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All we need is one small change With one small change in the way we perceive our relationship to each other, we could build a truly Utopian society. I have learned to abandon the self serving ideal and replace it with a primary desire to serve. When I did that, my life changed and I began to understand the true meaning of happiness. Try it, you’ll like it.  Each of us needs to be informed citizens Being informed CAN NOT be accomplished passively. Watching the news on television and reading newspapers will not make you an informed citizen. All the commercial main stream media sources strive to do is provide you with a hint of what is happening. Because of time, space and financial constraints, they leave it up to us to take the effort to do the research that will enable us to understand the underlying events that lead up to any given situation. Unless we take responsibility for acquiring this information, we can never expect to make informed decisions about what’s going on around us. This is the primary reason why the internet is so crucial to the evolution of civilization towards a more equitable and just global society. Never before in the history of the world have we had the information we need to become informed at our finger tips. Satisfaction with our own personal situation is not enough. We need to ensure that everyone on the planet has the potential to attain satisfaction with their personal situations. We also must keep in mind that things change and even if today we are living in comfort and security, tomorrow we may be at risk. So it becomes a matter of personal protection when we take measures to ensure that others are protected, for tomorrow we may be one of those others at risk. Whether you are concerned with poverty, religion, starvation, war, climate disruption, drug abuse, human rights abuse, animal abuse or any of the other myriad problems that effect our lives, we should recognize that each of these issues is related. Each of them is a human problem that requires human solutions that are within our reach. Only by becoming informed and by actively advocating solutions will we succeed in progressing from a medieval master/slave society with all the limitations and suffering therein to one of realization of the limitless potential that is our destiny. Only by ensuring that each and every member of the human family has the opportunity to reach his/her full potential can we ever expect to achieve the utopian world that both the industrial and the information revolutions have promised. Speak out. Add your voice to the chorus. As every day more voices are being added, eventually we will be heard.  As we go about our busy lives, it behooves us to remember those who are not so lucky. The principle of Yin and Yang is that nothing can exist without it’s opposite also existing. The difficulty is in keeping the opposites in balance, for when that balance is upset, both halves of the equation will cease to exist. When one side of the scale believes it is becoming dominant and defeating its opposite, it is merely ensuring its own destruction. It seems that the evil side of mankind is approaching the point of dominance wherein it will ensure its own destruction and our extinction.  To those who still believe in the system I’ve been clean and sober for over 4 years and I know what I’m saying is right. Unfortunately, too many people have bought into the elitist propaganda that says there is nothing wrong with the system. Just take a look around and you can’t help but see it is failing on a massive scale. The economy is collapsing everywhere, the environment is on the brink of irreparable damage, hundreds of species of life on the planet are becoming extinct each year, the slaughter of innocent people including women and children has reached epidemic proportions, people who struggle to maintain an alternative way of life are called terrorists and hunted down and destroyed, world wide poverty is increasing exponentially in the midst of the greatest wealth that has ever existed on the planet and addiction is rampant in every part of the world. If the system that created these disasters is not a menace to life on this planet, then perhaps in your wisdom, you can tell me what is, for something on a monumental scale has gone wrong. It’s time to wake up and look beyond the propaganda. Start thinking for yourself and analyse the world around you. You may yet find freedom and meaning in your life as I have.  The conversation continues. An emerging friendship and partnership? Steve wrote: Ron, My Reply: I’m in awe of your wisdom my friend. I take inspiration from your missives. As I said before, “Now is not the time.” I too hope the time will not come, but knowing the way the power structure works, I fear that the time will come. We will not be the ones to start it. So saying, it is wise to think and plan for all eventualities. If violence can be avoided, that would be my preference, but I don’t intend to be cut down unprepared if it can’t and I won’t fight blindly. In the mean time, I’m progressing steadily with my next stage in advocacy. I got the latest Adobe Mater Suite CS4 and upgraded my computer to utilize its new features. Now I’m learning the video editing features in anticipation of producing some powerful documentary clips. But wow, the learning curve on this shit is huge! If the pen is mightier than the sword and a picture is worth a thousand words, then combining the two and adding motion has got to be mighty indeed. Glad to hear your beard is coming back. Mine is longer than it’s ever been and my hair is almost as long as it was in the 60’s. Guess we both must look like throwbacks to the 60’s. I’d love to have a picture of the 2 of us together. Maybe, God willing, we’ll be able to meet face to face sometime soon. Hope so. In the mean time, I keep getting drawn in so many directions that it takex a force of willpower to keep on track. Shit, there are so many things that need fixing in this fucked up society that it’s hard to keep from spreading myself so thin as to be ineffectual. I’ve spent the past couple of years concentrating on homelessness, poverty and to a lesser degree, addiction, but these issues are only symptoms of the greater problem of a society that has lost its way. I don’t know what to do. Should I continue working on the symptoms of redirect my efforts towards the social malaise that causes them? The easy way is to continue as before, but I’m getting the sense that along with my planned switch to video as my media instead of the written word and still photoArt images, it may be time to rethink the whole structure and direction of my work. But damn, if I change, where do I begin, how do I approach it and most important how do I focus when there is so much fucked up out there? The one shortfall of video is that it limits the creative flow into what must be less and therefore more compelling information. That is hard to do. Citizen shift has improved its format and now can host 150 mb videos, so I won’t need to pay for hosting any more. I’ll try to produce 10 minute clips that will show in good quality on the site. I won’t have anything new to upload until I learn more of the new programs and do some more filming, but here’s the link to my old page that I put up a while back. http://citizen.nfb.ca/user/ronzigrogerscom I didn’t put much up there because back then the site was pretty limited, but it’s better now. They’re developing some pretty good dossiers too, so click the dossier link if you get a chance and check them out. Steve’s Response: Shit, dude, we're two pea's in a fuckin'
pod, believe me! My Reply: My God Steve, you vocalize my feelings with fine precision when you say, “So, we're both seeking the greatest return for the least input cause that's all the time we have left. We ache to contribute and make it all count for something IN A BIG WAY to prove to ourselves, [our higher, our HIGHEST,] selves that we were not a useless waste of space in this most beautiful of creations. PLUS WE ACHE WITH EMPATHY FOR OTHERS AND WISH TO HELP THEM OUT OF THEIR MISERIES, make them Free as we cause till we're all free none of us are completely free...RIGHT?” Talking with you really helps me get into focus man. Wish we were both living in the same area. It would be so great to hang together, maybe even work together. As for damning the pusher, Steppenwolf was right on target way back when. I’ve been lucky. I managed to survive the shit until I found a way to make it work for me. Now I have a subsidized apartment, and a disability pension that takes getting money out of the equation, leaving me free to work at something meaningful instead of slaving for the man to eek our an existence. I do feel guilty though. I am one of the few who have it good and there are so very many others who are nowhere near as fortunate. The dream of the old sci-fi writers of a utopia evolving as we created machines to do the work has been hijacked by the elite who hoard all the benefits of the labour saving devices we have developed, leaving the masses to continue living at the edge of the precipice. What kind of shit is that? Capitalism has betrayed us all because, like all isms it fails to take into consideration the avarice and selfish greed of any asshole that gets a little power. The frustrating thing is that I have not been able to articulate a workable alternative to these isms and remain stuck in the rut of bitching about what is instead of working towards a specific and definable alternative. That my friend, is where all activists seem to fall short of gaining widespread support. It just isn’t enough to condemn the existing system. We need to be able to define a workable alternative and so far no one has been able to do that. All of the ones that have been tried have failed and perhaps this failure to develop a working model for society will result in the demise of the human race. Wait a minute, I’m wrong there. We HAVE a workable model. It was described in the old sci-fi stories. It just doesn’t have a name with ism on the end. The scenario is so simple it has eluded my desire to define it until now.
