Occupy Nanaimo

 In The Beginning Oct. 15, 2011

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Dec. 1, 2011

The Occupy Nanaimo movement, not unlike the movement worldwide started with a bang as hundreds filled Diana Krall Plaza just six short weeks ago. Those numbers have simply collapsed to the point, that today only your hard core folk remain in the Plaza.

Sadly, their message has become lost as the focus is now upon the idea that setting up tents and squatting in the public square is simply not acceptable to the majority of Nanaimo residents. Instead of simply complying, and retiring to their comfortable homes in the evening and resuming the demonstration every day keeping the focus on their main message, the movement has come down to a debate about how the public space can be occupied.

As a movement their message is really not unlike the message that some members of the (usually) younger generation have voiced every decade or so. When I was a 20 year old, firmly entrenched in the career world, their were long haired hippy freaks waving signs and placards as well. There was also the Jesus Freaks who believed they had found the answer to all the world's ills as well. Make love not war, drop some acid and expand your mind, sex, drugs and rock 'n roll, and on and on it goes. 

The generation in my day had good job prospects, could easily earn enough to live comfortably and that was without ever even thinking about a debt burdened university education. But even, then, there was a group of young folk, that just weren't about to buy into the system and expressed their discontent in their own way. And just like the generation today, they couldn't offer any concrete solutions to the problem, but can only express their displeasure with it.

In time, most people will just tune out if all you are offering is an oft repeated list of negative comments on the state of the world. If they can't decide on what their message really is, and offer some solutions, I fear in a few months, they won't even be a memory.