And the book is called *Multitude* by Michael Hardt and Antony Negri.
It is a detailed analysis of how resistance to the global economic and social system that dominates the world is both already-and-not-yet taking shape. A previous book of theirs, *Empire* is a detailed theoretical analysis of how the current global system dominates the world and also how it is different from the classic "territorial" empires of the past. In particular, *Multitude* shows how local struggles preserve their own local identity and yet they are in solidarity with similar struggles elsewhere. Or, to put it another way, the struggles of the "multitude" cut across and transcend the old "identity politics vs issue politics" divide. They contrast the notion of "multitude" with older leftist notions such as class, mass, and working class. (The multitude is not to be confounded with certain concepts such as "new working class" either).
The authors have a caveat: The book is not to be thought of as a "What is to be done?" sort of book. They have a book coming out next year called *Commonwealth* I am hopeful the new book will provide some further suggestions regarding...what is to be done.
I had some difficulty focusing on the previous book, *Empire,* but I found *Multitude* to be lucid and compelling and relatively easy to follow.
The book resolved any doubts I had regarding the importance and efficacy of movements such as *Occupy.*
R.
