Can't Shut Up
I can't. I can't leave it alone, even though I know it is a completely lost cause. Always tilting at obnoxious windmills and pushing big boulders up hills.
Jake makes me flipping insane.
That's nothing new. Not really. I used to smile and nod at him in high school 'cuz he was cool and had a hot car and was the safest guy to present with a bra and panties as a Christmas gift. (Always a polite and appreciative fellow- never even asked to see them on- just smiled and went on his way.) Plus he was totally my ride back to the homestead on long school weekends- but that's another story entirely. He's not the only one making my eyes roll into the back of my skull.
You too, X!
Both X and Jake are non-voters. They style themselves as conscientious non-voters and, to me, this feels like bullshit. It feels like something they would have said to get a rise out of Ms Fratske in high school. But they mean it. They actually mean it.
I'll admit that I can even agree with some of their points and will even go so far as to admit that I could be brainwashed to a certain extent. I must be brainwashed because I feel, well, pissed. I'm pissed that two thinking human beings won't vote. I am pissed that two people who have distinct feelings about personal freedoms and responsibilities (whether I agree with them or not) are choosing not to participate. I'm pissed that they are not the only ones. I'm pissed that I am searching for a revolution and all the fucking thinkers have dropped out. Disappeared. Checked out and given up. That just gets my dander up.
I get that government is usually run by wealthy white people, and why do you think that is? Because they participate! They have more to lose and so they stick their nose and their money in it. The "have nots" just aren't as organized- but they have done it in the past- they just give up too quickly and don't demand enough. And I understand the whole idea of not abdicating your personal responsibility for representation but it just isn't fucking practical. I get that government is just too ridiculously huge and buereaucratic but if the fucking house is messy do you burn it down and go live in the fucking woods or do you pick up a bucket and fucking clean it? This is exactly what I mean when I talk about this plague of cynicism that keeps us from being involved, from reaching out and being a part of something. And if you're going to pull the whole history of the US being about rich, white men rigging the system to their advantage then I can pull out the big guns on my side of the argument. People die for the opportunity you have. Is it perfect? Are you as well represented as you want to be? Hell no. Are you going to make it better by dropping out? Doubtful. Power is created by using the existing system and subverting it. I would think, at the very least, that the game would be interesting to you.
You're smart guys and I can't give you any civics lesson that you would not spit back out at me. We could argue the values of this society or that. We could discuss whether or not accumulation of wealth is a worthy pursuit for either state or individual. We can talk history, civil rights, property rights, etc. etc. Take your pick, it is all fascinating, but now what are you going to DO with it? I'm not interested in pontification. I'm interested in where you go from here. Do you have a blueprint? If you do, sell me, because I'm listening. If you've got some solution for this population (and not the fantasy America, but the one that exists right now) that is better than rule of law then by all means let us know.
The thing that totally gets my undies in a bundle is that there are so many more of "us" than "them". There always has been and there always will be. The problem is we so frequently roll over and piss on ourselves like the submissive little mutts we are- just keep the goods and services rolling in. Keep us consuming and no one will say a word until we self destruct then there always be some smartass to point and say "I told you that would happen."
I always want to punch that fucking grasshopper.
Jake makes me flipping insane.
That's nothing new. Not really. I used to smile and nod at him in high school 'cuz he was cool and had a hot car and was the safest guy to present with a bra and panties as a Christmas gift. (Always a polite and appreciative fellow- never even asked to see them on- just smiled and went on his way.) Plus he was totally my ride back to the homestead on long school weekends- but that's another story entirely. He's not the only one making my eyes roll into the back of my skull.
You too, X!
Both X and Jake are non-voters. They style themselves as conscientious non-voters and, to me, this feels like bullshit. It feels like something they would have said to get a rise out of Ms Fratske in high school. But they mean it. They actually mean it.
I'll admit that I can even agree with some of their points and will even go so far as to admit that I could be brainwashed to a certain extent. I must be brainwashed because I feel, well, pissed. I'm pissed that two thinking human beings won't vote. I am pissed that two people who have distinct feelings about personal freedoms and responsibilities (whether I agree with them or not) are choosing not to participate. I'm pissed that they are not the only ones. I'm pissed that I am searching for a revolution and all the fucking thinkers have dropped out. Disappeared. Checked out and given up. That just gets my dander up.
