This is not a hug from your mummy.
This isn't kissing it better.
It isn't being able to stay up a bit later with a cup of warm milk when you've had a nightmare.
Life sucks. Hard. And it's only going to get worse, you can see the signs everywhere. It's in our politics, it's in our banks, it's in our TeeVees, It's in our advertisements and our schools and our stores and in our streets.
You can't walk down those streets anymore without feeling dirty, as the apes breathe out the air you are breathing in, an endless cycle of sharing eachothers air, in and out out and in.
This is not democracy.
This is not people power.
This is not a shift in the market.
The election is just a symptom, it's just a reflection of the apes infesting central North America. Vote, and get a free loaf of bread. Bread and circuses. Seriously, that is actually happening.
Augustus limited the borders of the Roman Empire, knowing that to try and control more would lead to more hassle than it was worth. Maintain the borders with the legions, keep the army away from Rome as much as possible, reduce it's influence over the politics of the Empire.
Where are the limits of the American Empire? Have they now be found?
This is not the end.
This is not the beginning of the end.
This is not even the end of the beginning.
This is the same old story, the decline and fall of an empire into corruption, decadence and ultimate failure.
It is a time for yetis, it is a time for getting your yuks in, it is a time to get mad as hell while you still can.
Barack Hussein Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, sweeping away the last racial barrier in American politics with ease as the country chose him as its first black chief executive.
“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,” said Mr. Obama, standing before a huge wooden lectern with a row of American flags at his back, casting his eyes to a crowd that stretched far into the Chicago night.
“It’s been a long time coming,” the president-elect added, “but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this election at this defining moment, change has come to America.”
And indeed the world, Mr. President-elect. The world is truly watching with great interest and barely contained anticipation.
O HAI THAR, Welcome back to the POEE|UK Resource Centre.
We have unb0rkened the site yet again and have installed yet another fudgetastic theme. The theme for today is celebrating you silly Americans and your strange habit of picking between various power hungry, war path trotting sociopaths to run your country.
“I was trying to show them that it's possible to get involved in this world without being corrupted by the crimes of this world. And I failed. One by one, I resorted to all the vices of governors: deception, carnival magic to impress the gullible, and finally, outright murder. Once again, the cynics have been proven right.”
- Hagbard Celine, The Illuminatus! Trilogy
There is a strange and self-defeating logic held by the adherents of order. Its really quite fascinating, when you realize what it is. Not only does it demonstrate their general uselessness in trying to impose order on the world, it also shows – almost humorously – that in reality, the people who run the world are not that different to us after all. And the implications of that particular thought could be quite fruitful.
The problem is this. Tradition and order are always under threat. They are based on the idea that the world should not change, or if change is brought about, that it should happen slowly and in increments, so that any side-effects can be mitigated (and also to benefit from the old way of doing things for as long as is possible). However, we know history does not work like that. While retroactively, one can trace the history of events with surprising accuracy, detailing richly how the world came to be what it is, it is otherwise nearly impossible to predict from now what the future will hold. Even worse, those changes in history, those moments where the world is turned upside down and once the dust has settled, something is changed, do not happen nicely and with warning. They erupt unexpectedly onto the scene, disrupting events around them by virtue of their shocking and unforeseen impact.
In short, time and reality are the enemy. Given a long enough time period, the chance of a black swan type event approaches one. How then, can one keep order, sustain tradition in such a world? Odysseus, also known as Ulysses in Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida, has advice for Achilles, after expressing the archetypal argument for tradition and hierarchy at a previous council of war. He tells Achilles that to win back honour, he must rejoin the fight. But more than simply restating his arguments, he also proposes a way to fight against the deprivations of time that so threaten the established order.
That way is one which is very familiar to us. Odysseus is too cunning, too honest to say that simply sticking by one's virtues will make them last and be right – instead, he admits it is only by manipulation, deceit, the methods of cheating and playing people against each other for public consumption that the hierarchical method will be retained, and that Achilles will get his honour back in the bargain.
