those anarcho punks are mysterious

fragglerock!

2005-12-01T23:48:00.000-05:00

ah, nothing warms the cockles of my heart more than a soldier (or sailor in this case) shooting his superiors.

unfortunately, the gunman (who as of this time remains unnamed) shot himself after inflicting non-life-threatening injuries on his chief and officer-in-charge. he remains in critical care.

fragging: fuck yeah! i'd just like to remind potential fraggers out there...shoot and kill. shoot and kill.

prisoner solidarity night for mehmet tarhan!

2005-11-24T02:54:00.000-05:00

Come learn about the history and current status of Mehmet's case, and on the current state of radical, queer and anti-militarist activity in Turkey as it moves closer to European Union membership and the war against the Kurds heats up again in Eastern Anatolia!

There will also be letter-writing in support of Mehmet, both to him (though his English is limited) and to Prime Minister Erdogan, with copies to the European Union officials curently negotiating an accession agreement with Turkey; as well as information about other urgent political prisoner cases (here in the U.S., in Palestine, and elsewhere), and letter-writing in support of their current needs as well as their immediate release;

Information will also be available about other upcoming political prisoner related events, including the December 3rd round-table at Columbia Law School and the international day of solidarity with Mehmet Tarhan on December 9th.

@ Bluestockings
172 Allen Street (Between Stanton and Rivington)
Lower East Side, NYC
December 1st, 2005
7pm

Mehmet Tarhan is a queer anarchist total/conscientious objector who has been imprisoned in Turkey since April 2005 because of his rejection of military service in a country with mandatory conscription. He was sentanced to 4 years in prison in August for "insubordination...with the intent of evading military service" and has repeatedly suffered torture and brutality at the hands of guards as well as fellow prisoners.

For more information about this event or for the upcoming day of action for Mehmet Tarhan on December 9th, please contat the Mehmet Tarhan Defense Network at freemehmetnow@yahoo.com

http://www.wri-irg.org/co/turkcampaign-en.htm (in English)

http://www.savaskarsitlari.org (in Turkish)

http://www.mehmettarhan.com (in English, German, French, Spanish)

http://www.myspace.com/freemehmet (in English)

fallujah was burning

2005-11-11T00:02:00.000-05:00

the story of the united states using chemical weapons (in this case, white phosphorus, also known as 'willy pete') on the city of fallujah has only recently come to the attention of the public-at-large, and even then, not so many.

after watching a video documentary by italian journalists, i feel terrible. i feel terrible because the united states is burning people with some hideous napalm-like substance, is occupying people's fucking homes, is torturing them, killing them, exploiting and oppressing them, and i haven't done enough.

oh no, don't worry, this isn't going to be a post of self-flagellation. yes, i feel terrible. no, i don't feel as terrible as those poor people must have felt as their skin literally burned inside and out. what this means, and illustrates starkly, is how ineffective the anti-war movement is, and how we must do so much more. the people of this country are as guilty of murdering and burning the woman in this graphic photograph as surely as the soldiers in iraq who physically dropped the bombs. screaming 'not in our name' does not absolve anyone from having blood on their hands.

are we serious about stopping the war? because if we are, than we must not stop until the war is over.

and then, the war isn't really over is it? treating the symptom of one state's war to enrich capitalists and perpetuate the fucked-up system that creates these wars, isn't good enough. until we are free from all that dominates and exploits and destroys us, we are at war.

see you on the streets.

paris is burning with boredom now!

