The above image was made with stable diffusion using the prompt 'A dusty library shelf.'
Last night 
The most interesting point Lakey made was that nonviolence can be a more reasonable response to a military invasion than military resistance. Instead of trying to kill the invaders, the defenders carry out a campaign of sabotage and noncompliance. That's what Czechoslovakia did in 1968 when the Soviet Union invaded. It's also what Denmark did when the Nazis invaded. In both cases, the defenders successfully thwarted the attacker's plans with almost no loss of life.
When Russia invaded Ukraine, Lakey spoke up about the possibility of Ukraine responding nonviolently. He was one of the only people that took this possibility seriously. Here's a quote from one of his articles about this:
On Aug. 21, there was a brief standstill in Prague reportedly observed by hundreds of thousands. Airport officials at Ruzyno refused to supply Soviet planes with fuel. At a number of places, crowds sat in the path of oncoming tanks; in one village, citizens formed a human chain across a bridge over the river Upa for nine hours, inducing the Russian tanks eventually to turn tail. Swastikas were painted on tanks. Leaflets in Russian, German and Polish were distributed explaining to the invaders that they were in the wrong, and countless discussions were held between bewildered and defensive soldiers and angry Czech youths. Army units were given wrong directions, street signs and even village signs were changed, and there were refusals of cooperation and food. Clandestine radio stations broadcast advice and resistance news to the population. On the second day of the invasion, a reported 20,000 people demonstrated in Wenceslas Square in Prague; on the third day a one-hour work stoppage left the square eerily still. On the fourth day young students and workers defied the Soviet curfew by a round-the-clock sit-down at the statue of St. Wenceslas. Nine out of 10 people on the streets of Prague were wearing Czech flags in their lapels. Whenever the Russians tried to announce something the people raised such a din that the Russians could not be heard. Much of the energy of the resistance was spent weakening the will and increasing the confusion of the invading forces.
Clearly, Ukraine chose violence over nonviolence in the face of Russian aggression with disastrous results. This choice was made under duress, but I wonder if those who made it fully understood that nonviolence was a genuine option. An option that promised a path forward without mass casualties and the ruin of critical infrastructure. Something tells me that none of those decision makers had anyone around them arguing for nonviolence.
Here in the US, with legacy media beholden to the war machine, the whole idea of nonviolence is notably absent from public discourse. We give Ukraine depleted uranium munitions and escalate the conflict at every opportunity. Profiteering financiers and arms dealers are raking it in, thereby becoming even more influential.
Lakey did have his blind spots. His take on Ukraine lacked nuance and evidenced blue mythology. He didn't meaningfully address the manipulation of our media environment. Even so, the talk was worth attending.
One thing Lakey brought up a few times was the idea that people in Scandanavian countries had forced their financial elites out of power using labor strikes. He didn't get into how unprotected workers in the gig economy could even organize today. I wish I'd thought to ask him about that.
Read my novels:
- Small Gods of Time Travel is available as a web book on IPFS and as a 41 piece Tezos NFT collection on Objkt.
- The Paradise Anomaly is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- Psychic Avalanche is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- One Man Embassy is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- Flying Saucer Shenanigans is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- Rainbow Lullaby is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- The Ostermann Method is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
- Blue Dragon Mississippi is available in print via Blurb and for Kindle on Amazon.
See my NFTs:
- Small Gods of Time Travel is a 41 piece Tezos NFT collection on Objkt that goes with my book by the same name.
- History and the Machine is a 20 piece Tezos NFT collection on Objkt based on my series of oil paintings of interesting people from history.
- Artifacts of Mind Control is a 15 piece Tezos NFT collection on Objkt based on declassified CIA documents from the MKULTRA program.