XVAX.
Via my Tumblr.
No disrespect, but can you not see the irony in saying you're a vegan, straight-edge (strict sets of rules) anarchist (absolute personal freedom)? Also, I can respect your choice not to eat meat, I didn't for many years although I have been lax lately... but drugs are not automatically a weakness. Its possible not to be an addict and enjoy recreational use of some substances. "Fuck intoxication" is a pretty hardline approach, especially for an "anarchist".
There is no irony, unless you pretend that the word "irony" means something else. But I can understand why one would think there is some sort of flawed logic or contradiction between them, since most people are unknowledgeable and ignorant in regards to all three lifestyles. Fact is, all three are very closely connected and it is my belief that you really can’t have one without the other without being a huge hypocrite.
First off, "straightedge", or whatever you want to call it (being "drug-free", "sober") isn’t a strict set of rules; it’s a strict set of choices. When it comes down to it, straightedge doesn’t even really exist. Its principals are based on a single stupid song by a hardcore band from the ’80s that people have taken way too seriously ever since. Straightedge, for me, just means that I have vowed to live my life free of self-destructive behaviors, addiction, and what is basically self-induced retardation. I am still an anarchist in that I am making my own choices based on my own freedom. I don’t condone in the choices of others to do drugs and other destructive things to themselves, but I would never suggest that they can’t or shouldn’t be allowed to. I support any and all lifestyle choices insofar as they do not effect the freedoms of others. Unfortunately, the drug, alcohol, and cigarette industries (even on a street, entrepreneurial level) and the animal enterprise both very drastically effect the personal freedoms of others each and every day.
Now, I don’t want to come off as one of those "hate edge" kids when I say the next couple of things I’m about to say. I ask you to please take in what I’m about to say with an open mind, not a knee-jerk defensiveness to my perspective on drug culture:
When one does a drug, whether it be alcohol or any of the common street drugs, they are abdicating their personal freedoms. Now, hear me out: I know the choice to do drugs is itself a personal decision, but the moment those drugs take hold of your senses, inhibition, and cognitive abilities, you are no longer at the steering wheel of your own life. This is definitively when one is no longer free. People can argue all they want about how "in control" they are when they are under the influence of something, but they aren’t in any way, shape, or form. Even something as socially accepted as alcohol, no one has control over their decisions or even who they are when they are under the influence. Even take it down a notch to something below that: cigarettes; people who smoke have no choice in the matter when they need to leave somewhere for a smoke, or when they spend more money on a carton of cigarettes than they do on a night’s meal. Addiction and drug use is the opposite of freedom. The choice to do them is freedom, but actually doing them is about as free as the choice to kill yourself: you can’t choose when you’re dead and you can’t choose when your brain is shut off.
Along with this, no one is left safe or free when someone in their life (a significant other, a family member, a close friend, a roommate, a colleague) is a user. When people smoke cigarettes in public, they are denying non-smokers their right to breathe clean, safe air. When people drink alcohol and get drunk, they are endangering everyone around them, since they are no longer in control of their actions, words, or levels of aggression; think of how many nights of drinking lead to fatal car accidents, rapes, fist fights, accidental injuries or deaths, ended relationships. When someone becomes a regular user of street drugs, even something as otherwise safe as marijuana, they are no longer in control of their actions because the next hit is; think of how many families have been torn apart by drug users.
I also strongly believe that, as an opponent to evil and exploitative businesses, I shouldn’t ever give my money or support to a dealer, whether they be someone on the street dealing crack or a company selling Pabst Blue Ribbon at a grocery store. These people make their money off of the weaknesses and addictions of millions. They profit off of the suffering of the users and their loved ones. Furthermore, I believe that, as this generation and as revolutionaries, our strongest weapon is our brains. After all, we are the ones whose futures are dependent more than our parents’ on the world we create while we are young and able. We will never provoke change in this system until we truly respect and utilize ourselves and our basic resources, our intellect and creativity above all else. We can’t change the world if we’re passed out drunk at a party; we can’t change the world if we’re sitting in our parents’ basement smoking weed; we can’t change the world if we’re too busy worrying about our next hit; we can’t change the world if we’re still spending a bulk of our income on needless addictions like tobacco and alcohol, both of which are distributed by two of the most evil industries in the world.
I also wanted to add, lastly, how important veganism is to an anarchist cause, even though you seemed to not have as big a problem with that part of my life. No one is free while others are being oppressed. We cannot fight for freedom while simultaneously supporting the systematic and perpetual murder, rape, and exploitation of just about every other sentient, non-human species on this planet, nor can we do so while consuming things that are detrimental to our own health and to the planet we live and rely on.
