Democracy is in crisis in the United States. Nationalism has almost upended the fabric of America and Republicans can’t seem to get enough of the chaos. Week after week, there are staggering reports of corruption, collusion, and bad policies for Americans. The rate at which it’s all occurring makes opposition and resistance nearly impossible because most of us are so overstimulated that we don’t know what to target.
Well, Roman Krznaric and The RSA are here to tell you how to seize the political day. Krznaric is a social philosopher who believes that “seizing the day” while cliched is actually an incredibly useful mantra to affect change.
To understand how “carpe diem” can renew the democratic process. We need to understand the different facets of what seize the day means. It’s not about taking opportunity, embracing spontaneity, or a new form of breathing. For the political process, seizing the day boils down to a collective approach to spontaneous mobilization.
The reality of the state is that it doesn’t want you to mobilize. We’re trained to fear resistance and usher compliance, but if we deeply believe in something we can mobilize and organize on the day with carpe diem politics. It can energize grassroots politics.
Already, people are calling their local representatives and rallying against the horrific Republican healthcare plan but we can do more. Rise up and make your voice heard about the Russia investigation. Get friends together and turn it into a social event. To affect change, we need the ambition to seize the day together.