But how can we accomplish this when the result will be that the slave masters will no longer have human beings’ lives completely at their disposal and under their command? Perhaps it is too soon to expect a total transition. We have not mastered the creation of machines to replace human servants yet, but they are coming soon. We’re almost there. Working prototypes are as we speak being perfected for this very purpose, i.e. the bank machine that has replaced many of the human tasks with mechanized ones or the robotic vacuum cleaner that is under development to eliminate one of the least palatable chores of housework. In the mean time as the transition moves forward, what is necessary is a new way of structuring society so that the people whose jobs are now being done by machines, and this includes not only those who were employed at those jobs, but also, those who would at some time in the future be so employed, are no longer forced into a limbo because we have not thought about what to do with them once the machines take over. They deserve the right to live in freedom, security and dignity and it is society’s responsibility to ensure that they have it. That means the replacement of Employment Insurance and all current social assistance programs with a universal guaranteed income plan that provides for these criteria. This would not result in the immediate demise of Capitalism. What it would result in is a more humane hybrid form of Capitalism that would itself be a transitional social structure until the time comes when we have all the machines necessary to move on to a social structure that is not based on a monetary rewards system. Thanks Steve. You helped me to focus and I think that I can see where my efforts must be directed henceforth. I need to narrow my efforts to the concept of instituting a guaranteed income system that provides for each individual’s right to live in freedom, security and dignity. If this can be accomplished without creating violent opposition from the elite, we may yet avoid blood on the streets. I’ll have to research what is presently being done in this direction and add my efforts to the cause. Let me know what you think. I find that your wisdom is very helpful during this period in my life when I have come to the realization that my efforts could be better utilized with a change of focus. Steve’s Response: Hey mannn, I'm 2/3's of the way thru this
you wrote and I got fuckin' chill bumps running up and down my shit.. My Reply: Lots to respond to
here my friend. Guess I’ll take it from the top so I don’t miss anything. Yep, done thousands of
hits of LSD. It saved my life man. If I hadn’t found it I’d have killed myself
before I reached 25. Didn’t get the God experience back then though. It took
crack for me to go there, but once anyone’s been there, everything is
different. Tried all the other drugs, but only sparingly. Note: I don’t
classify pot as a drug per say. Done a shipload of that though. Of course, you’re
right when you say, “NEVER SANCTIFY YOUR VICTIMIZATION.” The problem is that most people
don’t even realize that they ARE victims. The slave masters are too smart for
that. They camouflage the slavery by giving the slaves some nice toys to dull
their minds. But each of the toys, i.e. fancy car, big house, fine clothes, all
bought on credit, becomes another link in the chain that imprisons them. It
would be easy to end the victimization if the victims only realized, like we
do, that it exists. People are unhappy and angry and they don’t have the eyes
to see the cause, so they blame each other. As I perceive it, our job is twofold. First, we must work at
educating people to open their eyes to their own debilitating dependence on the
toys the slave masters lend us. I say lend, because that is part of the chain
of credit purchasing. Once they get the toys, they don’t want to give them up
and then they are trapped. In order to keep the toys, they have to do what the
man tells them. If we can help people to realize that the toys are merely links
in the chains that bind them in slavery, they will begin to break free. If they
remove their own debt, and only accept the toys that they have the funds to pay
for, the strongest links in the chains will be broken. Second, we must work to unglue the slavers’ hold over the means of acquisition and retention of the toys. When the threat of losing them is removed, the stress and frustration and anger that clouds the issue will vanish and people’s minds will be free to experience the joy of the freedom they so willingly, though unknowingly relinquished. The malaise of dissatisfaction will dissolve. This involves a redistribution of wealth and must begin at the bottom with the guaranteed income concept, but will only be complete when it is no longer possible for an individual to amass or hold so great a portion of the world’s wealth that it deprives others of their freedom to enjoy their right to live in freedom, security and dignity. One step at a time though. We must attempt
to address the issues at a level that is surmountable. If we attempt to reach
too high, we doom our efforts to failure. I believe that now is the time and
here, ( This is developing into a manifest of sorts. Wow!!! I think by linking our thinking, we are locking into the stream of consciousness as a team far more clearly than is individually conceivable. Your comments about never playing cops and robbers but instead playing shamen and layfolk is right on. Throughout my life, I rarely asked God for anything for myself. I would ask for His intervention to help others often, but for myself, all I would ask for was wisdom. I do believe He has answered my prayers and granted me a small measure of the stuff, as he has you. With wisdom though comes great responsibility. It is our duty to help others to attain their own wisdom and clear vision. Haven’t you felt the compelling urge to enlighten as I have? Yes I’m sure you have. You mention our ability to fly. Many years ago I studied Astral Projection and eventually mastered it to the degree that I flew out of my physical body just once. I wasn’t ready for it then. It scared the shit out of me and I never did it again, but as a kid and adolescent, I had one constantly recurring dream. I was always not only flying with my