Blessings beautiful humans!
For some reason, I've been using FB a bit recently (mostly because it is unfortunately the best place to keep up to date on the Rainbow Gathering.) Every now and then it creates a great opportunity for creativity to flow though, and I feel like this is one of those moments.
A friend had made a big post questioning some of the George Floyd -> Riots narrative. I left this first comment, and after a few minutes a mutual friend (who another friend had just recently mentioned went into full on left-rage on him the other day for not stepping in line with the "movement") jumped in. From there things got interesting, and I feel like the last comment here is probably the best response I've come up with to this question about "which side are you on?"
Me
Remember, George Floyd (besides Masonic ties and claims of assaulting women) was working with the road pirate who killed him for over a year, both security at a night club.
But it sort of takes away from the narrative of "black vs white" when the murderer and victim knew each other personally for quite some time. Was this about race? About cops being violent sociopaths? About some kind of debt, theft, sleeping with the other's lover? Who knows.
We don't know why this happened, but we do know that this wasn't just some cop killing some random black guy because he's racist.
Original Poster
Yup, yup.. I agree with this. Underlying happenings for sure.
I ended up hiding this post because there backlash was honestly too much for me on this one.
Me
Yep, FB is full of people just waiting for the chance to scream & rant at someone.
Truth is it's own reward :-)
Be well sister, lots of love!
Original Poster
Be well ♥️♥️♥️
Leftie Friend
Kenny Palurintano: correction, replace white with police...
Me
In that case, we've also got to replace "black" with "everyone" - It's either a conversation about racism (as implied by organization names like BLM), or it's a conversation about the fact that the "state" is simply an organized crime syndicate that claims a monopoly on force & sovereignty in a region.
If racism didn't exist as a concept tomorrow, if we could just snap that away, the police would still be shooting an average of 3 people per day, it would just be happening at a more equitable distribution across skin colors.
On the other hand, if we could snap away this class of people who are paid by stolen money, whose job it is to violate people, and who are never held responsible for their actions ("government"), then most of the violence on the planet would cease, prisons would be relatively empty (because there's no such thing as a crime without a victim), and human trafficking & pedophilia would come to a screeching halt.
Leftie Friend
Kenny Palurintano
Yes police vs everyone at a certain point but let us not be distracted from the fact that POC are targeted more often.
I’m confused at what your trying to get at with the rest of your comment, perhaps you were assuming that I don’t think that government is corrupt? To me it’s about both of those conversations. Racism in our country is very real and the fact that our government is corrupt is very real. As someone who enjoys abolitionist theory I say all this oppressive shit has got to go.
My question for you, what are your thoughts on this movement? It’s hard to tell...
Me
I'm not saying we should be "distracted" by one thing or another; I'm saying it's important to focus on 3 things when doing activist work (probably way more, but these 3 will lead to any others if followed properly):
1. Principles - These decide what kind of world we are creating through our actions. For me this is non-aggression, respect for sovereignty, and voluntary interaction (full consent culture.)
2. Root Problems - I was attempting to demonstrate with that example of "ending racism" or "ending the state", but as Eric July put it "Without the violence of the state, racism is just a bad idea"
3. Tactics - What are the most efficient & effective actions we can take, now and all along the way, that do not require sacrificing on our principles - "There is no ends but the means"My thoughts on "this movement" are hard to give. Do you mean BLM, Antifa, or...? When I use the term "the movement" I mean with everyone who has the desire and will to move towards a more free, peaceful, and loving world.
That's because as soon as we start talking about groups that are amorphous & decentralized, there will always be people with whom I disagree on principles, on identifying the root problems, and on tactics... and there will be people with whom I agree on any (or all) of those things.
I am in favor of everything that is moving the world away from the system of statism/authoritarianism (including democracy, capitalism & socialism) and all of the various types of oppression that it creates to maintain & expand its power. That said, there are many things (actions, organizations, etc.) that may well lead towards that world that I want to see, but which I personally would not take part in, because they violate my principles.
(I added this portion to the comment right after posting it)
Edit: I forgot to address the piece about government being corrupt. I don't think that term fits myself, as it gives the impression that "government" is a moral, justified, useful thing, that some bad people have corrupted (a bad conspiracy theory I would say - like saying the murderer cops are just bad apples.)"Government" has only ever existed to serve & protect the interests of the wealthy & connected few who make it up and pull its strings.
All government is some variation on the same myth that had people bowing to kings and queens - the myth that some people are above/outside morality, able to violate & control others as they will.
