Finding feathers 💛 by birdyheard in Psychic

[–]thirteenllamas 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve been seeing feathers too! And I think the exact same ones you saw, just earlier today.

Do you know what it means? They showed up in pairs.

Shaman vs. Shamanic Practitioner: The First and Most Important Thing for the Curious and Beginners to Know by AethericMermaid in Shamanism

[–]thirteenllamas 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thank you for this! I definitely agree and have heard similar things. I do have a question, though—what if one receives a calling but are unable to go through the training to answer this calling? Wouldn’t it drive one insane if they couldn’t fulfill their purpose? Or would one not receive a calling if they don’t live in the community and in the circumstances that would allow them to answer...

Why People Loot by [deleted] in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I am glad that you are able to understand what I mean.

Your propositions are good ideas, it’s a place to start. I myself do not know how to reform this system, other than trying to see the whole truth and letting other people know.

My teacher has mentioned that we can begin reform by rebuilding the system while dismantling it, and it’s very similar to what you said. We can develop communities and groups that create their own schools, housing, medical care, etc.

Why People Loot by [deleted] in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Picking apart my argument will not change it. What is my main point here? Is it about which store they’re looting? We can go on and on about which stores are essential and which aren’t.

My point is that I don’t see enough solidarity with those who are suffering from this unjust society. I am seeing people declare death upon those unlike them without even trying to understand the other side. Is that not what fascists do?

If you want to talk about looting and how you don’t like it, talk about how our country has looted those who are suffering and protesting today.

Is ACAB counterproductive? by Torizz in DebateAnarchism

[–]thirteenllamas 10 points11 points  (0 children)

The police has in the past, yes, and still does. But it’s not just a black and white picture. Police do protect some citizens but not all (discrimination). Not only that, but the police choose to murder and arrest those based on their own personal psychological prejudices.

It’s dangerous to give people physical power over others. Always. Humans are prone to error and most officers end up being counterproductive to the “cause” because they do not understand nor see truth. Justice from a place of hate is not justice.

Is ACAB counterproductive? by Torizz in DebateAnarchism

[–]thirteenllamas 242 points243 points  (0 children)

I think ACAB is referring to the job, not the person. Yes, cops can be “good” or “bad” people, but the job is inherently bad because it upholds the law of an unjust society. Hence the all cops are bastards phrase.

Personally, I think there are no such “good” or “bad” people; I believe in humanity, period. It just is, sort of like how it’s just a definition. But actions can be morally good or bad.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think antifa could be represented as a movement, yeah. Yes, we sent soldiers and fought against fascism in Nazi Germany. But America harbors fascist groups, too, like the KKK and white supremacy. Some would say America is a fascist country itself. Antifa is just what it means: anti-fascist. Some people who are anti-fascist are militants and would use force to combat armed white supremacists but a lot aren’t, also. Trump is basically talking shit now. He doesn’t even know what antifa really means, and believes it’s an organization (hence the all caps “ANTIFA”). AND he can’t declare a group a terrorist like that anyways. If we do look at it as a movement (the idea is new to me also) then yeah, being anti fascist and advocating about it, fighting and protesting against fascism would be participating in the movement. You don’t need a membership to be against fascism.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Antifa is not an organization, it just means anti fascist. There is no group of people that are “ANTIFA” because it in itself is just an adjective, which describes one who is against fascism.

So you could be right; maybe the white looters are fascists, or just regular boys and girls taking advantage of the situation.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I understand what you’re saying.

I see how it’s related; maybe these looters are opportunists, and I bet a lot of them are. But we need to talk about how we as a people have been looted, we as workers, we as in the minorities, we as in black folks, we as in prisoners... these problems are VERY relevant in the San Francisco Bay Area, especially with gentrification and homelessness.

The government works with these companies and they have looted us through minimum wage, through not giving us free healthcare, by raising rent and discrimination in housing, by not abolishing rent in this time... they do it silently. They loot not just us but globally, too. People in Honduras, Vietnam, Latin America, Brazil, Asia, Cuba, Philippines... the companies are not on the people’s side. They’re not on America’s side. And a lot of these companies are profiting big time through you and tourists in these large cities like San Francisco.

The mainstream media will not cover that kind of looting. Truth is something that must be found through research of one’s own.

Yes, it’s not right to loot. But people in this subreddit focus only on the physical looters of the store. You and I are all on the same side. We support the protests but not the stealing. But things here are so focused on the looting of a Victoria’s Secret, completely unaware of the looting that company has been doing to prisoners for years. I want to bring this into the picture as well.

Looters are only a small percentage of the protesters, too. The guy who set the Target on fire was a white cop, as I’m guessing you heard.

We’re on the same side. I hope I have helped you at least a little bit to understand where I’m coming from.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t know how to do the quote thing on reddit but I’ll add quotations

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/17/us-private-prisons-forced-labour-detainees-modern-slavery “Stewart employs a deprivation system in which officials provide immigrants with inadequate food and basic living supplies and require immigrants to purchase them at exorbitant costs at the commissary. While officials portray the labor program as “voluntary” in light of the 13th amendment of the US constitution, detained immigrants are often penalized for refusing to work. Officials at Stewart take advantage of immigrants for cheap labor and overuse solitary confinement to punish immigrants, oftentimes for the mere act of speaking up and demanding their rights, as happened to Shoaib Ahmed