mind, but teaching others how. This was long before I ever did drugs and the concept seemed so natural to me that even when not asleep, it was difficult to remind myself that it was only a dream and was not possible. Now that I am older, I know that it is not only possible, but quite natural, It is something that we have been conditioned to unlearn by those around us. Possibilities are not worth enumerating. They are boundless and limitless. The delusion of Impossibilities is our only limitation. Yes, I can see your smile as we converse. I need only look in the mirror. I have tons of research to do as I embark on this next phase in my mission. I’ll definitely look up the references you gave me. Thanks for that. Speaking of governance, I believe it is also time to return to a truer form of participatory democracy. Because of the cumbersome size of our modern society and also because of laziness, we have delegated our right and responsibility to others by creating a form of representative democracy which has very little to do with truly democratic principles. With the advent of the internet, the preventative unwieldy size of our society is no longer an excuse for us to forfeit this right and obligation. Size of society is no longer a viable excuse. We can, should, must create a web based system of governance that encompasses every level of society, from the town hall to the United Nations. If we create a system of monthly virtual meetings to discuss and vote on important issues at each level of government and then send the results of our decisions to the appropriate representatives, we can regain personal responsibility for how we are represented. With this, we will relinquish the excuse that it’s the government that did it, not me. Each of us, you, me and every other individual in the world will have a voice in matters of import and will bear the personal responsibility for the results of these decisions whether good or bad. I’ve given this a great deal of thought and have been busy creating a format that I believe is workable where meetings are scheduled separately for each level of government and every individual in the world could be registered as a voting member in his own local, with the right to vote at each level of government, from the town hall of his neighborhood, which would align with a riding in Canada to municipal, to provincial or state to federal and finally to the United Nations or whatever form of world government we decide is appropriate. In order to make democracy accessible to everyone, those who do not have internet access would be able to attend in person at the local town hall. The elected representatives would be compelled to act upon the decisions that are formed at these meetings under threat of being replaced in the next election. Your comment about reality as exemplified by The Matrix quote is right on. I believe that the reality we perceive is merely one of infinite possibilities, the one we have jointly agreed to condition ourselves to accept, thereby creating it from our own group mindset. When you speak of
returning to the realm of light from whence we came, it brings to mind one of
my more memorable LSD experiences. I had let it be know that I wished to
purchase a couple thousand hits of acid and then I crashed. One of the chemists
sent a friend to me with a special test sample. When she got to my apartment which
I never locked, she found me sound asleep and placed the blotter in my mouth.
Later I woke up higher than I’d ever been and still climbing. I went for a walk
and as I passed the door of someone else’s apartment I heard some great music.
I just walked in and sat down by their speakers and tripped. Now here’s the
important part. For the next 48 hours, I was pure intelligent energy travelling
through space! I believe I had returned to the realm from whence we came. Back to the subject of
abilities that we have that we don’t recognize, I’ve also learned that if I am
receptive, inanimate objects will speak to me. Here’s an example of what I
mean. On several occasions I have been with someone who has misplaced something
they felt was important. While they were desperately searching for the object
in vain, I just sat quietly and apparently unconcerned. After a brief period,
without even looking in the direction, I would point and say “It’s there.” My
friend when looking where I pointed would be amazed to find it really was
there. Now this I have done many times and it works even when I have never seen
the object in question or been present when it was placed in its concealed
location. Pretty wild eh? Another thing I have
sometimes been able to do, but have by no means mastered yet, is seeing in
total darkness with my eyes closed. On several occasions I have been able to
get a clear picture of my surroundings in my mind’s eye even with my eyes
closed when it is so dark you can’t see your hand in front of your face. Now I do not think
that any of these so called magical abilities are unique to me. I believe we
all inherently have them, but we deny their existence and refuse to use them or
trust to their use and they do need practice. The human species is on an evolutionary
cusp. We are ready to evolve to a point where we will be able to use many
magical abilities and learn eventually to take them for granted, the same as we
do seeing and hearing. You have hinted at your own experiences and I suspect
that there have been many. History documents many masters who have developed
abilities far beyond what the average person is capable of and it does not mean
that they are any different than the rest of humanity; they just worked at
developing what is lying dormant within us all. KEEP YOUR MOTOR
RUNNING my friend. Steve’s Response: YES. Ron, My Reply: Happy to know we’re on the same wave length ALL the way. Even happier to find that you have done much of the necessary research we will need to proceed. That will save me a lot of time searching and reading. Hope you don’t mind if I use you as a reference tool and pick your brain on matters where you have spent more time than I on learning. Yes, I can and will help you and you, I hope will help me and together we can help make a difference, much more so than either of us alone. There are a few advantages to our separate locations.
