Zen and the Art of #occupywallstreet

Zen and the Art of #occupywallstreet

Pirsig, in his book "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance," points out that, "No one wears a placard stating the the sun’s going to rise tomorrow morning." It is obvious. 

The media has yet to comprehend the Occupy movement because there is no leadership (incompressible), there is no list of demands (unquantifiable), and no one’s wearing a placcard saying the sun’s going to rise tomorrow morning. 

This great zen koan applies to the media and the dumb percent, uh, excuse me, the one percent who still don’t get it. It’s called A Cup of Tea: 

Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor’s cup full, and then kept on pouring.

The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. "It is overfull. No more will go in!"

"Like this cup," Nan-in said, "you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"

Well, following Nan-in’s lead, my message to the media is, "Like this cup you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you #occupywallstreet unless you first empty your cup?"

You would have to be deaf not to hear what occupy is not saying. It is obvious. 

Why make a list? Elected "representatives" don’t listen anyway. Why have a leader? None of them do what they promise (before we empower them). 

The message, for those too thick to get it is simple: the status quo is unacceptable. 

Still need the list? 

It runs from a full disclosure surrounding things like Kennedy’s assassination to 9/11. It includes impeachment of presidents (and their cabinets) for criminal activity. (FYI impeachment does not enjoy a statute of limitations). It includes a full investigation into the crimes of Wall Street banks. It includes bringing the troops home and keeping the US military/industrial complex’s big dick out of sovereign nations’ business. It includes MASSIVE fines, and the threat of pulling corporate charters, from corporations who destroy wildlife habitat through negligent poisoning and who kill employees through that same negligence. It includes changing America from an inhospitable place to one where citizens enjoy it’s hospitality. It includes education and leaving university debt free. It includes reviving the nearly dead public sector with work for the massive and growing number of unemployed. It includes cleaning up our land, air, and water. And more than anything it is a revolution for ending the corruption and power mad behavior of the politicocorporate complex that wants to shove it’s inequitable will down our throats.

None of this should be a surprise. And none of it really needs to be said. 

#occupywallstreet is a zen protest movement.