Post by dudetyson on Jun 19, 2011 19:10:06 GMT -6
Originally posted here: cultofcthulhu.wall.fm/forum/topic/237
Feel free to post feedback/thoughts. Original post:
"I hope everyone here has seen Fight Club and if you haven't you need to get on that right now. Just fucking illegally download it right now, because that's exactly the kind of behavior that the movie advocates anyway.
PROPOSAL FOR THE NINE-ANGLED ORDER
Living Dangerously
Fight club! 9AO members have both internal fistfight/wrestling matches (perhaps with boxing gloves…perhaps not), as well as hang around the bar areas of towns intentionally looking for scuffles. Yes, this is all for a reason, and will become clear…
The 9AO shall commit silly bullshit stunts for the sole reason (besides immense fun) of altering the psychology of the people in the group -- perhaps some external effects are good too, but actions done for the people doing them. This is similar to Project Mayhem from Fight Club and is also the supposed reason behind the ONA's "culling" (though I think it was just an excuse to kill brown people). These don’t all have to be potentially injurious, but they must be adventurous. After doing enough insane shit, you start to look at the common challenges of life as not big deals.
The 9AO will have a regular habit of street preaching – yes, standing on street corners and advocating Awakening and the downfall of the existing system! You will have to contend with hecklers, debaters, and the occasional cop who I guarantee will find some bullshit reason to shoo you away. This takes preparation, practice, and confidence, but it is a learned and not a born skill.
The 9AO shall also serve as an unarmed, but nonetheless effective, "security force" or "fighting wing" for the CoC, and at political demonstrations or meetings. This makes it similar to the Nazi Storm Troopers, except with almost opposite politics. Just as the Storm Troopers were the street-fighting wing both of German spiritualism and German nationalism, the 9AO shall be a street-fighting component of both the Left Hand Path and the global revolutionary movement.
All 9AO members must take an oath declaring that being true to themselves is more important than physical life or death.
Revolutionary Romanticism
Holy war. Many hardcore right-wingers in the LHP have spoken of a “Racial Holy War” or “Rahowa.” This we shall replace with Daeclari: Daemonic Class Uprising. “Daemonic” is meant in both senses – the guiding Higher Selves of Awakening, and the vicious, base entities of malevolence and vengeance. In this case as in others, they are the same.
The spirit of the group will be based on the romanticist, crusading, self-sacrificial collectivism that is conducive to the irrationalism of ritual. At the same time – this is crucial – the fanaticism will be balanced with the free thought, discussion, debate, and skepticism that is required for Awakening and the LHP’s principled respect of individuals. Indeed, the purpose of the fanaticism is fighting for a free, conscious world.
Of course, rather than the German racial soul, folksy tradition, the Land, or the Nazi state, the religious fanaticism to which 9AOers dedicate themselves to will be one of hateful unapologetic selfhood, worship of the growing global tide of mass refusal which Cthulhu is bringing, homage to the Dark Gods who are the champions of these, employee rebellion and takeover of workplaces, celebration of the Darkness of the Modern City, and belief in the efficacy of Black Magic, especially using numbers. The emotional tone of the 9AO is Nargogle’s Three R’s: Rage, Rebellion, and Revenge. As Cthulhuists, the Three R’s will of course be targeted against our own shortcomings as well as society’s.
Let me be clear that, if I am going to be responsible for making this come together, I am going to establish it on a basis of strict membership requirements – mainly, regular participation. Furthermore, I will even have the audacity to say I will build it on an anti-capitalist, revolutionist, counter-cultural, anti-traditionalist, as well as internationalist basis.
The structure of it would be halfway between radically direct democracy and the Furher model. Most decisions should be made by discussion and vote whenever action in unison is necessary. The Furher model is necessary for three things: (1) a general sense of stability and direction (2) someone to make decisions when timing/constraints make democratic discussion impractical (3) the ritualistic/aesthetic/emotional advantages of having a figurehead. The leader would not directly demand respect or worship but simply generate a certain authority and magical aura through his/her actions and guidance.