Fortunately, our knowledge and abilities although parallel are not duplicated and so being, will enhance each other’s. We have both been faltering because the size of the task is too large for any single man to accomplish. There is great truth in the saying that the power of the whole is far greater than the power of the sum of its parts. Working together we will accomplish infinitely more than either of us could alone. It may be a good idea to use messenger when immediate feedback is necessary, I’m on Yahoo Messenger at present. Copies of Messenger communications can be kept for reference too. I’m planning to add a dedicated page to my website for guaranteed income and another for the internet democracy idea. Although both of these have been around for a while, (I knew about guaranteed income, but wasn’t aware of internet democracy. Thought that was my own idea.) Timing is everything and perhaps now is the right time for both. Could you, would you write a preamble for each of those pages that would explain the concepts succinctly? Since you have more prior knowledge of both, and apparently reference material on hand I believe you could do a better job of creating simple explanations of them that would enlighten readers. Wherever possible, it would help to include links to sites that can give more detailed information. I’m thinking that we could co-author these 2 pages and thereby present a continental message that would appeal to people in both of our countries, thereby expanding our audience. At first I thought of creating a whole new website and that may be the best approach still. I could promote the new website with a link from my current ones and thereby direct my current following to them. Since my hosting and site creation service is free, there is no monetary advantage to adding pages to my existing site rather than developing a new one, but my existing site is full of useful and mostly relevant information and is large enough not to seem too simple. What do you think? I use Ronzig as a nom de plume on the internet and it may be a good idea for you to create one for yourself. Ronzig has become a trademark of sorts and is more widely known than my real name. I guess what this all amounts to is that I think we’ve spent enough time feeling each other out and I believe we both agree we can and should work together, so we should get to it. We really do need each other. Steve’s Response: http://www.flatrock.org.nz/topics/odds_and_oddities/ultimate_in_unfair.htm All I can say is; Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. [For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.] You will invariably find me reciting the above at times of greatest
peril which produces an inward calm. But immediately I'll move into; I think that...I know that...to feel sorry for the process unfolding in
that picture is to miss the point. And end up selfish in ourselves. I've one more picture that blows me away but I'd have to attach it. And
I don't want you opening it first. Guaranteed Income? My Reply: Like all isms, Anarchism and Libertarianism look fine on paper, but I’m a pragmatist. Long ago I learned that the value of any theory of social organization is only as good as its ability to function as designed in the real world. From the beginning of human social interactivity, it was clearly recognized that some form of government was necessary to the very existence of society. Without government society can not function and we are left with each person standing alone and at odds with all others. If humanity could be relied upon to act responsibly and harmoniously towards each other, there would be no need for government, but that is not reality. If it is accepted that there is a need for some form of government, the question becomes one of determining a form that will function as designed, providing the least possible amount of restriction and conflict amongst its members. To that end I believe that a truer form of Democracy wherein laws restricting the individual rights of its members are restricted to only one criterion, “Will this law protect society’s members from individuals infringing on their rights with the minimum amount of infringement on the freedom of activity or the individual?” If a law does not meet this criterion it is not valid and should be stricken from the books. To ensure that this principle is maintained, the primary responsibility of the judiciary should be to monitor all legislation, measuring it against this criterion and to strike down any law that does not meet the criterion. I am familiar with Libertarianism, another ism that looks good until it is put into the context of human nature. Therein, if it is not qualified with the aforementioned caveat it becomes unworkable. Now I admit that Democracy can and will lead to gang rule if not kept in check. One need only examine our present form of Democracy to realize this. However, I am optimistic that with a Participatory Democracy in place, the participating members of society will be able to prevent this. As I mentioned previously, the size of our population and the vast areas involved with the nation states we have created had previously make Participatory Democracy unmanageable and Representative Democracy evolved to address this problem. It is evident that Representative Democracy does not work and we must revert to Participatory Democracy. Fortunately, with the advent of the internet, the restricting factors of size of population and geographic area are no longer valid arguments for maintenance of the Representative system to the exclusion of the Participatory system. A new hybrid form of Democracy is now both possible and necessary, a combination of Representative and Participatory Democracy. This is the function of the internet government that I envision. We will retain representatives in government, but they will be subject to the will of the people through the voting structure at the Participatory level. The criteria I set to determine whether or not I should advocate any change are,
I believe both Internet Democracy and Guaranteed Income fulfill these requirements and that is my reason for becoming a proponent of each. Steve’s Response: http://archives.cbc.ca/society/youth/topics/580-3204/ My Reply: You’re right and you’re wrong. During those
days I didn’t quite get it like so many others. There was just too much
happening to absorb it all as fast as it came at me. Before I could get it, I had to go back and become a citizen again. I had never really been one before as I was too young when that whole thing took me over. Having gone back, I was able to compare the philosophies and then I could judge and reject the establishment for what it is. My greatest pain is the fact that most of the hippies who like me went back never took the time or responsibility to make the comparison. They were too busy becoming worse that the things they were protesting in the 60’s. They sold out for a BMW and a job at IBM when if they had kept the faith, we could have won the struggle and the world would not be in the mess it’s in today. The siren song of the establishment was too powerful for them to overcome. It almost got me. It’s not right to judge their failure though. The temptation of the (Good Life???) is pretty overwhelming! Steve’s Response: HAHA.. My Reply: What I meant is it’s wrong to condemn them for their blindness. We can condemn the system they adhere to, but they are victims as much as oppressors and they really don’t understand. It’s our responsibility not to condemn them for their blindness, but to open their eyes to enlightenment.  Steve sent me a couple of photos to remind me just how evil this society is. These things could never happen in a world not completely immersed in evil. Not sure where the photo came from but if anyone can say, I'll gladly credit the photographer
Steve wrote: Life and death, brother. My Reply: Yep, when I think we have it bad I just have to remember what it's like in other parts of the world. Most of the people in the world would think they'd died and gone to heaven if they found themselves homeless here.  When will this end? Not sure where the photo came from but if anyone can say, I'll gladly credit the photographer A student has some questions for me Priscila wrote: Hello Mr Ronzig, I am a student in I just wanted to write to congratulate on your website and share some of
my thoughts, if you would not mind. I was very shocked to see what you have
gone through but amazed that you were able to recover yourself from the drugs.
