A note from the antiwar movement to striking truckers

The trucker strike reminds me of what has been going on in the antiwar movement for several years now. Here are some of my insights from that other movement that might help with this one, which I support.

Self-fulfilling prophecies are a killer. When people think about protesting, or striking, or signing petitions, or whatever, they start off thinking it won't do any good, so they don't participate. So then you have a strike in which no one participates, and surprise, surprise, it doesn't do any good. But if people started out with the knowledge that a large-enough protest would work, and that the only thing people need to do is participate to make it large enough, then maybe individuals would be more likely to protest. It's a real conundrum, when people don't participate because they think it won't work, and then they get proof that they are right when it doesn't work, but the reason it doesn't work is because so many people think like them and don't participate. It's been killing the antiwar movement since day one, and the same is true of the trucker strike.

Another thing is that you can never wait on other people to act. Everyone has to act regardless of what others are doing. I have seen people say they will strike if others strike, but what happens if everyone thinks that? Of course then no one strikes, because they're all waiting to see what everyone else is going to do. People have to strike regardless of what other people do, and then it all comes together, or it doesn't. But people can't wait on others to act, or nothing gets done.

And the same thing might work with the CB chatter. Instead of waiting for CB chatter about the strike to start, people have to start that chatter themselves. Get on the CB and talk about it, and talk about it, and talk about it. And then when the nay-sayers laugh, just talk about it some more and some more.

And never trust the media. If you want coverage of what you do, cover it yourself. People who are protesting should make it clear everywhere they go that they are protesting. Leave flyers all over the place, post them, make buttons, write strike on your truck, etc., etc. If you want the status quo to rattle, you have to rattle it yourself. The media aren't there to rattle the status quo; they are there to maintain it just like it is.

But generally, America is messed up right now. The antiwar movement is not growing. It is shrinking. More people are against the war now than ever before, but fewer are doing anything about it. Americans just don't care about anything. If you want to get Americans' attention, you can't just ask please. You have to demand it, and keep demanding it, because as soon as something else loud and shiny catches their attention, they will look away from you. This happens over and over in today's America. Just look at the Gulf Coast. That place is still messed up from Katrina, and no one cares.

So I'm with you striking, slow-driving truckers. I hope you have an effect. But everything is stacked against you. Americans are zonked out on the drug called TV that keeps them all giggles and smiles all the time, no matter how bad things get. So it's going to be a hard push, but keep on pushing.