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Over the past two years, I have been working to hone my conception of just what this "Voluntary Japan" thing is all about.

I have had some help from dear friends like @nicksikorski, and many others. Over the course of my travels to Tokyo for journalism, interviews, vlogging, and Bitcoining...over the course of almost two years now of constant video production...over the course of more than a decade studying child psychology and education both in theory and in practice...and over the course of 8 years of life here in Japan, I have begun to develop a sharper picture of just what "this thing" is.

I became an anarchist in Japan. It was years in the making, but the seed germinated here in the land of the rising sun.

This place is my home. More to me now than the US was or ever will be, I imagine. It strikes some as funny that I found Voluntaryism in a country with such a reputation for being suffocatingly collectivist. What I have found here, though, is my own liberty. And further, that most individuals here also wish to be free. And further more, that many even espouse Voluntaryist views on life, although they would not likely know to apply that label to said views. The culture here inspired me. And while they are some very darkly collectivist and oppressive aspects of the culture, I found myself wanting to share the good things with others. I found myself feeling freer here than I did in the states.

I found the confluence of all the aforementioned factors to begin pulling me to create something.

That something was and is what myself and others now call "Voluntary Japan." Before getting into the five focal points of activism "planet VJ" finds as its axis, I thought I might share this video to further illuminate what this whole thing is all about. I hope you'll take a few minutes now to check it out (it's a short one) and then jump back in as we get to the five points.

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The Five Points of Voluntary Japan.

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1. Philosophy.

This is the central and most critical point. Without the objective, immutable, a priori, metaphysical, biological, concrete, natural law reality of individual self-ownership being recognized and respected, there simply is no such thing as Voluntaryism or libertarianism. And since all change happens through the individual, (only individuals act, think, and move) the philosophical focus of any effort to minimize violent conflict in any given society, group, or community, must first and foremost focus on the transformation and growth of the individual via philosophical (non-violent) means. This is Voluntary Japan's number one mission: the transmission of truth and reality.

2. Unschooling.

My "official background" is in education. As soon as I saw how mangled and perverse the "system" was, however, I changed course. I have worked with children in and out of both public and private schools for around ten years now. I have finally stopped that line of work to promote unschooling (learner directed learning) here in Japan, and volunteer at a unique free school in my town, which is going way against the grain and putting children and natural learning first, in a culture where such things are largely unheard of. The greatest power for changing the future is in the guiding of the next generations to THINK FOR THEMSELVES AND ADOPT NON-VIOLENCE AS A WAY OF BEING. Just think, a few hundred years ago, many of us may have supported slavery because it was the "cultural norm." I hope I wouldn't have, but cultural norms and indoctrination are powerful. Let's set kids free, because they already are, and they can decide what kind of future they want.

3. Self-Sufficiency.

This is quite a broad branch of VJ, but at this point mainly focuses on efforts to produce, shape, and maintain one's own food, income, and lifestyle. My friend and Voluntary Japan bro @nicksikorski is a good example of this. Check out this post about his Nagano farm to get a better idea. This post on making miso is also an excellent resource to help one understand the real power of community and rural, independent interaction here in Japan.

Included in this point is volunteer work: singing and performing at children's centers and nursing homes, providing free aromatherapy and massage to those in need, free English classes at free schools, and also sharing food from our gardens. More of this kind of thing means less dependency on the violent state, and also more direct exchange of value for value between individual market actors.

4. Free Trade.

An extension of point #3, really, free trade is a necessary and central reality for any free society of individuals. We are living in an unprecedented times, where opportunities for new and revolutionary market interactions abound. Voluntary Japan supports any and all consensual, voluntary market transactions, the creation of markets, micro-economies, barter economies, and more. Interdependence is power. If I need gold, or fruits and veggies, or graphic design work done on my website, I can utilize any and all available economic tools (cryptocurrency, private trade, etc) to exchange value for value with those in my community and tribe, both online and off, local and remote.

Before we get into point #5, can you find me in the collectivist Shinto mosh pit below??? :)

5. Culture.

Japan is a country and land rich in culture. Though collectivist in nature as far as the state and many aspects of the culture are concerned, there is a brightness and innocence here yet untouched, and hard to come by in many "western" countries. There are many individualists. They would likely never think to refer to themselves as such, but nevertheless, the times are changing, and along with a love and desire to preserve many of the beautiful and deeply meaningful aspects of Japanese culture, there is a desire to revolutionize it, and individualize it as well. As I point out in my article Anarcho-Japan: Thoughts on Booze, Nakedness, and Plants in the Land of the Rising Sun, the culture here in Japan is actually more libertarian, in many senses, than that of countries with well-vocalized "freedom reps" like the USA.

My goal is to share the intriguing, beautiful, and liberating aspects of the culture here with those outside of Japan, and similarly, to introduce important "western" concepts like individualism and the importance of critical thinking, to the individuals in the culture here in Japan, as much as possible.

Well, I think that about wraps it up for now. Thanks for reading!

With these five points in mind, I am looking forward to developing Voluntary Japan even further. There is so much life to experience, and so much to be done! I hope that if you find my work, and the work of others involved with Voluntary Japan, to be valuable and to be bringing value to your life, you will consider supporting me in this initiative. The bills still need to be paid, and content creation takes much time, resources, and energy. It's fucking fun, for sure, but is also lot of work! And exactly the work I want to be doing!

For those interested in supporting VJ, and getting some special benefits along the way, I am currently in the process of creating a Patreon account. Once this account is approved, I will be making an official announcement and inviting patrons to support VJ via that excellent platform.

For now, below are some cryptocurrency donation avenues. Thank you in advance for your support!

~@kafkanarchy84

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Support Voluntary Japan!

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STEEM AND SBD DONATIONS WELCOME!

OTHER COINS:

BCH: qqvmdr3l0dlmjqdekkzgsdeg8hq2s9zt5ud3h004r7

BTC: 1MfENEp9tkJMHmrrj5rPKzohYNCw9S6qFw

ETH: 0x9199c3844fd8d3642b39175414c8ffcd403c7aaf

DSH: XpqAkZqHnE12pN9oKapd1Vmj91HSeb93K1

QTUM: 0x9199c3844fd8d3642b39175414c8ffcd403c7aaf

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If you decide to contribute, please let me know in the comments so I can give you credit in the next Voluntary Japan video. Cheers.