2005-11-07T17:20:00.000-05:00

i think we have all heard about the crazy riots in paris --thousands of cars burned, hundreds arrested, dozens of police officers hurt, some critically. it is clear that the riots are growing--over 200 hundred cities in france, and now incidents in belgium and germany as well.

my fear is not that the rioting won't continue, but the fear is that, as usual, the rioters will accept the state's empty promises, or the sacking of the interior minister sarcozy, as good enough. clearly the pressure from the boiling pots of poverty and racism, the state and the capitalists had uneasily kept a lid on, have just blown up. what those in power want more than anything is to maintain power, and so they will do everything they can to ensure that when all the fires have been put out, the people have once again allowed the government to use the pressure valve of reform and concession to do just that-- put out the fires of rebellion.

i have hope that the insurrection keeps growing, in hundreds of cities in france, past national borders into the rest of europe. what makes me pessimistic is the assertion from a rioter, who had just driven a car into a housing project and set it on fire, that "We'll stop when Sarkozy steps down."

the revolving door of state bureaucrats will not solve the points of racism, poverty, and injustice. only the dismantling of the institutions that amplify and help create racism, poverty, and injustice will do it. i hope that where may 1968 failed (they took the state's concessions and were later disappointed to find out the state would not honor them!) november 2005 will succeed.

i might also add, that it would seem --to me-- that violence should not be targeted on other poor people, but should be taken to the streets and neighborhoods of the rich. drive cars into the lobbies of luxury apartments! not that of your neighbor who is in the same boat as you!

when in doubt, frag!

2005-11-01T14:15:00.000-05:00

things are not looking good for alberto b. martinez, the second soldier in the iraq war to frag his superior officers. he has been recommended for a court-martial, and it seems likely that he will face the death penalty, as did hasan akbar, the first soldier convicted of fragging in the current war in iraq.

the only way for soldiers to redeem themselves is to refuse to serve, or better yet, to take out some commanding officers. serving in the military is absolutely inexcusable, and there is no justification for murdering the poor and occupying someone's home, for the sole benefit of the rich and to maintain a culture and way of life that is inherently unsustainable. no tears for the dead soldiers. you think the poverty draft is unjust? so do i. but supporting the state's footsoldiers is not the answer. if you really want to thwart the war, and want to stick it to the man, starve him of fresh recruits. counter recruitment is the achilles heel of the military.

but wouldn't it be nice if more soliders followed in the footsteps of alberto and hasan? we need more grenades in the beds of officers! pronto!

squat da world! (or at least the hamptons!)

2005-11-01T12:50:00.000-05:00

a really funny article from the ny post, of all papers.

October 31, 2005 -- Yet another Hamptons homeowner learned she had an uninvited houseguest when a woman peeked into her summer home Saturday night and was shocked to find someone lounging inside.

Both squatter and owner fled after spotting one another. East Hampton Town cops unsuccessfully fanned out with K-9 units and said they had no idea how long the suspect had been in the house, whose owner was not identified.

The trespass was but the latest in an increasingly popular practice — waiting for the summer hordes to the Hamptons to leave, then sliding unnoticed into their empty nests.

In September, a man arrived at his Amagansett property to find what he called a "Bohemian" couple having sex in his backyard. The lusty twosome ran off, and the homeowner went inside — to a welcome of uneaten supper, cigarette butts and discarded underwear.

The couple even used his bath towels and hair dryer while staying gratis in a place that rents for $2,000 a week in summer and $30,000 for the season. Cops declined to say whether they considered it the handiwork of a serial or a beginner squatter.

The off-season East End is a logical target for the rent averse, with its large swaths of pricey homes empty for months. The low-profile streets of Amagansett have proved a particularly popular target. And the scope may be wider than assumed.

This much is known: Squatters prefer smaller homes, since the many mansions that dot the East End are guarded by year-round caretakers and fancy security systems.

