what they are protesting.". Speaking as a member of the Occupy Boston protests, I can say that while the occupiers at Dewey Square don't yet have a defined set of demands or guiding issues, we are very organized.

The picture below is one that I took last week and in my opinion, the sign shown gives the single best reason that we have yet been unable to define even a single demand. The current political and economic situations in the USA are simply so bad that nobody can agree upon which is the most important problem to fix. Imagine that your car simply starts to fall apart on the road; what do you fix first: The flat tires, the overheating engine, that rattling sound coming from under the hood, or the stuck parking break? As with the car analogy, our country is suffering from an unheard of number of problems: A corrupt and partisan legislature, an economic recession, record income disparity, record unemployment, and a suffering environment. I ask, is it a problem that we cannot decide which issue to focus our numbers and resources upon, or is it a problem that the politicians in both parties are ignoring ALL of the problems?

In addition to the shear number of issues there are two more major reasons that we have yet to settle upon any demands or primary issues:

1. We operate in a pure democracy, thus every decision is put to a vote; this takes much more time than when a professional activist hands a bunch of people signs and talking points. Ultimately, democracy takes time, and we plan to do this the right way, rather than the fast way.
2. Our movement is incredibly diverse. At any time we can have Republicans, Anarchists, Democrats, Socialists, Libertarians and everybody in between engaging in honest discussion. The unusual range in ideologies and belief contained in our movement requires much more discussion and voting in order to be representative of our components.

IF YOU LIVE IN BOSTON AND WANT YOUR VIEWS TO BE KNOWN, TAKE THE SURVEY ON THE LINK BELOW. EVERY VOICE IS WELCOME, REGARDLESS OF SOCIAL OR POLITICAL STATUS, FOR WE ARE THE 99%.

 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHhSSGl1dnVsVFVaOTlUa3RFck04RHc6MQ

Occupy Boston Conflict - 10/10/2011

Yesterday, Columbus Day, was an extremely eventful day for the Occupy Boston protest movement. Early in the day there was a massive rally composed of students attending many of the local universities and the Occupy Boston protesters. The students marched down to the Common, held a rally and then marched down to the Dewey Sq. site to meet up with the rest of the Occupy group. During this march we traveled along the perimeter of the park and briefly stopped at the statehouse for a particularly loud chanting session. Below are pictures that I took from the student march:

After marching down to the Dewey Sq. site, we met up with several labor movement groups and marched across large swathes of the city. This group was 10,000 strong and included a vast diversity of people; from students and labor to seniors and young families. Everything was peaceful and relatively (as much as ten thousand people can be) orderly and we didn't have any problems until we reached the Charlestown Bridge. At the bridge several people attempted to cross a police barricade and were stopped; when they persisted two were detained and one was arrested. With the arrests, the march stopped and demanded the release of the two people in custody on the threat of staging a sit in on the roadway.

Several minutes into the standoff at the bridge, word reached us that the Anonymous hackers had picked up a police communication that they were planning on raiding our campsite while we were away. At the news of a potential attack on our living space, we quickly disbursed and traveled back to the campsite.

I was not there for the beginning of the following events, but I have heard many accounts from those who were there. At some point, a large group of Occupy Boston protesters decided that as we needed much more space, we should also occupy the area of the Greenway adjacent to the Dewey Sq. site and thus they moved in. This was not put to a general vote, but many people followed and it became the de-facto "second site". By the time my group of people returned to the Dewey Sq. site, the second site was already established. Many people, including myself, thought that this was not only a necessary move (due to our shear numbers) but a completely reasonable one considering the peaceful history of our occupation at the Dewey Sq. site. Quickly, a second encampment was set up and people gathered as in the first camp site.

