Comments on: Anarchy for the USA: A Conversation with Josh Wolf http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/ Your source for technology culture, internet phenomena, politics, interviews and entertainment Wed, 20 Aug 2008 07:03:36 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: michael http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-21033 michael Thu, 26 Jul 2007 19:38:39 +0000 http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-21033 WORLD STRIKE 2012 If you agree that the abolition of money would be a fine solution to most of our problems, and that we could create a much better system where EVERYTHING - food and drink, clothing and housing, water, heating, education, health-care and entertainment - shall be FREE for EVERYONE - why not join the World-Wide Strike on the opening day of the Olympic Games in 2012? The Strike will begin the moment the symbolic Olympic flame is lit - the signal for all who support the abolition of money to stop work and demand a new fair world of true freedom and justice. WE WANT A MONEYLESS WORLD WORLD STRIKE 2012

If you agree that the abolition of money would be a fine solution to most of our problems, and that we could create a much better system where EVERYTHING - food and drink, clothing and housing, water, heating, education, health-care and entertainment - shall be FREE for EVERYONE - why not join the World-Wide Strike on the opening day of the Olympic Games in 2012?

The Strike will begin the moment the symbolic Olympic flame is lit - the signal for all who support the abolition of money to stop work and demand a new fair world of true freedom and justice.

WE WANT A MONEYLESS WORLD

]]> By: bright http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19905 bright Fri, 06 Jul 2007 20:32:02 +0000 http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19905 you are always as free as you choose to be, chandira, but don't make the mistake of thinking that the paranoia is unwarranted. we never do get to see what is censored on the internet, but at least the conversation is much more massive and threads of truly contentious opinions can be teased out. we always control ourselves with our fears and that colors our perceptions of the world. like how robert cannot bring himself to notice slavery in the midst of what he considers a mexican invasion. i know i can't control the world, but i can at least take credit for my reactions. it could be much much worse, but with this wealth of digital pages it could also be much better. i suppose i am an anarchist in as much as i want as many people as possible to have access to dick cheney, so that it will never come down to hoping karl testifies. our mistake is in mistaking a free press for a free press corps. you are always as free as you choose to be, chandira, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that the paranoia is unwarranted. we never do get to see what is censored on the internet, but at least the conversation is much more massive and threads of truly contentious opinions can be teased out. we always control ourselves with our fears and that colors our perceptions of the world. like how robert cannot bring himself to notice slavery in the midst of what he considers a mexican invasion.

i know i can’t control the world, but i can at least take credit for my reactions. it could be much much worse, but with this wealth of digital pages it could also be much better. i suppose i am an anarchist in as much as i want as many people as possible to have access to dick cheney, so that it will never come down to hoping karl testifies. our mistake is in mistaking a free press for a free press corps.

]]> By: Chandira http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19273 Chandira Wed, 27 Jun 2007 17:03:53 +0000 http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19273 I happened by here after last night watching the great movie The Lives Of Others, about the Stasi and the control of 'subversive' writers in East Berlin, just before the wall came down, so I'm still fresh from my outrage about that.. I realised while watching that that it happened only half my lifetime ago that the Wall fell. I'm 35. I think there is a cultural mythos right now about how censored we are, and how risky speaking up potentially is. I don't have to hide my typewriter under the floorboards or risk arrest or worse, for disagreement with the State. That I'm grateful for. I don't really know what my point here is, something about paranoia, and relative threat, I think. I think there is a culture of perpetuating the paranoia that I'm starting to not buy into any more. Not that I don't care, or think we shouldn't fight to keep our freedoms, of course, but that the only real freedom is on the inside. That sounds so horribly cliched, and my apologies for that, but like any cliche, it's true. I'm choosing my own view about things right now, and that is not to buy the fear. Fear is how this battle is fought, and when we can step out of that, we've won. No matter what happens, if we're afraid, 'they' have won, and we control ourselves withour own fears. I happened by here after last night watching the great movie The Lives Of Others, about the Stasi and the control of ’subversive’ writers in East Berlin, just before the wall came down, so I’m still fresh from my outrage about that..

I realised while watching that that it happened only half my lifetime ago that the Wall fell. I’m 35.

I think there is a cultural mythos right now about how censored we are, and how risky speaking up potentially is. I don’t have to hide my typewriter under the floorboards or risk arrest or worse, for disagreement with the State. That I’m grateful for.

I don’t really know what my point here is, something about paranoia, and relative threat, I think. I think there is a culture of perpetuating the paranoia that I’m starting to not buy into any more. Not that I don’t care, or think we shouldn’t fight to keep our freedoms, of course, but that the only real freedom is on the inside. That sounds so horribly cliched, and my apologies for that, but like any cliche, it’s true.
I’m choosing my own view about things right now, and that is not to buy the fear. Fear is how this battle is fought, and when we can step out of that, we’ve won.
No matter what happens, if we’re afraid, ‘they’ have won, and we control ourselves withour own fears.