In other words, order is supported and indeed reliant on an undercurrent of chaotic, deceitful and antithetical values to that of the orderly world. Hidden variables abound, games played in the dark, things are not as they seem. Illusions and phantoms are thrown up and people used as chess pieces in games they did not even know they were playing. Order must be transgressed if it is to be maintained, but if it is being ignored and broken by its chief principles, then it is no longer order, is it?
Of course, Odysseus is interesting in that apart from Achilles, he is the only Greek to receive a reprimand from Agamemnon, the Greek commander. While he manages to keep the morale of the Greeks in check, he is also the most disruptive element in their camp. He kills another Greek commander in revenge for an earlier slight, framing him as a traitor. His claim to the arms of Achilles leads to the suicide of Ajax. It is he who comes up with the plan to storm Troy, and he who humiliates Menelaus by not allowing him to kill Helen, for betraying and leaving him. He may uphold the order, but he does it in such a way that he is saving up a lot more disorder for a later point, and he himself has no qualms about using such methods himself. Can the same be true for other adherents of order?
It is possible. Nietzsche also considered the self-destroying nature of Christian order, in that it posited a metaphysical world beyond our current reality, and gave humanity a fixed place in the Universe, but at the same time made truth one of the key aspects of its belief system. The problem is, of course, that Christianity is built upon lies and falsehoods, so eventually it turns in on itself. Its truth was a powerful weapon, in the right hands, and most certainly part of its moral order, but once turned inwards, it helped cause the whole thing to unravel.
Its not so much a matter of us acting like them, as RAW tried to put it, more the issue is them acting like us. Often the methods of the proponents of order are fairly well known and manipulated (such as getting inside the OODA loop – a military method for decision making – so that the hierarchy itself becomes a weapon to use against your enemies). Not everyone on the other side is a stupid automaton, or even a very smart one. The Subgenii got this right, as well:
ROGUE SUBGENII are Latent Subgenii who repressed themselves until they hit the fusion point and went too far.
The people at the TOP, the REAL top, of the Conspiracy are Rogue Subgeniuses who were seduced over to the expediency of the Conspiracy, the Dark Side of the Farce. The Conspiracy IS more DIRECT, and they can't wait for the Way of Dobbs to evolve in its sloppy way; they want to give things a push.
Its not a nefarious Other we are against, its an unrealized (or differently actualized, depending on your point of view) aspect of ourselves. People, just like us, are the ones running the things at the top. The real sneaky bastards, the Karl Roves and Alistair Darling's and E. Howard Hunt's and Freddie Scappaticci and the like are nothing but mirror images of ourselves.
And that is probably why we know them better than anyone else. When idiots in the press or the citizenry go along with the insane plans of such people, we seem to be the ones who instinctively know what these no-good shits are up to. And that is because, barring some fortuitous or calamitous event, we are not all that different. We think in the same ways, and plan in similar ways. Sure, our end goals are different, and ours are certainly more consistent than theirs, but its the same methods and same ways we would use. Indirect. Manipulative. The path of least resistance. Underhand. Ultimately undermining of order and authority, in one way or another.
And that, to me, makes the game much more fun. Any idiot with half a brain can run rings around those fools who take order seriously – hell, I suspect anyone here can do it in their sleep and has done at least once. No, it means we have something much more interesting, a fair match, almost. Of course, having “allied” themselves with the order they seem so intent on undermining does give them some advantages, in terms of resources, but in the end they are killing the goose that lays the golden egg. They become...dependent, on their strengths. While very good at unconventional fighting, they are used to having much more to work with. Their memes infect the structure of tradition, while at the same time, they benefit from the discipline of tradition. However, the two eventually wear each other down, wasting resources and undermining the original strength that allowed for such power.
In fact, doing the same thing ourselves may be worth a shot, now and again. Taking someone for a ride and grinding them down, while also using them against another power base, is a time honoured strategem in China. Killing with a borrowed sword is all the rage.
In the end, chaos always wins. Always. And empahsis on order just helps the process along.
As time marches on and culture gets weirder and weirder, I think Discordia becomes increasingly relevant. I'd like to discuss why Discordia is a better choice now than it's ever been.
