Random Stuff

[Phantomgrift]

What's also funny here is that Desp doesn't realize he's talking out his backside because he's under the impression that everyone thinks like him.
See, activists in the SEATAC area are a unique brand of idiot. Most of them speak about whatever is the flavor of the month, but predominantly, they just want a reason to break shit. This was especially and uniquely highlighted by the World Trade Organization riots. I get the feeling I may hold slightly more knowledge on this one than you on the simple factors of, well, ya know... I was there. I also lived in the Tacoma area for five years and routinely encountered/talked-with/knew/etc. these folks on a near daily basis. (Despite glorious electric car and fixie, most of us rode the bus.)

So no Desp. You really do lack a fundamental understanding of "activists" in the Northwest. Seriously, these types of encounters are like California wildfires... Something that happens at least once a year about some such or another and is mostly viewed as a typical annoyance like Seattle traffic jams. Hell, I can't remember the name of the port at the moment, but after the WTO riots, a bunch of these types routinely plagued the local port which was seeing a lot of military traffic over to the Middle East. Ironically enough they were protesting "support for the illegal war" without the general understanding that most of the shipments were medical supplies and equipments for both American troops and our allies. They didn't care, they had a "cause of the month" and they had an excuse to chain themselves to fenceposts and start shit with the cops.

I really cannot stress this one enough. I will openly admit that I mock the shit out of OWS mostly because of you directly. Outside of that, I don't know, nor would I care to comment on, what motivates or drives people in New York.

But Seattle and Tacoma? Heh. Fuck man... I do know what that's like, I do know the people there and I do know that your notions of glorious revolution and new activists is, well, laughable. For every person protesting in Seattle over some cause, there is a huge number of others that will be right alongside them, strictly for the sake of having a chance to start shit.

And while you may like the noble notion that these arrests are going to serve as some sort of awesome springboard of solidarity, for a great number of Washingtonians of a similar mindset to my own, the only reaction is general amusement at watching hippies get smacked around by cops.

Seriously, activists in the Northwest run through numerous "protests" throughout the year, with minor to major riots/scuffles breaking out at least once every other year.

And sure, I'll start smoking pot right after I... Oh, wait, that's right- Fuck you hippie.

(Incidentally enough, whatever the hell happened to OWS? I mean I haven't seen anything about them on the news, and even if you google it, the only thing that comes up that isn't old news is the OWS website, that's it. I guess you guys weren't as influential as you had hoped for.)

[Despanan]

Have you ever considered that you aren't the best judge of character, Phant? I mean, simply being in Seattle during the WTO riots of the 90s doesn't mean you understand the rioters - especially considering the fact that you're a perpetually institutionalized crazy person. It's not like your background gives you any sort of insight into the motivations of the anti-authoritarian left.

as for 420, Hey man - just sayin' cannabis would probably really help you deal with that rage of yours.

[Despanan]

[Phantomgrift]

I like the fact that you're still suffering under the delusion that I'm institutionalized. It highlights the nigh-fundie levels of smug self-assurance you cling to.

And dear boy, it wasn't just a matter of "being there". I lived one step above homeless for my time there and large chunks of my time were spent with the poor, the impoverished, the counter-culture, etc. Hence my comment about the bus system. When you have a one-hour bus ride somewhere, sometimes the only way to pass the time is strike up conversations with random strangers. Or hold in-depth discourses on the bald chappie in my Greyhound terminal who spent two hours waiting for his bus in a empty station telling me about his direct involvement in the riots, his 666 tattoo on the back of his neck and the time he hitch-hiked with a nun halfway across the U.S.

What I've been trying to get across to your deluded self is that the "anti-authoritarian left" you profess, quite frankly, doesn't exist on the level you think it does in the Northwest. Washington State alone is home to the largest cells of both the Animal Liberation Front and the Earth Liberation Front. ALF and ELF are, with good reason, listed by the FBI as the largest domestic terrorist group in the United States.

