We need help! What happened on the ill fated NW Rage bus....

Excuse me, but you are sounding somewhat hypocritical. You are anti-capitalism, but you want strangers to help you raise money so you can get home. You raised $500 to get Red Red out of jail, but she didn't need it. So what happened to that money? If you could raise $500 for a jailed comrade, then you can raise the money to get yourself home. As I posted elsewhere, the businesses that some of you spray painted probably would have given you money to get home. Maybe you should go to those businesses and help them paint over the graffiti.

Why not just stay in Sacramento? (Well not Juan who is on the verge of getting his ass kicked)

First you try to drive down to Sacramento in a huge, pollution belching bus. When that breaks down, you rent mini-vans which are second only to SUV in their poor fuel economy. And, now you've got the gall to ask us to help pay for your extraordinarily poor judgement? Forget it! You made poor choices. Learn to live with the consequences.

let's see, who deserves more respect...the ones who stayed home, or the ones who went to speak out against injustice...

Got your asses kicked in Sac it sounds like, 10 of you hitched down, the rest of the 40 found a way to use someone's credit card probly... instead of just turning around and going home... I support this effort and am glad you all were down there on the front lines, helping the world threatened with oppression being waged by mainly u.s. corporations, backed by our government... So glad you all have the tenacity and the energy to stand up for what is right. Sympathies and respect for the ones still in jail, and those who will be dealing with the legal system for some time to come because of their participation in opposing corporate domination of the food supply.

Face it, all you liberal whiners out there, It's not going to happen if americans aren't on the front lines at every opportunity calling bullshit to these corporate whores. If we don't do it, the rest of the millions of voices crying out in anger will be a lot less effective in changing the global economy into one which benefits everyone, not just the rich.

Personally, I am grateful for you all who didn't prioritize your busy work schedules so that the world could know that some of us in this country don't quietly accept the carrot of credit and low wage jobs and destruction of cultures and ecosystems worldwide. Many of us agree and were represented by your bodies and spirits on the front lines, making headlines, grabbing what media you could, to make it known that not all americans think that forcing genetically engineered food and seeds onto other countries or this one, is okay.

I think you deserve praise for showing a strong force of opposition to globalization of genetically engineered products. It takes a lot of courage to take the chance of incarceration and of being brutalized by cops of all types. Glad you all weren't too busy bringing home the corporate paycheck to speak out on behalf of all of us who are pissed as hell and want u.s. corporate and government domination of the world to end.

Why do you think that anyone who disagrees didn't go to the marches? A lot of comments to any criticism and it's "you sat on your ass while we marched." You guys weren't the only ones out there.

Hey decay, me and anyone else that feels the need to be so negative about the folks stranded on the Rage bus--

I am thankful that these wonderful activists continued their journey to resist the massive global bio-tech corporate interests and their government shills. I think that Decay may be confused as to the nature of capitalism; writing, "You are anti-capitalism, but you want strangers to help you raise money so you can get home." makes little sense. Capitalism is the antithesis of mutual aid—which is what Sasha is asking for in the original posting.

Capitalism is a dog-eat-dog system of the owning class (the capitalists) exploiting the rest of us. To be anti-capitalist is not synonymous with being against all money—we live in a hyper capitalist society, and with that there are the incumbent realities of housing, food, transportation, etc... . Sure, it would be great to squat and be entirely self-sufficient with food needs from your (also squatted) organic victory garden, while walking everywhere you need to go in shoes that you found, but, that is not possible for most people.

Mutual Aid is a way of living wherein all community members accept and share responsibility for our own, and each other's well being.

A community's ability to care for its members is an important revolutionary concept. If we are to create a new world, it is high time that we start living it now. I am not waiting for an announced great leap forward.

By the way, me, way to judge the choices of others-- do you know their circumstances? Health needs? Family commitments? Have you developed a method of teleportation?

Solidarity starts at home, and it is time that we start practicing solidarity like our lives depended on it (cuz they do)

They'll do the driving for you

Yes most of us were anarchists.
Yes big busses pollute.
BUT yes we were fucked and stranded far from home.
There was no way that we could all hitch hike.
Grey hound tickets would have cost even more money as there were FORTY of us stuck in some tiny little town.
I am not trying to convince those that flamed us-all I am doing is asking that those that cared that we went all the way to Sacromento to fight for social justice help us out by helping us to organize and come to a benifit show.

For those that yelled at us with their fingers-
What did you want?
Did you not want us to go to Sacromento to fight the WTO?
Did you want us all to seperately drive in our own individual SUVs?
Most of us did not have cars and we were dressed for a protest not a quick hitch hiking ride. Trainhopping would have taken weeks and the bus was an easy solution.
It sucks for us that it broke down and all we are asking is some help to recoup our losses. Don't come to the meeting to organize the benifit show if you don't agree with what we did.
Don't come to the the benifit show if you don't agree with what we did.
Just let us be and if you care so much than fight for the earth in your own way and practice some soliderity!

I just thought i would mention that critical mass will be meeting at the same time on Friday. I suggest, considering the events of recent days in the bike community, that you reschedule this meeting for a time when more people might show up. I was down in Sacramento and talked to many of the people who got stranded. I almost went down on the bus but was lucky enough to find a different ride. However, that could have been me stuck and I'm sure it was a tough but necessary decision for them. I probably would have done the same thing even though i am low income. these folks made a sacrafice and i believe we should show support, but 5:30 on Friday will be a time of sad reflection and support for the bike community. I would like to do both, but critical mass is my priority. Just a suggestion.

Yeah, that time frame is no good for me either, but later that night at R & B there will be a progressive open mike, probably a good time to make a pitch for both money and organizers.

but do yourselves a favor and plan it farther than a week out. Maybe plan it for after
Country Fair, (July 11-13th) and have people take flyers down there and such., since those
folks are likely to be the super sympathetic and rather well funded types.

Maybe plan a panel where people who went can share their experiences
(besides transport problems) with the rest of us and charge a few bucks to get in.
I say this because I KNOW I don't dig the type of music you are likely to get for your benefit.
(At the last one I gave a few bucks & left right away - NOT my scene)

In the short term, organize somebodies to do tabling/funds solicitation at the bike fair on Saturday
(shiftobikes.org) & Geek Fair on Sunday (freegeek.org)


I'm pretty busy, but I can help out a little, but hell to you homever made the comment about corporate jobs & such - you are just rude! There is lots to be done, and that kind of attitude doesn't help a bit.

Angel