Movement “Let’s occupy Wall Street” began to grow into a global activity, but it is far from threatening the international financial and economic order. This may mean that the overwhelming majority of people in developing countries do not yet live so badly to start rebelling, but it is far more important fact that the above-mentioned movement has no clearly defined strategy or strong organizational structure, is not enough horizontally connected, and cannot define a new financial and economic model for which majority could believe that it will successfully replace the existing one.
In fact, it all comes down to the viewpoint that the current system is designed to help the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, and that the rich are not willing to see the injustice they impose to the world and to change themselves. This rating is accurate, but mainly aims at provoking justifiable anger and discontent within the poorer population. Anger can destroy, but can hardly build something new and better. The economy, whether national or worldwide, is a complex and sensitive mechanism that should be well understood and clearly regulated in order to function. Our friend Marx also new this fact and without his work there would be no socialism, or modern capitalism.
The global economic crisis has not spared Serbia whose already poor citizens are becoming even poorer. But increasing poverty is clearly not sufficient to prompt the population to social rebellion. It is evident that the public debate on Kosovo is far more intense than the debate about the social and economic conditions; despite the fact that the overwhelming majority knows that Kosovo is not a part of Serbia and it will not be in the near future. To be more precise, this second topic cannot be a subject of wide and serious discussion at all.
Citizens is still easier to inspire to think about the way in which a politician or businessman afforded a ten thousands Euros watch, but how to run the economy. While average Serbian citizen fantasizes of getting a job in public service or a company supported by budget funds, and of receiving relatively small amounts of money for very little work, people in developed countries are asking their governments to spend less and to provide economic development, new businesses and new jobs.
What are the realistic achievements of the global social protests and why Serbian citizens have so little interest in their social issues?
Professor Mladen Lazic, professor Vukasin Pavlovic and journalist Misa Brkic are trying to answer these questions for the portal of Novi Magazin.