I get that government is usually run by wealthy white people, and why do you think that is? Because they participate! They have more to lose and so they stick their nose and their money in it. The "have nots" just aren't as organized- but they have done it in the past- they just give up too quickly and don't demand enough. And I understand the whole idea of not abdicating your personal responsibility for representation but it just isn't fucking practical. I get that government is just too ridiculously huge and buereaucratic but if the fucking house is messy do you burn it down and go live in the fucking woods or do you pick up a bucket and fucking clean it? This is exactly what I mean when I talk about this plague of cynicism that keeps us from being involved, from reaching out and being a part of something. And if you're going to pull the whole history of the US being about rich, white men rigging the system to their advantage then I can pull out the big guns on my side of the argument. People die for the opportunity you have. Is it perfect? Are you as well represented as you want to be? Hell no. Are you going to make it better by dropping out? Doubtful. Power is created by using the existing system and subverting it. I would think, at the very least, that the game would be interesting to you.
You're smart guys and I can't give you any civics lesson that you would not spit back out at me. We could argue the values of this society or that. We could discuss whether or not accumulation of wealth is a worthy pursuit for either state or individual. We can talk history, civil rights, property rights, etc. etc. Take your pick, it is all fascinating, but now what are you going to DO with it? I'm not interested in pontification. I'm interested in where you go from here. Do you have a blueprint? If you do, sell me, because I'm listening. If you've got some solution for this population (and not the fantasy America, but the one that exists right now) that is better than rule of law then by all means let us know.
The thing that totally gets my undies in a bundle is that there are so many more of "us" than "them". There always has been and there always will be. The problem is we so frequently roll over and piss on ourselves like the submissive little mutts we are- just keep the goods and services rolling in. Keep us consuming and no one will say a word until we self destruct then there always be some smartass to point and say "I told you that would happen."
I always want to punch that fucking grasshopper.
posted by Bree O'Connor at 3:21 AM
3 Comments:
I like the model of the Spanish Anarchists.
Thelema could be an interesting model as well.
There are options.
Your analogy of a messy house struck a chord with me so bear with my nerditude as I follow this tangent. In my opinion the house is not merely messy but rotten and about to collapse. So my solution is to rebuild from the foundation up. I understand the desire to see a blueprint of the new structure. I mean, that is my job. But as 20th century history shows, society is not so easily engineered. It is something that must develop organically starting at the roots, the neighborhood or town or tribe or whathaveyou. To be cliche, "Think globally, act locally."
Now I do have to grant you two points:
1. It's better here than most other places. Living in the manor house as a servant is certainly more comfortable than living in a peasant's shack. That's why I choose to stay for the time being. But that doesn't mean I think the whole plantation is sustainable, even if us workers took the place over. Regardless, until I'm willing to live off the land in my own hut, I'm a hypocrite for profiting from a system I despise. So be it.
2. I'm a cynical smartass. Can't argue with that one.
So fucking replace it already!
My frustration is with the beak flapping. Talk talk talk talk talk! I write letters and do the phone calls and I always have because I have actually seen results through these methods. Have I gotten everything I've ever wanted? Hell no, but until I find a better way I participate to try to make things liveable and, yes, to protect my own interests. I am sick and tired of listening to smart people pontificate and exercise their brains but not their gumption- for lack of a better word. The ultimate issue I have is this- so you don't vote... what the fuck DO you do? What are you adding by not participating? What are you contributing by standing by? Who is challenging you? Who are you challenging? If you believe things should change what are you DOING!?
I'm just asking you to sit down and really think about what you are bringing to the collective table and don't tell me you aren't at the table, because here you are at mine. What are you bringing to make this world a better place? How do you reach out and understand? Make compromises? Live with others? Believe it or not, voting is a part of that process. Voting is mass dialogue and if you are not voting you are making a lot of noise but saying absolutely fucking nothing.
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