Activists in the Northwest stem more from a long line of "no authority period" culture that utilize riots and protests as a simple end to the means of breaking shit and getting rowdy.

What I'm trying to say is that YOU are the one that doesn't "get" nor understand their motivations.

You do continue to think that OWS is important, which is quite frankly, hilarious. I haven't seen the mainstream media use "Occupy Language"...
MoveOn.org? OMG! A left-leaning website talking about something left-leaning... Damn, that's some strong impact right there, fer sure! And what exactly is "Occupy Language"? Sticking "Occupy" in front of something? Or possibly anything referring to "X" Percent? That's a bit of a reach if you ask me.

As to money raised within New York? Bully for you.
Do you know what's overshadowed anything of that nature? Your Nanny-State Bloomberg trying to micro-manage the State like some overbearing parent. His push to tell you guys what you can and cannot eat finds infinitely more sway in the news than Occupy.

You honestly can't see that because of your involvement with OWS.
When you work and/or are closely involved with a particular group, you can get so embroiled in it that all you see is the little fishbowl world it creates for you. To the rest of the world, however? The fishbowl was left three rooms back as the tour-group moved on to something more interesting. You think you're still important only because you're surrounded with others who constantly tell yourselves how much awesome shit your doing.

I'm glad your club is doing well, but the rest of the U.S. honestly stopped caring roughly a year to a year and a half ago.

Hell, even your attempt to claim that the anti-Tar Sand folks wouldn't have been what they are without you guys- Really? You have apparently never taken a look at the history of North America and the protests that would arise for any and all issues. Fuck, you can't change the oil in your own car without having some group protest against it in some areas of the States.

But you don't see history. You do cherry-pick the history you want to acknowledge, like that stupid little co-op factory in South America or wherever that you're always prattling on about. But outside of that, you overlook or patently ignore times and places in American history where this sort of song and dance have been carried out before with little to no response in the long-run, and a general fizzle at the end.

It's okay. God forbid, but if you ever decide to step off your own ego and have kids, than you might be able to one day tell your grand-kids about the time you were a proud long-haired hippie, sticking it..... Errr... Prodding? Nah.... Nudging... There we go... Nudging it to The Man. I'm sure they'll be in awe.

[Despanan]

Hey Phant - can you put all of these objections into a single post & just repost it every time? Because you're putting too much effort into saying the exact same thing over and over again and I hate to think about the valuable time you're wasting.

[Sage]

I think it's great how you two have long since stopped arguing with each other and are now just trying to get the last word in.

[Zengus]

420 is a stupid name for a drug that is also a plant.

Phant, I feel like you and I have shared some pretty particular life experiences. I think we would get along well if we ever hung out, just off of those. We should try to have a cook off some time or something (barbecue or other arena of your choosing, I'll fight you on your home turf :P). Say it's for celebrating being comfortably above homeless. We can swap crazy vagrant stories while we're eating.

Desp, I know you hate Phant and want him to... something (die? hate himself? have an epiphany of some kind?), and have clearly invested yourself heavily in this mindset. But you don't have to troll him in every single thread he starts, and some are better candidates than others. I would say you are fucking up, dude.

[Phantomgrift]

Heh. Vagrant stories are the best.
I've met up with one or two other Bobs in the past as location permits. If all goes well, I'm trying to shoot for orders to the West Coast this time around. And I excell at Barbeque.

I think some of the stuff with Desp ties into what Sage said. A lot of times it simply boils down to seeing how long I can see him carry on about a particular aspect.

[Despanan]

I'd like to point out Zeng, that all I did in this thread initially was congratulate Phant and tell him that he and his would profit from his descision.

I'm not trolling Phant's threads. Phant seems to be trolling his own threads.

[Phantomgrift]

And I took it for all the condescending and smug platitudes that simply flowed forth from it as you intended.

Desp, you haven't trolled anything on this board in a very long time. You are actively helping to prove exactly what myself and Sage have posted.
Who gets the last word in, and how long I can get you to respond to me before one of us gets bored. If this is your notion of "trolling", than by gods, but your a boring person.