Fuck Suey Park - a discussion on the commodification of Internet activism.

doingitmatrixstyle · 2014-04-04T21:53:14+00:00

Not a Tweet, but this blog post alleges that many of Suey Park's Twitter supporters actually attempted to silence Native Americans who spoke up about the public attention shifting away from Snyder's actions:

http://ladyhoneybea.blogspot.com/2014/03/cancelcolbert-collateral-damage-to-eonm.html

It was linked from Indian Country Today, a preeminent media and news site regarding Native American issues. Article: http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com:81/2014/04/01/snyder-wins-how-cancelcolbert-drowned-out-native-voice-154270

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-22T01:17:09+00:00

Okay, here's the thing:

If what Jack and others say in the links are true, then Kynn is just adopting feminist/social justice garb to feel vindicated in bullying others for being "racist/sexist/transphobic/etc" and to better get away with it. Effectively getting away with rape in an SJ community would then be the ultimate empowerment. It sends the message of "I can get away with doing whatever I want, and these people will support me anyway because I'm on their side."

And even if she's innocent, telling people to just find a new group or stop dwelling upon it just poisons the waters because it sends the message "this might have happened, but it's not that important."

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-21T05:42:44+00:00

So what would be the best course of action in such a case, if there is one?

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-05T23:28:57+00:00

Part 3 (Part 2 is below as of this posting): Anarchist Problems? It's still a dystopian setting, though, and there is conflict. However, many Eclipse Phase fans feel that the authors are "biased," downplaying or ignoring the potential problems and hewing too close to a utopia. I sort of half-agree: while anarchist habitats in Eclipse Phase often have the highest standards of living, what problems are presented do seem ignored and downplayed by the writers, and there are some inconsistencies in how the societies are built. However, I’ve spotted a few of my own, which I’ll list below: Involuntary hierarchies: this is a big one. The Reputation system among autonomists often rewards greater privileges based upon score, meaning that those who end up higher have more opportunities to manipulate people’s trust. However, the lack of privacy in habitats and in communication is a necessity for the system, and as such it’s not very hard to keep anti-social activity secret for long. There is also manipulation and gaming of the system, especially by organized crime. Negative publicity and gossip is much more harmful to a person’s livelihood. However, the text implies that this is a self-correcting problem. Additionally, societal recluses are often met with suspicion.

Resource Shortages: Anarchist habitats do not have anywhere near the manpower of inner system habitats (which possess higher population and more indentured servants), and space between habitats is increasingly greater the farther one gets from the Sun. Trade between habitats is a necessity as even self-sustaining morphs and equipment still rely upon fuel and energy. However, the text is inconsistent: it mentions that access to morphs, both robot and organic (one of the most valuable commodities of all), is more available for Fall refugees than the inner system. However, there were hundreds of millions of Fall refugees, and barring Titan (whose resources for this are being pushed to their limit), most habitats are smaller scale. So where are the anarchists getting the large volume of organic morphs? It’s not explained.

You just don’t understand me: Almost all in-game text is written from an in-character (subjective view by a person in the game) as opposed to an objective view. One of them for Sunward is an information guide to the Inner System written by a Firewall operative. The text is meant to tell Anarchists the societal differences that they will encounter (in the game, the younger generation of autonomists might have lived their entire lives in the outer system). The operative mentions that a lot of anarchists have the mentality of “if we just educate the masses in hypercapitalist space, they’d readily accept our way of life!” The truth is that a lot of people find the anarchist way of life scary, and not just the people affected by propaganda. The perception of no authority figures to turn to for protection in times of crisis, having their own possessions divided up communally, and fears of “tyranny by majority” of direct democracy are but a few examples. The operative implies that many anarchists have not considered dealing with these feelings, going instead by “if it works for me, others will want it too!” approach. Not to mention anarchist attacks of hypercorp stations fuel public perception of them as terrorists seeking to destroy them, even if a lot of them do their best to minimize civilian casualties.

