I recently read through Abbie Hoffman's Steal this Book ( http://www.tenant.net/Community/steal/steal.html ), and was thinking it might be fun and useful to make an updated, crowdsourced version (maybe as a wiki or something). Basically I think it would be cool to have a centralized, free collection of practical resources and information to help revolutionaries survive, thrive and fight effectively. Theory is great, but I've found actually getting out and doing stuff IRL to be the best way to combat doomerism/apathy and feel connected to the struggle.
Does something like this already exist? The two closest, more recent things I've seen are: "Recipes for Disaster" (lots of great stuff): https://we.riseup.net/assets/35370/crimethinc.recipes.for.disaster.an.anarchist.cookbook.pdf and "Ecodefense" (mostly just monkeywreching/sabotage tips, but pretty dope): https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/various-authors-ecodefense-a-field-guide-to-monkeywrenching
Those two are great, but already outdated in some places. A wiki would have the advantages of being free, easy to keep current, capable of supporting multiple media types (e.g., links to video tutorials, external resources and contact points for orgs) and could be collectively created/maintained. Also we could just blatantly steal the good and still relevant bits from the aforementioned books.
What topics would people here find interesting/useful? Some random ideas off the top of my head include: security culture, small-scale farming, gun safety, lockpicking, protest tactics, encryption/network security, sexual health, shoplifting/scamming, union organizing, psilocybin mushroom cultivation, first aid, graffiti, recipes for cheap meals, city-specific survival guides for the unhoused (or anyone), squatting, tenant's rights/eviction support, self defense, fitness/nutrition... what else?
The basics of like vpns and security not bringing your phone places, also things we've learned from protests how to spot a kettle, how to deal with different crowd control, how to treat it with first aid etc
I think it would be useful to have some personal finance related stuff to help folks out, such as:
-
You can request an emergency forbearance every three months by phone for student loans and never have to pay a penalty. You can theoretically do this forever and never have to pay your loan.
-
By law,Debts that start out under $100 can’t effect your credit score for most purposes, so you can pretty safely ignore them. -
Debtors unions are a thing and more people should join them.
-
Tenant unions can help you negotiate against rent hikes and other rent related issues.
-
Most subscription services will offer temporary deals if you threaten to cancel, and this can save you money.
-
Also, the ins and outs of piracy, including libgen, sci-hub, torrents, etc.
This is not a law, it’s a policy of the credit score people and it only applies to collection agencies, not original creditors, so don’t just fuck off your cable bill one month and expect nothing to happen (basically it’s worth nobody’s time and pay to have to deal with disputes over small money from collection agencies so they don’t bother with it, but original creditors are 99.999% likely to have all the paperwork proving you owe the money)
Thanks for the correction. I assumed this was a law, but apparently it’s a feature of newer FICO models (8, 9, 10) but present in the older ones which are used for things like mortgages. So it still could have a small impact, but generally it seems safe to say that you can typically ignore them? I always have, and it’s never impacted my credit score at all.
-
You can make a blasting cap with a small quantity of a primary explosive, and a small amount of a booster in a small tube, with an open end and a simple fuse in the back. Or you can legally purchase them in the USA (though this has many obvious drawbacks). the handbook you have has instructions in section 6, no 13. Instructions on making the components can be found in the manual as well. Also, depending on the secondary explosive you may not need a booster at all. Unfortunately many of the ingredients are harder to find was you say, and folks should work on an updated version for sure
- Update on police weapons/tactics/crowd control.
- anti drone and surveillance tech
In regards to lockpicking, the proliferation of "lock sport" as it has been coined is a legal and non-nefarious way of learning how locks work and the ins and outs of lockpicking, security etc. Trying to pick harder and harder locks for fun. There is a big community on YouTube (lockpickinglawyer and locklab/bosniabill are probably the two most popular channels) and anything you need to know can be easily accessed from these sources. https://youtube.com/c/bosnianbill https://youtube.com/c/lockpickinglawyer
Rad, I'll definitely check out those youtube channels - I have a set of picks but haven't started practicing much yet, this might be the push I needed!
There's a psuedonym, George Hayduke, that is attached to a series of books that are quite... interesting. The only book that I've ever had my hands on (and has now dissappeared :arthur-punch: ) was mostly focused on monkey wrench antics and small scale sabotage.
The Rebel Steps podcast has lots of tips on organizing:
https://rebelsteps.com/
IT security and anti-surveillance tactics.
Different tactics for growing the movement. What strategies can radicals use when interacting with non-radicals? How can you do propaganda?
Something on practical LGBT liberation.
Something about keeping leftist spaces safe and welcoming to all, including BIPOCs, women, the neurodiverse and LGBT people. Thinking about ways of including older generations and those who are not into the whole counterculture thing would also be of value. Personally one of the reasons I didn't seek out leftist groups when I was younger was that I was (am) a massive fumbling nerd and didn't believe I was cool enough to fit in.
Something about establishing contact to comrades in other countries and building international solidarity.
