Reassurance needed

psy-magpie · Post by **psy-magpie** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 6:45 am

Hey my my name is Emma and I am considering coming to BM from the uk this year. I have been trying to read around BM and get up to speed with the nature and philosophies of it by reading some of the discussions.

Without trying to tread on anybodies toes it seems like some of the discussion are very political and sometimes it comes across as being a battle of ego's as to who can come up with the most intelligent argument. For a virgin burner such as myself I find it very intimidating and I am having some concerns with BM. I thought BM was about formostly having fun and being involved with a commuinity that has one vision of sharing and selflessness. I fear that if I don't have anything intelligent to say I may not be accepted.

Also coming from the uk I have no experience of guns and such like and the discussions about the law enforces also sounds pretty scary!

Whilst I appreciate that my opinon counts for f*** all and I sincerely apologise if I offend anyone, I guess I want reassurace that generally politics are left at the gate and that (since I am coming from the uk and it will cost me alot of money) I will have a " bloody good time" ( bestest english accent)

All feedback is most appreciated :?

Ranger Genius · Post by **Ranger Genius** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 6:57 am

Conversation on the Playa quite rarely resembles conversation on the E-Playa. Don't worry about not being accepted. As long as you're accepting, you're accepted.

Despite what some individuals with grudges might tell you, the LEOs at burning man are not jack-booted thugs. If you're obeying the law (or even practicing a judicious amount of discretion if you choose not to), you have nothing to fear from them. Print up the ACLU encounter card that was linked to on one of the other threads, and keep it with you. I have interacted with a large number of police on the playa, in a Ranger capacity, and simply socially, and have not seen any of them to be overly (or even moderately) aggressive. I have not seen one even touch, much less draw, a baton, chemical disabler (Mace) or firearm, even when dealing with a fairly rowdy participant.

That being said, you should read all available information on your rights and responsibilities as an individual and as a participant.

psy-magpie · Post by **psy-magpie** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:05 am

hey

thanks for your reply dude. Call it paranoia, insecurities or just general englishness, but a little reassurance is all I need. Thanks.

I guess that because I am not a strongly political person and although I have creative ideas, I am not all that artistic, I am worried that people may think I wil not have any worthwhile input.

gigglesnort · Post by **gigglesnort** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:17 am

This just in from the Land of Endless Affirmation!

Hey, my name is Christine, and I am an eplaya addict. This year will be my first year going to The Event, if I can get all my s*** together that is. I've been tooling around on this board for (what seems like forever) a couple of months now (much to the chagrin of my better judgment as well as my employer). I had the same thoughts as you when I first started popping in here (oh, it was so scary!), as I rarely (if ever) have anything intelligent to say. I must say that I've grown quite fond of the company and wish they were half as unpleasant as they put off so that I could get over it and go get some work done.

"Don't tell me this town ain't got no heart; you just gotta poke around."

You damn furreners sure talk awful funny. (best southern (US) accent)

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:19 am

We're all much, much nicer in person. Mostly.

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:27 am

Oh, btw I love your username psy-magpie. My mom used to call me Magpie when I was little.

psy-magpie · Post by **psy-magpie** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:33 am

thanks to all who posted a reply.

to be honest I was slightly anxious about posting my message.

Glad you like my name AntiM, as the name suggests I love all things psychellic, if it aint fluoresent or uv then it just aint me. ( please note this only applies when I go raving, during the day I am resonably what the general public call normal, te he)

keep raving

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 7:34 am

Ya'll are ruining my reputation. Jackasses.

Emma, I would guess that a large percentage of people on-playa frown on political debate there unless it's couched in some incredibly artistic, engaging terms. Even then, it sometimes doesn't go over well. A lot of people would like to see us leave the entire default world (aka Reality Camp) behind.

There are some threads from pre-burn 2004 regarding political art on playa, signing people up to vote, even partisan campaigning. Check them out if you want to see the kind of reactions they got.

Don't worry, we don't bite too hard. Unless you want us to.

dougaldutch · Post by **dougaldutch** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 9:50 am

hiya psy-magpie

I travelled out to the playa for the first time last year from the UK, to reassure you yes a bloody good time is generally had by all. I loved it, and generally had very few intelligent comments (politically based or otherwise) to make and got along just fine and dandy; note the whisky may have helped.

A few days inbetween flying in and arriving on playa is good to get your bearings and sort out gear, but only if you can afford it obviously. The culture difference isn't huge but getting used to the scale of things is.

The eplaya can be a little intimidating to start with, take what nuggets of knowledge you can gleam from the heap of cynical bantering (they are there I promise, especially in the less obvious places) and as I can verify a lot nicer in person (hats off to Rian). If you think before you post, do a quick search before asking a question you will soon find your place.

I am travelling out again this year and if you need any advice, help, discussion, feel free to contact me and I will try and sort you out.

