So this is inspired in part from other non-violent resistance. For example, in India, somebody started printing large-amount rupee notes, but with Gandhi's head on it, to shame the bribe-demander, and apparently it was working on the scum authoritarians well.
As a libertarian, I (and all of us) believe that most of the world's economic woes come from the fact that governments everywhere are empowered to get in the way of economic activity and frequently do so fervently. In the first world, you ostensibly have a basic right to start a business or industry, but the regulatory hurdles are so huge as to make it impossible, if it isn't actually outright banned. This is why we see the current stagnation. Zoning laws, employment laws, taxes, insane liability policy. Try to build one house, manufacture one can of food, even start growing vegetables, build one pipeline, etc. and you have to fight an entire army of bureaucrats
The problem with the third world is that this power is way worse. The second you try to do ANYTHING, even stupid cottage industries without modern technology, one of the local cops (or whatever they call them) comes and demands huge bribes.
I always hear about Christians going on missions and the peace corps and stuff. They claim they go to these poor places and help people, but somehow I doubt it. For the missionaries especially I envision the South Park episode where all missionaries did is read the bible to starving Ethiopians. Unless you're growing vegetables or livestock, building a road, digging a trench to bury pipeline, laying rail, drilling a well, etc. you're not helping anyone. Poor countries especially have as one of their biggest problems a lack of infrastructure.
So I figured if I went on a mission, that's what I'd do. I'd start building a road or something. I'd literally stand there, gets me three sticks to make a surveyors tripod, and get the curve right, and start cutting a bit to the that slope- curve. If I were Bill Gates rich, I'd come in with loads of machinery and start doing all this big time.
Of course, as mentioned, the problem is somebody with government power comes in and demands payment.
So what do you do? Or you and your crew? Denude, and get right back to work. Yell at them about the fact that you're BUILDING something, that their country needs badly, and tell them, if you want to come and stop me, come and stop me. It could send a powerful message, it's like "I'm a man, and I'm here, and all I'm doing is building. I have nothing to hide, you can see, and I am doing nothing wrong." It's like, subtle, and it sends a message.
I dunno how well it would work. The problem with all non- violent resistance is that it only works on civilized people with morals; you'd better believe even Gandhi's tactics would not have worked in the days of the Assyrians. Anybody who did this might just get their ass shot.
But anyway, there it is-- EdwinBakery, Dec 15 2013 Paul Lafargue:The Right to be Lazy http://theanarchist...o-be-lazy#fn_back23A much better thesis [rcarty, Dec 16 2013] I'm not totally sure about: economic activity = good. Also I see plenty of naked people getting arrested.....-- WcW, Dec 15 2013 I fail to see the connection between nudity and government corruption.-- Voice, Dec 15 2013 I think you're envisaging a scene where there are television cameras to make a spectacle of your nudth.
In some godforsaken middle of nowhere, you're more likely just to get beaten up.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Dec 15 2013 Not for long, [MaxwellBuchanan], not when every blogger is going to be running their own news drones-- theircompetitor, Dec 15 2013 There will be a lot of nudity before they get permits for those.-- rcarty, Dec 15 2013 Therein lies the problem. You don't need permits for pigeons.-- theircompetitor, Dec 15 2013 This was pretty standard stuff until the hard turn into nudity as a solution. It would necessitate bringing your whole like-inclined crew with you as I worry any locals employed might be ashamed to get naked in front of their neighbors.-- bungston, Dec 15 2013 This was pretty standard stuff until the hard turn into nudity as a solution. It would necessitate bringing your whole like-inclined crew with you as I worry any locals employed might be ashamed to get naked in front of their neighbors.-- bungston, Dec 15 2013 Or, the local officials would then get naked to protect their national sovereignty. So, this reverts to the status quo, plus nudity. Good luck with that.-- sninctown, Dec 15 2013 //the status quo, plus nudity// [+]-- pocmloc, Dec 16 2013 Hmm, what about corruption in the managers of a nudist camp?-- not_morrison_rm, Dec 16 2013 I envision the video version of this as incorporating animal print pants out of control as really better than nudity in many ways. The pure hearted construction workers (and is there a better kind of work for this endeavor?) would whip off their coveralls and dance / work to the best, abs rippling to the jackhammer vibrations.
When the bribe-seeking official realizes the error of his ways he too whips off his duds and makes with the dance moves. For the video, this would be a policeman. Hat, sunglasses, mustache, big belt with cuffs and other cop regalia stays on of course.-- bungston, Dec 17 2013 //I always hear about Christians going on missions and the peace corps and stuff. They claim they go to these poor places and help people, but somehow I doubt it.//
Well doubt no longer. Sorry, but I take these kinds of statements very personally. I suspect your perspectives on missionaries are underinformed and distorted by media portrayals and the like.
My father recently went to Haiti to do two things: bring irrigation tile to a village and weld a roof system. He's been leading a team cleaning up after nearly every weather disaster to hit the US for the past 4 years. He's been a very busy man as of late. He gets paid in nothing but meals while doing this.
My great aunt spent nearly her entire life in Thailand as an administrative nurse, opening the first hospital that would accept leprosy patients there. The amount of times she nearly died from a whole host of reasons while serving the community there and elsewhere only adds to her stature in my eyes.
//When the bribe-seeking official realizes the error of his ways he too whips off his duds and makes with the dance moves. For the video, this would be a policeman. Hat, sunglasses, mustache, big belt with cuffs and other cop regalia stays on of course.//
Surely the next to come in line would be a man in a full native American headdress?-- RayfordSteele, Dec 17 2013 That's good to hear, RayfordSteele. But I know one guy who went over to India, and as far as I know, he has no useful skills, at least, not useful for most of the stuff they need done
Plus there were a couple articles written in the past few years talking about peace corps people getting in the way and stuff, I think one was a cracked article and another was a more serious source-- EdwinBakery, Dec 17 2013 That's why they're news. Dog bites man =/= news, man bites dog = news.-- RayfordSteele, Dec 18 2013 random, halfbakery