**interestingly enough, i just learned that the squat symbol, in physics, means "static free system."**

worldwide anarchy day

2005-10-31T15:01:00.000-05:00

i saw an events listing for "worldwide anarchy day" on infoshop for november 11th, and since there was no explanation, i honestly had no idea what the fuck it was supposed to mean. why is november 11th "worldwide anarchy day"? why not any day?

so i looked it up, and i found out the following:

worldwide anarchy day, is mainly the commemeration of the anniversary of the execution of the haymarket "martyrs" in 1887. i really hate the term "martyr". they were revolutionaries, not victims. but just in case you aren't familiar with 'em, the haymarket revolutionaries executed by the state were: august spies, albert parsons, george engel, and adolph fischer. louis lingg, one crazy-ass motherfucker, killed himself in his cell by exploding a fucking bomb in his mouth! for more info on the whole haymarket "massacre" check out the wikipedia site on haymarket.

but interestingly enough, november 11th, 1918, is also the day that world war one officially ended. "At 11:01am the Great War ended as Germany, bereft of manpower, supplies & food, signed an armistice agreement. The war's toll were 10 million dead (6 million of them civilians), 21 million wounded & 7 1/2 million taken prisoner or missing in action. Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, France & Great Britain each lost a million or more lives, & U.S. forces counted 115,000 dead. The estimated cost of the war was 232 trillion dollars..."*

armistice day was declared in 1932, and children across america learn shit like "Armistice Day. November the 11th is Armistice Day. It was then the cruel war was over. We keep this day in honor of our soldiers. They went over sea to fight for our country. We must remember what they did for us. We must be good & brave girls & boys. We must learn all we can & grow up to be brave & good women & men. Then we too can guard our country well." — School primer, written by Mack Dickey*

a lot of other stuff happened of radical note, but i think the combination of murdered anarchists and the ending of a nasty capitalist war between nation-states, more than creates particularly topical and timely ways to celebrate!

[*taken from the daily bleed]

the really really free market

2005-10-30T17:35:00.000-05:00

yesterday was the second annual halloween really really free market in new york city, and it was a fucking success! we had a good turnout, even for the cold weather, and the event wasn't just a 'market' where people could get free crap; it was a community event, with food, music, dancing, pinata-breaking, stencil-making, propaganda, and massage!

the really really free market is a great action because it is something useful to people in their everyday lives and creates a space where people can begin to challenge the pervading ideas of consumerism, capitalism, and our interactions with each other mediated by both. i'm sure there are some out there who think that really really free markets are reformist leftist bullshit, but those are the people who sit in their armchairs talking anarchy, waxing all brave about armed struggles they have no real intention of participating in. we can't go from a to z in a heartbeat, no matter how much you or i wish for it. the end of the ideas behind civilization won't happen overnight, even if civilization itself is nothing but a house of cards. demonstrating mutual aid, showing that consumer culture and production are not necessarily the Way Things Have To Be, sharing with each other and crossing class and color lines is necessary however. if we are serious about revolution, we need others to be sympathetic towards revolution. we need support, we need more people who understand the failure of this world and who want to help create a new one. that said, i recognize that one really really free market isn't going to accomplish such lofty ambitions, but is simply one small step in the right direction.

one thing the free market was lacking in was skillshares. showing people how to do things DIY is the ultimate rejection of production (in the current industrial sense) as well as specialization. i think it would be very valuable for people to increase their body of knowledge, not only because it can help prepare people to live outside of a capitalist model, but because when civilization does finally crumble, people can be more prepared.

please check nyc indymedia for more pictures from the day.

church fascism

2005-10-29T18:33:00.000-05:00

anyone who understands the catholic church's role in the spanish civil war (as in they fucking supported the fascist stupid big-headed franco --no offense mona--) will find this highly ironic:

"[The Spanish civil war martyrs beatified] were among the 6,844 Catholic priests and nuns who the Vatican says were killed during the Spanish Civil War by anarchist and Communist units fighting the troops of General Franco."

ah yes, the poor fascist martyrs. maybe pope hitler youth XVI can explain to us why no protestant churches were attacked by anarchists (i leave the commies to defend themselves...counter-revolutionary motherfuckers)...maybe the catholic church was attacked specifically because it supported the state, capitalism, and fascism?

that said; no gods, no masters!

harassment

2005-10-26T15:01:00.000-05:00

because i'm such an authoritarian i am using a legal definition of "harassment."

