I created the transition groups Common Ground Project and Opt Out of the Establishment because I was frustrated hearing or reading so many people and/or organizations highlighting the same problems in society, but unable to collaborate between each other to start moving progressive projects forward. They were too worried about their ideas being the ones that are attempted, and not about how necessary our collaboration is. I wanted to create a webspace where people from TZM, TVP, Anon, Anarchist, Occupy, etc. could put aside the in-fighting and work together. One of the major concepts for Common Ground is that people from all these organizations (or not necessarily an advocate of a specific group, but anyone recognizing the need for change) would come together and willfully, consentingly – opt out of the entire establishment system, freeing themselves to collaborate on new systems. This is an important point in the Common Ground efforts. Right now, so many people look at solving issues through the lense of what’s available through the established, imposed, and conditioned society. Common Ground Project/Out Out is about going around that. Right from birth, we are just put into a system that we never got to consent to, but one that was pushed upon us. From there, we seem to just belong to an overarching group of outdated, elite created ideas, which are so obviously and provably unfair and harmful.
So, recognizing how much influence just an idea can have, and the impact it can have on societies, I thought it was important to create a new idea that’s relevant and supportive of the people, not the establishment - the Common Ground Opt Out initiative – which would give anyone and option to give their willful consent to leave the system (which we never consented to in the first place). Some people say that we consent by participating in various areas of society - but we are never sat down, explained the system, and asked what we think of it – we are just taught to perpetuate ideas of previous generations of a “dominant class “of men. Some people think we need to find loopholes in the established system to be free – I disagree. I think the laws on the books were never consented to by the people, and are created without any societal input. I think the people can create new “laws”, or agreements amongst each other, without a group of strangers to report to. There seems to be this assumed authority, but I do not consent to that, and never have. There is no person “over” me to decide what’s right or “allowed “ for my life, or the lives of my free fellow man. The main consensus is that we want to live freely, peacefully, and happily, without bringing harm to others or the environment. Any “laws” on top of that could be decided/arrived upon by local communities.
With the Common Ground idea, it is not to put forth one concept, but to create options for people outside of the system they were conditioned into. I don’t think everyone will just agree on everything and come together, and people don’t like to be forced into anything. By opting out, people can come together with people like minded people in their region and create their own systems. I think transition will result in a lot of pockets of society trying different concepts – one region may try an RBE, another may try anarchism, another may try socialism, and some may continue to support the current system, etc. With this scenario, you would actually get to see what happens when certain ideas are initiated, not just be fed fear to avoid trying. After some time, the systems that work will remain, and the ones that don’t will fade out. And for the upholders of the current system, who are supporters just out of fear of what happen if they didn’t - they may gain new insight, start supporting something they were once afraid to. There will be work involved though – the people would basically need to start their own everything – food growing, energy, co-op businesses, sharing concepts, production, healthcare, currency concepts, money-free concepts, and so on.
So, I am in no way interested in in-fighting, or spending my time pointing out all the various symptoms of our failed society. I don’t care about the names of organizations or groups, or whatever. There are so many out there nowadays anyways, it’s hard to keep track. While I am an advocate of an RBE, I will work with anyone who wants to opt out and create options for all the people who are affected by the established system. And I am willing to live in a society where others can initiate concepts that I may not completely agree with, but are free to do so. As long as there is an overall agreement of peace and respect, I don’t see why several societies couldn’t exist at once. Even though I don’t like money, I’d be supportive of ideas like basic incomes for all, or new emergency currencies to start bailing out the people of the planet, as transition steps.
*Keep in mind, this is all about transition, not some final concept. I would love to see an RBE in my lifetime, but there are steps to getting there. Transition concepts are so important right now, because the ideas of those participating in transition concepts will have responses to questions like “what do we do next?” or “what do we do if the system fails?”
Peace, Love, and Respect Everyone