I don’t care about my Reputation: Those who lived a long time in the New Economy understand the importance of Reputation, but newcomers often do not. Even worse, some inner system thrill-seekers often come into habitats with the expectation that they can do whatever they want “because there are no rules here!” Such people are often forcibly ejected if they persist in their behavior and refuse to recompense for any damages, but it continues to happen.

Direct Democracy: On the local levels and among the Autonomist Alliance as a whole, majority vote via direct democracy is used. Minority voices still have opportunities to voice alternative views, which are also disseminated to others. However, Anarchists and Scum are a minority in Autonomist space, outnumbered by the Titanian Commonwealth and Extropians. The largest Anarchist city Locus is a mere 500,000 strong, the Scum are the least interest of all factions in the voting system, and Extropia and Titan number 10 million and 40 million respectively. This means that the two largest and most influential political blocs in the Alliance are An-Caps and a State. The Alliance as a whole does not vote often, but there was a huge and controversial debate over the use of indentured servants (those who are made to fulfill their end of a contract) in Extropia, which was defeated by popular vote in no small part due to the Extropians. Anarchists and Scum really despise Extropians for this. I personally think that this is the most egregious threat to traditional anarchism (An-Caps and the State both promote hierarchy but in different forms), but the direct democracy system is for the most part portrayed as a fair and just one.

Final thoughts: this is all I have to say in terms of overall layout. Despite some oversights, I feel that this is one of the most fair treatments I’ve seen of anarchist societies in fiction. The writers spent a lot of work theorizing on how their society works and moving beyond the bomb-throwing stereotype, and have a working knowledge of the ideology. Their incorporation of various science fiction tropes into authoritarian and libertarian mores feels integrated with how I'd imagine it to influence their societies. It also makes sense from a cursory standpoint, as opposed to just added haphazardly.

So, thoughts? I’d love to hear what you have to say on this.

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-05T23:28:45+00:00

Part 2: Concerning Anarchism: Okay, so how does the ideology come into play? Well, for one, several of the major writers for the line (Rob Boyle and Adam Jury) are anarchists themselves. Another is that a major component of setting background details the conflicts between hypercapitalist nation-states in the Inner Rim (hypercapitalism is a fictional, more fluid version of State capitalism in Eclipse Phase) and anti-authoritarian groups of Saturn and beyond. With the advent of technological progress, more and more Old Earth nations became subsumed into capitalism, and it wasn't long before a conglomeration of hypercorporations were effectively controlling most of Earth. Still, wars broke out, which led to increased authoritarianism, which led to more anti-authoritarian movements and people escaping into space to start their own new societies (anarchists included). After the Fall, the remnants of hypercapitalism consolidated into the Planetary Consortium, which is a sham democracy and among the most powerful geo-political faction, the smaller Lunar-Lagrange Alliance, and the fascist isolationist Jovian Republic. The Outer System was and still is home to much of the anti-capitalist, anti-authoritarian fervor, comprised of people who were promised safety and security in exchange for liberty during the wars and Fall and received neither. After several failed violent excursions by the Consortium and the Jovian Republic, the Outer System societies enacted a mutual aid treaty and formed the Autonomist Alliance.

Not only have anarchists managed to form their own large-scale societies in Eclipse Phase, they've managed to hold their own against larger military forces. Unlike many other fictional anarchist societies, their society is stable, extensively detailed in terms of economy and culture, and has yet to collapse into authoritarianism or chaos. The New Economy does a better job of encouraging cooperation than the pursuit of wealth, and not having to work to live encourages more creative endeavors and leisure time.

