The above image was made with stable diffusion using the prompt 'A person reading a card in a crowded room.'
Last month, I wrote about local resilience activism and freedom cells. Since then, I've been participating in the local freedom cell Telegram group, but I haven't attended any of their events. To be honest, I'm not sure I fit in with that crowd. Nor am I fully clear about what they're really trying to accomplish.
As with most of the resilience-focused groups I've participated in over the years, there's an over-emphasis on philosophy and baseless conspiracies. Just now, in the freedom cell Telegram crypto channel, I saw that someone posted a claim that RFK jr is part of some "Vatican cult." I can't help but think that there are better uses of our time than speculating about theoretical cults.
We've already watched society slide into dystopia. The latest sign of this is that American offices are half empty.
"Average occupancy of offices in the United States is still less than half March 2020 levels, according to data from security provider Kastle. ... Goldman Sachs estimates that 55% of US office loans sit on bank balance sheets. Regional and community banks — already under pressure after the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in March — account for 23% of the total."
This is just one of many indications that new crises are likely to materialize in the near future. Making sense of these crises and insulating our communities as best we can from their impacts seems like it should be a priority. Making sense of these crises naturally requires at least some sense of history, and of events that the media tends to avoid. The website I work for, WantToKnow.info is one of the best sources around for this type of information.
I'd love to see WantToKnow put together a set of resources that people could use as the basis for local events in their own communities. This could include some kind of proven conspiracies primer, a guide to harnessing new technology for personal and community resilience, a directory of legit indi media outlets and social benefit organizations, and a group facilitation manual highlighting best practices for discussion or working groups.
Personally, I'd like these resources to emphasize freedom from harmful systems in both a physical and psychological sense. Direct action and mutual aid seem like an important piece of the puzzle. But so also is the less tangible transformation that happens in people as they become aware of the deeper realities influencing society. Ideally, these resources would help make that transformation a little easier for people.
One nice thing is that PEERS, the nonprofit behind WantToKnow, is virtually immune to special interests. The org's budget relies on grassroots contributions and funds only mission-related programming. There are no corporate sponsors. No lobbyists are getting paid. In an environment filled with compromised organizations, PEERS has integrity, and provides trustworthy information.
If a resource kit like this were to be developed, it would have to be non-partisan. Its initial audience would probably be WantToKnow readers interested in sharing what they've learned with people they know. Friends, family, neighbors. In light of this, maybe one component of the kit could be a conspiracy quiz game, printed on little cards. I'd love to get people at the coffee shop playing such a game.
An ideal situation would be to connect freedom cells with resource kits. I feel like the freedom cell I'm Telegramming with would benefit from these resources. Beyond freedom cells, I'm envisioning study groups and maybe even larger gatherings eventually. And I'm not aware of anyone else that's developed resources exactly like these.
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