Who's Afraid of the DPW?

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:01 pm

For a long time I've been told what a scary bunch the DPW is.
I had the pleasure of meeting a lot more of them this year.
I still think they're as warm and cuddly, as any motorcycle oriented social organization I ever ran with.
Everybody knows they do a lot of work at burning man.
But not everyone knows that they are everywhere you turn, working on this or that non-dpw crew as volunteers.
They work at burning man.

They remind me of the Ghurka soldiers in WWII asked to drop behind enemy lines and complete a suicide mission. On the plane, the commmander was telling them that they would line up on their location at 5000 feet and jump out over the rendezvous point. He asked if there were any questions. Finally one hand raised. He asked the commander if they could please go down to 500 feet to jump out. The commander said if we go that low, your parachutes won't open.
They all looked at each other and smiled.
"Oh, we get parachutes."

Like many burners, they have a can-do attitude that borders on delusional psychosis.
I like them.

spectabillis · Post by **spectabillis** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 7:22 pm

gyre wrote:Like many burners, they have a can-do attitude that borders on delusional psychosis.

ja love

BAS · Post by **BAS** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 7:34 pm

Can I still be scared of them if I want to?

B.

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 11:59 am

There are very few things that I'm sacred of. They certainly don't include Heather and Tierza, 2 welders for DPW. I worked with them and a few guys on the trebuchet and a couple of other welding projects.

Nothing scary there, they were all great.
Dan

joel the ornery · Post by **joel the ornery** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 12:06 pm

dangerous people working... says it all.

Toolmaker · Post by **Toolmaker** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 2:29 pm

I'm not.. I am a Machinist and a Toolmaker.. sometimes just a Tool. Even though I am kinda light in the welding Dept I offered to volunteer for DPW for 07. I plan on practicing my MIG welding throughout the year. I can lay a bead down but do not do it professionally. Scray lookin dudes like me tend to be very nice once you get to know us. Just dont talk to us while we are working :)

-Dave

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 2:51 pm

I think things have eased up somewhat now that they have their own bar and don't have to raid other camps for booze anymore. Just walk over and give them a bottle of something decent, that tends to keep them off the streets.

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 7:40 pm

Toolmaker, If you want to practice up for welding with DPW, concentrate on fluxcore. That seems to be the weapon of choice. The stick machine that Heather was dragging around had a big problem and would fall off halfway through a rod. It didn't help that they were using 6013 AC rod on a DC welder.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 4:33 pm

I've never subscribed to the idea that DPW are somehow 'other' or that they're different than any of the reest of us. In spite of the reputation that some of them would like to cultivate they're not much different than most folks I meet on the playa. Granted, an inordinate number of them choose to play along with the idea that Pabst Blue Ribbon is actually a good beer but I've found that most, when removed from view of their fellow DPW brethern, will take a good English ale over cat piss anytime.

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 5:21 pm

...or good whiskey...

spectabillis · Post by **spectabillis** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 5:33 pm

i think they have a slight tendency towards their own subculture, just like the majority of other groups and i dont see anything ultimately wrong with that. i am sure it can have drawbacks but since this seems to be a much more open environment compared to.. well fuck, i dont know what you can compare all this to.. but they are still a vital part of it all and mix well enough with many others. i also love the diversity these different groups come back together in a soupy mix.

now the rangers on the other hand..

...OMFG DID SPECTABILLIS JUST SAY THAT?!

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 6:26 pm

i also love the diversity these different groups come back together in a soupy mix.

That's why I prefer to view the event not so much a melting pot of some exotic homogenous soup as much as a fine bouillabaisse.

now the rangers on the other hand..

Whatever. Your last few posting re. Rangers suggests more of an axe to grind than any real reservation regarding the group as a whole. I might be wrong here but usually trust my gut and that's what it's saying. Perhaps I've contributed to that negative opinion yours. Maybe not. In any case Spectab, you're starting to sound like a broken record and that's pretty uncharacteristic of you in spite of our views or disagreements.

spectabillis · Post by **spectabillis** » Sun Oct 08, 2006 3:06 am

yes and no, i was making fun of myself for my own past criticism which has been pointed out was harsh.

there are a lot of rangers i think are absolutely fantastic, both at being a dedicated ranger and who they are as a person - so i need to be more positive and specific of what i am critical of. so no axe to grind, especially after this well lubricated night out.

i honestly pay close attention to peoples observations and what they recommend but some things are starting to slip.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Oct 08, 2006 10:17 pm

Let's say the Rangers are kind of like the NFL of Burning Man, and DPW are the Palio di Siena.

pbmaniac2000 · Post by **pbmaniac2000** » Sun Oct 08, 2006 10:19 pm

Met some awesome dpw people. I'm not afraid of dpw accept for one time outta the whole week. After the dpw parade. lol. We were camped across from the dpw ghetto, so we saw a lot of scary stuff. lol

[CDS] topher · Post by **[CDS] topher** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 10:47 am

Individually, thew DWP is a great bunch, and I've had the pleasure of working with many DPW folks over the last ten years doing variout things.

What pisses me off is the sense of entitlement they seem to feel when acting as a group: "we built this shit, we can do/act/misbehave in any way we want because WE ARE DPW".

And that is really the issue, as I see it. I was blocked for more than twenty minutes getting a camp friend to medical attention by their non-stop, "fuck you!" parade on sat or sun.

