Chris Hedges: Wages of Rebellion Part 2
Channel: Ed Mays
Date: 2015-03-28

Revolutions come in waves and cycles. We are again riding the crest of a revolutionary epic, much like 1848 or 1917, from the Arab Spring to movements against austerity in Greece to the Occupy movement. In Wages of Rebellion, Chris Hedges—who has chronicled the malaise and sickness of a society in terminal moral decline in his books Empire of Illusion and Death of the Liberal Class—investigates what social and psychological factors cause revolution, rebellion, and resistance. Drawing on an ambitious overview of prominent philosophers, historians, and literary figures he shows not only the harbingers of a coming crisis but also the nascent seeds of rebellion. Hedges’ message is clear: popular uprisings in the United States and around the world are inevitable in the face of environmental destruction and wealth polarization.

Focusing on the stories of rebels from around the world and throughout history, Hedges investigates what it takes to be a rebel in modern times. Utilizing the work of Reinhold Niebuhr, Hedges describes the motivation that guides the actions of rebels as “sublime madness” — the state of passion that causes the rebel to engage in an unavailing fight against overwhelmingly powerful and oppressive forces. For Hedges, resistance is carried out not for its success, but as a moral imperative that affirms life. Those who rise up against the odds will be those endowed with this “sublime madness.”

This talk was taped March 9, 2015 and will be broadcast in two parts.  Hedges alluded to his meeting that morning with Seattle's Socialist City Council Member Kshama Sawant and wrote his next Truthdig column about her: "The Most Dangerous Woman in America".  We caught up with Kshama at her volunteer re-election kick-off meeting.  The last 18 minutes of part two features Kshama and her Volunteer Coordinator Ramy Khalil.

Chris Hedges is a columnist for Truthdig. A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, he spent nearly two decades as a foreign correspondent in Central America, the Middle East, Africa, and the Balkans, with fifteen years at the New York Times. He is the author of numerous bestselling books, including Empire of Illusion; Death of the Liberal Class; War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning; and Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Thanks to the BRICK [Building Revolution by Increasing Community Knowledge] club at S.P.S.C.C.

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