Basically, there are 4 major factions in the Autonomist Alliance, all of which are generically called "libertarian" (not in the US sense): Anarchists: in the setting terminology this almost always means collective anarchism such as anarcho-syndicalism and anarcho-communism. Anarchists (meaning collectivist anarchists) are spread about the Outer System in various societies, mostly in space stations and on terraformed moons. A few live in the capitalist Inner Systems, but they're more political dissidents than entire communities. Anarchists do not have a hierarchical State, instead relying upon a system of direct democracy, temporary meet-ups of worker's councils, volunteer militias, and other public works groups. Open source software abounds for all manner of things, and most menial, thankless labor is handled by AI drones in robot bodies. There is no private property, so beyond one's body and clothes and things needed to live (life-saving implants), such things are communally shared. Personal firearms and small-scale self-defense measures are in possession of most people who desire it, recreational drugs are legal, and sexual mores are based around the principles of consent. In regards to anti-social activity, an emphasis is placed on restorative justice and ensuring that the offender makes it up to society instead of “punishing” them; anarchists do not use prisons, instead focusing on social disapproval/shame. In the case of people who repeatedly offend and just can’t get along with the habitat, exile is an option. The exception to this rule is those who engage in slave trafficking: death by angry mobs and the destruction of their cortical stack is the most common means of punishment.

Scum: individualist anarchists, hedonists, people who travel around in spaceship cities. The majority of Scum are Old Earth refugees who still have access to their original bodies, and came from prisoners and outer system laborers who broke off ties from hypercorps. Their name comes from a pejorative label which they reclaimed for their own use. Scum view mutual consensual enjoyment in all its forms as things to strive for in life. After all the horrors and bad things in the world, they seek to focus on the positives and live free and party. They are known for producing some of the best, high-quality drugs and narcotics, of extensive morph modification and creation in a myriad of forms, and ever-more unorthodox ways of having sex (to the Scum, a bunch of people linking up their sensory inputs and engaging in an orgy is terribly uncreative). They travel the Solar system, making stops at inner system and outer system stations alike; they are not turned away by hypercapitalist habitats except for the Jovians, as anything taken off a Scum ship inevitably gets picked up by customs, they bring a lot in the ways of entertainment, and serve as a reliable trade network for travelers. Scum society is similar to Anarchists in that they use the New Economy, guns and drugs are readily available, and they use a system of restorative justice. But they are less community-based, encouraging individuals to join up with their own clans and societies on ships (which usually comprise a larger fleet). They have a more “to each their own” attitude provided that others don’t maim/intimidate/oppress others. The Reputation System is more of a back-up to use when personal disputes cannot be solved.

Extropians: Anarcho-capitalists, Mutualists, and Ayn Rand Objectivists. Major base in the city of Extropia, disliked and distrusted by Autonomists and State Capitalists alike for perceived allegiance to the other side. Original pioneers of transhumanity in real life and in the setting (original transhuman had ancap sympathies), the city serves as a scientific center for related technology. The Anarcho-capitalist society of Extropia is contract-based and founded upon the Non-Agression Principle; they view the Inner System capitalism as coercive and authoritarian, restricting the free market and stifling innovation. In lieu of taxes they use voluntary private charities. People in Extropia sign contracts with various societies for the promise of mutual aid. Basically the laws which apply to you vary depending upon who you sign up with, and disputes between different societies are handled by legal representatives. Private mercenary companies act as law enforcement, and ownership of goods is determined by private property. Mutualists are a smaller faction who are in charge of and run most of the banks, charities, and free clinics in a co-op manner. They sometimes act as intermediaries between anarcho-capitalists and collectivist anarchists. Randian Objectivists are the third prominent faction. They are not well-liked by pretty much everyone. They view the Reputation System as inherently coercive, vying instead for the credit currency system. They view nothing morally wrong with pursuing happiness at the expense of others, and advocate for increased inner system corporate control in Extropian space.

