The End of the Baby Boomer Generation: an open letter to “radical activists.”
-or-
Musings by Anarcho-Matt ;)

In the words of Bob Dylan, "times, they are a-changin'." New technologies in telecommunications and mass media (think satellites and the internet) have transformed our world immeasurably and rendered 'classical' modes of thought outdated and irrelevant. Those of us who grew up in the 1990s and had to deal with shit like being told by teachers that we weren't good enough and that we needed to 'adapt' to the 'New Economy' know this all too well. As a lone atom from this 'New Generation,' I have realized that those who told me to adapt had it backwards: the New Economy will have to 'adapt' to ME and not the other way around; and, by 'adapt,' I mean cease to exist!

Each of us needs to do what we need to do in order to survive. This is true whether you grew up listening to Nirvana and flunking math tests or toting an AK-47 for some paramilitary group in Latin America. In some way or another, we all have to make compromises with the existing order and no one can be faulted for this. The self-abnegation and Redemption Through Suffering advocated by much of the political left should be seen as the utter ridiculousness that it actually is. It is precisely this self-abnegation that beats people into submission and brings them to accept their present condition (hey, that rhymes!). Not only does it deaden one's desire to live fully, it deadens one's desire to even survive. In a global order that prioritizes survival over living, death is a release.

Having said that, the compromises that each of us makes in our day-to-day existence must be of a strategic nature: how can we live and be happy while maintaining a firm opposition to the ruling order? How can we exploit the material resources that it so benevolently offers us while decisively remaining poised for attack? Attacks on the ruling order can take many forms - from armed uprising to the creation of works of art. How you choose to resist is ultimately up to you. What matters is to know within yourself why you are resisting and what your fondest desires are in terms of the sort of world you want to live in. If you want anarchy, then don’t let anyone convince you that it isn’t a worthy goal. Even if my idea of anarchy isn’t the same as yours, we are united by our mutual desire to destroy the existing order. This is true regardless of your race, gender, sexual orientation or income bracket.

The impulse to just ‘fall in line’ is the basis of every reactionary dogma from the far-right to the far-left. To engage in social struggle on it’s basis is to render oneself impotent from the start. Radical activists who speak contemptuously about ‘the State’ and yet subordinate their desires to the organizations with which they volunteer are still succumbing to this mentality; a mentality that has been propagated by Christianity for ages. Nietzsche was right when he said that God is Dead - and that he was killed by the very people who worshiped him. “Mankind” and his technological “progress” has become the new God at who’s feet we are all to bow; but this “progress” will be its own undoing because of the seeds of rebellion that it is sowing. The “work ethic” that the baby boomer generation grew up with is being replaced by something greater and something far more beautiful: the desire to live and the desire to fight back! This is an historical fact that cannot be denied and cannot be stopped!

Peace, Love, and Anarchy!
Matt