To me, these things all make sense and perhaps if you approach each of them with an open mind and do a little research, you may see where I’m coming from. At the core of these beliefs isn’t self-righteousness as most will claim, but a strong belief in freedom, self-respect, and self-preservation, as well as an intolerance for exploitation, prejudice, and acceptance of this terrible world we all currently live and participate in.
When you say straight edge "doesn't exist" I can respect that. These things are choices and choices only exist in the moment. I totally respect your choice not to drink and not to eat meat as an anarchist. What I cannot respect is the labeling. As far as drugs being "self-induced retardation" I can't get behind you. Don't get me wrong, your life is always your choice, but I think you're ignoring a whole set of positives. I mean, do you drink coffee?
Yeah, I don’t treat is as some sort of dogma and I certainly am not going to write someone off because they aren’t straightedge or sober. It’s always just been a personal choice of mine, though my reasons for being so have become more political and less personal as I’ve gotten older.
My intentions are not to offend with my words. I just have a tendency for seeing and calling things for what they are. As an outsider, I am able to more objectively view things such as drugs and their usage. I understand the knee-jerk defensiveness, but we as people must be able to objectively and genuinely view the things we think, believe, and do. Drinking alcohol or smoking marijuana, two depressants by classification, in fact retards your thought processes, actions, cognitive abilities, inhibitions, reactions, et cetera. So my labeling is actually totally accurate. Not to digress into semantics, I just really want you to understand my wording and perspective as best as possible. I do not mean to imply users are anything other than people who use; it’s the actions I am criticizing. Obviously, it is impossible for me to know anything about anyone based on these habits. People choose to use for a multitude of different reasons.
As for positives, I can imagine many users choose to look at their reactions to narcotics with such a perspective. But, again, as an outsider with a better ability to objectively analyze drug use, I can only see the drug-induced illusion of "nice" feelings, or "broadened" minds, or "heightened" creativity; I can only look at the mental and physical responses to these substances and the drugs themselves in a biological manner. I’m honestly surprised most of the time by the lack of knowledge there is between users and their substances of choice.
For example, think about other means of reproducing the results of certain drugs. A lot of the chemicals in common drugs are also in our bodies, naturally. Would you be as equally accepting of someone if they shot themselves in the foot to achieve the surge of endorphins the body releases as a result of pain? I know it’s a stretch, but not really when you strip it down to exactly what it is: self-destruction (because, yes, drugs harm your body, regardless of the "positives" or how noticeable the effects are) in the name of temporary pleasure.
Another thing I do not understand is, even if drugs were capable of something truly positive, why and how is it worth the trouble that comes with them? There is a plethora of resources in this world, natural and synthetic, that makes life so damn beautiful and fulfilling; why do we still opt for the sources that also devalue life? With so many other things life has to offer us that are inconsequential, why do we settle for things that can cause aberrant behavior, cancers, cirrhosis of the liver, jail time, miscarriage, accidents, overdose, psychosis, et cetera?
No, I don’t drink coffee. I do drink soda, though, oftentimes containing caffeine. I am aware caffeine can be physically addictive. But I’ve never heard of someone dying from caffeine, drinking so much soda that they black out, or Starbucks causing seizures.
Fucking tumblr cut me short - but what I'm trying to say is, we're not talking about smack here, I believe things like marijuana and psychedelic drugs have enriched my life and offered me knew perspectives, allowed me to know myself. I would like to know of your personal experiences with drugs. Many edgers that I know are ex-addicts, but I feel that may not be the case with you.
Well, I’m glad you’re not into the heavier, more dangerous drugs, but it’s hypocritical and nonsensical to suggest that there is some sort of discernible line separating "good" drugs from "bad" drugs. Sure, some harm you in different and more serious ways than others, but they all harm you. Can we honestly say that any self-harm is reasonable or okay? It’s too subjective and inconsistent for me to understand or accept.
I’ve heard people say exactly what you’re saying now before. I’ve had this argument a bunch of times. I can’t wrap my head around it. A person while under the influence of drugs are not the same person. What they experience while on these drugs is impossible to truly remember, synthetic, and comes at the cost of one’s personal health and freedom. You are not you while on drugs, no matter what you think or believe. So to suggest that you "knew" yourself better while or after being under the influence is absurd.
I personally have never done drugs before. I have never smoked or drank alcohol before, either. It has been uninteresting to me from a young age. As far back as I can remember, it just seemed like common sense to me: don’t do bad things to yourself.