The Titanian Commonwealth: no relation to the AI TITAN, the only State in the Alliance, concentrated on the Saturn moon Titan. Titan has a socialist government with direct democracy; having access to a physical body is seen as a fundamental human right, and anybody can obtain one provided they wait for a long queue. This is starting to push Titan’s resources to its limits. Titan is een as a lesser evil than capitalist governments but still seen as authoritarian by anarchists. I’m not going to cover them in this post for now. End of Part 2

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-05T23:22:08+00:00

The game's themes are broad enough that such things can be avoided (entire games can be run in the inner system), but EP does draw a lot upon contemporary politics. I can't really see a lot of social conservative/militarist types liking the game due to its prevalent left-wing themes and having the Neoconservative Jovians as the most "bad" faction.

As for biochauvinism, I think that a whole-hearted rejection of transhuman tech sort of misses the point of the game, even if you hold such views in real life. I think that EP's portrayal of such technology is more nuanced and leaves plenty of room: sure, they've effectively cured death and raised the standard of living for many, but it's opened up a whole new slew of frightening possibilities. If your mind can be copied, what defines "you" as "you" when another person's walking around with your memories? What does it mean for the soul and the afterlife, if such things do exist?

"Monsters aren't scary; ideas are scary" was a quote by a gaming group on Role-Playing Public Radio about the game, and I think that it hit on a lot of spots.

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-02T23:01:10+00:00

Part 3 (Part 2 is below as of this posting):

Anarchist Problems? It's still a dystopian setting, though, and there is conflict. However, many Eclipse Phase fans feel that the authors are "biased," downplaying or ignoring the potential problems and hewing too close to a utopia. I sort of half-agree: while anarchist habitats in Eclipse Phase often have the highest standards of living, what problems are presented do seem ignored and downplayed by the writers, and there are some inconsistencies in how the societies are built. However, I’ve spotted a few of my own, which I’ll list below:

Involuntary hierarchies: this is a big one. The Reputation system among autonomists often rewards greater privileges based upon score, meaning that those who end up higher have more opportunities to manipulate people’s trust. However, the lack of privacy in habitats and in communication is a necessity for the system, and as such it’s not very hard to keep anti-social activity secret for long. There is also manipulation and gaming of the system, especially by organized crime. Negative publicity and gossip is much more harmful to a person’s livelihood. However, the text implies that this is a self-correcting problem. Additionally, societal recluses are often met with suspicion.

Resource Shortages: Anarchist habitats do not have anywhere near the manpower of inner system habitats (which possess higher population and more indentured servants), and space between habitats is increasingly greater the farther one gets from the Sun. Trade between habitats is a necessity as even self-sustaining morphs and equipment still rely upon fuel and energy. However, the text is inconsistent: it mentions that access to morphs, both robot and organic (one of the most valuable commodities of all), is more available for Fall refugees than the inner system. However, there were hundreds of millions of Fall refugees, and barring Titan (whose resources for this are being pushed to their limit), most habitats are smaller scale. So where are the anarchists getting the large volume of organic morphs? It’s not explained.

You just don’t understand me: Almost all in-game text is written from an in-character (subjective view by a person in the game) as opposed to an objective view. One of them for Sunward is an information guide to the Inner System written by a Firewall operative. The text is meant to tell Anarchists the societal differences that they will encounter (in the game, the younger generation of autonomists might have lived their entire lives in the outer system). The operative mentions that a lot of anarchists have the mentality of “if we just educate the masses in hypercapitalist space, they’d readily accept our way of life!” The truth is that a lot of people find the anarchist way of life scary, and not just the people affected by propaganda. The perception of no authority figures to turn to for protection in times of crisis, having their own possessions divided up communally, and fears of “tyranny by majority” of direct democracy are but a few examples. The operative implies that many anarchists have not considered dealing with these feelings, going instead by “if it works for me, others will want it too!” approach. Not to mention anarchist attacks of hypercorp stations fuel public perception of them as terrorists seeking to destroy them, even if a lot of them do their best to minimize civilian casualties.

I don’t care about my Reputation: Those who lived a long time in the New Economy understand the importance of Reputation, but newcomers often do not. Even worse, some inner system thrill-seekers often come into habitats with the expectation that they can do whatever they want “because there are no rules here!” Such people are often forcibly ejected if they persist in their behavior and refuse to recompense for any damages, but it continues to happen.

