[FUPQ-06] Be wary of the politics of violence
Day 3,683, 15:30
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Published in USA 
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by
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by Pfenix Quinn
The Free University of Phoenix Quinn is a service of the Socialist Freedom Party, an open and welcoming intergalactic anarcha-mutualist art collective and neighborhood watch based in e-USA
This is Lecture Number 6 of a 20-part series on Combating Tyranny. It's derived from Timothy Snyder's wee book ON TYRANNY, adapted to our New World context. The lecturer is R.F. Williams, a pleasant if somewhat curmudgeonly chap who contributes little to the game except for occasionally pontificating in a weak imitation of his hero, Phoenix Quinn.
Encuentre traducciones al español de estas conferencias en VANGUARDIA SOCIALISTA.
Be wary of the politics of violence.
When players with weapons who claim to be against the system start marching with e-torches, wearing ridiculous virtual uniforms and sporting the same avatar of their glorious leader, then some problems have probably just moved from bad to worse. To put it more seriously: when private paramilitaries begin to mingle and merge with the police, the end is coming for an open society.
In the real world, governments understandably seek to monopolize violence. This is actually a mixed blessing.
Although it may sound contradictory, it is when only the (legitimate, popularly-supported) government is legally permitted to use violence that a thoroughly open-ended and democratic politics is possible. Of course, a corrupt and totalitarian government monopolizes violence for exactly the opposite reason — to crush freedom, municipalism, autonomy and the participation of the demos in self-rule.
As a general principle, we can observe that the proliferation of autonomous armed groups in a free society degrades the political order. Storm troopers of whatever flavor serve mainly to intimidate their rivals and create a climate of fear.
Undermining local authority paves the way for seizure of power by bad actors. And as we have seen in previous lectures, once in power, then authoritarians quickly seek to implement a parody of “law” as a fig leaf for carrying out atrocities and crimes.
Furthermore, bone-headed sheet-wearing goober-militia-style bullying is not the only expression of this kind of thing to watch out for. There are more institutionalized forms. Paying for mercenaries to fight ones battles and paying corporations to run prisons are forms of the same thing.
Watch out for the privatization of violence, like an ‘elected’ leader creating a personal security force accountable only to himself, or forcibly removing dissenting voices from political events being held in a supposedly public space. These are examples of the problem and they deserve careful wariness.
There are those situations when it becomes necessary to arm one's community in order, for example, to chase the Klan out of your neighborhood because the government is too corrupted or too weak to protect its citizens. But that should always be the exception in a free society.
It is worth being thoughtful whenever advocating for the use of violence, or using violent language, even in play or jest. Beware the ideology of exclusion. Attacks on dissenters in the name of bogus patriotism, or based on some narrow-minded group loyalty, or as part of an overblown defense of the role of ‘the leader’ or 'the right idea' are nearly always a sign of worse things to come.
At the end of this lecture series, invaluable certificates and e-degrees will be issued by Professor Williams based on responses provided in the comment sections. Participation counts. Indicate attendance by leaving a comment or endorsing the article. Higher degrees are awarded according to the degree of critical thinking, mindfulness and humor exhibited by responders.
Examples of questions you might want to address in responses to this lecture:
* What is the point at which an autonomous or community militia, the use of violence to counter even worse violence, perhaps in self-defense, becomes necessary?
* Is there really any such thing as violence in the New World? If so, how does it manifest?
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* What is the point at which an autonomous or community militia, the use of violence to counter even worse violence, perhaps in self-defense, becomes necessary?
* Is there really any such thing as violence in the New World? If so, how does it manifest?
Quit pretending to be PQ.
Go back to the basement you boring troll.
come on man
1. Never
2. It’s a game. There is no violence, just fragile ego’s
saying the truth as usual 🙂
Great Article Congratulations
What does this have to do with the game?
Some RL issues have no in-game reference!
* We can't combat our corrupt e-government with a militia, with violence. All we can do is not fight where we are being told, not approve sending tax-cc to the CBO, vote against them on any election. It would be awesome if we could form a MU and fight the EZC military junta - game mechanics not there.
* There is violence, plenty of violence. When members of the one big major party come to parties like ours en masses, tamper with our voting process, when corrupt oligarchs, who pretend to have authority only need to label you "rogue" or PTO in order that other people start hating you and voting against you, then it is VERBAL VIOLENCE. It's even worse: it's deception, anti-revolutionary propaganda and group-mobbing!
If we let them get away with this, then it's our own fault we are enslaved!
Thanks for finally participating.
is that all you will say. Do you agree with this?
Until now, you have never shown me any dignity, only insults and trolling. Not sure I should engage with you. Let me consider it.
I think his question is legit. Curious to hear your answer.
It is very sad when a community should using violence to defend itself against the violence of others. In most circumstances it works better to counter violence with love. It seems ridiculous but history of the last 100 years has proven it works better.
https://wagingnonviolence.org/feature/the-more-violence-the-less-revolution/
Back to this world, violence here is made with words. We must not counter any corrupt leaders with insults, lies etcetera, we must counter that with love for the community, with facts and good reason otherwise we strengthen oppression.
The more violence, the less revolution!
As often happens, I find myself largely in agreement with my friend, Niemand.
"At the risk of seeming ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by a great feeling of love." - Che
I can think of a number of great RL leaders who taught their followers to love, and even though this is an ancient idea, it always appears as revolutionary in a violent world. Yes, the eWorld is a violent place, superficially in the fact that it is considered to be a war game, with the capacity to deny others the freedom to determine their country's course when they are denied Congress, for instance. The greater violence, however, as already noted, is in the way words are used as weapons (sadly, also a reflection of RL). The difficulty in the love argument is that you cannot count on its changing anyone else. It can only change you. Once you accept this, however, the bullies, trolls, and elitists lose their power to control you, and you are truly free.
Violence, negativity and hate are contagious. We often and up just like our oppressors, for the opposite reasons.
You are the oppressor, you censor people from taking part in our congressional primaries, you block people from voting and all without any reasoning or decision from the RC.
What is the difference then between the SFP Forum and the elite-eUS Forum?
I see the same tactics, the same strategy, the same kind of slander: label players enemy/PTO without proof, ban/block them, ignore the democratic procedure.
Care to answer?
V!!