this definition means that someone who "insults, taunts or challenges another in a manner likely to provoke violent or disorderly response," is harassing that person.

i am now asking, publicly, that the person (i'm not naming names yet) who is harassing me to stop doing so immediately. otherwise, you shall reap what you sow.

i can trace and log all IP addresses to my e-mail and blog. be forewarned.

conversation

2005-10-24T00:34:00.000-05:00

i am very interested by this comment on my last blog entry, "remember to kick it over." i'm really touched that my writing compelled someone to leave a comment that is thoughtful and hopefully the beginning of a larger dialog on what Needs To Be Done.

saying that, i'm not sure to what degree that i actually agree with trolle. i am certainly no hater of travellers ('cause i am a traveller myself oftentimes) but s/he seems to overly romanticize their role in our culture of resistance. are all travellers "slaves to liberation"? are they all "putting their bodies on the line"? i kind of find it offensive that the reason we should build a viable counter-infrastructure is so that travellers will have a place to stay. while i think travelling is valuable in terms of inspiration and personal growth, travelling is hard on the communities who are visited and who were left behind. maintaining political space such as squats, infoshops, and collective houses, is hard when the people you rely on are always leaving, or if your spaces are being overrun by non-locals who have less long-term interest in what you and your friends are working towards.

within our culture, their is room for people to explore, for people to move and learn. but, honestly, the kind of infrastructure that can support locals and nomads alike can only be built and maintained by people who are interested in the space for more than a week or a month. and i am not speaking only of space, but of projects, which oftentimes fall apart because everyone leaves town. infrastructure demands permanence, or at the very least, dedication. travellers are dedicated to travelling, which isn't to say that that isn't valuable or that travellers don't do their fair share of fucking shit up, but the other end of the spectrum of resistance (counter-infrastructure) is left to those who choose to remain, not to those who leave.

i also think its a bit disingenuous to act as if every traveller is a little emma or sasha who trainhops with a brick in one hand and a bomb in the other. or that every single one understands the concept of mutual aid. we have all met selfish terrible travellers, who don't help out, whose politics amount to nothing more than stealing, dumpstering, and well, travelling. these people are a drain on long-term projects, not assets. if we need counter-infrastructure that will be useful to travellers, we also need travellers who are useful to the local projects and spaces that they are using.

it is my opinion that we will lose any attempt at revolution if we don't build the necessary framework that will support it. and for me, any infrastructure i help build or maintain, any project that i am a part of, is with a mind to toppling this motherfucker and creating a new world and way of doing things-- not to support a traveller lifestyle. this doesn't mean that i don't support travellers or am anti-lifestyle (quite the opposite actually). but it does mean that travellers are not my priority and never will be.

remember to kick it over

2005-10-17T01:27:00.000-05:00

i have really been uninspired to write in this blog, as you can well evidence by the dramatic lack of posts in the past few months. i know i promise to write, but when the time comes to sit down and update, it is always the last fucking thing i want to do.

i don't know what it's all about. maybe its because i don't have computer access or because its annoying to spend so much time at a computer. maybe i'm tired. maybe i'd rather be out on the streets, linking arms with my comrades, brick in hand, than exhorting people to revolution on the web.

yeah, i think its that one.

what's going on here? what are people doing? where's the immediacy? where are the people who refuse to let one more forest fall, one more innocent iraqi die, one more innocent animal be killed or tortured, one more ...anything? where are the people who fucking understand that keeping infrequent hours at some infoshop does not make revolution?

i'm not shit-talking infoshops, but if that is the pinnacle of our resistance to the consolidated powers of capitalism and state, we are seriously fucked and there is no getting around that. these motherfuckers want nothing more than a docile, paralyzed public. --why let them have what they want? are there not things that are worth risking our privledged-in-their-world positions? are there not things that must be done, because we aren't free if others are not?