I also had no idea that shelters were bad and help was so scarce. I wish a lot more people were interested in seeing websites like yours
so they open their eyes to what goes on in a homeless person's life. I
feel sorry for homeless people and always think of ways I can do to help. From
my point of view, it must be the most terrifying feeling to reach at night and
have nowhere to go. I do programs in my building, volunteer and
do cloth/food drives to homeless charities in order to try to open
people's eyes, which sadly is a hard thing to do since most 'lucky'
people do not even care placing themselves on someone else's point of
view. So I would love to hear from you: what can I do? I feel extremely
bad passing by homeless people and pretend I do not see; I do not give them
money as I know they can be addicted; sometimes I give
them food but also don't want to 'humiliate' them; I wish
I could sit down and talk to the homeless but everyone say they are
'dangerous'. How can I know if that person really wants to be helped? Hopefully
your advice will guide me better than listening to what most rich
people say. I look forward to hearing from you. Again, congratulations! Sincerely, Priscila My Reply: Thank you for writing Priscila. When I hear from people who have learned
from my experience and my work I feel gratified. In answer to what you can do, FIRST please don’t pretend that you don’t
see them. That is the most painful thing we experience out there. It’s a denial
of our existence and serves to drive home the feeling that we are less than
human. Even if you don’t wish to give them a little money, a smile and a kind
word will help them greatly. Just tell them you can’t help today, but that you
wish them well and give them a smile and you will be improving their day. You
are right to be aware that some, although not many can be dangerous. Many have
serious mental health issues and all feel resentment towards a society that
allows their situation to exist. Please understand that by denying them a little financial help you are
not preventing them from servicing their addictions. They will take care of
that need before eating; for once a person becomes an addict the need for drugs
supersedes even the need to eat. By denying them a little financial assistance,
you do withhold help with the many other things that they need such as food and
medicine and cigarettes and so on and so on. Yes, what you give may very well
go towards drugs, but it may free up some cash to buy a meal. If you want to talk with one of them, you could start by giving a dollar or two and asking how they’re feeling. Would they like a coffee or something? You would be surprised how desperately most want and need someone to talk to. If you take them for a coffee or bring them one and one for yourself, I’m sure most would be happy to share a little time and conversation with you. If you’re uncomfortable with that approach, you might try volunteering at a drop in centre or shelter. In those places, you will have plenty of opportunities to talk with them. I commend you on the good work you do with clothing and food drives. It’s important and with the current economic situation supplies are getting desperately low as even more people are forced into homelessness. It’s sad, but true that far too many people don’t wish to understand. It’s far more comfortable for them to ignore the situation or to condemn the victims of homelessness than to try to understand. But as the situation continues to escalate, more and more are coming to the realization that something must be done. It is obviously not acceptable in a society as rich as ours to allow this to continue. You can help by writing letters to the editors of you local newspapers and to your political representatives at the municipal, state and federal levels. On the internet there are many sites that have forums on the topic that you could contribute to. All discussion in these areas will increase the pressure to make a change. Thanks again for you email. If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to write. I’d like to post this communication on my website with your permission. I think others will benefit from what you had to say and from my response. If you wish to remain anonymous, let me know. I usually use the first name only when I post, but would be happy to withhold your name if you prefer. Priscila responds: Hello Mr Ronzig! I definetely will take your advice and put in practice. Everytime I
see a homeless person I indeed want to sit down with them and hear their
story. It will be somewhat hard to do this as I
also don't have support from friends, workmates and family, who tell me to
stay as far away from homeless as possible. They tell me things such as
"but these people choose to be homeless", "they don't want
to be helped", "if you help only one it will not end poverty
anyways" or "they're too lazy to get jobs" (the discussion that
was in the Change.org website). I just cannot understand how people find
reasons to close their eyes, as if it was extremely easy for a person with
mental and health problems to just get up and get a job immediately, not
to mention the problem with addiction and hunger. One day I told my
friends that I was giving food to homeless people and they replied
"you should stop doing that. They will remember you and get angry at you
when you don't have any more food another day". There was also one day I as in an ice cream shop and a homeless man
came in and asked for some change; I didn't even reply and the shop keeper
stood in front of me and asked him to leave, like he was something evil
that was ruining the image of the ice cream shop. When I did the
food/cloth drive in my building - which by the way was next to Christmas season
- many people replied with a fun tone "I don't even have money
and food for myself, how am I going to give to the others?" My
heart was so torn by such coldness, most people fail to see there are people in
far worse situations. And what should I do if I see not someone asking for money,
but simply lying on the street? Those are the times I feel worse,
that person might as well not be sleeping, but fainted or even dead. And
people simply walk by, as if it was completely normal to have sick peolpe
just lying on the street. I wish I could stop and wake them up, but again, what
might their reaction be? Should I call 911 regardless? Is it a good idea to instead of giving money I just buy them a sandwich
and a drink? I would feel more confortable doing this. On the other hand I
never thought of writing to the authorities, that is definetely a good advice I
will put in practice. I will also keep researching on the Internet about
homelessness. And is there something I can do to try to prevent them for using
more drugs (I mean, I was amazed when you said you decided to go to
the detox center; how many homeless would have this initiative?) Again, thank you very much, Mr Ronzig. And thanks for using your time to answer all my questions! Priscila My Reply: Thanks Priscila. Glad you like my art. I use several programs in my art,
but the primary ones are Faststone Viewer and Photoshop. Many of the homeless
people I depict are friends from my days on the street and many more are people
I met after being housed. I still keep a close contact with the community and
find more friendship within that community than the so called normal society.
These people are more real. Once you get past their urge to scam a few dollars
to get high, they cut the crap and communicate more freely than many uptight so
called normal people. I would be honored to have you share my words with others. On my part,
I don’t mind sharing my email address either, but will keep yours private. As I began to see the power of the internet and the potential that lies
therein to wrest control of information from the elite, I decided I had to be
part of it. As I mention on my site, I believe the internet is our best hope of
moving society towards a more compassionate and humane structure. If we hippies
had the internet in the 60’s, we might not have failed to achieve the social
change we struggled for back then. Most of us gave up, sold out and became
worse than what we were protesting. Of course, there were not nearly as many
hippies as there were hangers-on who only thought of the movement as a means to
be popular and get laid, but I digress. I must emphasize care when approaching a homeless person. You must not
show fear, but you must be alert to the individual situation and be prepared to
withdraw pleasantly if your approach is not wanted. Before bringing food or
coffee, it is important to ask if he would like it. No one appreciates
assumptions being made about them and homeless people are extremely sensitive
to them since the majority of society relates to them from a series of ill
conceived assumptions. I do recommend volunteering at a drop in centre first.