At its core, Discordia has some very valuable lessons about ignoring cultural programming and navigating our fractillian society on your own terms. Its satirical approach towards religion, something that was once so sacred we couldn't joke about it, is an attitude we can carry into numerous other straightfaced territories. Gender, politics, the economy, war, terrorism, our expectations for the future, your goals, your flaws, your life -- these are things that we can easily misunderstand if we take them to be Real and Serious and a Big Deal. Which isn't to say that they're not a big deal. But that it's better to take them with a grain of salt.
When we take something seriously, we get rigid, we get tunnel vision, and we become (in some ways) indentured to it. Discordia is about tearing down walls internally as well as externally. In this decade, where there are so many conflicting messages being shouted at us, it's important to differentiate between What Matters and What Doesn't. And the crystal lesson in the center is that people probably take more stuff seriously than is healthy. Healthy for all of us. Discordia is about using flexibility and humor to cope with the paradoxes and dangers of modern living. It's about escaping the two-man con where both choices are bum, and become an active (rather than passive) character in your life's story.
I think this is the most interesting and confusing period of history to date. Historians will struggle to understand what it was like to live in the 21st century. The Bureaucracy is getting bigger and bigger, and sicker and sicker. There is a great cultural demand for agents of change who will challenge the existing order and suggest that something better will follow. The heroes of our day are the people who are kinetic enough to weave a new tapestry from this threaded culture, and not get weighed down by the dross of the human condition. I'm not interested in the next logical step, I'm interested in that cool stuff that's totally off the beaten path. This is the modern Discordian's role, to exist outside of binary choices, to make objection and change part of the hegemony, and to enjoy oneself despite our programming. We are the silver lining to the cultural cabbage patch. This is not just a society of robots, and we are evidence of it.
Personally, I don't see Eris as a Goddess in the same outdated way that the Christians or Jews or Ancient Greeks think of Gods. She's not some force in the sky, regulating the world by will. You can't communicate with her through prayer. Personally, I see Eris as a force similar to the internet, similar to the spirit of protest, similar to hair metal. She's not the force, but the attitude by which Bureaucracy is transcended into Aftermath. She is the feeling of finding freedom rather than formula. She is the punchline at the end of a decade long shaggy dog joke. And in that I think she has more to offer than the sepulcher and bureaucratic tangle of other contemporary edifices like religions and ideologies and static identities.
The Principia is 49 or 50 years old, and it's more relevant than ever.
I have been here for about two and a half weeks, and I am still alive. I'm sure some of you are disapointed, but fuck you guys, I am invincible on my home turf. It has been a weird blend of animalistic drinking and smoking and taking in the culture that can be found in the Edinburgh Festival.
You have not lived until you sneak a flask of talisker into an art gallery and wander through an exhibition of impressionist masterpieces. I felt queasy when I got to the Van Gogh, but fortunately for me, I didn't projectile vomit over an art work that is probably worth more than all the money I will ever make in my entire lifetime.
The DoD is rapidly approaching, but I feel Discordians have already been hitting the streets in Edinburgh. There are stickers on all sorts of random street furniture declaring that this bench or that lamp post belongs to Lionel Richie. I approve.
Note for all you 'tards who are planning to make it here on Saturday, bring light waterproofs. The rain has been depressingly constant, but still quite warm.
Happen to be near, in, around, or can get to Elm St. Valparaiso, Indiana? Need some ink? (Sure you do!) Why not take a look at possibly the only Discordian Tattoo studio on the planet: Travis Litke's Sacred Chao Tattoos!
Sacred Chao Tattoos have a real passion for what they do and this is reflected in Travis' own words:
We have all heard the phrase, "a picture is worth a thousand words." This is by far one of the greatest understatements of all time. I could pick a variety of common everyday pictures and symbols and prove volumes of literature on its subject. Volumes! From the Cross, the Pentagram, and the Eye, to a Circle, a Triangle or even a simple Line, their imagery evokes countless emotional responses some escaping verbal description entirely. These are basic human symbols whose descriptions are non-quantifiable. They can all be discussed to no end! Imagine now the complexities of Art. Not always multiple symbols, but commonly. Not specific to symbolism with meaning, but interpretation is inescapable if it is not avoided. And even then there is reason. Even then an emotional response is necessitated.