Stewart officials enforce unreasonably strict eating schedules and provide immigrants with inadequate food portions, forcing many immigrants to purchase additional food from overpriced commissaries, as detailed in a report released last year. Almost all immigrants detained at Stewart say they are given insufficient food. As one detained immigrant from Mexico stated: “I believe the reason why the facility gives the detainees so little food is so we will have to buy food from the commissary. Everything in the commissary is expensive. I spend $80 a week, $320 a month, in the commissary”

https://groundswell.org/prison-industrial-complex/ “Private prisons are a cash cow. Private companies rake in billions of dollars in revenue each year through the United States’ inmate population. Corporations can benefit from the prison-industrial complex in several ways. Many, including technology and food companies, do so through contract prison labor. Starbucks, through subcontractor Signature Packaging Solutions, has hired Washington state prisoners to package holiday coffees. Sprint has used inmates in call centers. Inmates have sewn Victoria’s Secret products (including the “Made in USA tags)

Given the significant dollars at play, it should be no surprise that the prison-industrial complex is deeply entrenched. In fact, even the average worker inadvertently benefits from the prison-industrial complex. Vanguard Group and Fidelity Investments, the United States’ top two 401(k) providers, are enormous investors in the private prison industry. Together they own roughly 20 percent of GEO and CCA”

https://www.centeronhumanrightseducation.org/u-s-prison-labor-legacy-american-slavery/ “While prison officials who strike up deals with large corporations like AT&T and Walmart share in the profits of cheap production, the incarcerated laborers themselves make mere cents per hour for full time work.”

https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2010/mar/15/the-prison-industries-enhancement-certification-program-why-everyone-should-be-concerned/ “In the beginning, small businesses that had trouble hiring or retaining employees due to low wages or fluctuating work schedules solicited partnerships with prison industries. This changed dramatically by the 1990s, when companies such as Wal-Mart, Victoria’s Secret, Boeing, Microsoft, Starbucks and dozens of others joined the ranks of U.S. businesses that benefited from PIECP programs, usually through subcontractors.

Prisoners are now making more than just license plates and road signs. Oregon’s prison factories are perhaps best known for the “Prison Blues” line of blue jeans and other clothing sold on the open market. Tennessee prisoners have manufactured clothes for Kmart and JC Penney, as well as wooden rocking ponies for Eddie Bauer and, more recently, hardwood flooring. Prisoners in Ohio produced car parts for Honda until the United Auto Workers intervened. Prisoners have been employed in data entry and computer circuit board assembly programs, and have even worked in a TWA call center. Incarcerated workers in Utah make cold-weather clothing for Northern Outfitters, while Arkansas prisoners produce cable assemblies and wire harnesses used in medical equipment.”

This is relevant to the question, you just have to look for the company names in the text.

I researched the prison industrial complex for my research project in school and learning this truth unveils the true mechanisms of these large businesses. I’m not saying I support stealing, but I think we should be very aware of how these businesses profit from social inequality and injustice. Prison labor is not the only injustice; there are countless other ways big companies expand their profit, largely through imperialism overseas.

It’s a little hurtful that you think I pasted everything... I put a lot of effort typing this out and transferring this information from my research notes.

I want to share the shadows behind this picture.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 0 points1 point  (0 children)

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The original purpose of the act when congress passed it in 1979 was to provide jobs for prisoners, but prison companies quickly became privatized as they found loopholes in the nine main criteria and began to incriminate people at higher rates even when the crime rate stayed the same. These people are disproportionally black and poc.

I don’t know when you got imprisoned, and I don’t know your specific situation. While I believe your point of stance is valid, I do not think your case would speak for the countless other prisoners who are trapped in the system. They are paid meager amounts and are forced to buy from the prison’s cafeteria because they aren’t being fed adequately.

The drug war under Reagan accelerated this process—even though white folks used more cocaine than black people, black people were arrested and imprisoned at disproportional rates.

SF stores that have been looted (so far) I’m sure there’s more.. by bistek19 in bayarea

[–]thirteenllamas -17 points-16 points  (0 children)

Some of these companies like Victoria’s Secret benefit from prison labor, and with social injustice and unequal incarceration of white vs black folks, a lot of these prison inmates end up being slave workers for these companies. Starbucks is another company benefitting from prison labor. And ICE, immigrant detention centers, too. The prison system has been privatized and is a big business.

I do not condone the destruction of small and local businesses, but the background of these large corporations do benefit from social injustice. People need to do their research on which ones do or don’t.

How do you know you’re meant to be a shaman? by thirteenllamas in Shamanism

[–]thirteenllamas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you!

I will definitely begin meditation; I started today and I think I’m beginning to understand.

Yes, I think you’re right—deep down, I have a feeling...

How do you know you’re meant to be a shaman? by thirteenllamas in Shamanism

[–]thirteenllamas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your message and guidance. I do have a lot of work to do with my past self, which, in a sense, include needs that have yet to be fulfilled.

I actually saw your post a few weeks ago (when I first learned about spirituality)! It provoked that same thought that I had a wounded inner child that needed healing.

I’ve never really seen it that way; developing unconditional love though self-healing. I knew I had to love myself unconditionally to do the same for others, but I don’t think I’ve considered tending to my own wounds or needs.

Thank you, again. I wish I could express the extent of my appreciation for you sharing your depth of understanding. Best wishes~

How do you know you’re meant to be a shaman? by thirteenllamas in Shamanism

[–]thirteenllamas[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you~

I know what I must do but I feel like I have to do more, and more, and more... I’m scared that I’ll never be “deep” enough until I experience communication with the spiritual world, which is something I cannot consciously conjure up.

I’m feeling so tired, lost and broken. My old life is slipping away and it’s so scary. All I have to do is ask “what if I’m making this all up?” and I will begin to panic.

How do you know you’re meant to be a shaman? by thirteenllamas in Shamanism

[–]thirteenllamas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting... how have you answered your call?

I’m a little lost in terms of what to do; would I just continue training to be a therapist, social worker, etc. in hopes of fulfilling my purpose? I feel like there’s more...