UTOPIAN CONSIDERATIONS(0): Hikikomarxism
So I wrote too big of a newsletter and couldn’t put the links I wanted in the first one, so here’s a UTOPIAN CONSIDERATIONS appendix/preface with a nice subtitle I stole from a neolib asshat from the bad website.
Anyways COVID19. This is some fuck shit, right? Real-time collapse, history moving again, all that nonsense.
The perversely curious part of me is cautiously optimistic and intrigued at the idea of a pandemic crisis as a choice event for talking about communism, the part of me that’s been involved in solidarity networks is fucking tired of having to also go to work. And then there’s the cohesion of the two that produces what you’re reading, who tries to not be cynical but not be starry-eyed. And all of this strange assemblage drifts through a sea of numbness, it’s a trip.
Picture of me physical distancing and wistfully looking outside my window. Not.
It’s not social distancing we need, it’s physical distancing. Nothing is preventing us from calling our loved ones, besides time. And plenty of people have a lot of time right now.
What is needed for now is a strenghtening of bonds and a building of new ones.
Do you know people who’re alone, frightened, at risk, in unstable situations, etc ? Even the people who might seem ok would do well to hear from you and you’ll feel better after hearing the voice of others, trust me. You’ll feel useful, tasty chemicals running through the brain as it tries to make you remember that you’re not completely alone.
And if you are, here’s my e-mail :
ospare@protonmail.com
I’m not the wisest cat around but I’ve got ears and eyes and fingers, that’s enough to listen and answer. I’ve also got an income, that could be useful depending on your situation.
Now this is not to say that small affinitary groups are the only thing to do during these times but they’ll have more resiliency than waiting for the state or your job to help you.
Do you distrust your local and national/federal authorities? Good. That’s a start.
Do you know people near you /physically-speaking/ who’ll need your help or can lend you help in case of a communication-infrastructure breakdown ? No ? That’s where you start.
Adding to these potential networks of solidarity both digital/mediated and physical/face-to-face, you should also look into Unionizing with fellow tenants if you’re in a situation where your landlord is acting extra leechy and wants you to pay rent even though you don’t have enough money or even an income. And even if you’re not at risk, I’m sure there’s unionizing efforts that could use your help in other properties/spaces.
Another important thing the quarantine is fucking up for everybody is their sense of Time. No, it’s not that The “IMMANENT MOVEMENT OF HISTORY” is affecting us, it’s that y’all are living like hikikomoris without wanting to. You’re being subjected to the practice of depression without the inner mecanisms, which is arguably worst than actually being depressed because you get none of the satisfaction and validation of the depressive loop.
A good way of gaining a sense of control is in setting up a routine for yourself. Having a lot of time, it’s good for you to set up a program for what to do during the day, the things that require rcurrent cyclical checking aka maintenance and the things that you know can be over and done with for a long period.
There’s some quarantine schedules making the rounds on social media,
I don’t even know, we’re all trying to get by, right ?
Anyways, LINKS.
Minimal Maintenance by Shannon Mattern
On maintenance and Degrowth, two ideas and movements that are deeply intertwined and very interesting to me as I dive a bit into the notion of building spaces of slowness, little pause-zones. I don’t know, it makes great links between the two movements, wish I’d see this kind of initiatives closer to home.
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“Speculative Humanitarian Futures” by Scott Smith
The meeting of humanitarianism and futurism. Now I’m not a fan of the nonprofit industrial complex, on the other hand some of their strategies and tactics can be harnassed to better ends. Rather than throwing shit at people in need, you give people in need the tools to fulfill their needs basically, creating bridges to autonomous local movements, yada yada
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“Power is no longer oriented towards establishing rigid orders over this or that territory, but instead is only concerned with proliferating, intensifying, steering, and contouring greater and greater degrees of planetary disorder. In every instance, indecision and indeterminacy are cultivated as a means of cultivating permanent crises where exceptional measures are made to be permissible in perpetuity “ - May I recommend rewatching Ian Alan Paul’s Climate Capitalism Control in these collapsing times ?
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Exmilitary is streaming some good eastern european apocalyptic movie if you need to distract yourself from this world with distortions from others
our final film of the series, thanks for watching. live until the 6th. stay tuned for more.
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Why the Paris Commune burned guillotines.
Yeah, no french militant-”leftist” (not counting weirdonationalists) actually upholds the guillotine as this great tool of freedom american left-folks seem to find so fun and cool, the only people bloodthirsty enough to say semi-seriously “off with the rich” are generally more keen on shooting them.
Which is very interesting given the lack of gun culture here and the lack of “guillotine” culture in america, it’s almost as if it’s easier to romanticize a violent cultural moment/process/event when you don’t have skin and scar in the game, aye ?
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Hope and optimism in solarpunk and cyberpunk
I am considering my draw towards dystopia as something to write and read as a need for catharsis and recognition, somewhat.
And my desire for utopia as the desire for building something, aaaaaand I’ve already talked about this last time but I keep seeing things that make the reflection come back
The first step towards entering a reality tunnel is making up a name for it and taking up that name as if it was your own.
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The next /actual/ newsletter is coming sooner than soon, take care of yourselves for me in the meantime, ok ?/////////////////////////////
Ospare@substack.com - Ospare@protonmail.com