Nick, A model for the kind of enlightened discussion / social action of the type you might want to see put in place.
The Bellamy Clubs. Several thousand were formed in a loose confederation across the US — all inspired by Edward Bellamy's book (Science Fiction by the way), Looking Backward. They were a kind of socialist-utopian society. I taught an honors course on "Utopian and Dystopian futures in literature and Film" with Edwards grandson, Michael Bellamy. davew On Mon, Feb 10, 2020, at 7:00 PM, thompnicks...@gmail.com wrote: > Glen, Marcus, > > Thank you for your always surprising suggestions, for your thoughts > outside the box. > > I confess to being attracted to the pristine hypocrisy of HireAThug.com. > > Speaking of Thuggs, I wonder how many of you know about the Wide > Awakes. These were a paramilitary organization that paraded in the > streets of Northern Cities for Lincoln during the 1860 election. Black > capes and torches and staves. Wikipedia has a lovely entry, > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Awakes > > Here is their banner: > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Awakes#/media/File:Wide_Awakes_Banner.tif > FRIAM mentalists should go for the slogan, "mind, eye" and the animal > behaviorists amongst should endorse the rampant ferrets. > > It seems like a bad idea whose time has come > > I wonder if the New Wide Awakes could become the youth organization of > the Lincoln Project (https://lincolnproject.us/, that organization of > centrist republicans that has dedicated itself to electing an > anti-trump senate and president, even though, they concede, that > requires them to vigorously support democrats in the current cycle. > > Nick > > > > > Nicholas Thompson > Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology > Clark University > thompnicks...@gmail.com > https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/ > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> On Behalf Of u?l? ? > Sent: Monday, February 10, 2020 9:04 AM > To: FriAM <friam@redfish.com> > Subject: Re: [FRIAM] Up and Out vs Down and in > > You've hidden the most important part of your question at the very > bottom: "in the next year". As always, the system contains feedback > loops. And each loop has its own speed. There are lots of things you > can do in the next year that won't show any impact *within* the year, > but may show impact beyond the year. If you're worried about the next > president, or the next, etc., then those are viable answers to your > question. There are *some* things you can do during the year that > *might* show impact within the year. But just as there's a temporal > scope to any action, there's also a *spatial* scope to any action. I'd > argue that the actions you might take this year that might show impact > within the year, will have limited spatial scope. > > So, I'll treat you like one of my clients and answer your question with > a question. 8^) What do you *want* to see happen within the year? And > your stated objective can't be vague like "reverse the authoritarian > pandemic". What does that even mean? No, you have to state a particular > and specific objective in order to answer my question. > > For example, one action *I* can take this year, that may show some > impact this year, but more likely in the coming decades, is to support > https://fairvotewa.org/, which I'll be doing this evening. You already > have that option in Santa Fe, I think. Ideally, RCV should help protect > against either your worry of right-wing authoritarians or Dave's worry > of left-wing authoritarians. > > Another example from left field might be to help start/run an After > School Satan club <https://afterschoolsatan.com/> near you. The > elevation of the Adversary is critical to fighting group-think of all > kinds. If your particular and specific objective is to make those > around you deeper thinkers, then that sort of action will have > immediate *and* long-term impact. > > Yet another answer is to join Antifa. Put on some body armor and > protect the [counter]protesters from the (actual) fascists roaming our > streets with guns, chains, and bats. (Contrary to Dave's conjecture > that left-wing fascism is more likely, we have self-described > right-wing fascists *actually* roaming our streets as we speak.) It > doesn't matter if you're old or fat. What matters is to put some active > MEAT between the fascists and the [couter]protesters. Or at least buy > an Iron Front bumper sticker. 8^) > > There are sooooo many possible actions. But without a particular and > specific objective, you're relegated to hand-wringing. > > On 2/8/20 9:04 PM, thompnicks...@gmail.com wrote: > > I have a friend who reads a lot of history and thinks HARD about what > > he reads. For months he has been reassuring me about the state of American > > democracy because, as he said, Trump wasn’t a well focused dictator like > > Hitler. But I saw him last Monday and he asked me, with an air of genuine > > panic, “What do I do?” The reason for his new panic was his realization > > that Hitler had not always been a focused dictator, but had been entrained, > > over his career, to play just those themes that would rouse the German > > people to War. The impeachment process had convinced him that Trump was > > gradually developing the focus of a proper Hitler. > > > > > > > > So I passed the question he asked me onto the group on Friday. “What > > do we do?” What struck me was that many of us took the question to be, > > “where do we best escape to?” Options included New Zealand, Costa Rica, > > Bermuda, Canada, Italy, etc. These answers startled me, because, of > > course, the question I meant to be asking was, how do we use our > > considerable talent, skill, knowledge, resources, and technical knowhow to > > do everything in our power to reverse the authoritarian pandemic that is > > sweeping the world. > > > > > > > > Now some of you, perhaps many, that we in any kind of an emergency, or even > > if we are, that there is anything we might do about it, or even that there > > is any particular reason to save American democracy. I am happy to have > > that discussion, too. However, from those of you who share my panic, I > > would love to hear suggestions about what I (and others) might do in the > > next year . > > > > -- > ☣ uǝlƃ > > ============================================================ > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College to unsubscribe > http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > archives back to 2003: http://friam.471366.n2.nabble.com/ > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ by Dr. Strangelove > > > ============================================================ > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College > to unsubscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > archives back to 2003: http://friam.471366.n2.nabble.com/ > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ by Dr. Strangelove > ============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College to unsubscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com archives back to 2003: http://friam.471366.n2.nabble.com/ FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ by Dr. Strangelove
