New Media We Recommend

Below is a list of new materials that we have read/watched in recent weeks. The comments are not a “review” of the material, instead sort of an endorsement of ideas and investigations that can provide solid analysis and even inspiration in the struggle for change. All these items are available at The Bloom Collective, so check them out and stimulate your mind.

Occupy, by Noam Chomsky – Published by Zuccotti Park Press, Occupy, is a collection of interviews and speeches that Noam Chomsky given regarding the Occupy Movement. These short pieces pack a punch with Chomsky offering up his own reflections on the significance of the Occupy Movement, the history of organizing in the US and the possibilities for radical transformation of the US and the world. Chomsky speaks with optimism and consistency, particularly on the importance of having an educated and organized populace. Chomsky believes that the Occupy Movement is a demonstration of the potential power that people have in confronting power. The short book also includes a wonderful tribute from Chomsky on the legacy of radical historian Howard Zinn.

Occupy: Scenes from Occupied America, edited by Astra Taylor & Keith Cessen – This is the first published collection of essays on the US Occupy Movement, according to Verso Books. The collection of 34 essays is a mix of commentary from noted writer/activists such as Angela Davis, Judith Butler, Rebecca Solnit and Doug Henwood. The other half of the book is a collection of first hand accounts of what was happening on the ground at Occupy Wall Street, from how the horizontal meetings took place to how people dealt with repression from the police. This eclectic mix provides people with an invigorating sense that radical change is happening across this country. An inspiring collection.

Corporations are not People: Why They Have More Rights than You Do and What You Can Do About It, by Jeffrey Clements – With all the recent attention given to the growing economic inequality in the US by the Occupy Movement, it is no surprise that more writers are starting to expose the nature of corporate power. Jeffrey Clements book, Corporations are not People, is a very readable expose on the power of corporations, both in the political arena and in public life. Clements mixes solid historical analysis with current examples of how corporations have positioned themselves to have tremendous influence throughout society. However, the book falls short at the end when the author lays out his framework for challenging corporate power, which ends up being nothing more than reforms within the current system. Besides the lack of substantive action, this book is a useful educational tool on coming to terms with the nature of corporate power.

Koch Brothers Exposed (DVD) – Koch Brothers Exposed is a hard-hitting investigation of the 1% at its very worst. This full-length documentary film on Charles and David Koch—two of the world’s richest and most powerful men—is the latest from acclaimed director Robert Greenwald (Wal-Mart: the High Cost of Low Price, Outfoxed, Rethink Afghanistan). The billionaire brothers bankroll a vast network of organizations that work to undermine the interests of the 99% on issues ranging from Social Security to the environment to civil rights. This film uncovers the Kochs’ corruption—and points the way to how Americans can reclaim their democracy.