Dear Judges, Lawyers, Policemen, Guards, Counselors, Taxpayers, et. al.,
We are here. Like it or not, for good or bad, we are here. Who are we? We are the downtrodden and
dispossesed, the self-torturing, the disenfranchised convicts, drug and alcohol addicts, the
unemployed and unemployable. We are the children of poverty, financial and spiritual. We have and
will have children of our own, grandchildren too. We are ex-cons, uninsured, homeless, of many
colors and speaking many tongues. We are the enemy in what has become a domestic war against
ourselves.
And who are you? You who like the tough talk of Tough on Crime? You who watch as budgets are cut in
education and health care while you militarize a police force? Bullet-proof vests, automatic
weapons, helicopters, tanks, robots ... the testosterone is oozing through the streets, more
prisons, longer sentences, tighten the belt, spartan conditions, task forces, gang units, gun
courts. And what is there to show for it? Unemployent stays low because half the population oversees
those "out of the workforce", the dregs, the rabble, the enemy? Please tell me there is a deeper
reason. Do you feel safer? More humane? More like a cohesive society with a shared sense of purpose,
who can identify Us and Them? Do you live in a gated community or gentrified neighborhood? By the
way, have you read the Declaration of Independence and US Constitution - or do you only know the
first phrases?
It's about time we got together. Please know that I have yet to meet a convict who wants their child
to be a thief, an addict, a dealer, a prostitute, or a violent individual. Most of us still have
hope for ourselves even when stuck in the darkest dilemmas, ruts and catch-22s. Most of us believe
in crafting laws and instilling order. Many of us have burrowed beneath the surface to find a
spiritual sense of being, an understanding force at least as powerful as those we succumbed to, and
many of use wouldn't escape if you opened the front door. Did you know that approximately 10 million
Americans are either incarcerated, on probation, on parole or once were in those categories? Each of
those 10 million have families, friends, neighbors ... and so closer and closer does the We
interface with the You. Don't you think it's time we talked?
Are you ready? Can you accept that the road we are travelling points toward a grim and painful
future? Do you have the heart to face monumental failures while bravely struggling beyond where we
are now? I know that some of you are, and that some of us are, and this is what gives me hope. You
need our insights just as we need your structure. It is never over, especially when a real solution,
a real treatment for our sickness, is yet to begin.
In Solidarity,
Bruce Reilly (a.k.a Bruha)
P.O.Box 8274 Cranston, RI 02920 USA
P.S. - I am trying to conceptualize an effective guerilla media campaign to promote this cause.
Ideas are welcome. Collaboration is prayed.
for approval before appearing in the newsgroup. Usenet is available on a wide variety of computer
systems and networks, but the bulk of modern Usenet traffic is transported over either the
Internet or UUCP.
WHY IS USENET SO HARD TO DEFINE?
--------------------------------
The first thing to understand about Usenet is that it is widely misunderstood. Every day on Usenet,
the "blind men and the elephant" phenomenon is evident, in spades. In my opinion, more flame wars
arise because of a lack of understanding of the nature of Usenet than from any other source. And
consider that such flame wars arise, of necessity, among people who are on Usenet. Imagine, then,
how poorly understood Usenet must be by those outside!
Any essay on the nature of Usenet cannot ignore the erroneous impressions held by many Usenet users.
Therefore, this article will treat falsehoods first. Keep reading for truth. (Beauty, alas, is
outside the scope of this article.)
WHAT USENET IS NOT
------------------
1. Usenet is not an organization.
No person or group has authority over Usenet as a whole. No one controls who gets a news feed,
which articles are propagated where, who can post articles, or anything else. There is no
"Usenet Incorporated," nor is there a "Usenet User's Group." You're on your own.
Granted, there are various activities organized by means of Usenet newsgroups. The newsgroup
creation process is one such activity. But it would be a mistake to equate Usenet with the
organized activities it makes possible. If they were to stop tomorrow, Usenet would go on
without them.
2. Usenet is not a democracy.
Since ther