]]> By: Robert http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19228 Robert Tue, 26 Jun 2007 23:29:30 +0000 http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/06/26/anarchy-for-the-usa-a-conversation-with-josh-wolf/#comment-19228 Wolf is, of course, living in a kind of hippie dreamland. His conclusions about his own situation are often as confused as his perceptions of others. For example, he says that illegal immigrants are merely "crossing an imaginary line" (as "imaginary" as the property line ones house sits on), for nothing worse than trying to "build better opportunities for themselves". So, if I want to move to Japan to get a job and live, instead of going through the visa and residency process, I should just sneak into Yokohama harbor, and millions more should do the same. Makes perfect sense. Never mind that *legal* residents are entitled to a host of programs paid for by legal taxpayers, which *illegal* residents use without contributing to that funding. I've no doubt that there are at least a million non-Americans who would like to live in San Francisco. I seen no good reason to allow them to do so under the pretext of "building opportunities for themselves" when it would significantly harm the quality of life of the 750,000 people already living here legally. That's why we -- like all countries -- have policies in place to avoid such problems. You sensibly asked if there wasn't the risk of the other side using the same claim that bloggers are per force journalists, and thus protected by the confidentiality clause. Wolf clumsily evaded that by claiming "That argument's flawed, because if you are involved in a criminal activity, you don't have to testify because you're protected by the Fifth Amendment." What nonsense! The issue is one of *witnesses* to criminal activity, not the perpetration of it, any more than Mr. Wolf was accused of attacking a police officer or his car. A far more accurate example would be if Karl Rove happened to videotape Dick Cheney torturing someone, but refused to turn over the videotapes to the authorities. Rove would not be required to have participated in or even condoned the criminal activity, but by videotaping it, declaring himself a "journalist-blogger" and claiming that the videotapes were part of his journalistic information-gathering, the tapes would theoretically be protected by the shield law. Sorry you didn't see through that one, R.U. I suppose that this entire experience has been educational for Mr. Wolf and salubrious for the the nation to discuss. The Left (of which I am an oft-disgusted member) has been almost uniformly reactionary in its support of his cause -- more as an indictment of the Federal Government than due to Mr. Wolf's own journalistic merits or objectivity, I suspect, and now the lionization of him has begun. I've no doubt that Mr. Wolf is planning a book on his experience, as a good American mustn't neglect any opportunity to profit from his misfortune. Whether or not we've actually learned anything about how to productively address the larger issues of government encroachments upon our rights, the laxity of the commercial media, the responsibilities of journalists or the process of law is doubtful, given the rhetoric and attitudes displayed here and elsewhere. But at least we can once again channel our inner college freshmen, and say "smash the State, man!" Wolf is, of course, living in a kind of hippie dreamland. His conclusions about his own situation are often as confused as his perceptions of others. For example, he says that illegal immigrants are merely “crossing an imaginary line” (as “imaginary” as the property line ones house sits on), for nothing worse than trying to “build better opportunities for themselves”. So, if I want to move to Japan to get a job and live, instead of going through the visa and residency process, I should just sneak into Yokohama harbor, and millions more should do the same. Makes perfect sense. Never mind that *legal* residents are entitled to a host of programs paid for by legal taxpayers, which *illegal* residents use without contributing to that funding. I’ve no doubt that there are at least a million non-Americans who would like to live in San Francisco. I seen no good reason to allow them to do so under the pretext of “building opportunities for themselves” when it would significantly harm the quality of life of the 750,000 people already living here legally. That’s why we — like all countries — have policies in place to avoid such problems.

You sensibly asked if there wasn’t the risk of the other side using the same claim that bloggers are per force journalists, and thus protected by the confidentiality clause. Wolf clumsily evaded that by claiming “That argument’s flawed, because if you are involved in a criminal activity, you don’t have to testify because you’re protected by the Fifth Amendment.” What nonsense! The issue is one of *witnesses* to criminal activity, not the perpetration of it, any more than Mr. Wolf was accused of attacking a police officer or his car. A far more accurate example would be if Karl Rove happened to videotape Dick Cheney torturing someone, but refused to turn over the videotapes to the authorities. Rove would not be required to have participated in or even condoned the criminal activity, but by videotaping it, declaring himself a “journalist-blogger” and claiming that the videotapes were part of his journalistic information-gathering, the tapes would theoretically be protected by the shield law. Sorry you didn’t see through that one, R.U.

I suppose that this entire experience has been educational for Mr. Wolf and salubrious for the the nation to discuss. The Left (of which I am an oft-disgusted member) has been almost uniformly reactionary in its support of his cause — more as an indictment of the Federal Government than due to Mr. Wolf’s own journalistic merits or objectivity, I suspect, and now the lionization of him has begun. I’ve no doubt that Mr. Wolf is planning a book on his experience, as a good American mustn’t neglect any opportunity to profit from his misfortune. Whether or not we’ve actually learned anything about how to productively address the larger issues of government encroachments upon our rights, the laxity of the commercial media, the responsibilities of journalists or the process of law is doubtful, given the rhetoric and attitudes displayed here and elsewhere. But at least we can once again channel our inner college freshmen, and say “smash the State, man!”

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