i know i'm rambling. i know i sound a little bitter, a little exasperated. i'm just at a fucking loss as to how to change this way of (not) doing things, this utter lack of imperitive. i want to feel as if i weren't wandering the desrt alone, occasionally happening on an oasis that keeps me from dying.

when will we mean what we say? when will our threats no longer be empty? when will we kick this shit over?

i'm so tired of asking questions.

from the ashes

2005-10-03T14:14:00.000-05:00

sorry i have been mia for so long. ever since i have been back from my travels, i have not had easy or long-term access to a computer. which isn't exactly and completely why i haven't bothered to update my blog, but is primarily the reason.

so, with that half-ass apology, the blog shall go on!

what goes up

2005-08-31T10:43:00.000-05:00

ah, civilization gasps as it's secret is discovered by people who have lived so long under it's heel they have forgotten what is known in the very mortality of their own bodies: that it is not invincible.

civilization is a house of cards. in the name of "progress" we have consumed our natural environment. we have cut down the forests and pumped dry the wetlands. we have poisoned the waters, the air, and the land. we have conquered nature, or so it would seem. the concrete, the tracts and tracts of suburban homes, the highways, the malls. all of it so solid, everything so well-ordered, it could never be otherwise....

new orleans is the beginning. the entire city underwater, levees breached, the water still rising, homes rich and poor swept off and obliterated, oil rigs washed out to sea, sewage and the chemicals (from factories and that shit people keep under their sinks to make their homes 'clean') polluting the ground and water for hundreds of years to come. the highways and bridges destroyed. the roof off the invincible superdome ripped apart. no cell phones or e-mail. no work. no cars. no commerce. disaster has struck and the cards are toppling over.

gas prices will rise to $4 per gallon. people are looting in the very face of police and law enforcement. (unfortunately, an officer shot in the head, by one such looter, survived and is recovering.) a city of millions, and the surrounding areas also hit by the hurricane, are rendered uninhabitable.

the effects of civilization's cause will be felt and paid for by all. you cannot systematically destroy the world around you and not ultimately destroy yourself. these major breaches in the omnipotence of civilization cannot be created by us in opposition to it. they will be created by the system itself, a system whose own lust for the conquest of everything will eventually punch giant holes into it's own ordered existence. what we can do, is to exploit and take advantage of every punched hole, of every opportunity that disaster has provided for us. a return to the same self- and world-annihilating ways is absolutely the opposite of everything we are fighting and striving for! we must carry the new world in our hearts into the flooded cities of the one we currently live in.. if we are to turn the tide, if we are to live in the way we dream of living, we must revolt and help others revolt against civilization, against this system whose end is the end of everything.

the cards will only continue to tumble. hurricane katrina was an expectation filled. how long will we have to wait until the next outcome of civiliation's "progress" will appear? and the better question: will we be prepared?

return

2005-08-26T10:28:00.000-05:00

a whirlwind dash from east to west has left me living on a zero sum of sleep. i am so fucking glad, in the deepest marrow of my traveling bones, that i do not have to hitch hike anywhere for quite some time.

three months are coming to an end. it is hard, and yet exciting, to think that each remaining day in europe is one day closer to home. the past three months have been grueling, difficult, easy, and beautiful. i am ready to break out of the suspended life of travel --to leave behind days whipping past the faces and places of cities and countries i've never been before-- and to rest. i don't mean i need a "vacation from my vacation." i do mean that i look forward to the comfort of the meager roots i have in new york, and to work on fucking destroying civilization.

see you soon!

2005-08-23T13:31:00.000-05:00

a shoutout to my fallen comrades!

today in 1927, nicola sacco and bartolomeo vanzetti , were executed by the state of massachusetts for the murders of two men during a robbery. drink a 40 and remember whose footsteps have come before us.

legal update for the pittsburg 6

2005-08-23T10:15:00.000-05:00

Update on those arrested-

Everyone is out of jail! We remain in desperate need of money for legal costs over the long haul ahead, and to repay money borrowed to pay the bails of those arrested. You can donate through the link on our website (www.organizepittsburgh.org).