Cheers

DougalD

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 10:00 am

dougaldutch wrote:somethin or other

goddamn, kid, where've you been?? i missed you, asshat! git your little scottish ass over to GD, would ya?

wanker. pissant.

*smooch!*

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 10:58 am

dougaldutch wrote: heap of cynical bantering

that pretty much defines Eplaya in a nutshell...but the bark is worse than the bite (usually!)

another way to look at it: Eplaya is the gripping that we do when we cannot be at burningman. It's therapy!

We mean you no harm....

MizMarz · Post by **MizMarz** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:37 am

Psy-Magpie -
Don't worry your pretty little head. In my opinion, these discussions need to happen in order for this to truly be a participatory event, but I think a lot of it can be attributed to the fact that we have nothing else to do at this time of the year! :wink:

Once we're all out on the playa, it all just FLOWS...I hope these discussions don't keep you from coming to the event.

It is something that will change your life!

blyslv · Post by **blyslv** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:58 am

Is work "fun"?

BlueBirdPoof · Post by **BlueBirdPoof** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 12:01 pm

blyslv wrote:Is work "fun"?

Check Orwell.

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 8:10 pm

I've been tempted to get into the politics here but I restrain myself because that's not why I love it here. English accents, music, humour, everything except the food is great. My friend used to mock me about the two kinds of music I listen to: English and Brittish.

Das Bus · Post by **Das Bus** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 10:35 pm

Hey Emma!

Don't sweat the political crap. Just pay attention to advice concerning what to bring, weather, etc... The ePlaya is NOT the Playa. It's mostly a bunch of people bored at work. ; )

blyslv · Post by **blyslv** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 12:43 pm

Das Bus! How ya doing babe? Where ya been?

blyslv · Post by **blyslv** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 12:44 pm

BlueBirdPoof wrote:
blyslv wrote:Is work "fun"?
Check Orwell.

The Party says "YES!"

Now get back to work. The proles are drunk, there is no hope...

Das Bus · Post by **Das Bus** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 7:36 pm

blyslv wrote:Das Bus! How ya doing babe? Where ya been?

Hey Dude! I've been around; just decided to take a breather for awhile and mellow out. So how are YOU doing? ; )

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 7:30 am

feckin' good to see ya. it's been awhile.

seems like lots of folks are coming back to us this week.

don't be strangers, ya'll.

Das Bus · Post by **Das Bus** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 9:35 pm

Hey Rian! You know we all come out of the woodwork once ticket sales start! lol

psy-magpie · Post by **psy-magpie** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 7:19 am

Hey guys thanks for all your opinions. Having just come back from the pub with my mates and ending up in political discussion, I decided that everbody has the right to freedom of expression/opinion. I sat there very quiet during these conversations but listened in. I decided that it was unfair of me to not want to talk about it because I didn't know much about it. I was just scared of the subject because I don't know much about it. If you listen to people you can learn alot from them. Therfore I conclude that political discussion is ok, just not all the time hey!

thanks guys

>-

Alex_uk · Post by **Alex_uk** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 8:11 am

lol dont listen to much....you may mutate into a posh london banker with a tash, bowler hat and walking stick.
ya canty beat a good stereotype

(hhm idea for costume?)

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 9:15 am

And how could burning a Guy not be about politics?

Alex_uk · Post by **Alex_uk** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 9:43 am

in quite a few ways i thought???
to me its not about politics.
but this will be my first burn so i suppose i dont really know

Tancorix · Post by **Tancorix** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 9:59 am

It's really just a camping trip. Anything beyond that is totally up to you.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 8:32 pm

Cariapata? New 'girlfriend' or new socks?

Tancorix · Post by **Tancorix** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 8:59 pm

Iso, you should know the only sock I have is Andrew Bradford on the 3Playa. The eplaya simply lacks the traffic right now to justify having a sock. Nor do I have the time, and that's about to get even tighter this week as I'm moving, I have recertification classes this week and regular college classes start next week, and I've got two trips to Houston in there for good measure. I'll get about 45 min of online time per day this week if I'm lucky and much of that is tied to KOL. So if you can find time in my schedule to run a sock, I'll gladly let you be my scheduler.

SED · Post by **SED** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 9:40 pm

Hi Spy

In my Burn sojours, I've found only a small chunk of people out there even know about eplaya. This thread board only represents itself.
Now check out the sharing and transportation threads whre folks arrange to help each other get there and do stuff.

What are your ideas? How can we help you?

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 5:16 pm

Hey psy-magpie!!

Drop into The Bar from time to time... helps to get cha’ loosened up a bit.

And as far as politics outside of an art context on the playa, I heard someone near me utter the first syllables of a word related to politics and I ran away with my fingers in my ears.

“LALALA I CAN”T HEAR YOU!! I CAN”T HEAR YOU!!”

That was the one and only time, otherwise it was playa-time all the time and that was just fine with me.

Reassurance needed

Reassurance needed

thanks

Why thank you indeed