In this way, you will be able to become comfortable with them and learn what is
and is not appropriate, while in a safe environment. There is not much danger,
but I want you to feel at ease while remaining alert when you approach someone. Quotations such as "but these people choose to be homeless", "they don't want to be helped", "if you help only one it will not end poverty anyways" or "they're too lazy to get jobs" are just the cynical shortsighted attitudes that I and others like me are seeking to educate people against. It makes me wonder how in this so called Christian society, we have moved so far away from God. Truly we as a society are seriously ill and if we don’t find a way to cure this illness, we will deserve the inevitable consequences. As for drug use, that really comes down to each individual’s circumstances. No-one can make someone decide to quit. What you can do is become familiar with the services that are available in your area for drug rehab so that you can mention that if they are interested in quitting you can guide them to places that can help, but don’t shove it at them. Only they can decide when the time is right. Definitely if you see someone who seems to be in distress or in need of assistance, call 911. That’s what they’re there for. Don’t try to deal with it yourself though. Leave it to the professionals. You would learn a lot by staying to watch how they handle it. Again, thank you for caring. Strange as it
seems that caring is so unique that thanks are deemed appropriate for what
should be a basic part of the human condition. Best wishes and God’s blessings. I remember Growing up in
But mostly I remember
And I wonder
  Yonge and CollegeSt in Toronto A digital
conversation about homeless women and addiction Helen wrote from the Sorry, to hear of your illness and hope you are on the
recovery road now and about your own friends. You really are on the cutting
edge of this subject. Not enough is done in our country about the ever growing
problem of addictions. Alcohol is too easily available here and there are just
not enough specialist clinics that can help. My reply: Addiction and
homelessness are often confused as synonymous, mainly because one will often,
but not necessarily, follow the other. They are two completely separate
symptoms of a single disease. We take so much
pride in being a classless society when ironically our capitalist system is
based on the clearly defined classes. The upper class,
which controls everything it can and constantly seeks more power to dictate how
everyone should conduct their lives. The middle class,
which has grown so large and so prosperous, that the upper class now sees it as
a threat. And at the bottom of
the scale, the ever expanding lower class, which in terms of per capita share
of available resources, is getting poorer and poorer as the world gets richer
and richer. This class system
uses economic slavery to maintain its integrity. The upper class hoards the
lion’s share of resources and directs world functions on both the macro and
micro levels. The middle class is used a lieutenants to carry out the policies
set by the masters in return for an elevated level of existence. The lower
class provides most of the labour in return for a subsistence level of
existence. What has kept the
system functioning is the illusion that upward mobility in relation to class
status is possible. Historically, there
has been a large gap between the upper and middle classes, with a narrow and
often blurred gap between the middle and lower classes, but there has been a
shift resulting in a narrow and blurred gap between the upper and middle
classes and an ever widening gap between the middle and lower classes. Therein lays the
current problem. As the middle class moves inexorably towards achieving upper
class status our society is evolving into a two class system with an
unbreachable gap between them. This shift has
resulted in a clash of momentous proportions. The upper class, in order to
maintain its power must crush the middle class assault on its lofty position.
As the clash between the mighty few and the slightly weaker, but far more
numerous interlopers develops, the lower class rapidly becomes a casualty of
war. The walking wounded of this clash are the addicts and homeless. All hope
has been rescinded and they have become dehumanized to the point where even
fellow members of the lower class despise them. You might say that
addicts come from all classes, and so they do, but the underlying causes of the
addiction shift when the addiction comes from the higher levels of society.
Instead of desperation and escapism as is prevalent in the lower class,
debauchery and irresponsibility are the main roads to addiction among the
wealthy. I fear that the
class struggle will lead to ever increasing levels of violence unless radical
changes are made soon. People without hope have nothing to lose and anger will
escalate to rage on an ever increasing level. That is why I work so hard to
make people understand. If we don’t change
the system, we are surely destined to follow in the footsteps of all the
previous empires in history. Western civilization will collapse inward upon
itself and self destruct. The enemy is not out there. It is within. Helen’s comment: Hi Ronzig, What an
amazing and incredibly intelligent reply. Both my husband and I read this and
printed it. We can't dispute anything you have said here. I believe that with
ever increasing expectation and the need and desire to do better, have more,
celebrity status and even with pop idol and fame shows, more and more people
want the good life now, better, faster, more, which breeds resentment and
discontentment when "they" realize that not everybody can be famous
or rich. You are right the middle classes strive to get into the chosen set and
step on anybody/thing that gets in the way. The ruthlessness of the work place
is one such example. Obviously we don't subscribe to these things. People
compare themselves all the time to the next and depression is at its highest levels
in the My reply: Hi Helen I have personal
experience with the dissatisfaction you speak of. In 1978 I was on
welfare and behind in my rent, at the very edge of homelessness. I got my real
estate license and in less than 10 years I was a millionaire with 100 people
working for me. To get there, I worked 14 and sometimes 18 hours a day, 7 days
a week without a single day off. I became a slave to money and I was not at all
happy. When I went bankrupt as a result of my addiction to crack, instead of
feeling bad about my loss, I was relieved. What followed was a
rapid decline into homelessness, but I have to tell you, during my 10 homeless
years I WAS HAPPY. I learned that the goal of financial advancement which
society worships so intently is a trap which can only lead to despair. Regarding your
questions about homeless women, my friend Spirited Away will be visiting me
Saturday and I’ll ask her opinions on your inquiry. From my own
experience, I can tell you that there are far fewer homeless women living rough
as they call it. (meaning on the streets rather than in shelters) And I suspect
there are fewer homeless women in general. I perceive two possible reasons for
this. 1) It is far more
dangerous for a woman out there. They are more likely to be raped or brutalized
than men. 2) Sex. A woman is
more able to find a member of the opposite sex to support her in exchange for
sexual comforts and she is more likely to be able to support herself through
prostitution. As distasteful as it is, a woman has more options than a man at
that level of existence. I’ll have more to
tell you after I see my friend. I am saving these
digital conversations to post on my blog and I suggest you do the same. They
are definitely revealing insights that people should be aware of. Hi Helen. I spoke with my
friend about your questions and she will give the matter some thought. she has
acute agoraphobia and has a great deal of difficulty expressing her deepest
feelings and I suspect the subject is so close to home for her that she is
having difficulty responding. Also, I have put a great deal of responsibility
on her of late, so I'm sure you will understand her hesitance to make a rapid
reply. I'm SURE THAT SHE WILL RESPOND ONCE SHE HAS TIME TO ABSORB THE QUESTION
AND GIVE IT SOME THOUGHT. She is homeless and
a very caring and loving person with a marvellous talent for expressing raw
emotion through her photography. You can see her work here...... http://www.flickr.com/photos/anacrisan/ I had a gallery
showing of my work and invited her to show her work with mine as a joint show.