So you've NEVER done drugs, yet you feel completely confident is saying there are no positives to the experience? You deny somethings validity without ever experiencing it for yourself? One of the great things about SOME drugs (not "good" drugs, but some) is the ability to break down human conditioning and connect with the subconscious, allowing you to open up new avenues of thought. Maybe you should experience something before writing it off totally, or at least keep the sxe dogma to yourself.
Aw, man. I really thought we were having an actual, fair discussion for a second. I was really hoping it wouldn’t dissolve into something like this. :(
I have never felt a bullet penetrate my skin; I have never gone sky-diving; I have never eaten asparagus. The idea that you can’t judge something before you try it is ridiculous. There are probably tons of things you have never done that you have already chosen to never do, am I right?
Like I said, my stance on drugs comes from an objective, biological, personal, and political basis. Nothing that I’ve said has been unfair or factually inaccurate. Allow me to reiterate: I don’t do drugs because they are bad for you and I don’t do bad things to myself; I don’t support industries, even entrepreneurial ones, that profit off of the suffering and exploitation of others and therefore I do not buy drugs, alcohol, or tobacco products. It is clear that, as a user of drugs, you are choosing to block out any and all criticism of it, so much so that you haven’t even addressed a single thing I’ve said in my responses other than the last thing.
My argument wasn’t that there were not positive experiences to be derived from drug usage. I can’t say there are or aren’t, as I have never done them. I can say with certainty, though, that drugs and alcohol harm your body, mind, freedom, and abilities and that many lives have been destroyed, even ended, because of them. With an endless array of resources to enjoyment, pleasure, and self-enhancement, I see no logic in the decision to choose the former over the latter. Do you not see it a bit ironic that you are refusing to open up your avenues of though to let some of my perspectives in? Perhaps you should get high and read my words again. I, however, am happy with who I am and how clearly I am able to think and feel about things.
I’m very disappointed with the last sentence in this Ask. I was hoping not to change your habits, but just to explain myself. It was you, after all, who asked me to. This is my personal blog that you chose to follow, so I’m totally baffled that you would tell me to, "keep it to myself." Unlike you did to me, I didn’t go to your blog to criticize or interrogate you on how you live your life. Do you see what I mean? I even specifically explain how I don’t treat straightedge dogmatically.
No disrespect, but can you not see the irony in saying you're a vegan, straight-edge (strict sets of rules) anarchist (absolute personal freedom)? Also, I can respect your choice not to eat meat, I didn't for many years although I have been lax lately... but drugs are not automatically a weakness. Its possible not to be an addict and enjoy recreational use of some substances. "Fuck intoxication" is a pretty hardline approach, especially for an "anarchist".
There is no irony, unless you pretend that the word "irony" means something else. But I can understand why one would think there is some sort of flawed logic or contradiction between them, since most people are unknowledgeable and ignorant in regards to all three lifestyles. Fact is, all three are very closely connected and it is my belief that you really can’t have one without the other without being a huge hypocrite.
First off, "straightedge", or whatever you want to call it (being "drug-free", "sober") isn’t a strict set of rules; it’s a strict set of choices. When it comes down to it, straightedge doesn’t even really exist. Its principals are based on a single stupid song by a hardcore band from the ’80s that people have taken way too seriously ever since. Straightedge, for me, just means that I have vowed to live my life free of self-destructive behaviors, addiction, and what is basically self-induced retardation. I am still an anarchist in that I am making my own choices based on my own freedom. I don’t condone in the choices of others to do drugs and other destructive things to themselves, but I would never suggest that they can’t or shouldn’t be allowed to. I support any and all lifestyle choices insofar as they do not effect the freedoms of others. Unfortunately, the drug, alcohol, and cigarette industries (even on a street, entrepreneurial level) and the animal enterprise both very drastically effect the personal freedoms of others each and every day.
Now, I don’t want to come off as one of those "hate edge" kids when I say the next couple of things I’m about to say. I ask you to please take in what I’m about to say with an open mind, not a knee-jerk defensiveness to my perspective on drug culture:
When one does a drug, whether it be alcohol or any of the common street drugs, they are abdicating their personal freedoms. Now, hear me out: I know the choice to do drugs is itself a personal decision, but the moment those drugs take hold of your senses, inhibition, and cognitive abilities, you are no longer at the steering wheel of your own life. This is definitively when one is no longer free. People can argue all they want about how "in control" they are when they are under the influence of something, but they aren’t in any way, shape, or form. Even something as socially accepted as alcohol, no one has control over their decisions or even who they are when they are under the influence. Even take it down a notch to something below that: cigarettes; people who smoke have no choice in the matter when they need to leave somewhere for a smoke, or when they spend more money on a carton of cigarettes than they do on a night’s meal. Addiction and drug use is the opposite of freedom. The choice to do them is freedom, but actually doing them is about as free as the choice to kill yourself: you can’t choose when you’re dead and you can’t choose when your brain is shut off.
