<div dir="ltr"><div><div><div><div>Resistor has always had a 'leave the politics at the door' informal policy.<br><br></div>We don't tend to get involved in political shit. I mean occasionally we all agree something is bullshit, and occasionally someone vents some political frustration. But for the most part we've made sure to be welcoming to all political positions.<br>
<br></div>As someone who was christened by the divine paw of the bunny budha and anointed the one true ruler of the solar system and protector of the milky way galaxy, I often find myself at odds with others political situations. But I've always been accepted at Resistor in spite of my unique political perspective.<br>
<br></div>We care more about hacking than any shared mandate. <br><br>That being said, a community can form around many things. Including social and political causes. I could see no reason something like code for america couldn't become a community of like minded folks who cultivate a community promoting a social and political agenda. Would might maybe be great, even without the blessing of his divine hoppiness.<br>
<br></div>-Matt<br></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Jul 3, 2014 at 1:32 PM, Al Billings <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:albill@openbuddha.com" target="_blank">albill@openbuddha.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div style="word-wrap:break-word">Is your space welcoming to people, regardless of personal politics or do you have to be a specific kind of lefty/socialist/anarchist/hippy/whatever in order to be welcome?<div>
<br></div><div>I say this as a socialist but I don’t want there to be a political litmus test on whether people are welcome in a space. My space has members who, quietly on occasion, bitch about Obama and his “agenda” with an eye roll from some other members. We have a communist or two and probably more than a few anarchists. Generally, I know someone for a year or more before I even realize their personal politics. Why? Because we’re there to hack, not to form a political party.</div>
<div><br></div><div>There are definitely spaces where this isn’t the case. If you aren’t on board with the specific local politics (which are usually a certain specific form of left leaning anarchism), you are shunned pretty heavily and “don’t fit in.” I’d rather have a Republican that wants to build a project from salvaged computers than an anarchist that just wants to hang out in the kitchen “food hacking.”</div>
<span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><div><br></div><div>Al</div></font></span><div><div class=""><br><div><div>On Jul 3, 2014, at 10:28 AM, Randall G. Arnold <<a href="mailto:randall.arnold@texrat.net" target="_blank">randall.arnold@texrat.net</a>> wrote:</div>
<br><blockquote type="cite"><div style="font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:normal;text-align:start;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">
I disagree when you frame that as an absolute. Sure, there CAN be negative outcomes when a maker/hacker space or organization has fixing societal problems as a goal, but it ain't necessarily so. It all comes down to defining the goal(s), having people to support them and for members with different goals to be respectful of each other and not get in each other's way.</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:normal;text-align:start;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">
</div><div style="font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:normal;text-align:start;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">
If as a makerspace member I put together a special interest group that builds remote wildlife monitoring stations for helping horned lizard conservation, and I don't disrupt anyone else in the process, then I'm positively hacking the planet and no one gets hurt. Win-win.</div>
</blockquote></div><br></div><div class=""><div>
Al Billings<br><a href="mailto:albill@openbuddha.com" target="_blank">albill@openbuddha.com</a><br><a href="http://makehacklearn.org" target="_blank">http://makehacklearn.org</a>
</div>
<br></div></div></div><br>_______________________________________________<br>
Discuss mailing list<br>
<a href="mailto:Discuss@lists.hackerspaces.org">Discuss@lists.hackerspaces.org</a><br>
<a href="http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
<br></blockquote></div><br></div>