Books:
This is an amazing book by Ward Churchill. It totally deconstructs the Pacifist arguments that Social Change is possible through Pacifist means only. Born out of Churchill's own frustrations and experiences it resonates with the other 2 writers participating in this AK Press edition: Mike Ryan and Derrick Jensen. According to this book, Pacifism is delusional, racist, and hypocritical. Delusional in the sense that believes it can determine the nature of the struggle, when historically and logically it cannot. Racist in the sense that by removing itself from other forms of the struggle or denying other possible tactics, removes the buffer from the ones in the receiving end of the spectrum-normally poor third world people or first world inner city ghetto people who most times don't have other means to face the violence but opposing it with similar actions. By leaving these fringes of populace unprotected through the removal of "white-college student pc wannabees" it effectively exposes the poor communities to be singled out and dealt with in violence.
Hypocritical as in the 60's as it refuses to take arms while supporting (morally only) the people who take arms in the 3rd world like the NLF (Vietnamese), under the pretext that the time is not ripe for here and now. The book then questions the achievements and the perceived notions of Ghandi's and MLK;s actions. This a a must read!!! Check it in the WRITTEN section. You can have access to the Audio files here.
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This is the long awaited Gabriel Kuhn's book on the political aspects of the Straight edge. This book is a breath of fresh air after numerous boring and superficial books and documentaries that focus again and again ad nauseaum in the more superficial and narrow aspects of this subculture. At least there is a piece of work that tries to encompass what is according to us the most intelligent, active and interesting aspects of the edge. The book is not perfect. no book ever is, but it deserves your reading and reflection. At least a book that doesn't give a fuck about the american scene and licking the boots of the same old boring brain-dead scenesters. The bias present in many of the latest documentaries is finally discarded by this piece of work. A new bias came in. Welcome! good effort. Congratulations Mr. Kuhn.
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This last week i was on the subway and as i sat and opened Pentti Linkola's book "Can Life Prevail?" it took only 2 minutes for this tall man on my right hand side to look over into the book and say in a low-tone..."oh no!". As always i pretended not to understand that he was obviously trying to engage in a conversation. After 2 more minutes he broke the silence and said in a disturbed voices..."sorry...but this man is an fascist!" " I am finnish and up there we call them eco-fascists...", I smiled back to him and said "don't worry i'm not an fascist myself", he then went on saying that this is an madman who lives in the middle of nowhere and wants areturn to pre-technological times and had many polemic statements such as "it was a good thing that 20 million people died in the WWII, it was a slight relief for the earth of the burden than humans are...". The finnish guy got out on the next stop, and I went back to read the rest of the book. As a philosopher Linkola can be described as a biocentric empirist. He demands that man return to a smaller ecological niche and abandon modern technology and the pursuit of economic progress. Sometimes however, he has said that the good society should have high military technology in order to defend itself from being conquered by non-environmental societies. Linkola considers population growth the biggest threat to life on Earth. He advocates eugenics and genocide as a means to combat overpopulation. He has suggested that big cities should be attacked with nuclear weapons. Linkola has described humans as the cancer of the nature. When some particular war has started somewhere in the world, he has often given statements that the war is good since it decreases population.
Definitely, this is not your average ecologist perspective on how to save Life. I already knew much about Pentii Linkola and his connection or his support from eco-fascist circles. He has interesting perspectives, some i would say very deluded other incredibly rational and cold. there is food for thought in this book, much of it will shock you, some of it will suprise you and some of it will open new perspectives in your mind. I wouldn't say i support his views. I understand where this 80 year old finnish fisherman turned philosopher is coming from. His love for the wilderness and Life seem very sincere. What scares me is his fascist support of a tyrannical state that will impose deep-ecology to the masses and all that it entails. Some Quotes to get a feel for the man:
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| Pentti Linkola |
"Every act which disrupts the progress of Earth's life destroying Western culture is positive." (On Madrid bombing in Persona non grata -show)
"What to do, when a ship carrying a hundred passengers suddenly capsizes and only one lifeboat? When the lifeboat is full, those who hate life will try to load it with more people and sink the lot. Those who love and respect life will take the ship's axe and sever the extra hands that cling to the sides of the boat."
"Any dictatorship would be better than modern democracy. There cannot be so incompetent dictator, that he would show more stupidity than a majority of the people. Best dictatorship would be one where lots of heads would roll and government would prevent any economical growth."
"The most central and irrational faith among people is the faith in technology and economical growth. Its priests believe until their death that material prosperity bring enjoyment and happiness - even though all the proofs in history have shown that only lack and attempt cause a life worth living, that the material prosperity doesn't bring anything else than despair. These priests believe in technology still when they choke in their gas masks."
"That there are billions of people over 60kg weight on this planet is recklessness."
"the only real threat to Life is excess of life"
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