I can only recall two protests that had my participation. In 1989, I joined a protest in Edmonton, calling for the overthrow of the communist government in Romania. Then in 2020, I joined a Black Lives Matter protest in my hometown of Brooks, Alberta. I’ll get into my reasons why I don’t join protests later in this essay.
In the past two years, I have been following Ray Katz on Medium. Ray is a climate change activist. I’ve been watching him try different things to build a cohesive group together; hopefully I have been absorbing some of this experience. I’ve been to a couple of his online forums. I have been skeptical of his vision. My reasons will come later.
Recently Ray has put together an interesting approach to his nascent movement. Let’s just say I like his “We are Saners” and his new T-shirt campaign.
Every Child Matters
Our First Nations people in Canada have put together a great T-shirt campaign called “Every Child Matters.” It is based on the great damage caused by Canada’s residential school systems for First Nations populations.
Simple slogan; bright orange T-shirts. So many Canadians have shown their support for this cause. And after three years since this movement started, I am seeing a new confidence emerging from the First Nations people. I can only say: “Watch these people rise!”
I and My Son with our Orange T-Shirts
Back to Ray’s Saners
Ray’s T-shirts are awesome. Appealing logo and design. Just a little message. A mysterious message. A friendly message. A message where many people will want to ask questions. Ray’s slogan is: “We are Saners.” Is this not mysterious?
So I’m thinking of my own little saner protest in Brooks, Alberta.
Brooks is a conservative town, supporting a rural conservative countryside. We have a Conservative member of Parliament, and we have a Conservative member of the provincial legislature. Neither has climate change high on their agenda. Both these politicians have offices in Brooks with street visibility. A protest around these offices will get attention.
So I am imagining me with my saner T-shirt and my lawn chair, sitting in front of these offices on a sunny afternoon. I will be catching up on some reading and getting whatever attention comes this way.
In case you have not realized this, I have little influence in my town. I will be protesting by myself. But maybe putting myself in the parking lot of our politicians’ offices is something that can attract other protesters for later. I’m pretty sure there are other Brooks citizens with similar concerns.
But will I actually do this? I’m not sure. There’s a history that needs to be overcome.
My Political History
In my youth, I developed more than a few strong opinions on how the world should work. As time has passed, I’ve let go of some of those opinions. But others have become more entrenched.
One of those entrenched opinions was that our continued use of fossil fuels was going to heat up the Earth’s surface, and there would be adverse weather ramifications. I figured this out in 1982. And, unfortunately, it seems I have been proven right.
For this 1982 opinion, I also had a solution: slowly increase the tax on all fossil fuels. In this way, consumers still have a free choice. Many of us will eventually make decisions to use less energy. Polluters fund the government coffers. The economy slowly adjusts. And friendlier energy sources will emerge. If we had only implemented this tax 41 years ago!
Rather than just pontificate on my “superior” opinions and solutions, I took action. I joined a political party in 1986. My intention was to move the world forward with my ideas. So I did not sit on the sidelines of that party. I attended many political meetings over the next six years and volunteered for many tasks I would never do as a real job. I spent more time on politics than most protesters spend protesting. I was building influence in the party to push my ideas forward.
Or so I thought.
After six years, I realized I really had no influence. The party did not want my ideas; it wanted election workers and election managers. Ninety-eight percent of my political time was spent on winning the next election. Not much opportunity to promote more taxes on fossil fuels.
I also learned that internal party politics was inherently quasi-dysfunctional. There are too many overly ambitious people wanting to increase their status, influence, and power within the party. It was quite competitive to carve out a higher position. And too often, I saw people moving higher who I thought should not move higher.
I left politics in 1992.
But somehow, I invented an alternative democracy. My TDG (Tiered Democratic Governance) deals with all the dysfunction in western democracy I had observed (and occasionally caused). I have been developing and promoting this solution ever since.
When I See a Protest
To many citizens, the intent of protests is to coerce reluctant politicians into political action they do not want to go. The underlying protest message seems to be: “Our votes are going to someone else if you don’t do what we tell you to do.”
While societal shaping by protest is more indirect than that, there is a belief that protesters can bend the will of the overly ambitious people who aspire for political influence. Otherwise, protesters would not bother protesting.
Don’t get me wrong: I see peaceful protesting as an integral check-and-balance of western democracy. Protest does provide resistance to societal forces that could be described as “profit-at-all-costs.” Protest does provide a sense of democratic participation for those outside the power circles.
But I see protests are mostly about trying to influence too many dysfunctional politicians in a dysfunctional system. When we don’t get the solutions we are looking for, then should we really be surprised? Maybe the words “too little too late” are appropriate?
In my opinion, protests are not an organic way to solve societal problems.
But the Orange T-shirt protest seems to be working for the First Nations people in Canada. I can see the difference after three years. Maybe the “We are Saners” movement is on to something.
My Protesting Future
Winter is coming. I doubt I’ll be protesting “We are Saners” in the parking lot of the offices of my local politicians in the colder weather. We’ll have to see where my mind is at in the spring. Even this small step is a big step for me.
But my ultimate solution is to have a system of governance that can address big issues like climate change in a timely and thoughtful manner — and without any organized protest movement.
Now it’s time to buy some of Ray’s T-shirts. If I get into the mood to protest, I need to be ready.
Addendum: January 2025
Well, I did not protest. However, Ray has an interesting "Green Dot" campaign that I could get into. I just need to remember to buy green dots.
Published on Medium 2023
