[hackerspaces] In defense of Noisebridge (even if I was never there!)

[Naomi Most]

Most of you are characterizing the issue of whether politics "belong"
or "don't belong" in hackerspaces as if it's a binary issue.

You need to see politics as one of the difficulty level selectors in
the hackerspace game.

Noisebridge plays on Nightmare mode.

--Naomi


On Thu, Jul 3, 2014 at 11:03 AM, Randall G. Arnold
<randall.arnold at texrat.net> wrote:
> And I go back to my belief that it's possible (and highly beneficial) to
> craft maker Do Good missions that avoid politics entirely by sticking with a
> common, necessary goal that clearly cuts across political lines.  In Texas,
> water is a huge one.  It *used* to be politicized, but in recent years those
> artificial walls are crumbling.  Water shortages don't care what political
> party you claim-- they fuck us all equally.  The worse it gets, the easier
> it is to find common ground... and avoid the trappings of politics.
>
> Look, career politicians love to polarize.  Many even get off on agitating.
> As an independent I've quite frankly had enough.  So my goal is to climb out
> of the conventional trenches, quit playing their silly game and just Do
> Good.  And seek out and surround myself with like-minded people.  To a large
> extent that's working well.  And when I run into provocateurs, I just grit
> my teeth, smile and say "bless your heart".
>
> ;)
>
>
> On July 3, 2014 at 12:42 PM matt <matt at nycresistor.com> wrote:
>
> Resistor has always had a 'leave the politics at the door' informal policy.
>
> 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.
> 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.
> We care more about hacking than any shared mandate.
>
> 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.
> -Matt
>
>
> On Thu, Jul 3, 2014 at 1:32 PM, Al Billings <albill at openbuddha.com> wrote:
>
> 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?
>
> 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.
>
> 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.”
>
> Al
>
> On Jul 3, 2014, at 10:28 AM, Randall G. Arnold < randall.arnold at texrat.net>
> wrote:
>
> 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.
>
> 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.
>
> Al Billings
> albill at openbuddha.com
> http://makehacklearn.org
>
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>
>
> Randall (Randy) Arnold
> Developer and Enthusiast Advocate
> http://texrat.net
> +18177396806
>
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>



-- 
Naomi Theora Most
naomi at nthmost.com
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skype: nthmost

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