The furher figure would be up for election maybe every so often, or if a member formally calls for a re-election at a group discussion where most members are present. Such developments should not be taken personally, as hard as that may be.
It is crucial that the leader be someone who is willing to go to any distance for the principles of the 9AO so that by their example they may demand the same dedication out of others.
In some ways this is similar to the Voidspark Grotto. Some substantial differences: Voidspark does not really require political involvement. If this 9AO proposal is accepted, Voidspark could focus exclusively on Will and not at all on politics.
Memetics and Overlapping Groups
The primary draw to the 9AO will not be its beliefs, but what it does. When people ask what the 9AO is about, rather than going into dreadful detail at first, we can simply say that it is dedicated to the Dark Gods. When asked what that means, we say, oh, Cthulhu, Satan, etc. Rather than beat people over the head with ideology from the beginning, we partake in common activities with them, and the ideology can come up in conversations over the course of the relationship. Hopefully they will learn primarily by doing. For the 9AO, it’s more important to create a religious experience through activity than to immediately clarify the ideas. Intermediary groups serve the useful purpose of letting us do these things with other people, without watering down our core 9AO group into merely a group that does these activities.
There could be many 9AO-based operations in which the 9AO itself does not put itself at the front, but simply has many participating 9AO members who do not advertise themselves as 9AO (but who do not deny it either). These groups serve a few different purposes.
#1: To put the 9AO in contact with more people, convincing more people of Cthulhuism or at least getting them more friendly and familiar with it. Basically, as tentacles.
#2: To fulfill the 9AO’s magical and political purposes of spreading diabolical Awakening, even to people who are not Cthulhuists, and for the purpose of Daeclari, an effort which will necessarily include huge amounts of people who will never consider themselves Cthulhuists.
#3: For the magical development of 9AO members themselves. For example, even if other people are not Cthulhuists, it may still be of benefit to perform rituals, politics, or brawling with them, in order to make 9AO members better at all of these.
The relationship does not necessarily have to be manipulative or deceptive. I view it as collaborative. We seek to grow, Awaken, and revolt together. The 9AO must be a nexus of these energies, but that does not mean it is the only manifestation of them.
So what kind of groups would the 9AO initiate or participate in?
Fight clubs. Not much to say here, other than there was a truth to Fight Club. A lot of people simply lack the ability to stand up for themselves against other people. One of the best ways to break that down is being in a literal physical confrontation with someone. In some cases, sports clubs might also do the trick, but get in a brawl once in a while. At least have some drinking buddies who you can do this with.
Music scenes. The 9AO could recruit from both the metal scene and the punk scene. The metal scene for the Satanism, the punk scene for the political radicalism, both for the brawling. Some others might make sense, too, maybe some dance, industrial, or gothish scenes.
Political parties. We need these to wage Daeclari. Infiltrate the mainstream for recruits, collaborate with the little radical groups. The entire Left could benefit from our unapologetic and self-serving perspective, and we could also offer them our services as warrior-monk fanatics who are not afraid of a confrontation. In return, we could recruit a few of them, too.
Activist groups, based on a single issue or otherwise. The best place to witness and participate in mass action, also needed for Daeclari, and we could offer the same advantages. Behold the magic of large protests and demonstrations. The key to getting any kind of change enacted in the short-term. These are also the main recruiting bed for radicals. Unions could be included in this category, especially if their actions have gained public attention.
Occult scenes. Because of the lack of belief requirements that general occultish groups have, they get us in touch with people beyond our own numbers, allowing us to have conversations with them. Such clubs put us in regular contact with these people, allowing relationships to develop, without requiring the people to be immediately Cthulhuist/9AO. Practice and learn magic with these.
Feminists. This may seem odd and random, but there’s a reason. A lot of the activities described above are often conceived of as “guy things.” I don’t think this has to be the case. Feminists are often already highly organized, are already used to serving as an “unarmed security force” for abortion clinics, have a tendency of emotional self-examination, and sometimes (but not always) have a willingness to be bad-ass in order to challenge gender stereotypes. The 9AO is not supposed to be a “male league” like the Nazi Storm Troopers, even if it may unintentionally become such. Let’s attempt to counter-act that tendency. And men, yes you could learn some interesting things from the feminists; I have.