Here is the status of those arrested and more detailed context of what occurred with their arrests. It appears that video exists disproving some of the charges. We will update people on the progress of charges, trials, and any lawsuits which arise as a result of A20.

1: A male arrested (by undercovers on the sidewalk) is facing a felony charge of Rioting To Prevent an Official Action,” as well as charges of “Resisting Arrest,” “Failure to Disperse,” and “Disorderly Conduct.” It has also come out that the police used a tazer stun on him after he was in police custody. He bail was $1,000. He is facing 5-10 years in prison if convicted.

2: The minor grabbed off the sidewalk was issued 3 citations for a variety of offenses. The police were overheard calling her the “Scum One,”apparently they had a problem with the way she was dressed.

3: As for the woman who was tasered while on the ground (after being pulled off the sidewalk): before she was tasered, a police officer lifted up her glasses and directly shot her with pepper spray in the eyes. She is facing charges of “Failure to disperse,” “Obstructing a Passageway,” and “Obstructing Administration of Justice.” She was released on her own recognizence.

4: A male arrested is facing charges of “Resisting Arrest,” “Criminal Mischief of Personal Property,” “Disorderly Conduct,” “Simple Assault,” “Harassment,” and “Obstructing a Public Passageway.” he was released on $3,000 bail and is also facing a hefty prison term if convicted.

5: A male arrested on the sidewalk is facing charges of “Failure to Disperse” and “Obstructing a Public Passageway.” He was released on his own recognizence

6: The women bitten by the dog was released from the hospital and will be receiving a citation for “disorderly conduct.”

-------
the new york city legal defense fund is in contact with pittsburgh legal about helping out with bail and other legal costs. solidarity with our comrades starts before the prison terms begin! one of the many things that the anarchist resistance in the united states is missing, is real solidarity and mutual aid between distant groups and comrades. to be strong enough to defeat the forces of unmitigated power that we are staring down, we must have strong bonds between ourselves that are unbreakable. 'cause you can't blow up a social relationship.

the fox and the boys in blue

2005-08-21T11:01:00.000-05:00

anyone suffering from delusions that the media is reformable and isn't inherently counter-revolutionary, should take a close look at how fox news and the police worked together at the counter-recruitment protest in pittsburg on saturday.

not only was fox news aggresively videotaping demonstrators, the cameraman instigated the police by claiming that demonstrators "assaulted his camera." it was at this point that the pittsburg coppers descended onto the crowd, pepperspraying, tasering, letting loose a dog on an elderly woman, overturning a man in his wheelchair, and pepperspraying small children. according to the police, fox news is now pressing charges against one demonstrator who they allege was responsible for the "assault" on the inanimate object, and who was also "hit and pepper sprayed, during which time a cop held a taser two inches from his face" during his arrest.

i think it is quite likely our friends in black shoved this fucker's camera out of their faces. when asked to stop filming, this fox news asshole got aggresive, and our friends pushed him away. he claims his camera was broken (which he then continued to use) and the police moved in, attacking the crowd. i'm not claiming a conspiracy, but it seems obvious that the reactionary elements of the media and the police were working in concert together, namely to quell and supress opposition to the powers they both represent.

another interesting facet of this demonstration was the banner:

you can see that behind the structure of the frame and the banner itself is orange netting (like they use at construction sites). this is an interesting solution to the age-old problem of "people" stepping through a torn banner. namely, they can't. i can't quite figure out what material they used for the frame, and see an alarming amount of zipties, but for protective banners, this seems like a great idea. i don't think this banner would work well in other situations, such as when you might need a battering ram, since you can't adequately put all of your weight into it, but i think it shows a clever ingenuity that makes me excited!

oh, one more thing: fuck the police!!