I printed and framed a selection of her work for the show I AM SO PROUD OF
HER. SHE STOLE THE SHOW!!!!!!!!!!! Everybody loved her
work and she sold TWO of her photos. I sold NONE. Joe Fiorito, a
reporter friend from the Toronto Star did a long interview with her and I'm
sure he will say wonderful things about her in his column. She usually panics
when people approach her, but there was no panic yesterday. SHE WAS WONDERFUL.
She spoke with the people who came to the show, most of whom were total
strangers to her, without a trace of panic AND she was obviously having a
wonderful; time. So, the show was A
TOTAL SUCCESS. I can't seem to find
your blog again. Please send me the link one more time as I thought I had
bookmarked it, but apparently not. God bless. Ron I found the link http://onethoughtfulwoman.wordpress.com/2007/09/
 The abandoned Canada Malting site at the foot of Bathurst St Affordable
Housing is NOT the Answer I
get so pissed off at these groups' short sighted approaches to the problem. It
seems that everyone is clamoring for creation of more affordable housing.
Governments have been trying to solve the housing problem with subsidized
housing for half a century in When will the fools stop trying to whip a dead horse and seek solutions that have at least some hope of working?  A scene from The Brickworks in the Don Valley. OCAP NEEDS YOUR HELP IF IT IS
TO PAY THE RENT
Although I don't agree with everything they do, we would be far worse off without their efforts, so if you can, please help keep them going.  The Toronto skyline looking from Ward's Island towards the Redpath sugar plant A Digital
conversation with a new friend Steve
wrote… Comrade, My reply… Good to hear from you brother.
Thanks for taking the time. I hear you about trying to ask Big Brother to be
anything but evil, but I gotta keep trying. You’re so right when you point out
that the more you accept from them the more they think they own your ass.
That’s why I and many of my friends chose to live outside the system. At least
on the streets you can retain your sense of freedom. I only came in because I
was dying and I wasn’t quite ready for that trip yet. But there are far too
many who want and need a home and I feel it is my mission to do what I can to
get them one. I agree that this whole
socio-economic system is doomed to collapse under its own weight. But that
won’t be for a while yet and I doubt if I’ll live to rejoice in the downfall.
In the mean time I do what I can to advocate for a decent life for the
multitudes that are forced to suffer under economic slavery. If the fools who
support this tyranny could only realize that they too are slaves they might be
more compassionate. The disheartening aspect to all this is that no matter what
system of society we try there will always be a division between the strong and
the weak. Unfortunately the strongest are also usually the greediest and
therein lays the flaw in human nature that condemns us to exist in perpetual
suffering. You mentioned that Helen, the poet
in the video was extremely down. She’s not always like that, but it just had to
be a bad time for her. I’m presently working with her to create a live
production of a piece she wrote that is so perceptive that I intend to create a
video of it for my site. I’ll let you know when it’s up. An actor friend of
ours will be the voice on this video so the presentation will be much more
compelling. Thanks for pointing out ways for
me to improve my own presentation. I liked your take on my bit about exclusion.
Glad you felt it was a bit threatening. That’s part of the message I want to
convey. Ya gotta let them know that the shit’s about to hit the fan and they’re
gonna get hurt if something isn’t done. Any links to Abbey Hoffman you
think I should check out? If you will give me permission,
I’d like to post our conversation on my site. Anonymous if you prefer. Let me
know if this is OK with you. Keep Your Motor Running my friend. More from
Steve… In My reply… You’re right about the real estate company. I sold out man. But I was never happy in that scene and I did leave it behind. The whole real estate period of my life was 10 years out of a total of 63, so in the end I have to say in my own defence that I did learn my lesson. Steve
wrote… It’s not just No offence taken. We’re not
exactly the same of course, but we do have enough in common to understand each
other. I can agree with most of your statements so far, except I don’t believe
legalizing the killer drugs is the right way to go. For the other drugs, I
agree that legalization is the only righteous answer. I am an old head of sorts, and it
is to my shame that I sold out like most of the rest of us. But I did see the
light. Many apologies for my lapse. More from
Steve… Two paragraphs in my friend and I
gotta go. But I'm digging what I read. My reply… It didn’t really throw me. It just
jogged the guilt I have been feeling ever since. Steve
wrote… Please, my brother, far be it from
me to judge. I've done MANY things that to me is worse than 'selling out'...we
all compromise daily in countless ways. Succeeding in their world is no reason
to think less of yourself. My reply… I took a quick look at your
website at PS. At least I learned something
from my period in real estate. I believe that most of the brothers that sold
out are as unhappy as I was. Like me, they just got overwhelmed by the bullshit
and lost the dream. Now instead of being mad at them, I pity them. Steve
wrote… LOL...I FEEL YA! My reply… I got 10 years on ya man and let me tell ya IT ONLY GETS WORSE!!!!! I have arthritis all through my body and the pain never lets up. I have the same strain of Hep C as you and it’s virtually incurable at present although there is a new drug being tested that looks promising. I have emphysema too and still smoke. I have a blockage in my intestine that makes the shit back up until I puke it out my mouth. They were supposed to fix it with an operation, but they closed me up without doing anything. Said they thought it fixed itself. Bullshit. They were 3 hours late getting me into the operating room and I believe they ran out of time and just said fuck it. Close him up. He’s expendable. I hear you about your computer. Let me give you a little brag about my puppy. P 4 quad at 2.6 MHz. 2 terabytes of hard drive with another terabyte on external SATA. One 32” monitor and one 19” monitor and lots of pirate ware. Just now working on going semi legit in that area. Got a friend who is going to get me the whole Adobe CS4 Master Suite at the student rate. Adobe should feel privileged. I could pick it up pirated for 10% of what I’ll be paying. I agree about the internet being great. Now the people have a voice. The media is no longer exclusively in the control of the enemy (enema) lol They really are a load of shit. I’ve had thousands of people from all over the world visit my site. Never before has the thinking man or woman been able to be heard through the bullshit. THERE IS HOPE!!!! We should do something to hook up
others of like mind with us. Can you imagine a world wide network of old heads
who still give a shit working together? Could be fun. Steve
wrote… It ain't my website, it's Dale Gowin's
and I'm helping much as possible. Yeah, I'll definitely bookmark your site.