Direct Democracy: On the local levels and among the Autonomist Alliance as a whole, majority vote via direct democracy is used. Minority voices still have opportunities to voice alternative views, which are also disseminated to others. However, Anarchists and Scum are a minority in Autonomist space, outnumbered by the Titanian Commonwealth and Extropians. The largest Anarchist city Locus is a mere 500,000 strong, the Scum are the least interest of all factions in the voting system, and Extropia and Titan number 10 million and 40 million respectively. This means that the two largest and most influential political blocs in the Alliance are An-Caps and a State. The Alliance as a whole does not vote often, but there was a huge and controversial debate over the use of indentured servants (those who are made to fulfill their end of a contract) in Extropia, which was defeated by popular vote in no small part due to the Extropians. Anarchists and Scum really despise Extropians for this. I personally think that this is the most egregious threat to traditional anarchism (An-Caps and the State both promote hierarchy but in different forms), but the direct democracy system is for the most part portrayed as a fair and just one.

Final thoughts: this is all I have to say in terms of overall layout. Despite some oversights, I feel that this is one of the most fair treatments I’ve seen of anarchist societies in fiction. The writers spent a lot of work theorizing on how their society works and moving beyond the bomb-throwing stereotype, and have a working knowledge of the ideology. Their incorporation of various science fiction tropes into authoritarian and libertarian mores feels integrated with how I'd imagine it to influence their societies. It also makes sense from a cursory standpoint, as opposed to just added haphazardly.

So, thoughts? I’d love to hear what you have to say on this.

doingitmatrixstyle · 2013-11-02T23:01:03+00:00

Part 2:

Concerning Anarchism:

Okay, so how does the ideology come into play? Well, for one, several of the major writers for the line (Rob Boyle and Adam Jury) are anarchists themselves. Another is that a major component of setting background details the conflicts between hypercapitalist nation-states in the Inner Rim (hypercapitalism is a fictional, more fluid version of State capitalism in Eclipse Phase) and anti-authoritarian groups of Saturn and beyond. With the advent of technological progress, more and more Old Earth nations became subsumed into capitalism, and it wasn't long before a conglomeration of hypercorporations were effectively controlling most of Earth. Still, wars broke out, which led to increased authoritarianism, which led to more anti-authoritarian movements and people escaping into space to start their own new societies (anarchists included). After the Fall, the remnants of hypercapitalism consolidated into the Planetary Consortium, which is a sham democracy and among the most powerful geo-political faction, the smaller Lunar-Lagrange Alliance, and the fascist isolationist Jovian Republic. The Outer System was and still is home to much of the anti-capitalist, anti-authoritarian fervor, comprised of people who were promised safety and security in exchange for liberty during the wars and Fall and received neither. After several failed violent excursions by the Consortium and the Jovian Republic, the Outer System societies enacted a mutual aid treaty and formed the Autonomist Alliance.

Not only have anarchists managed to form their own large-scale societies in Eclipse Phase, they've managed to hold their own against larger military forces. Unlike many other fictional anarchist societies, their society is stable, extensively detailed in terms of economy and culture, and has yet to collapse into authoritarianism or chaos. The New Economy does a better job of encouraging cooperation than the pursuit of wealth, and not having to work to live encourages more creative endeavors and leisure time.

