Questions: The Beast

[Payne]

Questions on the Nature of the Beast.

Inspired in part by an opensource radio broadcast with John Robb

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We know that there is something fucked up about the world today. For the most part, we are from developed countries (North American and European). Our nation states are a part of The Machine that we, for the most part, agree exists. Then you can factor in most of the large corporations, the media, "Common Sense", and traditional culture.

We know that many of the opposing ideologies are different sides of the same coin. Minted by The Machine to give cabbages an illusion of 'choice'. A mirror perhaps of the dominant economic philosophy in our homelands, the Free-Market economy.

To The Machine, we are numbers to be crunched, cogs to be ground.

Of course we are slightly different in that we try to see a bit more of the bigger picture, some of us more than others.

What else do we know? What redundancies are built into The Machine? What would happen if a paradigm shift occurred? Say a fuel shortage meant we were restricted to our immediate locality, imports and exports stopped except for The Machines absolute essentials. What effect would this have on our view of this awesome beast?

Would it become weaker? Stronger?

I am not an advocate of large scale action to bring about this scenario, but how would we deal with it? What redundancies do we have in place?

Right now, it is only logical to foul the oil, one grain of sand at a time, that keeps The Machine running. We must not draw attention specifically to ourselves because we are so few, and large scale destruction would have the undesirous effect of stiffening the barriers against us as individuals and as a pack.

What do we do if this happens by someone elses hand? I have been interested in these ideas for only a short time, I have no idea what it was like prior to September 11th, before the War on Terror. I can only assume, however, that it changed the tone of what we call Discordianism.

We are aware that the internet is not a high level target, due to its usefulness to too many of the forces active in the world today, but what would we do if all of us lost access to it without warning for an undetermined amount of time?

For some, I believe, this would make little difference. An inconvenience.

Ultimately there are some of you who have ideas about this already, who can see potential disasters coming. You know what you are going to do.

For the rest of us, what do we really know about The Machine? What do we really know about ourselves? and what are we going to do about it?

[Jenne]

That, my friend, is why you make sure you have a stake in all of this OUTSIDE this board.  That you do your "ops" in real-time, real-life places and at real-people events.  Because otherwise, yeah, this is all just a simulation.

[Payne]

Yeah I know, I guess it's my newness to it all. And the fact that I feel so fuckin isolated out here in the sticks.

that interview cain posted the link for made me think, so I had to write something down.

[Idem]

That, my friend, is why you make sure you have a stake in all of this OUTSIDE this board.  That you do your "ops" in real-time, real-life places and at real-people events.  Because otherwise, yeah, this is all just a simulation.

Yep.

Even I do my part.

Board serves as awesome inspiration though.

[Dr. Cow Ass]

That, my friend, is why you make sure you have a stake in all of this OUTSIDE this board.  That you do your "ops" in real-time, real-life places and at real-people events.  Because otherwise, yeah, this is all just a simulation.

Jenne hit it right on the head and although you may be isolated in a small town or whatever there's still a bunch of things you can do that spread the word and are really fun. If your in highschool, tell the kids about discordianism, or better yet demonstrate it through a simple, but funny mind fuck.

You don't have to do anything to change the world. First yourself, and then another individual.

[Payne]

That, my friend, is why you make sure you have a stake in all of this OUTSIDE this board.  That you do your "ops" in real-time, real-life places and at real-people events.  Because otherwise, yeah, this is all just a simulation.

Jenne hit it right on the head and although you may be isolated in a small town or whatever there's still a bunch of things you can do that spread the word and are really fun. If your in highschool, tell the kids about discordianism, or better yet demonstrate it through a simple, but funny mind fuck.

You don't have to do anything to change the world. First yourself, and then another individual.

That wasn't the entire point of the post though. Yes I'm out in the sticks, but i'm also very new to this type of thinking. Anything I've tried as an individual IRL has been the fail so far, but I continue plugging away.

I was also making the point that it's all well and good to think of the Machine in the terms expressed in the OP, but what else is it? Strengths, weaknesses what have you.

Again Idems point is something I was trying to express, though with poor writing ability.

Ach, many things lost in translation. I need to sort out my writing....

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Ach, many things lost in translation. I need to sort out my writing....

No you don't.  Cowass ALWAYS misses the point of any rant he reads.  Every single time.

[Payne]

Ach, many things lost in translation. I need to sort out my writing....

No you don't.  Cowass ALWAYS misses the point of any rant he reads.  Every single time.

I had the "argue with him" circuit fail mid post, but I couldn't let it go unresponded to.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Ach, many things lost in translation. I need to sort out my writing....

No you don't.  Cowass ALWAYS misses the point of any rant he reads.  Every single time.

I had the "argue with him" circuit fail mid post, but I couldn't let it go unresponded to.

The thing to remember with Cowass is that he's all ego, and no hate.  Well, a weak hate.  A sub-par hate. 

That's why you'll argue "A", and he'll rebut "B", and then get all pissy when people laugh at him.  He still hasn't forgiven me for stringing him along for a week over the Sonora thing.

[Payne]

Ach, many things lost in translation. I need to sort out my writing....

No you don't.  Cowass ALWAYS misses the point of any rant he reads.  Every single time.

I had the "argue with him" circuit fail mid post, but I couldn't let it go unresponded to.

The thing to remember with Cowass is that he's all ego, and no hate.  Well, a weak hate.  A sub-par hate. 

That's why you'll argue "A", and he'll rebut "B", and then get all pissy when people laugh at him.  He still hasn't forgiven me for stringing him along for a week over the Sonora thing.

Your hate is incomparable rev. And you have INFLUENCE too.

OH NOES!!!!1!!!!1 The Anti-christ is here!!!!!!

[LHX]

ive said it before - that one of the things that it seems most of the people here have in common is to be able to keep their shit together when things get foul

at least thats the impression i get


i dont think anybody has the illusion that they will be able to stave off calamity perpetually
but
knowing how to handle shit when situations get thick is a real accomplishment


you bring up a valid point tho -
even tho this site and community can be used as a source of inspiration/support/feedback
it is wise to understand the fleetingness (?) of all things



besides - if shit hits the fan it has already been decided that we are meeting in Cuba

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Right now, it is only logical to foul the oil, one grain of sand at a time, that keeps The Machine running. We must not draw attention specifically to ourselves because we are so few, and large scale destruction would have the undesirous effect of stiffening the barriers against us as individuals and as a pack.

You just wrote in one paragraph, something that took me almost a year to articulate, back in '03.

[Jenne]

Awesome.  *needs a good tequila-and-cigar party*

[Payne]

I'm probably not cleared for that information yet...

But Cuba sounds good. Guantanamo Bay?

[Jenne]

Fuck Gitmo.