They seem to feel that they're so fucking special that regular rules don't apply to them. THAT IS THE PROBLEM.

Apollonaris Zeus · Post by **Apollonaris Zeus** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 12:46 pm

gyre wrote:I still think they're as warm and cuddly"

If they ever heard you say that, their delusional psychosis might have a problem with that statement.

Â©AIIZ

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 2:34 pm

I still think they're as warm and cuddly, as any motorcycle oriented social organization I ever ran with.

I stand by the statement.
They are a quite diverse group, of course.

Any opinion from the DPW folks out there?

Ron · Post by **Ron** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 2:49 pm

[CDS] topher wrote:...What pisses me off is the sense of entitlement they seem to feel when acting as a group: "we built this shit, we can do/act/misbehave in any way we want because WE ARE DPW".....

Stop me if I've told this one before, but it's one of my favorite DPW stories. Takes place a few days after the close of the event, while the hearty souls are cleaning up, and there ain't many people around. Maybe Wed. after exodus?

Anyway, we'd been working all day and went out to wander the playa at night. Doing so is a much different experience when everyone is gone. Picture walking in a featureless black plain, with only the stars and an occasional fire to mark your way. And it was just such a fire, seen a ways off, that drew my group in that night. A big ass bonfire that DPW was running, surrounded by DPW folk drinking beer, playing music, and just having much fun.

One of my camp mates was a DPW member that year and while he had not walked to the fire with us that night, we soon found him and stood near while we watched DPW throw all kinds of stuff on the fire. Tents, mattresses, bicycles, kegs, you name it. And as the trucks would pull up, as the junk was thrown on the blaze, the crowd chanted and screamed with each puff of sparks and flames when another thing was thrown on the pile.

A pick up with nothing but bicycles pulled up and some guys started throwing the bikes into the blaze. My campmate, standing in front of me and in a quite voice said, "Ah, no, we shouldn't be throwing more bicycles on the fire, should we?" Almost in answer the crowd roared with pleasure as the first bike hit the flames and he went on to say, "I guess we should!"

It cracked me up, three fold. This is not a diss at DPW. Far from it as I'm sure they were more responsible about cleaning up their mess than most. Instead, I hope to be saying something about the power in crowds, flames, and playa. I remember the night with a smile.

Ron

K-mom · Post by **K-mom** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 9:30 pm

Yeah crowd mentality can be pretty fucked ... remember the story 'The Lottery'?
It also offers up a good explanation of why sending people off to war usually leads to more problems than solutions.

Desert Duck · Post by **Desert Duck** » Sat Nov 04, 2006 11:21 pm

Here's one thing. Many of us who work the event (in whatever capacity) do feel we've earned a little something extra. Especially since many of us have had to forego the normal methods of taking care of oneself, and have (sometimes repeatedly) left jobs in order to be able to dedicate a month of that year to working the event. I, myself have left three jobs in the last eight years, and have also managed to self-employ in some way in order to have control of my schedule.

How dusty do you get?

How much of what you do is for other people?

thanks. You Rock.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:22 am

K-mom wrote:Yeah crowd mentality can be pretty fucked ... remember the story 'The Lottery'?
It also offers up a good explanation of why sending people off to war usually leads to more problems than solutions.

Something tells me you didn't appreciate Ron's story in the spirit intended.

[CDS] topher · Post by **[CDS] topher** » Sun Nov 05, 2006 1:05 pm

> Here's one thing. Many of us who work the event (in whatever
> capacity) do feel we've earned a little something extra.
>...
?How dusty do you get?
>How much of what you do is for other people?

Precisely the reasons why I love DPW as INDIVIDIUALS. If I could, I'd work on BM year round, for free. After 10 years BM is at the core of my being, and means more to me than I know how to express thing clunky things like words.

That being said, it's how that "something extra" gets played out, on the playa that is the issue - not that "DPW isn't special". As I mentioned my my 1st post in this thread, I've had amazing, great interactions with DPW people. But as a group - ACTING as a group - the DPW uniformly pisses me off and alienates me, taking liberties denied the rest of us, breeding a sort of resentment or enmity that shouldn't exist at BM, and yet does, among many, many, MANY people.

I know ex-DPW people who left because of this...and have met a few folks who have BECOME dpw folks because this is what they're looking for. Either way, that's sad.

robbidobbs · Post by **robbidobbs** » Sun Nov 05, 2006 3:19 pm

I've been a part of DPW since 2001. If you work hard, you get respect. I like that part of the culture. The wild parties I don't necessarily need, but it's nice to wander thru occasionally. It's a "work hard, play hard" mentality that you may be seeing. BTW: I'm DPW because porta-potties are part of the infrastructure of BRC. I also monitor burn barrels and generally help around the City.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:28 pm

Yeah crowd mentality can be pretty fucked ... remember the story 'The Lottery'?
It also offers up a good explanation of why sending people off to war usually leads to more problems than solutions.

I can't get over this one. Cue John Kerry's "botched joke", bla bla bla...

Who's Afraid of the DPW?

Who's Afraid of the DPW?

Re: Who's Afraid of the DPW?

!

Me

Re: Who's Afraid of the DPW?

Re: Who's Afraid of the DPW?

Re: Me

Yeah, but...