What else? Use your fucking imagination, be creative, get out there, and get in touch with people! In the 9AO as I am proposing it, passive members get kicked the fuck out. It is an organization of leaders. I’ll never diss you for failing, because that’s how you learn. But I will diss you for not trying.
Putting it into practice
At first, because of its geographical dispersion, this will have to be more of a net-group, staying in touch with phone calls, Skyping, chat, etc. However, this is merely a beginning inconvenience. The 9ao MUST develop in-person grottos/nexions or it is simply not the 9AO that I am envisioning.
Ultimately, people involved in the 9AO should move to urban centers for their high population density. There’s no real getting around this. Campuses are a possible substitute. However, this really cannot be avoided. This is to be a movement which takes advantage of the magical resonance of in-person collaboration and group energy. The only place to find people interested in something this specific is in large population centers. If you can prove me wrong, fine; but you have to actually DO it, ie you have to actually drum up numerous other collaborators in a non-urban setting.
Note that, even if you cannot immediately find 9AOers or Cthulhuists near you, the key is to begin collaborating in any of the types of groups listed above.
All 9AO members will have to be in regular touch with the elected figurehead and, if they choose, can be in regular touch with the other members.
Even if you are an isolated little Cultist, the point is to LIVE IT. Become that fanatical agent of spiritual and social unrest. Drown in magical insanity. Wreak havoc. Infiltrate scenes. Push your limits. Impress yourself. However, do not remain isolated. Reach out.
Some of the ideas I’ve listed seem pretty cool for the whole CoC and not just the 9AO. Feel free to adopt some of them if you want. However, there are reasons I think it is a good idea to keep the two separate.
#1: Political disagreements. The 9AO as I am proposing it has specific political opinions and goals. I don’t want to let people in if they don’t basically share this goal, because this will cripple our ability to act in unison. Imagine the Nazi Storm Troopers trying to defend their parades from opponents if some of the Troopers were themselves among the opponents! Of course, not everyone in the CoC shares this goal. I’d rather have a left-wing subset of the CoC than forcing my left-wing opinions on everyone in it.
#2: Risk of physical injury. Not everyone is down for that, and that’s fine.
#3: Strict requirements of participation. Being in the 9AO may require you to make some considerable life changes, or at least require some of your time. The CoC requires virtually nothing of its members, even allowing people who have casually bumped into the Cult in as Messengers. This is not a critique of the CoC; the point is that it’s a different beast.
Why Me?
Yeah, I boldly put myself forward as the one to head this up. Until the group is established enough to have its first election, with voting by a good number of provenly dedicated members, I want to be its leader. Why? Because the activities described above are, more or less, the life I am already living.
I have practiced Memetics. I have frequently entered into various political movements, in part with the sincere intention to participate as an ordinary member, but also as an opportunity to recruit people to more radical ideologies, and to increase the amount of popular confrontation with the system by guiding groups into a crash-course with the powers that be. (All done without masking my intentions!) Obviously this also says a lot about my organizational skills and my ability to work with people.
My friends and I frequently have brawling matches, recklessly large bonfires, paintball games, hiking trips, attend metal concerts, and all other sorts of epic and aggressive pastimes. No, this is not equivalent to the ONA’s use of murder, but – that’s not really what I’m looking for with the 9AO anyway.
I am a street preacher – I have given public speeches in lecture halls and handed out propaganda and held signs on sidewalks. I can get better at it, of course – I have yet to just give a full speech on a random sidewalk – but I’m headed in that direction and can move people in that direction, too.
I have lived beyond good and evil. I have fought, I have stolen, I have lied, I have cheated. I have also been a good friend and helpful listener to the people who know me, as well as spent most of my life at least thinking about, for the last eight years acting upon, the desire to turn this upside-down world right-side-up.
