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Why the Banana Revolution?
BANANA? Yes, it appeals to the monkey within us, yearning for the simple life in the jungle. Well, perhaps it's a symbol of a better world to come in frugality and peace.
WELCOME TO THE BANANA REPUBLIC
'The term was coined by O. Henry, an American humorist and short story writer... "Republic" in his time was often a euphemism for a dictatorship, while "banana" implied an easy reliance on basic agriculture and backwardness in the development of modern industrial technology.'
Sounds like a republic that relies on old technologies built around oil. One that could easily invest into new technologies, but which is led by a strong commander in chief into a war to secure more oil. It's also a republic where lies and hypocrisy are a way of life. For example, they fight prostitution and drugs while being their greatest clients.
Learn all about Banana Republic...
http://banana-republic.net/
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Do you know what's wrong with a jungle that produces War, Environmental Recklessness and SUVs?
"In a society dominated by the fact of commercial competition, money is necessarily the test of prowess, and wastefulness the sole criterion of power." -Upton Sinclair, book 'The Jungle'
(see comment at http://webspawner.com/users/donquijote90)
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THERE'S HOPE... THE BANANA REVOLUTION
If the Republicans are represented by an elephant (bigger is better) and the Democrats by a donkey (too much of an ass), we should be represented by a smart monkey...
http://webspawner.com/users/elections2008
WHY ANIMALS? Thank Orwell in large part...
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/2074/orwell.htm
The patriarchal model we live under could be represented as a lion, who, supported by church and state, rules by fear. This is the DOMINATOR model. The monkey, who favors PARTNERSHIP, offers a sweet treat to the the roaring lion...
Here's an interview with a leading feminist (Ms. Eisler) who proposes exactly the same thing...
http://www.scottlondon.com/interviews/eisler.html
There are Darwinistic reasons for it too...
"one (more cooperative) tribe may be selected over another, and that it is through cooperation within the tribe that Darwinian fittest may be most strongly expressed"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Darwinian-Left-Evolution-Cooperation-Darwinism/dp/0300083238
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"Washing one's hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral." -Paulo Freire
What's all the fuss about lions and monkeys?
While the Rich and Powerful choose the lion as their symbol of power and exclusiveness, the common people are left without an identity. And since they rely on COOPERATION and CLEVERNESS to survive, their perfect symbol would be one that shows those characteristics... the monkey.
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Hey, if we've got a Velvet Revolution (Checkoslovakia) and Orange Revolution (Ukraine), why not a Banana Revolution? They were peaceful and popular, something that we need. But the Banana Revolution is even better: It promises to change the Political Jungle --worldwide.
COMING SOON (see last link below)
YOU HAVEN'T SEEN A REVOLUTION LIKE THIS IN THE LAST 65 MILLION YEARS...
Once upon the time in the land of dinosaurs the little animals had to run for their lives. And still, in this day and age, the big and arrogant ignores and terrorizes the small and smart.
Well, the jungle needs evolution... And the monkey, who knows all about it, is here to challenge the lion.
First the story of the dinosaurs...
EVOLVE OR...
Once upon a time lived a race of dinosaurs whose violence and appetite alarmed everybody... One day a Little Ant, tired of feeling stepped upon, and worried about her cooperative enterprise, came up to the Americanus Raptor --the biggest dinosaur of them all-- and asked: "Why you eat and eat everything in your path? Why don't you slim down? Why can't we little animals at least have our own way? You can't deny evolution, you know." Then the dinosaur, blowing the Little Ant away, shouted: "Bigger is better, so get lost!"
And it is said that the Little Ant, later, gathered the whole cooperative and said: "Comrades, our world is being threatened by the dinosaurs, so..." And at that precise moment the Earth was hit by a big ball of fire, destroying all but the small animals...
Moral: "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." -Charles Darwin
(NOTE: This could by applied to people trying to do the right thing by riding a bike, scooter or small car, only to be intimidated by reckless SUV drivers.)
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I bet you know a character or two like this lion...
THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE
Once upon a time, in the deep jungle, lived a Lion and a Monkey... One day the Monkey, tired of the Lion taking the LION'S SHARE, and seeing that such injustice represented a danger to all, demanded JUSTICE... The Lion, yawning and stretching, said, "You would have to have paws and sharp teeth..." Then the Monkey, who was very clever, devised a plan: He would go to the costume store, and look like a lion...
