Chlorophyll

...but this general strike sounds better and better, the more I think about it. Just the way it was called for has some remarkable characteristics:

1. It's simple, clear, and easy to understand.

2. It commandingly reframes the issue, telling Sensenbrenner "Not only will we not accept further setbacks, but it's about time YOU made some concessions.

3. It's an effective tool - a boycott can't be ignored, jailed, or beaten. Or deported.

4. It has a strong sense of history. White radicals only talk about general strikes with misty-eyed nostalgia, but these folks said "Hey, let's do it. Now."

5. This is not about gaining any person or cabal political capital. It's a bottom-up movement.

6. It has optimism and wit. One convener said "Some say Latinos are a drag on the economy. If that's true, on the Day without Latinos, the stock market should surge, and the economy should do great."

7. This is being framed as an ethnic event, but none of the demands are ethnic. They are broad-based, and if anything, rooted in class.