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So I just got royally forked three times today - but I'm developing resistance solutions.
This is a long one and I hope you'll tough it out - or - you can just read "Third" then skip to the "Resistance Solutions" at the bottom.
First:
I like to support local small businesses, like Scott and Nathan at SGS Compuwave on Wyandotte, just west of Pillette. It's not their fault but I just got a $260 8tb hard drive. That is over half my monthly budget of $510 I have monthly on disability (after rent with utilities included). Scott was even kind enough to give the drive to me a couple weeks ago to let me pay today. Working with only $510 for all food, toiletries, clothing, tech gear, etc. is not only difficult, it's nearly impossible to escape (I'm trying to start up my own indie projects with meaning and purpose, not just any job). Disability and UBI (universal basic income) are economic traps - and I suspect the government plans, sooner or later, to force everyone on support to get vaccinated. The point of this paragraph is that, sadly, I'll be forced to find future gear online to save $60.
Second:
In addition to higher prices for computer equipment, my grocery bill's shrinkflation slapped me in the face and pillaged my limited budget. Shopping when hungry is often problematic, but this time I well aware that this was going to be a tight month (as usual), so I tried to buy lighter - I just didn't expect it to be so much. I won't be starving, as I've already been trying to stock up on boring rice, beans, pasta, etc. I just didn't expect to cut into them so soon or I would have bought more condiments to supplement those boring foods.
Third:
The third and most egregious way I got fucked today was when I was checking out my groceries at Tony & Kathy's No Frills grocery store on Wyandotte St E / George Ave, up to about 2pm. I didn't bother to catch what I assumed was the manager's name (not the owners Tony or Kathy) or his underling's, who came up and insisted I wear a mask. I said I'd been living a kilometer away and shopping there for 10 years and I wasn't going to start today. I asked if he was going to kick me out, or if he would call the cops, and he sent his minion to fetch a mask for me. He made such a fuss that I actually took it in hand, and kept loading my items on the conveyor belt. He tried to tell me about mandates and laws, and I said, "Well, actually...," laying down some stuff about that and tyranny and the ineffectiveness of masks other than to signify you're a slave. I don't know if he was being authentic, sarcastic, or just saying whatever, but to everything he said, "You're right." But he still insisted I wear a mask. I put it on for about 30 seconds, a new record for me. Unlike most mindless folks, I'm just not remotely used to suffocating myself. I'd already walked there, I couldn't breath, it wasn't fitting with my beard, and I had just finished paying so I took it off.
He got angrier when I refused to put it on again as I couldn't breathe, and I told him that people who just obey are helping totalitarianism grow. Again he said I was right but needed me to put it on. I told him about the two thousand people at the Freedom Rally on Saturday. He loudly claimed I was wasting his time and shouted, "Get your shit and get out," - in front of children. I said I was a customer as I threw my groceries in my cart (which I finally put in my bags after I walked the cart home). I wish I'd said you're wasting your own time harassing me being a bossy little helper to global tyranny and their depopulation agenda - but I was frazzled and pissed and didn't want to do anything harsh. Before I left, getting up in my face he said (frazzled memory) something like, "You cannot come shop here again ever." So I said, "Fuck you tyrant," and walked away. He shouted, "What?" I yelled, "Go fuck yourself tyrant!" and kept walking out of the store. (I have no problem swearing, but I very rarely ever tell anyone "fuck you" or "fuck yourself". I don't know why, but that's my final limit.) Maybe parents will have to explain the big hairy scary man or why Santa was angry or whatever - but I'm hoping the kids ask what a "tyrant" is.
Bonus: I left Chris Sky flyers (I picked up from Compuwave) with the tyrant and the check-out girl - and I got a free mask to write "fuck mask tyranny" on to gift to someone.
Alternative groceries:
Without a car (I won't be taking the bus with their mandatory masks) my closest walking options are:
0.9km = No Frills
2.2km = Metro on Wyandotte
2.4km = Charron's Quality Market (convenience store?) off Drouilard
2.6km = Mexico Lindo Latin American Food Market* on Tecumseh
2.6km = Family Fruit Market Plaza on Tecumseh
2.6km = Giant Tiger on Tecumseh
3.2km = FreshCo on Tecumseh
3.7km = Windsor Market Square on Ottawa
5.6km = Walmart on Tecumseh
* I love Mexican food! I loved living in Oakland, California. If I'd known about that place I would have been there already.
I don't know which of these stores are strict about masks or not yet. When I get rich I will find out and shop at all of them. Meanwhile...