If a totalitarian king were the most centralized version (its not since they had lords, knights, Church, etc.) then "democracy is the most decentralized version (51% vote to exterminate 49% = acceptable genocide.)
But it's all the same thing. The belief that some person/group can have Authority over another, can violate another, without that other's explicit informed consent.
Thanks for reading folks! I would love to hear your thoughts on the topic, and specifically on my response. Anything that needs clarification? Anything you think I could have explained better? Do you feel there's some glaring error in my logic, or that I've missed an important piece of the puzzle?
I'm all for Defunding the police. There are better ways to handle some cases.
If someone else was called that day Rayshard Brooks would be alive.
I'm a Nigerian, I hope to be in America someday but the racism is too vivid.
In the last Irak wars around 1.000,000.00 of People were death and no-one says nothing, nothing, as a human we are crazy.
Absolutely!
People love to claim that "lives matter" (whether black, brown, all, etc.) while continuing to support the State, which is responsibly for many hundreds of millions of deaths, just in the last century - and millions more every year.
This is such a complex issue (just like most issues, if you think about it), so I'll try to break it down to small pieces, as best as I can.
A solely vigilante approach to any 'movement' assumes the solution is inherent in the truth that is spread.
A movement needs people and a lot more people than there are now.
Without coupling a viable solution with truth, it serves to work against the movement because for most people it detracts them due to fear. The irony is that the movement needs people.
It could be said that a movement without a decided solution supports the system it fights against.
Having said this, solutions are not just rabbits you can pull out of hats. Real solutions that a lot of people will support are hard work to create and hard work to 'sell' and hard work to implement.
There is no free ticket to the final future of freedom.
Simply burning down the state only make things worse.
The conditioning in the minds of the people remains the same and a polarised society is guaranteed.
A recreation of the same or similar system will happen again and we will all fall for the same crock.
Where is the solution that works for the average working class person with a family? No, they are forced to take the side of the state because no true viable solution is offered by the the truth bearers.
I would phrase this as "There is no ends but the means;" does that encapsulate what you're conveying here as well?
I think there are currently far more than enough people who want radical change to hit tipping point, but they are mostly still divided by ideological other-ing, whether because of political parties, identity politics, religion, or some other surface level BS.
Exactly. Nothing you hate to see more as a philosopher & strategizer than folks waving your banner but offering nothing but complaints, or even worse actually calling for more government violence.
I agree completely, and this is why I walked away from "protesting" back in 2013 - It's all about the long game. Every kid we can save from mandatory "schools" & "vaccines," every conflict that can be resolved peacefully & maturely, everyone growing their own food... each of these is a brick removed from the pyramid of the State.
Luckily we already have all the solutions, to every problem the state creates or claims to solve. Just a matter of getting people to listen and stop thinking that making a change means checking boxes every four years while the same crime syndicate runs things.
The solutions are manifold, and generally quite simple. Community reduces crime. Removing economic disparity reduces crime. Cell411, FreedomCells, and various community-defense programs are made much simpler now with technology, but really the Black Panthers had the right idea. Everyone that learns to use NVC has just made the world more peaceful. Everyone who begins to meditate regularly has just made the world more peaceful.
I bet you'll like my latest post!
I hope soon everyone will follow their Tao and stop fighting against each other.. :)
With the limited time I have @kennyskitchen, as committed, stopping by after the unexpected vote I received on a comment I left on the Steem blockchain this morning.
When glancing through your blog, I found this to be a very interesting post. For the most part, I agree with the position you have taken, in general. And specifically, for pointing this out:
As soon as I was made aware of this (my wife is on social media. I am not ...), my first comment to her was to question whether this policeman knew George Floyd, as it seemed "personal." Later, I saw a black man explain what their history was and clearly indicated there was "bad blood" ...
Never mind, though, as it served the purpose of providing support for all that has followed ... Hard to be optimistic at times, about the "new normal" world we live in these days ...
In spite of that, all the best to you and yours, for a better tomorrow!
P.S. FYI, for what it is worth, to even begin to make sense of so much of the "madness" in the world today, I have begun to read more about critical theory and its potential influence on all that is happening ...
This is an excellent post!
I still believe in incrementalism and support the newly energized Defund the Police movement, but I hear you in having your focus on the larger frame. I would still urge you to consider the spark created by Floyd's death as one that can ignite the kind of change you want to see, even if the way others are framing it doesn't match your frame. As they say when bubbles burst, it doesn't matter the size of the pin. It only matters the size of the bubble. Let the energy the "pin" of Floyd's death has unleashed burst the bubble of state power and violence however much we can make it.
This is very wise