all out for september 24th

2005-08-20T05:24:00.000-05:00

the details of the dc consulta have just appeared on nyc indymedia and it appears to be the usual mishmash of liberals, reformist agendas, permitted marches, and lockdowns. (along with direct action by the iww? who would have thunk it?) what is obviously missing is the anarchist voice.

the war will not stop because people feel bad about bombing and killing some brown people. the imf and world bank will continue to wreck devestation in the form of structural adjustment policies as opposed to bombs on the poor of the 'developing countries.' the environment and the non-human animals that share the planet with us are being tortured, maimed, cut down, and driven extinct by the lust for profit that drives capitalism.

we must raise the bar! we must put forth the anarchist perspective the best way we know how, by militant direct action! we all know what happened in seattle and quebec city. we need to create new moments of resistance right now! we must obliterate the shadow of 9-11 from our actions and make sure that the engines of war and state and capital have more than a few monkeywrenches (or juice) thrown in them!

all out on september 24th! destroy the war machine! destroy the imf and world bank!

fuck candlelit vigils! its time to agitate!

2005-08-19T09:15:00.000-05:00

anarchist action has put a call out for "a revolutionary anti-capitalist convergence against the war" in san francisco. the timing of this call is especially perfect, as it will come during the weekend of the imf and world bank meetings in washington dc, as well as massive marches and direct action (?) by answer and united for peace and justice.

similar protests have been called in washington dc by the two dinosaurs, as well as the requisite protest against the imf and world bank by a group called "block the bank." why are we waiting around? anarchist action has been doing some really fucking awesome shit around the bay area, mainly because it has consistently kept up pressure. no lulls, no stoppages because of "burnout" or "ennui," just no excuses! they have correctly identified that there has been an upswing in the anti-war movement, and instead of laying around and letting the reformists and liberals of ufpj, answer, and the cult of cindy sheehan dictate the terms of protests (ie. nothing but empty feel-good sentiments), we need to make sure we don't repeat the mistakes of two years ago and make sure that anarchy and militancy wins the day!

no more "respectful" protests! no more waiting! as more and more people die in iraq, as the united states rolls from one country to another to another in its quest of geopolitical domination, as the world becomes ice caps and deserts, we must take advantage of every opportunity!

we need to be in washington dc during that weekend, and we need to fuck shit up!

more to follow...

those anarcho punks are not updating

2005-08-17T11:41:00.000-05:00

sorry i haven't updated in several weeks. but you know how it is. you're walking around barcelona, or berlin, or getting stuck on the autobahn for a day and half.

i'm in poland right now with t. we will be back in new york city soon.

g8 defendant & prisoner solidarity

2005-08-01T06:37:00.000-05:00

G8 Defendant & Prisoner Solidarity

During the G8 protests across Scotland the police arrested and imprisoned around 354 people. Almost two hundred are due to have trials in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, Stirling and Falkirk. Court cases have already started and more are due in the next few weeks. Two people are still in prison on remand.

We are a group set up to support everyone who was arrested at or in connection with demonstrations against the G8. We support all those arrested during the anti-G8 protests in July 2005, whatever the reason the police have given for their arrest. We hope to act as a contact point for defendants to meet and work out strategies together and to find witnesses and to provide practical support for people with court cases.

There are several different ways people coming to court can be supported:
- If you live in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Stirling, Perth or Falkirk please get in touch if you are able to provide accommodation for people facing court and their friends or family.
- Cash is needed to help with fares for defendants, friends and family members who don't live in Scotland.
- Come to court to support people while their cases are being heard
- Sending postcards and writing to people in custody
- Arranging for delivery of books and small amounts of money to prisoners in custody
- Welcoming prisoners on release and providing local accommodation if needed

Please get in touch if you were arrested at the G8 and are due in court and want us to help in any way. We are going to try and be in court for everyone coming to trial - please let us know if you are in court so we can be there to support you.