My future plans:
I have some ideas for solutions and after a few near-term projects I intend to refocus my energies on a few perpetual long-term projects, including finding support and making associated products (ie. online T-shirt store).
My near-term focus:
1) https://FoilHat.Party photos on Sat. Sept. 4th and Foil Hat Day Sat. Sept. 11, the 20th anniversary of 9/11.
2) Editing together my first LeverMind video(s) for 9/11.
3) Canadian elections on Sept. 20.
My long-term focus:
1) The LeverMind Variety Show. I am starting my own video channel(s on multiple platforms) from mashing up pop culture with some original content - all to resist tyranny.
2) Projex.wiki will be for projects of any kind: essays, blogs, galleries, lists, tutorials, reviews, resources, project management, production development, manifestos, whatever you think is a good project. This will also be a home for my projects' development, for use in resistance organizing and resource projects, and for anyone to use for personal projects.
3) Cassandra Team open alternative online platforms and solutions (always free/libré open-source and decentralized whenever possible). Projex.wiki is not only one of these projects, but it's where we intend to do a lot of laying out and organizing stuff before we launch new forums with new social management systems - and importantly we can open it up for analysis, discussion, and improvement before anything is even launched.
4) I will continue but diminish my social networking at a lower level of activity on SaidIt, Facebook, and my Windsor activism to focus primarily on LeverMind and Projex - and Cassy again if we need a forum suddenly again. I'll be a willing and able body to help, but I won't be up on the latest.
5) I may start a comic strip series for Druthers and/or a dedicated online presence, eventually. This and a few other ideas need to be shelved for now, so that I can be more focused, effective, and resilient.
Resistance solutions:
First, let me be clear: I do not give a shit about that grocery store manager tyrant. I don't care if he has kids to feed. I don't care about his "career". I don't care if he suffers. I don't care if he does not suffer. I don't care if he has a happy or miserable life. I just don't care. So this is NOT about revenge on him or my local grocery store or anyone associated with it.
This is about freedom from tyranny - for me, and everyone else too. I do care about all of humanity.
So how does any of this tie together? I have several ideas and your feedback is welcomed on them.
1) I won't need more groceries until September 30th. I can go back then, or later, and try my luck again. I don't particularly feel like being a martyr, challenging them, police, or other legal bullshit - especially made VERY difficult without a phone or car. But I will if I have to.
2) I'm not the only one around here who doesn't like wearing masks. I'm thinking we can organize a group of neighbours on my block who won't wear a mask to go shopping on a specific day.
3) Also, StandUpWindsor's Facebook Questioner groups have organized flash-mob-like non-mask wearing shopping sprees, and it would be nice if they participated at my problematic No Frills grocery store. Additionally, many of them are far more versed in the "rules" and have better temperaments to deal with absurd managers to argue far more intelligently than I or my neighbours.
4) We can coordinate and arrange ride-shares to regional farmers and local businesses that we want to support. Not everyone is mobile, but everyone's resistance, support, and dollars are just as valuable.
5) When I get Projex.wiki up and open to everyone we can draft up resistance solutions. This could include a letter to all my neighbours inviting them on a specific day, and instructions how to participate effectively. We could draft up schedules. We could share these as templates and other strategy solutions and network with other communities across Ontario, Canada, and the world.
6) Further, on Projex.wiki we can create lists of local businesses and resources that rate their level of mask tyranny, vaccine passport tyranny, etc. so that we can support or protest those who deserve it.
7) I'm quite certain there are dozens of other things we can individually or collectively develop to organize and resist tyranny on Projex.wiki.
For those on Facebook, Twitter, and beyond - take note that this post on this Reddit-style forum is an example of longer form content with deeper thoughts that anyone can create, instead of living in short quips, links, tweets, and truncated "smart"-phone discourse on technocracy-controlled platforms.
[–]Optimus85 4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 2 fun - (4 children)
[–]Node 3 insightful - 4 fun3 insightful - 3 fun4 insightful - 3 fun4 insightful - 4 fun - (2 children)
[–]Optimus85 3 insightful - 3 fun3 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 3 fun - (1 child)
[–]JasonCarswell[S] 2 insightful - 3 fun2 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 3 fun - (0 children)
[–]JasonCarswell[S] 3 insightful - 3 fun3 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 3 fun - (0 children)
[–]Drewski 4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 2 fun - (1 child)
[–]JasonCarswell[S] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun - (0 children)
[–]Node 4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 2 fun - (3 children)
[–]JasonCarswell[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun - (2 children)
[–]Node 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun - (1 child)
[–]JasonCarswell[S] 3 insightful - 3 fun3 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 3 fun - (0 children)