Power Camp

Another Law of Organizational Life is that the empowered system is one "in which people at all levels and in all positions are able to make happen what they want to have happen and what the system needs to have happen." It's a hippyish concept: empowerment through consciousness-raising.

"What takes us in this direction?" Oshry asks. "Seeing systems and managing them appropriately. If people say, 'The system differentiates, that's what's happening,' then we can recognize each other. If we get rid of righteousness and begin to value diversity, that can lead us to vibrancy and life."

Act Four: Reorg

Tuesday is a tough day at new hope. among the immigrants, Lou wants to keep working as a team. Lena is dead set on rebellion. Kaye is as ripped as she's been in a long time: elite John just handed her a diagram with a wheel labeled "Immigrant Labor" belted to a wheel labeled "Basic Needs," a Sisyphusian-looking thing. And Hans is talking bluntly. "We established a community of our own, and now I feel that we are losing that power," he says. He straightens his striped sweater. "I am very unhappy."

At 11 AM, the elites summon everyone to the tabernacle for a community meeting. It's cold again, the benches again in a triangle, but this time Caitlin's tone is conciliatory. "Over the past couple of days we, the owners of the assets, the architects of society, have had discussions about how well the society has been working," she begins. "Generally we feel that society is not working as well as it could. Too much energy is being wasted on confrontation and positional politics. So we're inviting you to participate in the process of change." She turns to her flip chart and pulls back the cover, revealing: "New Hope Vision for the Future: to create a powerful system for the beautification of New Hope society."

From there the discussion winds through the inevitable paces. Kaye wants to run the meeting, Katherine asks for clarification of how beautiful is beautiful enough, Lou says he feels so insecure about his personal hygiene he needs to stand back in the corner of the room.

Later that night the bottoms again retire to their shag-carpeted living room to resolve internal differences. But Lena and two others quickly excuse themselves, bolt up to the Manor, and break in through a two-foot square window. They spend the next 20 minutes moving couches and propping up chairs -- feverish efforts to block the elites' entrance and create an air of terrorist subterfuge.

When John and Fred force open the Manor door, which they inevitably do, the two men are taken aback -- not just by the new decor but by the new tenants: three immigrants, bound by a shared vow of silence, sit on the back stairs.

TOOT IV
Rebellion is a vital element of the Power Camp experience. Oshry (or one of his proxies, Michael Sales) devotes an entire TOOT session to the art of shaking things up. The key concept is what they call "energizing" -- thinking less about what makes sense for you personally and more about what the system needs.

Sales leads this evening's session. "I have a great fascination with change agents," he begins. "I love history makers. Who am I going to talk about today? Rosa Parks. Someone who created change so vast it's still sweeping over us in wondrous and disturbing ways. Rosa showed mastery of what we call the system power move. It simultaneously changes your condition in the system and the whole system."

Oshry admits that if you try a system power move and don't turn out to be a visionary, you may go down in history as just a pain in the butt. Nonetheless, the system power move is an essential part of the Oshry framework. "One of the real paragons of system life is that sometimes what has to bring us to life is doing the difficult thing," Oshry explains. "So what's going to energize you? What's going to cause you to grow, to break out of the status quo?"

Sales makes the risk seem inviting. "One of the greatest leaders in history was Moses, right? So he's our model. Moses stuttered. He wasn't exactly the ideal guy for the job. So what does Moses -- Charlton Heston -- say to the burning bush? 'Why me, Lord?' And what does the bush say? 'Get your ass in gear and go be a force.'"