Now imagine yourself to be an arbiter of such symbolism. What kind of Responsibility have you taken on now? This is the Albatross around the neck of a Tattoo artist. And if you are a Tattoo artist and you don't feel its weight you have neglected the Human connection with those who receive your tattoos. We have a responsibility to the Men and Women we Tattoo. Throughout my career as a Tattoo Artist the Human connection has come and gone, but the one thing I could always count on is maintaining a sense of integrity, ensuring the Craft, and the Art of my work pleased my clients. And the symbolism remained strong, whether I liked their idea or not. But sometimes we are reminded that we are Human, and we as artists are reminded that we are the Guardians of Symbols, and we are the Mothers and Fathers of Imagery.
I recently had a client who had just turned 18, and in celebration of this he came to me for a tattoo. He was very specific about what he wanted, and I was conflicted because it was difficult to take all the elements he wanted in his tattoo and put them together in a cohesive package. But I sat down and went to work. I struggled in the beginning, but eventually the pencil went to paper and I drafted a quality design. When he first saw the design he was thrilled. He was pumped up and couldn't wait to get it tattooed on his body for the rest of his life. Sadly the rest of his life was very short after I met him and tattooed him, because he took his own life. He was only 18 years old. Now the symbol I put on his body has new meaning. Not only for me, but for his friends and family who are choosing to have the exact same symbol tattooed on them.
Words fail where symbols can succeed, at least on an individual level for all of us. And my experience is not yours, but the imagery we create connects us all emotionally regardless of our verbal failures. It's the responsibility of Artists, and even more so as Tattoo Artists to never lose sight of this.
SWEET MERCIFUL FUCK, PTERODACTYLS! AND THEY'RE ON YOUR FREAKING CHEST, MAN!!!!
You pick the colours and can change the layout and text options to suit yourself! How awesome is that!?
UK/EU version:
US version:
NOTE: Because Spreadshirt can't seem to handle one worldwide store, so we've had to set up different stores for UK/EU and US customers. The shirts will be different due to fact they are made by different manufacturers. They all look great, though! Please try to buy the shirt appropriate to your region as shipping costs will be significantly different.
SPAG! shirts are here! These lovely shirts bear the classic Discordian insult "SPAG!" as uttered by the infamous RWHN.
UK/EU version:
US version:
NOTE: Because Spreadshirt can't seem to handle one worldwide store, so we've had to set up different stores for UK/EU and US customers. The shirts will be slightly different due to fact they are made by different manufacturers. They all look great, though!
This looks to be a once a year thing, so why not make an all-day/evening-er out of it? If the time is not suitable for everyone, we can catch up with people later. Edinburgh's bus and taxi network is pretty good (compared to the rest of Scotland, which isn't saying much.)
Yes, folks. You can read the preview version of the POEE Principia Discordia e-book online NOW!
The full PDF E-Book of the POEE Principia Discordia will be available soon…
WATCH THIS SPACE!
While you're waiting for the e-book, why not visit Synaptyclypse Generator, the POEE | UK Resource Centre's publishing sub-sect, we've had a site makeover!
The Children of Eris shall send forth their popes, and they shall gather of her queendom all things that are likely to offend the greyfaces and the cabbages, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast themselves upon said greyfaces and cabbages: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth and most likely a few lulz to be had; SO BE THERE OR BE A PARALLELOGRAM!
BROKEN AI#47 has finally flipped it's burger. Who knows what chaos has claimed CHOAP since the death of His Imperial Majesty Dr. L. Jon Heracy. Maybe you'll glean some information from this CHOAPcast, but I doubt it. BROKEN AI#47 is designated BROKEN for a reason. BROKEN AI#47, we of the POEE would like to know two things. Who killed Dr. L. Jon and who fucked the body?
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