Folks,
I'd like to introduce our first regular guest blogger.
Gaius and I have been trading emails over the last few days and he has suggested that I share the load somewhat. He said it might be good to open the floor up and have a few more contributors, and I thought it was a great idea. Lately I have been feeling a bit like the Beeb: repeats, repeats, repeats. Sometimes, hearing the same thing said differently starts to resonate, and besides, I am lucky to have some of the brightest and sharpest minds as readers and commenters. It is only right to offer them the space to jot down their thoughts and get some feedback from us all.
If you have an article you want to write, please drop me a line. There are no rules or regulations. As long as the central theme is freedom it is almost guaranteed an airing. (I say "almost" in case your freedom demand involves goats, whipped cream, a midget and a camcorder).
Here then, is the first post from Gaius.
The first time I said NO.
Its difficult saying no, after all we are brought up not to be rude by our parents and its simply not the done thing to be deliberately bolshie. It becomes easier if its not face to face. We also know in the back of our mind that we are dealing with a powerful organisation that can seriously fuck up our lives.
But we have to start somewhere so simply pick your battle with care. If its the first time best not to start with the tax inspector or plod. The first time I said no was about ten or twelve years ago at my local hospital. I gave my name and address to the receptionist and then she asked for my racial group. She was middle aged and I didn't want to be rude so I simply said in a polite voice "no thanks".
Now let me tell you what happened. I wasn't hit by a bolt of lightening for daring to confront the state. The ground didn't open up and swallow me and I didn't get set upon by a gang of thugs in uniform. the receptionist looked up, looked me directly in the eye and said "I quite agree, I don't think they should ask it in the first place".
I deprived the state of some information, I provided reinforcement to the receptionist that her view was correct and I grew in confidence.
I now say no regularly.
I have three children and a couple of years ago ago pulled my children out of school to go on holiday (they all go to state schools, their education wasn't going to suffer). I went to the schools and told them when my kids would be off. They all produced forms for me to fill in which I refused. One thick as pigshit jobsworth whined "It won't be authorised". I replied "You don't seem to understand, I'm not asking for your permission, I'm telling you what's going to happen. I have authorised it".
If you think the state is too big, is too regulating and taxes too much, start to fight back.
Say no. Say no regularly. Say no with confidence. So no with pride.
And it does have an effect. Look how many refused the census.
Gaius
24 comments:
"One thick as pigshit jobsworth whined "It won't be authorised". I replied "You don't seem to understand, I'm not asking for your permission, I'm telling you what's going to happen. I have authorised it"."
There you have it in one sentence. Well said, Sir.
I once told my boss, the head of probabtion, to fuck off, do it yourself I'm not a joey. I haven't worked since. Best thing that's ever happened to me. I say no all the time. I've got a CRB document which is six pages in length. None of my crimes are worth the paper they're written on, eg. scrumping apples, stealing pop from a local shops and generally being a lively little lad. I'm tattooed by the state, labelled, pigeon holed, filed and logged. Do I care? NO! NO No No. I am what I am and I'm free compared to the masses. My job now involves blowing bubbles and playing with driftwood. Who's the daddy?
I didn't say no to the census, just requested assurances such as that the data would be safe. A few weeks later it was reported that it had been compromised!
I say no quite a lot on my blog as well! Politely, as a rule.
Being assertive and standing one's ground is a valuable and powerful weapon. The 'no' word is a good start.
I have found assertiveness, and a refusal to abide by restrictions and conditions created by companies and bureaucrats for their own convenience to be very useful in getting things sorted.
They don't like being told that "sorry, that is unacceptable, your duty is..."
Unlike Lazy I don't think petty crime or being proud of such behaviour is at all helpful to anyone. Just the opposite because it weakens the moral argument that you are making for refusing to comply with unreasonable requests. When being assertive you have to be right.
I'm with Woodsy - you don't need to some sort of faux anarchist to say "No".
The first time is always hard, but I confess I get a lot of pleasure out of saying "No" face to face - the look on their faces is usually hugely entertaining.
Good stuff - this is definitely a good idea rantus :D
LOL @ Lazy, man after my own heart xD
This is the way. The whole 'Freedom' thing is complex, fascinating and daunting at the same time, so this simple first step is so obviously the thing to do in order to start the journey rather than just dither. Easy as. Quite personally uplifting as well.
For me it was the census.
P.S. Great idea, you two
Salesmen are taught that people are inherently predisposed to dislike saying no, so tailor their questions and presentations accordingly. Not being scared of saying no is a skill that sometimes needs to be learned, but is very liberating once you get the hang of it.
I also like to say no.
I also like to make things up occasionally too.
Usually I make things up on forms and say no to people on the phone and in person.
I swear, most of the jobs I've managed to get are down to being gay, jedi and a dwarf.