Along with this, no one is left safe or free when someone in their life (a significant other, a family member, a close friend, a roommate, a colleague) is a user. When people smoke cigarettes in public, they are denying non-smokers their right to breathe clean, safe air. When people drink alcohol and get drunk, they are endangering everyone around them, since they are no longer in control of their actions, words, or levels of aggression; think of how many nights of drinking lead to fatal car accidents, rapes, fist fights, accidental injuries or deaths, ended relationships. When someone becomes a regular user of street drugs, even something as otherwise safe as marijuana, they are no longer in control of their actions because the next hit is; think of how many families have been torn apart by drug users.
I also strongly believe that, as an opponent to evil and exploitative businesses, I shouldn’t ever give my money or support to a dealer, whether they be someone on the street dealing crack or a company selling Pabst Blue Ribbon at a grocery store. These people make their money off of the weaknesses and addictions of millions. They profit off of the suffering of the users and their loved ones. Furthermore, I believe that, as this generation and as revolutionaries, our strongest weapon is our brains. After all, we are the ones whose futures are dependent more than our parents’ on the world we create while we are young and able. We will never provoke change in this system until we truly respect and utilize ourselves and our basic resources, our intellect and creativity above all else. We can’t change the world if we’re passed out drunk at a party; we can’t change the world if we’re sitting in our parents’ basement smoking weed; we can’t change the world if we’re too busy worrying about our next hit; we can’t change the world if we’re still spending a bulk of our income on needless addictions like tobacco and alcohol, both of which are distributed by two of the most evil industries in the world.
I also wanted to add, lastly, how important veganism is to an anarchist cause, even though you seemed to not have as big a problem with that part of my life. No one is free while others are being oppressed. We cannot fight for freedom while simultaneously supporting the systematic and perpetual murder, rape, and exploitation of just about every other sentient, non-human species on this planet, nor can we do so while consuming things that are detrimental to our own health and to the planet we live and rely on.
To me, these things all make sense and perhaps if you approach each of them with an open mind and do a little research, you may see where I’m coming from. At the core of these beliefs isn’t self-righteousness as most will claim, but a strong belief in freedom, self-respect, and self-preservation, as well as an intolerance for exploitation, prejudice, and acceptance of this terrible world we all currently live and participate in.
When you say straight edge "doesn't exist" I can respect that. These things are choices and choices only exist in the moment. I totally respect your choice not to drink and not to eat meat as an anarchist. What I cannot respect is the labeling. As far as drugs being "self-induced retardation" I can't get behind you. Don't get me wrong, your life is always your choice, but I think you're ignoring a whole set of positives. I mean, do you drink coffee?
Yeah, I don’t treat is as some sort of dogma and I certainly am not going to write someone off because they aren’t straightedge or sober. It’s always just been a personal choice of mine, though my reasons for being so have become more political and less personal as I’ve gotten older.
My intentions are not to offend with my words. I just have a tendency for seeing and calling things for what they are. As an outsider, I am able to more objectively view things such as drugs and their usage. I understand the knee-jerk defensiveness, but we as people must be able to objectively and genuinely view the things we think, believe, and do. Drinking alcohol or smoking marijuana, two depressants by classification, in fact retards your thought processes, actions, cognitive abilities, inhibitions, reactions, et cetera. So my labeling is actually totally accurate. Not to digress into semantics, I just really want you to understand my wording and perspective as best as possible. I do not mean to imply users are anything other than people who use; it’s the actions I am criticizing. Obviously, it is impossible for me to know anything about anyone based on these habits. People choose to use for a multitude of different reasons.
As for positives, I can imagine many users choose to look at their reactions to narcotics with such a perspective. But, again, as an outsider with a better ability to objectively analyze drug use, I can only see the drug-induced illusion of "nice" feelings, or "broadened" minds, or "heightened" creativity; I can only look at the mental and physical responses to these substances and the drugs themselves in a biological manner. I’m honestly surprised most of the time by the lack of knowledge there is between users and their substances of choice.