When the HUNGRY LION saw him, noticing that the new lion wasn't a match for him, and fearing COMPETITION, killed him on the spot -- before the indifferent look of the little animals of the jungle... And that's how the Law of the Jungle was re-established one more time... (NOTE: Other monkeys survived him...)
ANALYSIS: Violence on the part of the lion can only result in more monkeys joining the fight. And violence on the part of the monkey can only give an excuse to the lion... He should instead use NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE,* just as Mandela did in South Africa.
* "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." -John F. Kennedy
Who will put the bell on the cat? Well, only you can:
-DO NOT FEED THE LION* (we are confronting a Hungry Lion, so he's most vulnerable to boycott)
-VOTE WITH YOUR FEET (leave a Hungry Lion --he needs you more than you need him)
-NONVIOLENCE IS BETTER** (don't dress as a lion --he loves to have any excuse to eat you)
-CRY LION! (the lion's success depends on camouflage, so your alarm may save others)
-NO LION NO PROBLEM!*** (do not accept the beast mentally --mental slavery-- in your life)
*see "The Role of Boycotts"... http://www.commondreams.org/views04/1118-24.htm
**"Violence used against oppression, Gandhi believed, was not only wrong, it was a mistake."
***"Fear makes us the instruments of Power. When we are afraid, we obey." (http://www.fragmentsweb.org/fourtx/powfertx.html)
Here's a video of how the lions can be fought...
BATTLE AT KRUGER (THE PERFECT METAPHOR)
*WITHOUT SOLIDARITY WE ARE LUNCH!!!*
http://mybignoise.blogspot.com/2007/08/solidarity-law-of-jungle.html
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And here's a piece of advice when taming the lion:
'Contrary to popular ideas and circus posters, the art of lion taming is not about driving lions into a snarling frenzy, winning a battle of “man over beast” or sticking your head into the lion’s mouth! Lion tamers use brains not brawn. Thinking that you can muscle your boss is a bad idea. Even if you have the ability to escape from the ring unscathed, you still do not have the option of sending the lions at work back to their cages after their act.' (http://www.employeeonlinesurvey.com/articles/?q=node/27)
And that's applicable to real lions, or a few other lions out there. But the way to solve a problem is neither violence nor begging. It simply calls for the monkeys organizing.
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Was it clever of the monkey to dress as a lion? The smart monkey shows his cleverness...
(Based on the slogan "MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR")
And what better way to make love than to give the banana to the roaring lion? The monkey knows that the lion is more powerful than him, and knows he better use his own weapons, so he decides to be funny, that being his natural gift. The story goes like this: The Hungry Lion roars: "Monkey, I’m made to eat meat, so you better come down right now." And the monkey replies very cool: "HUNGRY? YOU CAN EAT MY BANANA!"
The alpha-male monkeys that want to be lions will be put in cages. Unless they eat the banana to prove who they are... ;)
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This comment is from actual sheep behavior...
Wait For Me
Sheep have a strong instinct to follow the leader. When one sheep decides to go somewhere, the rest of the flock usually follows, even if it is not a good decision. For example, if the lead sheep jumps over a cliff, the others are likely to follow. Even from birth, lambs are conditioned to follow the older members of the flock. (http://www.sheep101.info/flocking.html)
From Jim Jones to some leaders we have today, they have understood how to lead the sheep... into a cliff. But you are a thinking person, and don't want to be part of collective suicide. You are the Black Sheep --and proud of it!
(See T-shirt next)
WEARABLE BANNERS --These T-SHIRTS emphasize the key ingredients of the revolution: FOOD (we are an Epicurean* revolution), JUSTICE, PEACE, LOVE, and, of course, FUN.
* According to Epicurus, "the greatest fruit of justice is peace of mind."
They are also a great way to start the revolution --on a bike. See 'Bike for Peace' link.
"The revolution starts when you ride a bike. You think of it as a kinder, gentler vehicle that will help keep Peace as well as save the Environment, and make you Sexy --a lot sexier if you wear one of our T-shirts."
By the way, DO YOU THINK THE LION WILL EAT THE BANANA?
