That's an illuminating chart. Not knowing much about either the TP (another juvenile nickname perhaps?) or the Wisconsin situation, I shouldn't wade too deeply into this one.
It strikes me, however, that if one makes a form/content distinction, then it's fairly easy to avoid a charge of inconsistency when getting behind one and deriding the other (your dig about the apoplepticism of anti-tea party crowd hints at this charge). Two things can share form but be valued very differently, as nearly any movement-countermovement interaction shows. The question is for most people not whether the NYTimes functions in the same capacity for the Wisconsin protests as Fox does for the Teapartiers, but whether the NYTimes is more or less credible than Fox. Similarly with the celebs, Voight and Morello may serve the same purposes for their respective movements, but who is more cool? I suppose one could also point to the fact that both movements make use of mass protests, but I doubt that this tactical similarity would be meaningful to someone who is deliberating over which mass protest to join (of course, there are some who like a protest for protest's sake--I suspect some of the black bloc folks are of this type).
It is neat to see the similarities though, and think about other movements you could slot in. Perhaps if you compared many movements and determined the best strategies for each category (ie. the most compelling elements of "golden age" narratives, etc.), we could design our own Important Movement. Any takers?
JPJ: Success in 'social movementing' is like success in music: there are rules to follow, but an awful lot is just timing. Perhaps we should identify the perfect object of nostalgia and optimal charleton speechmaker, and just wait until our time comes.
But yes, you are right that identifying patterns doesn't mean one shouldn't be partial to a particular movement over others. What bothers me is the 'this is the end of our democracy!' talk, and I think that can't coexist with self-awareness.
I expect the Wisconsin thing will morph into a more general 'anti-cuts' movement, and will be especially strong in states with austerity-minded Republican governors like Chris Christie. When it does it'll encounter some of the coherence problems we see in the Tea Party. It's also rather difficult rallying people for the status quo, although the Greeks and French seem to have it mastered.
That's an illuminating chart. Not knowing much about either the TP (another juvenile nickname perhaps?) or the Wisconsin situation, I shouldn't wade too deeply into this one.
ReplyDeleteIt strikes me, however, that if one makes a form/content distinction, then it's fairly easy to avoid a charge of inconsistency when getting behind one and deriding the other (your dig about the apoplepticism of anti-tea party crowd hints at this charge). Two things can share form but be valued very differently, as nearly any movement-countermovement interaction shows. The question is for most people not whether the NYTimes functions in the same capacity for the Wisconsin protests as Fox does for the Teapartiers, but whether the NYTimes is more or less credible than Fox. Similarly with the celebs, Voight and Morello may serve the same purposes for their respective movements, but who is more cool? I suppose one could also point to the fact that both movements make use of mass protests, but I doubt that this tactical similarity would be meaningful to someone who is deliberating over which mass protest to join (of course, there are some who like a protest for protest's sake--I suspect some of the black bloc folks are of this type).
It is neat to see the similarities though, and think about other movements you could slot in. Perhaps if you compared many movements and determined the best strategies for each category (ie. the most compelling elements of "golden age" narratives, etc.), we could design our own Important Movement. Any takers?
Juvenile nickname: "Cheese Curdlers"
ReplyDeleteJPJ: Success in 'social movementing' is like success in music: there are rules to follow, but an awful lot is just timing. Perhaps we should identify the perfect object of nostalgia and optimal charleton speechmaker, and just wait until our time comes.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, you are right that identifying patterns doesn't mean one shouldn't be partial to a particular movement over others. What bothers me is the 'this is the end of our democracy!' talk, and I think that can't coexist with self-awareness.
I expect the Wisconsin thing will morph into a more general 'anti-cuts' movement, and will be especially strong in states with austerity-minded Republican governors like Chris Christie. When it does it'll encounter some of the coherence problems we see in the Tea Party. It's also rather difficult rallying people for the status quo, although the Greeks and French seem to have it mastered.
Charlatan, not charleton. I should hire a comment proofreader.
ReplyDelete