Editor:
I attended Gwynne Dyer's lecture last Monday and agree with him that non-violent action can be very successful if it is purposeful, focused and, above all, disciplined ('Non-violent action proving successful, journalist says': The Guardian, Feb. 27, 2013).
As he points out, the world is far more free of dictators than it was 10, 20, 30 years ago. Political dictators, that is.
Unfortunately – and this was pointed out by audience members – we have exchanged political dictatorship for economic dictatorship. And we are all in its thrall. The Occupy Movement has made us all aware that 'the one per cent' (of the population) controls our lives through government austerity and enforced poverty as much as any pastpolitical dictator did. I submit that they are also killing people at almost the same rate.
So what can we do? Isthere a non-violent way to force these people to share resources as past dictators were forced to share political power? This is the sort of action that would be taken by government in a true democracy. How will we convince our democratically-elected government to act on our behalf? Or must we take matters into our own hands?
Jane Dunphy,
Annandale
