Nevermore vol.1 Feb 2021

via Enough is enough!

Nevermore – An Anarchist Journal of Heresy and Thoughtcrime – An Anarchist Take on Covid-19

A zine tackling the question of COVID from an anarchist perspective. Nevermore – An Anarchist Journal of Heresy and Thoughtcrime Volume 1, February 21.

Read the full zine Nevermore – An Anarchist Journal of Heresy and Thoughtcrime Volume 1, February 21

Introduction

The monstrous Black Volcano which has loomed and leered menacingly over Happy City since it was founded has fnally erupted.

Vast rivers of lava are streaming down the mountain slopes towards the human settlement and ash is already beginning to rain on the rooftops. It is only a matter of time before a pyroclastic cloud scorches instant death onto the people or the molten rock pours into the narrow streets and kills everyone.

But in the city there is complete calm. Reassured by the King’s insistence that they are in no danger and that the volcano is not actually erupting at all, the city folk are going about their everyday lives. Goods are bought and sold, meals prepared and eaten, couples married and children educated.

There was a brief moment of confusion when it was discovered that the Happy City authorities had cut down every single tree in the Great Gardens in order to build a massive wooden fence on the northern limits.

But rumours that this was designed to hide from view the erupting Black Volcano were soon dismissed as malicious paranoid fantasies, as the King explained that it was a completely necessary step to protect his people from blood-thirsty foreign pirates and smugglers.

And so, as certain extinction draws ever closer, the people of the Happy City keep bustling around, making money, gossiping, squabbling over the petty details of their lives and reporting to the Official Inquisitor any citizen seen to be sniffing suspiciously at the sulphur-laden air, cocking an alert ear to the distant rumbling or trying to peer through the gaps in the Great Anti-Crime Fence in order to see if the lava is close.

That is what it feels like to be living at the start of the 21st century.

Welcome to Nevermore!

It has now been more than one year since the world that we have known all of our lives came screeching to a halt. And what a year’s it’s been. The collective unconscious roils in the throes of a bad acid trip, the realization seeps slow in the mind that the crisis is here to stay, and we are all along for the ride, tossed about by uncontrollable forces like a ship in a storm, trying to maintain some grace amidst all the fear and the confusion and the doubt.

Amidst it all, we have struggled to find solid ground. How are we to organize in the midst of a global pandemic? What is even going on? What threats should we be preparing for? How can we make sure that our loved ones are safe? What do other people think is going on?

This piece is meant to kickstart discussion around the anarchist response to COVID-19. Tere has been a taboo on criticizing the authoritarian measures that the state has taken over the course of the last year. We see too many anarchists are setting aside their core beliefs in the face of the current crisis. Worse, some are twisting and contorting those ways that are antithetical to the principles that anarchism is based upon. Many seem to be conforming to the state-sanctioned groupthink, convincing themselves that doing so is some grand act of solidarity with the most vulnerable people in our societies.

We write this today to call all true anarchists home, to the warmth of the fre of freedom that burns in the heart of our tradition. It is for the sake of freedom that we fght, for within us dwells a desire to be free. For each of us to be a sovereign unto ourselves; to determine with the free will which Spirit vested in us what our lives shall be.

That is why we write today. To reach out to our comrades to call for a serious effort in political reorientation. The old world is behind us, and we do not know how to relate to the new one into which we have been thrust. There is no shame in this. Things have changed extremely quickly, in ways that none of us were expecting. There are many factors that have contributed to a sense of complacency. But now the time has come to look at ourselves in the mirror, and ask ourselves: What have we become?

We have watched over the proceeding year, meekly, quietly, as other anarchists have toed the lines drawn by state bureaucrats. We have remained silent whilst witnessing acts of hostility towards those who have refused to comply with state mandates. No longer. Nevermore.

The impetus for this behaviour amongst anarchists seems to be rooted in their desire to do well by those in need, and as this particular crisis is being caused by a virus, that seems to unfold as an enthusiastic willingness to accept state mandates and to shame those who would violate them.