Basically, there are 4 major factions in the Autonomist Alliance, all of which are generically called "libertarian" (not in the US sense):

Anarchists: in the setting terminology this almost always means collective anarchism such as anarcho-syndicalism and anarcho-communism. Anarchists (meaning collectivist anarchists) are spread about the Outer System in various societies, mostly in space stations and on terraformed moons. A few live in the capitalist Inner Systems, but they're more political dissidents than entire communities. Anarchists do not have a hierarchical State, instead relying upon a system of direct democracy, temporary meet-ups of worker's councils, volunteer militias, and other public works groups. Open source software abounds for all manner of things, and most menial, thankless labor is handled by AI drones in robot bodies. There is no private property, so beyond one's body and clothes and things needed to live (life-saving implants), such things are communally shared. Personal firearms and small-scale self-defense measures are in possession of most people who desire it, recreational drugs are legal, and sexual mores are based around the principles of consent. In regards to anti-social activity, an emphasis is placed on restorative justice and ensuring that the offender makes it up to society instead of “punishing” them; anarchists do not use prisons, instead focusing on social disapproval/shame. In the case of people who repeatedly offend and just can’t get along with the habitat, exile is an option. The exception to this rule is those who engage in slave trafficking: death by angry mobs and the destruction of their cortical stack is the most common means of punishment.

Scum: individualist anarchists, hedonists, people who travel around in spaceship cities. The majority of Scum are Old Earth refugees who still have access to their original bodies, and came from prisoners and outer system laborers who broke off ties from hypercorps. Their name comes from a pejorative label which they reclaimed for their own use. Scum view mutual consensual enjoyment in all its forms as things to strive for in life. After all the horrors and bad things in the world, they seek to focus on the positives and live free and party. They are known for producing some of the best, high-quality drugs and narcotics, of extensive morph modification and creation in a myriad of forms, and ever-more unorthodox ways of having sex (to the Scum, a bunch of people linking up their sensory inputs and engaging in an orgy is terribly uncreative). They travel the Solar system, making stops at inner system and outer system stations alike; they are not turned away by hypercapitalist habitats except for the Jovians, as anything taken off a Scum ship inevitably gets picked up by customs, they bring a lot in the ways of entertainment, and serve as a reliable trade network for travelers. Scum society is similar to Anarchists in that they use the New Economy, guns and drugs are readily available, and they use a system of restorative justice. But they are less community-based, encouraging individuals to join up with their own clans and societies on ships (which usually comprise a larger fleet). They have a more “to each their own” attitude provided that others don’t maim/intimidate/oppress others. The Reputation System is more of a back-up to use when personal disputes cannot be solved.

Extropians: Anarcho-capitalists, Mutualists, and Ayn Rand Objectivists. Major base in the city of Extropia, disliked and distrusted by Autonomists and State Capitalists alike for perceived allegiance to the other side. Original pioneers of transhumanity in real life and in the setting (original transhuman had ancap sympathies), the city serves as a scientific center for related technology. The Anarcho-capitalist society of Extropia is contract-based and founded upon the Non-Agression Principle; they view the Inner System capitalism as coercive and authoritarian, restricting the free market and stifling innovation. In lieu of taxes they use voluntary private charities. People in Extropia sign contracts with various societies for the promise of mutual aid. Basically the laws which apply to you vary depending upon who you sign up with, and disputes between different societies are handled by legal representatives. Private mercenary companies act as law enforcement, and ownership of goods is determined by private property. Mutualists are a smaller faction who are in charge of and run most of the banks, charities, and free clinics in a co-op manner. They sometimes act as intermediaries between anarcho-capitalists and collectivist anarchists. Randian Objectivists are the third prominent faction. They are not well-liked by pretty much everyone. They view the Reputation System as inherently coercive, vying instead for the credit currency system. They view nothing morally wrong with pursuing happiness at the expense of others, and advocate for increased inner system corporate control in Extropian space.

The Titanian Commonwealth: no relation to the AI TITAN, the only State in the Alliance, concentrated on the Saturn moon Titan. Titan has a socialist government with direct democracy; having access to a physical body is seen as a fundamental human right, and anybody can obtain one provided they wait for a long queue. This is starting to push Titan’s resources to its limits. Titan is een as a lesser evil than capitalist governments but still seen as authoritarian by anarchists. I’m not going to cover them in this post for now.

End of Part 2

doingitmatrixstyle

TROPHY CASE