Our Philosophy
See also: Why We Exist
Non-action: Deliberate nonparticipation in society
If you're at this site, you've probably written letters to the editor, your representatives, etc. You've probably signed many petitions. Perhaps you've marched in a protest. Perhaps you've done more. Those things are all good to do. But their effectiveness is questionable.
If we want to change our society, we have to actually do something to change society. But what to do? We believe one answer is to take non-action: deliberately avoid doing things you normally do.
Ideas Behind Non-action
- The common people, acting together, are a powerful force.
- Government and corporations operate only through the consent of the common people.
- Using the coordinated actions of the common people to disrupt "business as usual" actually demonstrates that government and business require the cooperation of the common people to function.
Non-action is a means of voicing displeasure with the way our government works between elections. It is inherently nonviolent, like writing letters and making phone calls. Unlike those methods, however, non-action does not ask permission and does not try to persuade someone to act on our behalf; it is "we, the people" actually changing society.
Think about what happens between elections. The president makes plans and tries to carry them out; legislators make laws and assign funds; lobbyists influence each. And the common people are only allowed to plead for favors and are otherwise forced to wait for the next election. Coordinated non-action applies pressure outside the normal election process.
Non-action is not civil disobedience; it is social disobedience. It is not unrelated to civil disobedience nor is it opposed to civil disobedience, however. But it is generally easier to participate in a non-action event than a civil disobedience event. Why? Because nonparticipation in society is legal (usually). Earth Standing Still will only advocate legal events.
Why does non-action work? The global economy is based on mass production and distribution. The chain of events that make fast food possible, for instance, is carefully planned. By disrupting the chain, we give major headaches to the corporations that rely on our business.
It is particularly effective on businesses that rely on daily purchases. For instance, a hamburger not bought today is not going to translate into two hamburgers bought tomorrow. If you park your car today, that's gasoline not used and is one day of missed revenue to an oil company.
Further, if enough businesses are affected, it disrupts the flow of goods in society. That, in turn, disrupts the ability of the government to carry out any plans that the people oppose. Ultimately, it simply returns the control of the government to the people.
What is necessary for non-action to be effective?
Primarily, for any given non-action to be effective, it has to be coordinated among a large number of people. In other words, the results have to measurable. If the action has no measurable effect, it will be ignored.
Click here to understand how we intend to make our non-actions effective.