Just heard something interesting about the French Revolution

[RainDog]

18. Lefebvre is still a classic of that history

My understanding of that time is that the various wars of empire (France v. Great Britain) had brought the French govt to the point of default on its debt. The king had to call the Assemblies of Notables (from the aristocracy) to get them to go along with taxation to pay for France's financing of the American Revolution, in particular.

The Assemblies of Notables didn't want to raise taxes on the wealthy because it was not in their self-interest to do so. They wanted to shift the tax burden to the newly-developing middle class, the third estate, made up of lawyers and business owners, along with nobles and clergy who were elected to represent the third estate.

France, beyond the monarchy, was comprised of 3 "advisory" estates - 1st estate - clergy - which owned huge amts of land in France and paid no taxes. Comprised of children of nobility who didn't inherit, etc. for the most part. 2nd estate - nobility - the aristocracy, which owned huge amts of land, but not as much as the church - and they spent their time, more often, serving in court of the King in various ways. The 3rd estate was the common people - 80% of the population - and that 80% worked and paid taxes to support the 20% made up of the clergy and aristocracy.

Because the Assembly of Notables couldn't get aristocrats and the church to pony up to keep the govt from defaulting, that body recommended the King call the Estates General - the 3 levels of "advisors" to the King - tho they could only advise, not create actual change. The 3 estates couldn't even agree on how to share power - the first two didn't want to give the 3rd estate more power (and this was the group that faced bearing the burden of a failing empire via taxation.) Rather than vote by estate, the larger 3rd estate wanted head counts.

Some nobles and clergy members were elected to represent the 3rd estate - even though they were part of the other estates. The 3rd estate itself was made up of various factions with different opinions about how to go forward.

But, because the three estates couldn't break an impasse in how to proceed, the 3rd estate broke away from the 1st and 2nd estate and formed the National Assembly.

The King literally tried to lock the Estates-General out of its meeting place - and force various issues by royal decree - this led to the "Tennis Court Oath" to create a constitution - and solidarity.

Some of the nobility and most of the clergy in the other two estates, plus peasants with no voting power, joined in support of them. Hold outs (nobility and clergy that sided with the King) went over to the National Assembly at the request of the King. The Estates-General no longer existed.

The King had French troops surround the new National Assembly after he addressed them and told them to disperse. All but the 3rd estate obeyed. The King also called in foreign troops and tried to get the National Assembly moved out of Paris b/c the 3rd estate had the support of the population there.

This troop presence, and the attempts by the King to stop the people from various estates in their attempt to write a constitution led to the storming of the Bastille. They did this to arm themselves against the troops - it wasn't to free prisoners - it was to arm the populace b/c that's where armaments were stored.

The King removed the troops - but the damage had been done.

People in various cities began to form their own governmental structures and arm themselves to protect them from the power of the monarchy (and its troops.)

Various factions struggled for power while also fighting against the power of the monarchy (including other monarchies and their armies with a self interest in keeping the monarchy alive in France.)

I think the Occupy movement should have kept a focus on one issue - which was financial reform - Occupy Wall St. was really the message - that's what resonates with the 99% - a current tax structure that is gutting jobs in the public sector necessary for the functioning of states - like education and public services - is not sustainable.

There is too much wealth concentrated in the hands of too few in the U.S. This is what has led to the destruction of the middle class and what separates the U.S. from other western democracies that have higher standards of basic human rights for citizens (health care, for instance, affordable education, public sector investment.)

Our system is broken because one party refuses to deal with the need to tax the wealthy - and that's what is exactly like the French Revolution here and now.