Y'know, it's as if someone read what I wrote and said 'hey, how can I prove lurker right--wait, I know---' and them vomited out this dreck--
sorry lurker but you're an idiot....did you not read the original post? these aren't old burners with money camping in RVs....these are first time folks with with their own private no-entrance allowed camp with people working for them...employees....at burning man...quite a few employees in fact....and everything set-up for them so they don't lift a finger...does that not rub you the wrong way? Is that not the total fucking opposite of burning man? i didn't bring-up any class-warfare bullshit....and sorry but if you're at burning man and you're not wiping your own ass you don't fucking get it....its the fucking antithesis of self-reliance.....its also the antithesis of community and non-commodification (unless you count your maids and servants as part of your community)....
It's exactly my point--you think Burning Man should reflect your point of view alone--anything else just doesn't 'get it'.
Let's see how it this attitude stacks up against the principles of BM, thoughtfully provided by the same poster--
Ten Principles of Burning Man Radical Inclusion
Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community
.
Let's see....is there some limitation stated on 'anyone'? I can't find it. But alt12 seems to have found something that states that people alt12 finds objectionable are okay to leave out of 'anyone'.
Doesn't look like alt 12 gets this one.
Gifting
Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
Now this one extols gifting, and points out that the value of a gift is whatever the recipient thinks it is--and that it is not supposed to be a 'barter' type function.
Sadly, a LOT of people don't get that one. Way too much barter on the playa--but there's not real whining about that(except by those who engage in it and feel that it hasn't worked for them)
Decommodification
In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience
.
The fact that barter exists on the playa kinda short-circuits this one--but keeping out (most) corporate sponsorship helps us to see that it's at least possible.
Radical Self-reliance
Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.
Radical Self-expression
Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
These two rely on the word 'self'(hey, that's a pun!), and that's the important part. Why? Because 'self' reliance doesn't include your opinion, alt12. It's not about how YOU think people should be self reliant--it's how the people themselves think they should be self reliant. And if they have the resources to have RVs, servants, and ass-wipers on the playa then that's up to them--not you.
We all spend money in the default world to make our experience better--you included, alt12, since when has anything in BRC history suggested there be an upper limit?
I think we can clearly see that there's a 'don't get it' here for you, alt12
Communal Effort
Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
Civic Responsibility
We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
Now these sorta contradict the previous two. Rather than self, they extol community. Coming after the initial radical inclusion and the self statements though they make a point--that the community generated is not one of need, but rather of desire. You don't need your neighbors for basic necessities, you associate with them because you want to, because they interest you. You give to them not because you need something in return, but rather because you think they'd like the thing you're giving.
This type of community is the exact antithesis of communistic thought. It springs from the idea that YOU provide for your OWN 'needs' and the community exists solely as an expression of celebrating mutual desire to associate.
It's precisely this that I think is the example that BRC needs to highlight to the world--a post economy based society. And it's coming
While I'd love to say that this is another case where you don't 'get it', the truth is that no one really does yet--all of this is experimental. But I am glad to live in a society wealthy enough to experiment with the concept. It cannot be done in a society where basic survival is something that requires communal effort
Leaving No Trace
Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them
.
I think most everyone 'gets this' though we all live up to it with varying degrees of success. And thankfully, the few who simply don't care are outweighed by the legions who do.
Participation
Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
Immediacy
Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.
And the final two. I think you 'get it', alt12, even though you feel you get to decide who doesn't on these two. These principles are hare not to get--and I've pointed out in other posts that I've seen yahoos trying to do some small bit to get this--but these are again personal and individual and are thus subject to much interpretation--which is the point.
In the end, the Principles of Burning Man open with the idea of Radical Inclusion. Like the Bill of Rights, the opening statement is the most important. That statement sets up the unspoken idea that by including everyone eventually everyone can 'get it'.
And they can. Eventually, alt12, people like you will stop railing against those who do things differently, the people who wrote these priciples have faith in you and your ability to learn. They know that you have an idea of society that is limited by the propaganda the default world feeds you. But they think that you, just like the billionaire campers, are worthy to be included in 'anyone'.
Honor the faith they have in you. Take from this the simple lesson that if we start excluding those who have different ideas we kill BRC.
"Life is like a box of razor blades. Sharp, shiny, and good for removing unwanted body hair"