__ No, the lion is a carnivore
__ Why not, he’s gonna love it!
__ We gotta wait until he’s hungry
__ We can stick it into a sausage
And how about if the lion is like one of those ladies who gets a bad temper whenever she, you know, doesn't have the banana? Then there's a high possibility that the lion falls in love with the monkey. And you know what the lion says to the monkey after eating the banana? "Well, I don't want you to think I do this with everybody." That would be a happy ending indeed: LOVE CONQUERS THE BEAST.
THE BANANA IS THE BEST WEAPON EVER DEVISED, CLEARLY SUPERIOR TO NUCLEAR WEAPONS! If you don't believe me, I challenge anyone with a nuclear weapon to step forward. ;)
Come visit my store on CafePress!
Well, I hope you don't get offended by sexuality, which seems to be a feature of Dutch democracy...
"Sexual democracy becomes central even more than religious freedom when discussing the Dutch vision of democracy."
http://www.bidoun.com/issues/issue_10/05a_all.html
Actually, I propose a "Dutch Package," where issues normal to the Dutch --gay rights, bike facilities, prostitution and marihuana-- are discussed in less open societies.
'U.S. leads world in substance abuse, WHO finds'
"Countries with looser drug laws have lower rates of abuse"
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080701/hl_nm/drugs_who_dc
One more proposal: The $15 billion the US wastes on the "war on drugs," could be smartly used to build BIKE FACILITIES.
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I encourage you to read the fables by Aesop and others, who, I feel, have been trying to warn us against the predators, and their game of power and deceit. And, I hope, this, the act of ridicule/defiance with the banana/finger, to be the ultimate defeat to the arrogant beasts.
THE KINGDOM OF THE LION, by Aesop
THE BEASTS of the field and forest had a Lion as their king. He was neither wrathful, cruel, nor tyrannical, but just and gentle as a king could be. During his reign he made a royal proclamation for a general assembly of all the birds and beasts, and drew up conditions for a universal league, in which the Wolf and the Lamb, the Panther and the Kid, the Tiger and the Stag, the Dog and the Hare, should live together in perfect peace and amity. The Hare said, "Oh, how I have longed to see this day, in which the weak shall take their place with impunity by the side of the strong." And after the Hare said this, he ran for his life.
ANALYSIS: The world is full of pretty declarations that are not enforced in real life. One example is the simple act of riding a bike, which remains a most dangerous activity among the predators out there.
MORE...
http://www.aesopfables.com/
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There's a film, "The Battle of Algiers," that shows us how Public Relations --telling who the lion is-- can be more important than violence...
"What are the lessons of The Battle of Algiers? Political viewpoints of the filmmakers, the French and the FLN aside, peaceful coexistence comes down to finding common ideas and values. Hopefully, a dialogue can exist that will facilitate this. Violence, torture and massive military force, as this film graphically depicts, tends to undermine the political, public relations war that is every bit as important (if not more) than advancing the front lines. Pontecorvo's important, pioneering film explores these timely issues in an admittedly different context, but the lessons of history can be adapted to show us the path to peace." (http://www.digitallyobsessed.com/showreview.php3?ID=6535)
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You may say we are dreamers, but our revolution is highly practical, making THE NEED FOR UNION clear in everyday struggles like those of underpaid workers at factories, or those of the cyclists discriminated on our Darwinistic roads. It's the revolution that starts like a cogwheel or bicycle wheel revolving on its axis...
See "Bike for Peace" link below.
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Well, apes are finally gaining recognition in places like Spain...
'apes “may not be killed” or “arbitrarily deprived of their liberty.”'
http://www.worldontheweb.com/2008/07/02/law-of-the-jungle-now-has-its-own-bill-of-rights/
I guess they are not meant to live in a cage.
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This is a prince-turned-revolutionary who saw the problem --and the solution-- to the law of the jungle...
'If we ... ask Nature: “who are the fittest: those who are continually at war with each other, or those who support one another?” we at once see that those animals which acquire habits of mutual aid are undoubtedly the fittest. They have more chances to survive, and they attain, in their respective classes, the highest development of intelligence and bodily organization.' -Peter Kropotkin
http://www.marxists.org/subject/science/essays/kropotkin.htm
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The link below called "Peace and Love" brings us back to the rebellious Hippie era. Check it out, it's a beautiful page...
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE
Hot Banana Caribbean Party!!!
BANANA REVOLUTION
Bike for Peace
Peace and Love (outside link)
Coming Soon
Send E-Mail to: comandante.banana@yahoo.com
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