We held the general assembly at the second site and discussed two primary issues:

1. Why the democratic process was violated by a unilateral move into the second site.
2. What we were going to do now, facing the threat of police action

After a long discussion, we decided in full consensus that no matter the unilateral movement that brought us to the second site, we were there and we should keep the land. Even in the face of the impending police action we were determined to either wait out the situation or make a peaceful demonstration when the police entered the park. In preparation for the police, we consolidated the tents in the middle, tied them together, and many people linked arms around them. If the police were to attempt to force us out, those who were staying in the center would either be willingly arrested or not comply by going limp. There was a consensus that no matter what the police did, WE WOULD NOT ACTIVELY RESIST OR BECOME VIOLENT. The basic goals were to show a unified front and make our point that we have the right to peacefully assemble.

At this time a group of people from the organization Veterans for Peace arrived with flags and offered to support us. They took a prominent position between the column of the police and the circle of protesters so as to support our occupation.

At 1:30, the police organized in formation on the sides of the park and we were warned that unless we disbursed we would either be removed or arrested. Most of the protesters at this point were either formed into a ring around one of the campsites or videotaping the events on the outskirts. The police action was as follows:

1. The police entered the park and began pushing everybody not in the circle of interlocked protesters towards the sides of the park. This process was on many cases violent and I personally saw several times where the officer would even push the protesters off of the wall of the park and into the pavement. Nobody was arrested during the initial push, but several people received minor injuries from the police.
2. Once the side of the park was clear of the protesters, the police pulled apart the circle of people and began arresting them and those who attempted to reenter the park. The police didn't differentiate between the protesters, medics and media; in many cases escorting the media and medics out of the area or arresting them if they wouldn't comply. This is simply wrong in that the medics are designated as neutral and there for the safety of all and the media are necessary to record the event.
3. Once the large circle of protesters was broken up and arrested, the police began destroying our second site. They carelessly destroyed our tents and belongings by throwing them into waiting waste disposal trucks. Nobody was given a chance to save their belongings or tents which is particularly destructive when you consider the fact that the occupiers are living on site. I cannot even begin to assess the damage that was done to the protesters who were stationed at the second site.

At the end of the police action (around 2:30) between 110 and 130 protesters were arrested and the entire second campsite was destroyed. The Dewey Square site was not touched during this action.

I will post opinions on this event later today in  second post, but let me say this now: We supposedly live in the USA, where democracy rules and everybody's rights are protected. Yesterday, a peaceful group of people protesting inequity were beaten, arrested and had their property destroyed. I for one don't remember the Tea Party protests being broken up like this (they were also covered by every new source); maybe that is because their corporate masters are also the same people who now control the police. I see this event as a dangerous sign that we have strayed from "a government of the people by the people where democracy rules", to "a government of the people, by the corporations, where corporatocracy keeps the masses under control through our own police".

Music At Occupy Boston

Yesterday (10/6/11) AT Occupy Boston we had several musical performances that livened up the day. Unfortunately I had to leave early, but I did take several pictures of what I could before I did:

Musician Amanda Palmer with her ukulele.

Drums, cymbals, bells, and singing by an ex-Vietnam war protester.

While I was not there for it, there was also a hip-hop show scheduled after the ukulele one.

I think that the inclusion of music into the Occupy Protest movements, whether in Boston or any other city, is not only a good idea because it keeps the protesters entertained but also because it makes our presence known. We can maximize the impact of our occupation by increasing our visibility at all times. When people on the street don't hear our slogans, they should be hearing our music. By constantly making some type of noise we can prevent ourselves from becoming simply part of the Dewey Square scenery. Think back to when you are walking down the street and you come across either somebody shouting or a sidewalk musician. You notice them far more than any other member of the crowd because the human brain is wired to respond to any deviation from normal patterns. Having various music and protest slogans act as methods to draw far more attention than if we were to simply camp out at Dewey Square in number.

As a side note, we now have a Mahatma Gandhi statue at the entrance to the Occupy Boston camp. This statue is on loan from a MA Abbey and we thank them for loaning it to us. I think that we should use this statue as a reminder to continue to practice the ideals of NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE no matter how frustrated we may get about politics.