Gaius,
I think you have hit the nail on the head..... I am a public servant and have recently realised I am very much part of the problem.... Since they announced redundancies due to the cuts I'm 3 to 9 months away from breaking away... I have mouths to feed and a roof to keep over heads... Am I scared? No. I've never been more positive about doing anything in my life (I never fitted in anyway) and I'm going to retrain and start my own business.. (To which I have found a gap in the market to fill)
Then I am going to become a pain in the arse... I will mess these bastards about with everything. I have a very good knowlege of how these "I know better" nosey bastards think and opperate. So they are in for a bit of a rough ride.
To do this you have to know their rules they play by and how to tie it all up in red tape (they leave you plenty to play with)....
So to answer one of CR's posts, "where to go from here?" I think we have it. Start saying no.
Kyd.
I'm regularly doing this. When they ask for personal info, I always ask why. "Well, to help us give you a better service." How?
A good first post. I will be back for more, in fact I would have been back anyway. Some time ago I entered NOYB on a form - can't recall what it was about though.
'I went to the schools and told them when my kids would be off. They all produced forms for me to fill in which I refused. One thick as pigshit jobsworth whined "It won't be authorised". I replied "You don't seem to understand, I'm not asking for your permission, I'm telling you what's going to happen. I have authorised it".'
Good stuff.
It does paint a sad picture that they think this threat will work, because obviously, it has worked with many others in order for them to continue to use it. The sad bit is of course, that plenty of parents are compliant with such empty threats, as if they believe the school can actually block you into your house, prevent the holiday from taking place and then force your children into school! Of course, this doesn't happen (yet), but that some people comply and will re-arrange their holidays to suit school (the ones they are stolen from in order to pay for) suggests that some are OK with the idea of a state body wielding such a degree of power. They're already in the right mindset for a total police state (and most probably believe the MSM claptrap about us being "free"), as they define a prison only by the presence of physical bars. That is of course a great tool of the Elite.
As an aside, any parent in their right mind would place quality family time far higher on their agenda than ensuring their kids don't miss out on yet more mainstream BS versions of "history" designed to talk up big governance and lessons on how to be a "citizen". And everyone who has read up on the subject knows destruction of the family unit is desirable for some...
For the longest time I was a yes-man. I didn't know how to say no. Today, I'm better at it.
Back when I was young and brainwashed, I was in the military. We had a formal celebration and we were all in this room seating at long rectangular tables. One by one, each soldier would get up from their seat and go to this drum/barrel that was filled with all kinds of liquor and drink from it. When it was my turn I refused. I can tell you that I felt a lot of pressure and it took a lot of courage. Sure enough, lighting did not strike me... my platoon sergeant said: "I didn't know I could refuse." Soon others followed suit.
Saying no is liberating. We ought to do it more often... so next time the cashier asks you for your phone number, politely reply: no, thanks.
GravityE.
Say yes to---NO!!
I was asked in my local Asda to give my postcode as I was paying for some goods. I said 'No'.
The whole world fell apart. The cashier asked me why not? I told her she has asked for it and I had refused it as I had no obligation to give it to her and it was none of the supermarket's business where I lived.
The lady in the checkout queue behind me then joined in and asked what my problem was: was I someone famous or something?
Too many dumb people with the attitude 'If you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear'
Great post and a great idea to share the load.
David
The amount of times I call companies who ask for personal details is astronomical. Of course they always quote "for security purposes" and out comes the inevitable "under the data protection act" in every automaton's spiel and I'm often tempted to go into an explanation on the differences between common and civil law but realise it would be the same as discussing metaphysics with a 1 year old.
Thanks to social networking sites people have been conditioned to give up their privacy. After all who needs privacy anyway? The governments now use Orwellian doublethink that if you want privacy you have something to hide that obviously is a threat to the general safety of those around you. It's the same false logic that implies people hate other cultures and races because they choose to live by their own culture and with their own race. Simply put, the state is always right because 'experts' know better, translated as "people who have been completely indoctrinated by the institutions to promote their philosophy of how everyone should live' bollox.
Say NO and be skeptical. Guaranteed, if your views are drawing attention by higher authorities, you're doing something right.
regards
Harbinger
Saying No is fun to be perfectly honest. Saying No in person is hilarious. However I have found simple ignorance and the burning of letters is proving to be just as effective. Not as much fun but just as effective.
Another way to enter the real world gently is to ask a couple of questions.
"Can you please prove how this would apply to me... in writing... within the week?"
"What will happen if I don't ****?"
"Can you give me your personal details so I know to whom I am talking?"
or best of the lot "Why?"
Great first post, I will return for more!
And WTF is google doing asking for phone numbers when we log in???
Heh!
Just say no FB.
CR.
That's what I do of course but it's the assumption on their behalf that they are somehow entitled to it and must form some part of their service "contract", along with blind acceptance of this sort of thing by most people that is worrying.
You want to see the kerfuffle that kicks off in Screwfix when I repeatedly refuse to give any personal details! Their system won't progress the sale without said info and a "manager" has to be summoned to override it! Meanwhile the sales staff look at me like I'm mad for not wanting to give them what they've been instructed and trained to ask for. The brainwashed just don't get it.
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