It is admirable to want to do well by the elderly and inform, but is genuine concern for the elderly really what’s motivating people? We don’t think so. If it was, there would be a much greater degree of collective soul- searching about how our society treats the elderly. If the government was genuinely interested in improving the quality of life of old people, it would be investing in fixing long term care. Of course genuine concern is part of the mix, but many people are also acting out of selfish fear, be it fear of getting sick themselves, fear of getting others sick, or fear of the disapproval for others.

No wonder anxiety is at an all time high. When so many social norms are turned upside-down, people are at a loss of what to do, how to carry themselves. And so, in such times, when we don’t know how to act, we look around to see what others are doing. If others are doing it, it must be safe to do. If it’s safe to do, it must be right to do. And so a new conformity begins. No hugging. No shaking hands.

All this happens subconsciously, and is not a function of ideology. It is normal human adaptive behaviour. If you were to travel to a foreign land, you would do likewise, absorbing the social cues of the land’s inhabitants. Across different cultures, it is respectful for a guest to observe the customs of the locals. Now we all live in a strange land, and we are seeking to adapt ourselves to its strange customs.

The difference is that this strange new world is not familiar to anyone. There are none more qualified to interpret it than we are. The time has come to weave this all into a story, to imbue what is happening with meaning that can guide us towards wise action. We need to cast a new spell.

The good news that courage and inspiration are as contagious as fear and depression. It is imperative that we search within ourselves for the courage to do what we must do to ensure our survival in an increasingly tumultuous world. Perhaps some of you are in denial about this, but the old world ain’t coming back. The other crises facing the world didn’t go away when COVID hit. We are still staring down an ecological crisis of epic proportions, not to mention an economic crisis, the possibility of war, etc… We hate to be the bearers of bad news, but the likeliest scenario for the next ten years is of one crisis fowing into the next, or, if you prefer, one continual crisis. The ominous phrase “Winter is Coming” has proven to be true. And we’re one year deep.

Read the full zine Nevermore – An Anarchist Journal of Heresy and Thoughtcrime Volume 1, February 21

There are 5 Comments

I think it's important to let the government and the rich pay for the consequences of their own mistakes, but let the poor pay. In order to achieve this goal, no matter what you do, such as the use of violence, or breaking the law, there is no problem. However, on the one hand, it is misleading to simply put the issue on the abstract abolition; on the other hand, the morality of the theory of mutual assistance is just like the social demand (in the form of non-existent community), so it often reflects the non struggle.
However, some people will ask, is this a kind of reformism? Reformism is a political way to promote social fair distribution and "good governance". In fact, it is a way to curb the struggle of the system. Is it for the welfare system to make them pay the price? There are also foundations that deal with things in the way of the financial system. But this method itself is problematic. So for a mature civil society, there are traps everywhere. There are no ready-made solutions. Many things still need to be invented.
It is important to form a situation of war. New creation is bound to surpass the management of capital.
It is obvious that revolution is not afraid of death, but at the same time, revolution is also a way for the oppressed to save themselves.
It may be said that revolution inevitably led to autocracy. This is another complex problem, but here I try to be brief to say that the eternal return (in Nietzsche's sense) is the negation of the mechanical cycle. It is precisely the latter, a simple circle, that leads to the tyranny of slaves.

Sorry, I was wrong. Eternal return transcends the mechanical circle in a positive way. An affirmation leads to a sacred negation.

I don't know why anarchists are going backwards in the 21st century. The abolition of abstraction repeats messianism; the theory of mutual aid repeats the antiquity of centuries ago; the negation of dialectics, though trying to avoid revolutionary autocracy, constitutes the spirit of the old revolution. In other words, is this anarchism? It has nothing to do with everything, has no opinion on anything, and relies heavily on the system itself.
In my opinion, this is obviously cheating those who are really dissatisfied with the system. If anarchism doesn't solve anything - it doesn't represent the deepest anger - why do people need anarchism? How many people want to solve problems with guns, but they can't be satisfied? They are forced to live in despair.
Maybe I'm not qualified to comment on all this.

Add new comment