Glastonbury Fayre 2002

[M Holmes]

Mahkno nestor writes:

> In a message dated 03/07/2002 14:32:01 GMT Daylight Time,
> fofp at HOLYROOD.ED.AC.UK writes:
>
>
> > there's precious little incentive for the rest of us to subsidise
> > their stay merely for the rather dubious benefit of their company.

> Divide and Rule?

I'm an anarchocapitalist. I've no interest in ruling anyone but myself
and I'm opposed in principle to any political rule other than between
consenting adults.

I hadn't expected to have to explain in detail but this isn't workers
versus bosses or rich versus poor. As I've already pointed out, those
who are poor can enter Glastonbury legitimately simply by offering to
pick up litter afterwards or do stewarding during. There's absolutely no
conspiracy to keep anyone below a certain means away from the party.

The only divide we're talking about is the divide between people who
will respect each other as individuals and extend that respect to such
privacy as they have inside their tent and to the property they store
there, and the people who believe that they have some right, by dint of
threat or force, to help themselves to that property, or to the persons
themselves for purposes of violent entertainment or forced sexual
congress.

It seems to me that any self (and other) respecting anarchist (of
whatever flavour), leftist, countercultural hippy or just general
reasonable person would prefer to be counted in the first category and
would prefer not to spend time with those who regard threat or violence,
rather than debate and cooperation, to be the acceptable means of
interaction with others. If you have some point to make at odds with
this, then perhaps there really is a disagreement here. However
criminals do not equate to the "underclass", the "poor" or any other
politically convenient group and to suggest otherwise can only be a deep
insult to the group concerned.

In short, the fence is there to keep out criminals. The evidence is
solid enough to indicate that this is achieved by keeping out those who
want to get in without paying. After all, if they want to get in without
paying, they're stating by their very actions that they're happy to
steal from Water Aid, a charity with documented records of lives saved.
If they don't give a damn about the lives of the very poorest in the
world, it's hardly reasonable to expect them to respect someone's radio
or their right to say "No!".

The fence kept the right people out and the disproportionate fall in the
crime statistics prove it. Let's just hope they can extend it to the car
parks next year.

FoFP