For example, think about other means of reproducing the results of certain drugs. A lot of the chemicals in common drugs are also in our bodies, naturally. Would you be as equally accepting of someone if they shot themselves in the foot to achieve the surge of endorphins the body releases as a result of pain? I know it’s a stretch, but not really when you strip it down to exactly what it is: self-destruction (because, yes, drugs harm your body, regardless of the "positives" or how noticeable the effects are) in the name of temporary pleasure.
Another thing I do not understand is, even if drugs were capable of something truly positive, why and how is it worth the trouble that comes with them? There is a plethora of resources in this world, natural and synthetic, that makes life so damn beautiful and fulfilling; why do we still opt for the sources that also devalue life? With so many other things life has to offer us that are inconsequential, why do we settle for things that can cause aberrant behavior, cancers, cirrhosis of the liver, jail time, miscarriage, accidents, overdose, psychosis, et cetera?
No, I don’t drink coffee. I do drink soda, though, oftentimes containing caffeine. I am aware caffeine can be physically addictive. But I’ve never heard of someone dying from caffeine, drinking so much soda that they black out, or Starbucks causing seizures.
Fucking tumblr cut me short - but what I'm trying to say is, we're not talking about smack here, I believe things like marijuana and psychedelic drugs have enriched my life and offered me knew perspectives, allowed me to know myself. I would like to know of your personal experiences with drugs. Many edgers that I know are ex-addicts, but I feel that may not be the case with you.
Well, I’m glad you’re not into the heavier, more dangerous drugs, but it’s hypocritical and nonsensical to suggest that there is some sort of discernible line separating "good" drugs from "bad" drugs. Sure, some harm you in different and more serious ways than others, but they all harm you. Can we honestly say that any self-harm is reasonable or okay? It’s too subjective and inconsistent for me to understand or accept.
I’ve heard people say exactly what you’re saying now before. I’ve had this argument a bunch of times. I can’t wrap my head around it. A person while under the influence of drugs are not the same person. What they experience while on these drugs is impossible to truly remember, synthetic, and comes at the cost of one’s personal health and freedom. You are not you while on drugs, no matter what you think or believe. So to suggest that you "knew" yourself better while or after being under the influence is absurd.
I personally have never done drugs before. I have never smoked or drank alcohol before, either. It has been uninteresting to me from a young age. As far back as I can remember, it just seemed like common sense to me: don’t do bad things to yourself.
So you've NEVER done drugs, yet you feel completely confident is saying there are no positives to the experience? You deny somethings validity without ever experiencing it for yourself? One of the great things about SOME drugs (not "good" drugs, but some) is the ability to break down human conditioning and connect with the subconscious, allowing you to open up new avenues of thought. Maybe you should experience something before writing it off totally, or at least keep the sxe dogma to yourself.
Aw, man. I really thought we were having an actual, fair discussion for a second. I was really hoping it wouldn’t dissolve into something like this. :(
I have never felt a bullet penetrate my skin; I have never gone sky-diving; I have never eaten asparagus. The idea that you can’t judge something before you try it is ridiculous. There are probably tons of things you have never done that you have already chosen to never do, am I right?
Like I said, my stance on drugs comes from an objective, biological, personal, and political basis. Nothing that I’ve said has been unfair or factually inaccurate. Allow me to reiterate: I don’t do drugs because they are bad for you and I don’t do bad things to myself; I don’t support industries, even entrepreneurial ones, that profit off of the suffering and exploitation of others and therefore I do not buy drugs, alcohol, or tobacco products. It is clear that, as a user of drugs, you are choosing to block out any and all criticism of it, so much so that you haven’t even addressed a single thing I’ve said in my responses other than the last thing.
My argument wasn’t that there were not positive experiences to be derived from drug usage. I can’t say there are or aren’t, as I have never done them. I can say with certainty, though, that drugs and alcohol harm your body, mind, freedom, and abilities and that many lives have been destroyed, even ended, because of them. With an endless array of resources to enjoyment, pleasure, and self-enhancement, I see no logic in the decision to choose the former over the latter. Do you not see it a bit ironic that you are refusing to open up your avenues of though to let some of my perspectives in? Perhaps you should get high and read my words again. I, however, am happy with who I am and how clearly I am able to think and feel about things.
I’m very disappointed with the last sentence in this Ask. I was hoping not to change your habits, but just to explain myself. It was you, after all, who asked me to. This is my personal blog that you chose to follow, so I’m totally baffled that you would tell me to, "keep it to myself." Unlike you did to me, I didn’t go to your blog to criticize or interrogate you on how you live your life. Do you see what I mean? I even specifically explain how I don’t treat straightedge dogmatically.