Finally, I laid out this vision, so if it’s going to happen according to my plan, it’s already in my head so I might as well lead putting it into practice."
Feel free to post feedback/thoughts. Original post:
"I hope everyone here has seen Fight Club and if you haven't you need to get on that right now. Just fucking illegally download it right now, because that's exactly the kind of behavior that the movie advocates anyway.
PROPOSAL FOR THE NINE-ANGLED ORDER
Living Dangerously
Fight club! 9AO members have both internal fistfight/wrestling matches (perhaps with boxing gloves…perhaps not), as well as hang around the bar areas of towns intentionally looking for scuffles. Yes, this is all for a reason, and will become clear…
The 9AO shall commit silly bullshit stunts for the sole reason (besides immense fun) of altering the psychology of the people in the group -- perhaps some external effects are good too, but actions done for the people doing them. This is similar to Project Mayhem from Fight Club and is also the supposed reason behind the ONA's "culling" (though I think it was just an excuse to kill brown people). These don’t all have to be potentially injurious, but they must be adventurous. After doing enough insane shit, you start to look at the common challenges of life as not big deals.
The 9AO will have a regular habit of street preaching – yes, standing on street corners and advocating Awakening and the downfall of the existing system! You will have to contend with hecklers, debaters, and the occasional cop who I guarantee will find some bullshit reason to shoo you away. This takes preparation, practice, and confidence, but it is a learned and not a born skill.
The 9AO shall also serve as an unarmed, but nonetheless effective, "security force" or "fighting wing" for the CoC, and at political demonstrations or meetings. This makes it similar to the Nazi Storm Troopers, except with almost opposite politics. Just as the Storm Troopers were the street-fighting wing both of German spiritualism and German nationalism, the 9AO shall be a street-fighting component of both the Left Hand Path and the global revolutionary movement.
All 9AO members must take an oath declaring that being true to themselves is more important than physical life or death.
Revolutionary Romanticism
Holy war. Many hardcore right-wingers in the LHP have spoken of a “Racial Holy War” or “Rahowa.” This we shall replace with Daeclari: Daemonic Class Uprising. “Daemonic” is meant in both senses – the guiding Higher Selves of Awakening, and the vicious, base entities of malevolence and vengeance. In this case as in others, they are the same.
The spirit of the group will be based on the romanticist, crusading, self-sacrificial collectivism that is conducive to the irrationalism of ritual. At the same time – this is crucial – the fanaticism will be balanced with the free thought, discussion, debate, and skepticism that is required for Awakening and the LHP’s principled respect of individuals. Indeed, the purpose of the fanaticism is fighting for a free, conscious world.
Of course, rather than the German racial soul, folksy tradition, the Land, or the Nazi state, the religious fanaticism to which 9AOers dedicate themselves to will be one of hateful unapologetic selfhood, worship of the growing global tide of mass refusal which Cthulhu is bringing, homage to the Dark Gods who are the champions of these, employee rebellion and takeover of workplaces, celebration of the Darkness of the Modern City, and belief in the efficacy of Black Magic, especially using numbers. The emotional tone of the 9AO is Nargogle’s Three R’s: Rage, Rebellion, and Revenge. As Cthulhuists, the Three R’s will of course be targeted against our own shortcomings as well as society’s.
Let me be clear that, if I am going to be responsible for making this come together, I am going to establish it on a basis of strict membership requirements – mainly, regular participation. Furthermore, I will even have the audacity to say I will build it on an anti-capitalist, revolutionist, counter-cultural, anti-traditionalist, as well as internationalist basis.
The structure of it would be halfway between radically direct democracy and the Furher model. Most decisions should be made by discussion and vote whenever action in unison is necessary. The Furher model is necessary for three things: (1) a general sense of stability and direction (2) someone to make decisions when timing/constraints make democratic discussion impractical (3) the ritualistic/aesthetic/emotional advantages of having a figurehead. The leader would not directly demand respect or worship but simply generate a certain authority and magical aura through his/her actions and guidance.
