Anarchy House Project
Anarchy Now, not in some mythical utopian future.
Are you an anarchist who is frustrated that there seems to be no way to live peacefully without the threat of a government master?
I believe there is a way to have the closest thing to true anarchy. It involves starting small. A small group of anarchists start by buying up a single house. Once a foothold or base, is established, expand from there, by purchasing surrounding properties, to form a real, small community. We will still be surrounded by the ever present government masters. But by starting a small community we will be somewhat sheltered from them.
It is not my goal to 'take over' any unit of government. It is clear to me that most people trust their government masters more than they trust anarchists. It would be encroachment to try to take their beloved government away from them. Rather, I believe the better route would be to maintain the moral high ground, by developing as best as possible with purchased land, while loudly proclaiming that we will not be governed, nor will we ask for any benefit from the government.
It should be stressed that this is a nonviolent movement. As violence only makes government grow, I ask those who believe in violent tactics and revolutions to not associate with us. 'Propaganda by the Deed', has only alienated many would be followers, and has increased fear among the very people that we can recruit from. I want to weaken government, and nonviolent methods, though slow, and difficult at times, does weaken government, by exposing them as the ruthless enforcers of 'some persons' laws. Our weapons will be human stubbornness combined with logic, reason and creativity. As sunshine is the greatest disinfectant, cameras, camera phones, and other tools will help us to keep the sun on those who will hurt us. We will do no harm, and tell no lies. It should be a top priority to remain at minimum friendly with our neighbors, with actual friendships encouraged.
A few truisms and basic rules I follow, and would appreciate others following them too.
The Anarchist golden rule;
Respect the Rights of others, as you would have them Respect your Rights.
The Two Best Ways to Reduce Conflict;
1. Do all you have agreed to do.
2. Do not encroach on others persons or their property.
(I don't believe in copyrights, but I cannot take credit for the Two rules or Two Laws as Richard Maybury calls them in his excellent book, Whatever Happened to Justice?)
Protect oneself and neighbors rather than revenge or restitution. Anarchy is a lifestyle. This means choosing to deal with problem or conflicts in creative and constructive ways.
History is full of examples where violence was used to try to solve some form of perceived injustice. Only gov't masters do well under conditions of war and conflict. War is the health of the state, not the health of anarchy and peace. Revenge or forced restitution is not defense except when it becomes clear that the offender will continue his/her violations of anothers rights. Those who commit revenge should be shunned as one who has commited a gratuitous assault on another individual.
If one takes care of the means, the end will take care of itself.
Racism and other forms of prejudices are not welcome. There is nothing worse than a hypocritical racist or bigot demanding liberty for themselves while advocating its denial to others. Treat others the way you would insist on being treated.
There is precedent, and evidence that the nonviolent resistance approach does work. Watch and read the following. I will be adapting the following strategies to push off my gov't masters and to live at peace with my neighbors. :)
While the Freetown Christiania isn't completely nonviolent with the police, they are a facinating relatively successfull example of what I want to do. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freetown_Christiania
The Embassy of Heaven folks are the poster child for the tactics I believe can work. They have had no recent arrests. They resist the gov't registration and licensing by their well organized approach, and their tenatious stubborness. Say what you will about religion, they have thrown off the unwanted master, and have choosen another, but it was ultimately their choice.
http://www.embassyofheaven.com/
The rainbow people are interesting. I have heard allegations that some of them embrace 'crimethic', something I oppose as it creates unneccessary conflict. Also that some of them are not good about keeping their messes to themselves, which is encroachment. While I am sure some of that is true, because they are a large very decentralized group, it is wrong to judge all individuals within a group by the actions of some individuals. In the following video, while the language is not always nonviolent, the actions are completely nonviolent. This group video tapes a lot of their gatherings, as well as
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hAx5G0I9mU&feature=related
Of course there are the activities of the group I am currently involved with. They are reported on here:
Keene, New Hampshire is a small city of about 22,000 people. It has 2 colleges, and a downtown that is still hanging on. Most of the city is accessible by bicycle.
