By: Emit Rethaf
( editors note- This article really doesen't have much to do with
motorcycles, it has more to do with changing the world we live in, I simply found
it relevant as the view on passive terrorism expressed here is very accurate to the
beliefs of this press )
As you read this, look at the people around you. In a hundred years they will be
gone....as will you. This of course is under the exception that medical science will
not find ways to prolong life indefinitely. I can assure you that everyone who lives
now and everyone who has lived before has had this glimmer of hope. We may be the
first to see it, we may not. If we are, then how long to live? How long will medical
science be able to keep life enjoyable? Let us reserve these as possibility for now
and save them till they are more than just hope. Some believe in life after death,
or heaven, or hell, or reincarnation. We won't know the answers to this until death,
if death is the end, where do these concepts fit? Over the next hundred years this
world will change to become a place we may not recognize, or understand.
So what is the meaning here we are searching for? From what we see by our surroundings
life is simply that, life. Whether there is heaven or hell, afterlife, re-incarnation
or simply nothing, we are here. we've heard time and time again that the worst crime
possible in life is to waste your own or someone else's life. If this is true then
it would be acceptable to believe that the meaning of this miracle of life is to
enjoy, make the most of what you have and to never waste a moment. I look at yesterday,
it is no more real than the dream I had last night, for they are both memories. Ten
years ago is twenty years ago is five minuets ago. The past is simply a dream of
sorts and the future is a dream not yet slept through. That is how many people spend
their lives, sleeping through the workday, hoping the evening will come sooner. The
evening rushes by in the blink of an eye and they find themselves waking up to another
workday. In our disposable high speed society the truth is lost, exchanged for temporary
fulfillment and convenience. Getting a new toy to play with until we are bored or
everyone else has something better, then we want again. Moments of boredom, frustration,
fulfillment. It all seems to end in an inelegant withered suffocation of consciousness.
These are not words for unhappiness, but grasping of what is important, the reasons
why this one blink of consciousness is so valuable. Why it is necessary to capture
every moment and live it to the fullest. If it is better to live ten years happy
than fifty years unhappy, why do so many people waste a two thirds of their prime
of life working? Well, you have to work don't you? We all have to make a living,
but why do so many people spend the time that is truly their own watching other peoples
lives on television, or reading someone else's creative thoughts? Why do people spend
so much time working and earning just to enhance their televisions and stereos and
computers. The burn cycle runs heavy and fast leaving it's subjects wanting more,
wanting to live lives like the people on TV, wanting to become famous, wanting to
become happy. They then go to their daily pen and work until they can return home
to the safety net of other peoples lives inside a big black box. There is always
the hope that any one of us can change this world into a place that we would prefer,
but most people narrow the focus to their own immediate surroundings. Imagine you
plan one year to try to accomplish things that would change the world to a little
more like you want it. Now imagine spending a month doing that, or maybe a day.
Well, you could always be a street preacher, or a unibomber, or even a politician,
but these are forms of aggressive terrorism, in the end they only represent the fears
and insecurities of the individual. There is another form of terrorism rarely used
in today's world, passive terrorism. The difference between the two forms is the
fundamental concept that underlies the motive and force of change that embodies the
act.
With aggressive terrorism, the individual or group committing the act has no concern
for the welfare of those the act is inflicted upon. They prefer those affected by
the act have no free will and to simply comply with demands to prevent the act from
occurring again. This method is generally nonproductive and has only negative effects
in its longevity. Those who carry out these acts generally are not concerned with
the cause they side themselves with but are simply power hungry egomaniacs convinced
that they are fulfilling their own antisocial or immoral behavior in the name of
truth or progress. Very few of us will look at those who kill random people or scream
at obnoxious volumes as free thinkers or prophets. Can a gun wielding masked fanatic
ever be seen as a visionary? Would a bomber kill those whom he cares about or even
knows? Are street preachers capable of one on one conversations? Ask these people
to explain their beliefs and actions without making references to the cause they
fight for, they cannot.
The term "passive terrorism" is thought of as a oxymoron when first heard,
but it does not defy itself. Social terrorism is a form of obstructing the normal
flow of everyday life to introduce new concepts and ideas. Unlike aggressive terrorism
that is usually done in a violent or threatening manner, but passive terrorism is
not. The Boston Tea party is a good example of passive terrorism. It was not simply
a protest or demonstration, it was an act against the will of a unrighteous power.
Many people think that standing in front of something they dislike with a sign, or
holding hands and singing will evoke change in society, the effectiveness of this
is rare. What is affective is to show the people and powers that your intelligence,
ingenuity, endurance and strength are far greater than they could ever stop. It is
every bit as necessary to show that you are non-violent and non-destructive. If there
is an aggressor, it must not be you, if there is a disciplinary force, it must not
be you. Ghandi was one of the best examples of passive terrorism, how many innocent
people can the oppressors break before they themselves break under the guilt of their
actions.
Passive terrorism assumes that all people are free thinking and do not need violence
or threats to allow them to hear new ideas. If you do not force your ideas into someones
mind they will be less inclined to throw them out. The impact of a building filled
with people being blown up is overshadowed by the horror it brings. The impact of
an airplane being hijacked is masked by the fear for the hostages. The impact of
a street preacher screaming the words of a religious text is obliterated by the pollution
of sound and the invasion of ones own thoughts. Passive terrorism on the other hand
works in a completely opposite fashion. If an oppressor threatens to jail everyone
who is caught on the streets after dark, don't march the streets, hold a full blown
parade. Wear bright clothing containing fragile fake blood packets, make sure you
have many props such as umbrellas, candles, wagons, banners and such. Whatever you
do, do not fight the oppressors, do not comply with them either. Make them use the
brute force necessary to stop you, but do not ever fight them and do not vocally
protest them. The scene for all of the the spectators afraid to march with you will
be that of the oppressor destroying something not only peaceful but also joyous.
They will see the people you oppose forcing you down, hauling you away. The bursting
of the fake blood packets will make things appear far worse than they actually are,
the entire scene will have a impact of huge proportion and exaggerate the drama without
overdoing it. When it is over, the props and pools of fake blood will be all that
is left, ensuing thoughts of immoral carnage by the aggressors. If these artifacts
are removed and the street cleaned it will have an even colder more callous affect
on those who witness it by showing that it was just another days work for them.
Most of us are free to practice passive terrorism if the situation warrants it. Much
of history and some parts of the modern day world would not allow these sort of actions.
In China for example, anyone attempting this would be murdered by the government,
Tiennimen Square is an example of that. But those of us who live in "free"
societies should stand up for what we believe, and rather than forcing our opinions
on others, make an attempt to share our opinions with others. An important thing
to remember with passive terrorism is that you must be able to think like those you
defy, understand why the are the way they are, know their motivations and true loyalties.
Once you find out how they work you will know what is necessary to allow them to
listen.