The furher figure would be up for election maybe every so often, or if a member formally calls for a re-election at a group discussion where most members are present. Such developments should not be taken personally, as hard as that may be.
It is crucial that the leader be someone who is willing to go to any distance for the principles of the 9AO so that by their example they may demand the same dedication out of others.
In some ways this is similar to the Voidspark Grotto. Some substantial differences: Voidspark does not really require political involvement. If this 9AO proposal is accepted, Voidspark could focus exclusively on Will and not at all on politics.
Memetics and Overlapping Groups
The primary draw to the 9AO will not be its beliefs, but what it does. When people ask what the 9AO is about, rather than going into dreadful detail at first, we can simply say that it is dedicated to the Dark Gods. When asked what that means, we say, oh, Cthulhu, Satan, etc. Rather than beat people over the head with ideology from the beginning, we partake in common activities with them, and the ideology can come up in conversations over the course of the relationship. Hopefully they will learn primarily by doing. For the 9AO, it’s more important to create a religious experience through activity than to immediately clarify the ideas. Intermediary groups serve the useful purpose of letting us do these things with other people, without watering down our core 9AO group into merely a group that does these activities.
There could be many 9AO-based operations in which the 9AO itself does not put itself at the front, but simply has many participating 9AO members who do not advertise themselves as 9AO (but who do not deny it either). These groups serve a few different purposes.
#1: To put the 9AO in contact with more people, convincing more people of Cthulhuism or at least getting them more friendly and familiar with it. Basically, as tentacles.
#2: To fulfill the 9AO’s magical and political purposes of spreading diabolical Awakening, even to people who are not Cthulhuists, and for the purpose of Daeclari, an effort which will necessarily include huge amounts of people who will never consider themselves Cthulhuists.
#3: For the magical development of 9AO members themselves. For example, even if other people are not Cthulhuists, it may still be of benefit to perform rituals, politics, or brawling with them, in order to make 9AO members better at all of these.
The relationship does not necessarily have to be manipulative or deceptive. I view it as collaborative. We seek to grow, Awaken, and revolt together. The 9AO must be a nexus of these energies, but that does not mean it is the only manifestation of them.
So what kind of groups would the 9AO initiate or participate in?
Fight clubs. Not much to say here, other than there was a truth to Fight Club. A lot of people simply lack the ability to stand up for themselves against other people. One of the best ways to break that down is being in a literal physical confrontation with someone. In some cases, sports clubs might also do the trick, but get in a brawl once in a while. At least have some drinking buddies who you can do this with.
Music scenes. The 9AO could recruit from both the metal scene and the punk scene. The metal scene for the Satanism, the punk scene for the political radicalism, both for the brawling. Some others might make sense, too, maybe some dance, industrial, or gothish scenes.
Political parties. We need these to wage Daeclari. Infiltrate the mainstream for recruits, collaborate with the little radical groups. The entire Left could benefit from our unapologetic and self-serving perspective, and we could also offer them our services as warrior-monk fanatics who are not afraid of a confrontation. In return, we could recruit a few of them, too.
Activist groups, based on a single issue or otherwise. The best place to witness and participate in mass action, also needed for Daeclari, and we could offer the same advantages. Behold the magic of large protests and demonstrations. The key to getting any kind of change enacted in the short-term. These are also the main recruiting bed for radicals. Unions could be included in this category, especially if their actions have gained public attention.
Occult scenes. Because of the lack of belief requirements that general occultish groups have, they get us in touch with people beyond our own numbers, allowing us to have conversations with them. Such clubs put us in regular contact with these people, allowing relationships to develop, without requiring the people to be immediately Cthulhuist/9AO. Practice and learn magic with these.
Feminists. This may seem odd and random, but there’s a reason. A lot of the activities described above are often conceived of as “guy things.” I don’t think this has to be the case. Feminists are often already highly organized, are already used to serving as an “unarmed security force” for abortion clinics, have a tendency of emotional self-examination, and sometimes (but not always) have a willingness to be bad-ass in order to challenge gender stereotypes. The 9AO is not supposed to be a “male league” like the Nazi Storm Troopers, even if it may unintentionally become such. Let’s attempt to counter-act that tendency. And men, yes you could learn some interesting things from the feminists; I have.