ALREADY DID. My reply… Shooting pigs is no answer. They
are merely pawns in the game and there is a never ending supply of
replacements. The only worthy targets are the politicians and their bosses. You
could look at not being on the most wanted list as a sign of success. It takes
a lot of wisdom to be an anarchist for so long and still be amongst the living.
Anarchy does not necessarily need to be expressed with violence. As the man
said, "The pen is mightier than the sword." AND we're both too old
for that shit now. Guns are a kids game. If they want to, let them play with
our blessings. I don't believe there is any hope of peacefully achieving a
Utopian world short of total destruction of this one and probably not even then
given human nature. All I strive for is to make a small part of the world a
better place for all. The problem is that there is no available measuring stick
to see if I am succeeding, but I have faith that I can help make things a
little better. My reply… I was born Hey Steve, I’ve been thinking
about the idea of a world wide network of activists like ourselves and the more
I think of it the better it sounds. If you’re interested, we could set up a
website and invite fellow activists to join the network. The site could be
divided into regions and events could be posted on it as well as making it a
meeting place for people of like minds who want to do more than think about
this shit. What do you think of the idea? Would you like to help set it up?  Ronzig the wizard preparing to close a Black Hole One Solution to City Owned Slums I live in a wonderful rent
geared to income apartment in a well maintained building owned by the city.
Conditions here are excellent. You can’t imagine how surprised I was when I
visited a friend who lives in another building with rent geared to income that
is also owned by the city and realized that it was a dangerous slum. Even more
surprising was the fact that the apartments were almost identical in design and
layout, having been obviously designed and built during the same period by the
same people for the same purpose. To help you to understand the vast
dissimilarity in these two buildings, let me point out that my building is so
safe that I never lock my door when I am at home and often leave it unlocked
when I go out for a short time whereas my friend told me that her neighbour, an
elderly gentleman, in the apartment beside her had recently suffered a home
invasion and been beaten severely. Where my halls and elevators are always
spotless, hers were dirty and smelled of urine. I wondered why such a
difference in two similar buildings and after thinking about it, I may have an
answer. My building has a mixed tenant base, some paying market rent and the
rest paying rent geared to income while I believe hers is wholly occupied by
rent geared to income tenants. I believe that this is the predominant variation
that results in such divergent conditions. Because the city rents a substantial
proportion of the building at market rates it is forced to keep maintenance at
a high level to attract tenants and because of the extra rental income the
market rent tenants provide, the budget allows for this added level of
maintenance. But more importantly, the
high standards in my building encourage all of us, including those who are not
accustomed to a quality environment to take pride in our homes and put in the
extra effort it requires to ensure that the standards do not decline. No tenant
here would dream of pissing in our elevators or tolerate visitors fouling our
home. I think that the city should
embark on a program of renovating its rundown buildings and converting them to
a mixed tenant base with enough market rent tenants to ensure standards are not
let slide and all future properties developed by the city should have a mixed
tenant base as well. In order for this to work without decreasing the rent
geared to income housing stock, it would be essential for the city to embark on
a program of new development which is so desperately needed, since there
appears to be no intention of doing the right thing and ensuring that social
assistance rates and minimum wage levels are adequate to pay market rent.  There used to be a swing here where we would sit and smoke a joint. The authorities removed it and fenced the place off. I guess they prefer seeing us smoke in the school yard instead. While reading The Gates of
Ivory by Margaret Drabble, I came across this passage which sums up the sorry
state of our modern civilization. “Capitalism and competition have triumphed, religion has withered
away, and there is no longer any place in the West for self sacrifice,
dedication, brotherly love, compassion, community. In the sixties, it had
seemed that the West would soon be sated, that it would fall sick of its own
greed and glut. The agencies whose representatives now clustered around Stephen
had been founded to cure this excess, to redress the balance, to purge the
system and lance the deadly swelling, to level the food mountains and to shake
down the superfux and to spread around the good things of the earth. But it had
appeared that they had all been misguided. They had acted on false premises.
For there was, it had turned out, no superfux. There was no limit to man’s
greed. He could eat and eat and swell and swell and yet want more and more.
This was the lesson of the eighties. Avarice and greed have no natural limits.
Man can eat on and on and never burst.His appetites demand rarer and more
exotic fruits, fruits shaped like moons and suns and stars and fishes, fishes
shaped like fruits and still he eats on and on. Appetites have no natural limit.
They cannot be sated. There will never be a point at which men agree they have
enough, and that the other lot can have the leftovers for free. The devil will
always take the hindmost. This is what makes man great.This is what radiates
the candiola. This is what sends him to the stars.” To learn about Margaret
Drabble follow the link below. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/arts/features/womenwriters/drabble_life.shtml  Instesd of building weapons of war to keep others out, we should be building bridges to bring them into the family of man. This is a digital
conversation I had with a very wise 19 year old recently. She has been a street
kid for a number of years and traveled to many of the places I visited in the
60’s as a hippy. She prefers to remain anonymous here. Please take into consideration
the fact that at age 13 she had already been homeless for some time and has not
had the benefit of a formal education. Her writing skills although limited by
lack of education are clearly adequate to convey exceptional intelligence and
wisdom in someone so very young. Her… Dude... no need to tell me
about TO! Me… Wild story. You're lucky you didn't run into a few of the idiots who get their jollies from laying a beating on defenseless kids. Her... I dunno. in TBay The way is in practise... and
what do they lack now that was so talking about, from then? i didnt get fucked up on
drugs until everything changed again, i ended up comming back and there was no
one to talk to... Me… I'm an old hippy from the
60's. We almost changed things. We could have made this world a better place,
but we sold out our dreams for a BMW and a fast paced job with IBM. The hippies
became yuppies and were far worse than the people they were protesting against
in the 60's, not only in lack of morals, but worse because we knew better and
still sold out.  Just Passing through. All Rights Reserved No part of this page may be copied
without the express written consent of the author Ronzig |