If you need any legal advice then get in touch with the G8 Legal Support at
G8legalsupport@riseup.net or write to G8 Legal Support c/o LDMG BM Box HAVEN
London WC1N 3XX

If you are interested in helping people due in court in any way please contact us.

July 2005 Solidarity Group
c/o 17 West Montgomery Place
Edinburgh EH7 5HA
July2005solidarity@yahoo.co.uk
or leave a message on 0131 557 6242

right wing scum your time has come

2005-07-31T10:56:00.000-05:00

on friday night we went to this squat in barcelona called, 'la rabia,' for a punk show. there were a group of polish punks tabling and k. called me over and said, "hey, have you seen the cover of this cd?" i walk over and guess what? a group called 'time has come' decided to use a certain picture of a certain banner from a certain protest in january as their cover art.

the punk show, incidentally, really sucked. spanish punk is terrible.

unamerican

2005-07-27T12:50:00.000-05:00

europe hates americans. americans as in the 'united states of america.' not mexicans, not canadians, but the poor and privledged american people, anarchists included.

¨¿son americanos?"

"si, somos americanos."

"no me gustan americanos."

its not just in spain. france, england, scotland, ireland. pretty much everywhere i've been, i've had to work extra hard because of my country of origin.

how fucked up is that?

with the acknowledgement that the united states is an evil empire; with the acknowledgement that the citizens of the us of a are privledged beyond all possible belief and allow wars to maintain this privledge to be waged in their name with little to no effective protest; with the acknowledgement that the united states is responsible for unimaginable atrocities in the name of capital; with this understanding, i fucking hate america. i hate the united states, as i hate all states. i hate the state of italy, spain, france, england, scotland, ireland, bangladesh, mexico...wherever states exist, i hate and oppose them.

does this mean that i hate the people of those countries? does this mean that the anarchists and autnomistas and other comrades do not have my support? does this mean that i categorically dismiss them on the basis of the fucking nation-state they hail from?

absolutely not. i, and most of the other nasty americans i'm traveling with, are always really happy to meet comrades from other places. i think its so important to meet people from other areas (bioregions in a stateless world) in order to inspire, connect, and work together. we each labor under a different set of circumstances -a different mixture of social and historical events- that make our regional struggles unique, but the most important thing is to never forget that we share dreams, methodologies, rage, and love for a different world.

am i being stupid? am i trying to sweep under the rug the horror of american political and cultural imperialism? am i being unreasonable in expecting to be judged on my personal actions and not the culture i come from? in no way should this diatribe be taken to mean americans should be left off the hook for the fucked up actions we allow to continue in our names. but if i can see the difference between an italian anarchist comrade and their fucked up rightwing government, can't others do the same?

please take me to barcelona

2005-07-25T11:28:00.000-05:00

ah, ive made it to barcelona (side note: i have no idea where the single quotation mark is on this spanish keyboard, so uh, cut me some slack on the conjunctions) and im melting in the heat of the summer. friends have already left, ive spent a week in the middle of nowhere in france, and now i must re-adjust myself to drunk punx and squatter kids and another language i dont know (too well).

i am so hopeful right now, and in someways im glad to see that the g8 hasnt crushed me under its heel. i have so many ideas and so much i know we need to do in order to make this thing we call revolution really happen.

europe isnt an anarchist paradise. there are certain social and historical combinations that have resulted in the current anarchist community and activities here. they are not neccesarily or precisely reproducible. we cannot hold ourselves to a standard we think exists and that we have failed to live up to. what we can learn and what we can take to heart and into the streets is constant fucking pressure. with every eviction another occupation! if we need to take a break from our revolutionary politics than we are not doing things right. if we arent doing things right, than we need to figure out what we are doing wrong. no more ennui. no more malaise. no more bullshit.

i look forward to seeing each and every one of you i call friend when i get back. there is much to do and much to discuss. unfortunately, that wont be until september!

with that, i leave you to swim in the mediterranean. wish you were here.