What else? Use your fucking imagination, be creative, get out there, and get in touch with people! In the 9AO as I am proposing it, passive members get kicked the fuck out. It is an organization of leaders. I’ll never diss you for failing, because that’s how you learn. But I will diss you for not trying.
Putting it into practice
At first, because of its geographical dispersion, this will have to be more of a net-group, staying in touch with phone calls, Skyping, chat, etc. However, this is merely a beginning inconvenience. The 9ao MUST develop in-person grottos/nexions or it is simply not the 9AO that I am envisioning.
Ultimately, people involved in the 9AO should move to urban centers for their high population density. There’s no real getting around this. Campuses are a possible substitute. However, this really cannot be avoided. This is to be a movement which takes advantage of the magical resonance of in-person collaboration and group energy. The only place to find people interested in something this specific is in large population centers. If you can prove me wrong, fine; but you have to actually DO it, ie you have to actually drum up numerous other collaborators in a non-urban setting.
Note that, even if you cannot immediately find 9AOers or Cthulhuists near you, the key is to begin collaborating in any of the types of groups listed above.
All 9AO members will have to be in regular touch with the elected figurehead and, if they choose, can be in regular touch with the other members.
Even if you are an isolated little Cultist, the point is to LIVE IT. Become that fanatical agent of spiritual and social unrest. Drown in magical insanity. Wreak havoc. Infiltrate scenes. Push your limits. Impress yourself. However, do not remain isolated. Reach out.
Some of the ideas I’ve listed seem pretty cool for the whole CoC and not just the 9AO. Feel free to adopt some of them if you want. However, there are reasons I think it is a good idea to keep the two separate.
#1: Political disagreements. The 9AO as I am proposing it has specific political opinions and goals. I don’t want to let people in if they don’t basically share this goal, because this will cripple our ability to act in unison. Imagine the Nazi Storm Troopers trying to defend their parades from opponents if some of the Troopers were themselves among the opponents! Of course, not everyone in the CoC shares this goal. I’d rather have a left-wing subset of the CoC than forcing my left-wing opinions on everyone in it.
#2: Risk of physical injury. Not everyone is down for that, and that’s fine.
#3: Strict requirements of participation. Being in the 9AO may require you to make some considerable life changes, or at least require some of your time. The CoC requires virtually nothing of its members, even allowing people who have casually bumped into the Cult in as Messengers. This is not a critique of the CoC; the point is that it’s a different beast.
Why Me?
Yeah, I boldly put myself forward as the one to head this up. Until the group is established enough to have its first election, with voting by a good number of provenly dedicated members, I want to be its leader. Why? Because the activities described above are, more or less, the life I am already living.
I have practiced Memetics. I have frequently entered into various political movements, in part with the sincere intention to participate as an ordinary member, but also as an opportunity to recruit people to more radical ideologies, and to increase the amount of popular confrontation with the system by guiding groups into a crash-course with the powers that be. (All done without masking my intentions!) Obviously this also says a lot about my organizational skills and my ability to work with people.
My friends and I frequently have brawling matches, recklessly large bonfires, paintball games, hiking trips, attend metal concerts, and all other sorts of epic and aggressive pastimes. No, this is not equivalent to the ONA’s use of murder, but – that’s not really what I’m looking for with the 9AO anyway.
I am a street preacher – I have given public speeches in lecture halls and handed out propaganda and held signs on sidewalks. I can get better at it, of course – I have yet to just give a full speech on a random sidewalk – but I’m headed in that direction and can move people in that direction, too.
I have lived beyond good and evil. I have fought, I have stolen, I have lied, I have cheated. I have also been a good friend and helpful listener to the people who know me, as well as spent most of my life at least thinking about, for the last eight years acting upon, the desire to turn this upside-down world right-side-up.
Finally, I laid out this vision, so if it’s going to happen according to my plan, it’s already in my head so I might as well lead putting it into practice."